The following article (with references up-dated with current chip speeds and features ) is available for reprinting on condition that you acknowledge its author, Dr. Thomas Pison, and cite the source: http://worldtraining.com. There is no fee.

Increasingly, training, like so many aspects of business, is going mobile. Telecommuting, traveling for on-site training delivery, and on-call accessibility, have added to the market demand for the latest category of fast, lightweight, high performance personal computers termed notebooks.

While most PC manufacturers offer notebooks with similar benefits such as high speed processor chips, active-matrix displays, weight, and price, we limit ourselves to three representing best values with marginal considerations for specific features. The Sony VAIO F290, chosen for its efficiency, brand name, and generous 15-inch active matrix display. The Acer 330 Travelmate, chosen for its ruggedness but primarily for its useful and thoughtful design features. The Macintosh iBook, chosen for resources such as near-zero learning-curve, flexibility, and a wireless-networking option (termed the AirPort).

We evaluated three notebooks, all guaranteed to make your training tasks easier and lighter. All notebooks cited, the Sony, the Acer, and the Mac iBook are 3 to 5 pounds and under $1500. However, prices are dropping so fast that training-mission value (rather than price) should figure most in your purchase decision.

Most notebooks advertised have a basic RAM allotment of 64 MB, wholly inadequate but designed to give your retailer room to negotiate, So, ask for more RAM and keep asking prospective vendors until they agree to sweeten the deal. Most of the notebooks I surveyed (before selecting the three above) have only two slots for chips. You want at least 64 MB RAM – and you want it on one chip. Save that extra slot for your next 64 MB chip (total 128MB) when video-on-demand becomes practical next year and RAM prices drop even more.

The chip speeds, Acer’s 366 MHz, the 400 MHz on the SONY VAIO, and the 300 MHz G3 chip on the Mac are roughly equivalent in speed. Industry integer tests such as BYTEmark have the Mac G3 besting the Pentium II in executing routine tasks such as opening applications in Word, Excel, and Powerpoint, for word processing, spreadsheets, or presentations.

While the Acer and iBook have notebook-standard 12-inch active-matrix screens, the Sony F290 boasts a 15-inch display with a crisp definition one associates with their Trinitron. It also includes an iLink digital port (IEE 1394) for video input from a Sony Handycam or for networking to other PCs. With the Adobe Premiere software provided, you can compose, edit, and distribute training videos or DVDs on the road quickly.

All have an external SVGA port for plugging in a larger screen monitor or data projector, termed "mirroring". However, the Macintosh has long allowed an optional side-by-side monitor display. This means you can use your notebook screen for control panel clutter and the larger monitor (or overhead display screen) in order for your audience to view your training presentation without distraction.

However, technology lock-in means that if your firm or IT department has already bought into the Wintel systems architecture (Windows OS w/Intel processor chips), your default is for PC notebooks such as Acer or Sony. For those hold-outs who have yet to commit, consider an Mac iBook for the ease of use – particularly if you are delivering training to people who rarely use or resist using PCs. Also, most viruses out there plague Wintel machines, perhaps because crackers (renegade hackers) consider Macs beneath their expertise.

Nonetheless, Macintosh systems have always allowed up to ten Macs to be networked effortlessly with telephone cord connections. Now with the AirPort option, (available for $199) an unlimited number of iMacs can be networked instantly. While this set up was designed for classrooms (the battery life claimed is six hours, but I cannot confirm this), your training group can benefit from the ease and flexibility of set up and use. While Windows and Mac interfaces become increasingly similar, the Mac system is still more forgiving for those who do not use PCs routinely or who resist the digital revolution (and they number in the millions).

All information processors, from palm-held devices to servers are becoming increasingly reliable and of such high quality that many manufacturers find it easier to have you return the rare, flawed unit during the warranty period for quick replacement. The Acer, the Mac, and the Sony all have sensible return policies and warranties. In truth, there are few clunkers shipped out, quality control is just that good.

All three notebooks feature essentials such as Ethernet ports and V. 90, 56K modem (for networking and on-the-road e-mail fetching and surfing), ultra-slim profile, and parallel and serial ports. The new USB standard allows you to easily connect any new peripherals you will buy such as a Jaz tape back-up or a video camera. All feature optimal battery power management, allowing an honest 4 or 5 hours of use before recharging.

In contrast to the name brand assurance in a Sony purchase (which you pay for), Acer, the world’s third largest computer OEM, is one of the lesser known brand names in the PC market. This is partly because it is the largest "white box" manufacturer thus many better-known brands on the market actually have Acer-innards.

And sturdy, the Acer Travelmate 330 I tested, encased in its magnesium-alloy shell, survived an accidental 3-foot drop (kids, don’t try this at home!). When I suggested a similar trial for other notebooks at a local PC outlet, the salespeople laughed with me, perhaps at me. The Acer site has also reprinted a long review in the Wall Street Journal last June comparing, feature for feature, the latest IBM notebook, the X, and the Acer Travelmate. They both got excellent ratings, except the Acer was over a thousand dollars less than the equivalent IBM model. Everyone knows you will pay for the assurance of the IBM brand.

Some features of interest to trainers and glossed over in the WSJ review merit comment. For example, the Adaptec touch-pad array on the Acer has a scroll button in addition to the right and left click buttons. When you are using Explorer or Navigator, the button scrolls the browser window up or down for you. Small improvement but an enormous efficiency; it allows you to surf faster without fingering the cursor arrow to the scroll slide at the side of the browser window.

As more and more applications use a browser interface, you will save even more time and patience. The Acer notebook also keeps weight down by keeping its CD/DVD/diskette reader separate but always accessible through a hot-swappable port on the side. In addition, the multi-lingual orientation materials available confirm that Acer (originating in Taiwan) has long been aware of a global market. If you train people to use PCs and the internet for business as I do, you can readily build upon their visuals supplied and produce professional results easily.

The smaller, thinner profile and curb weight makes this notebook so portable, you will never gripe about "lugging" your PC home or taking it on the road again.