Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Dusting off the TC1100

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My TC1100 had been sitting and collecting dust for a few months.  I was thinking of selling it, so I put the old hard drive back in.  Then it sat for a bit while I didn’t get around to listing it.  A little while later, I realized I wanted to use it, so I put the SSD back in, and - nothing.  It was not recognized by the computer - not from the BIOS, not from the Windows install CD, not from a Linux USB stick, nothing.  Luckily, it came with a 2 year warranty, so I was able to RMA it.  A week later, a brand new one showed up in the mail.  I was still considering selling, and now I had a brand new sealed SSD that I could sell separately.  But there was my TC1100 looking at me, begging to be used, so after a few more weeks on indecisiveness, I installed the SSD and set about reinstalling Windows. 

I followed the mobilewiki guide to install Windows 7 again (although it’s running Ultimate now, thanks to some friends who work for Microsoft).  Getting proper Wacom drivers that worked well with ArtRage was a bit of an adventure, and I’m still not sure which ones I actually ended up with. 

I don’t really draw, but ever since I first encountered ArtRage on the Asus EP121 at CES, I’ve been intrigued.  I may not be an artist, but I did enjoy drawing and coloring as a kid, and my high school notes are quite doodle-full.  I enjoy messing around with ArtRage, and I find that for my simple uses, it runs reasonably well on the TC1100. 

The size is just such a good compromise of big enough to be useful and small enough to be comfortable.  I love it for writing and drawing on the couch.  Handwriting stuff just feels natural and easy.  It’s sadly a little big to haul out to church for note-taking during sermons, but it will live on as a couch writer and occasional music reader.  And with the extra battery, it’s still ideal for media booth notes.  For now, I’m more likely to use the 2730p for music reading just because I’m already carrying it for teaching.  But at home, the TC1100 wins out for best portable wacom pad.

2 comments:

  1. Loved your video on the EP121. I live in near Tokyo and finally got t play with the EP121 it was awoke. I have a iPad and LE1600.

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  2. Thanks, the EP121 is a great machine (amazing screen, solid performance) and I probably would have picked one up, but for the battery life. At least with the TC1100 I can carry an extra battery and swap them, and 2730p will go all day with the slice.

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