Ask Jack

Ask Jack

Robust laptop required

I want a robust netbook that I can take on my travels. I'll be using a cycle, motorbike and public transport, sometimes in developing countries.
Paul Jeffcutt

JS: The machine that immediately springs to mind is the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) XO-1, which is designed for children in the third world. It has its own idiosyncratic Linux-based operating system called Sugar. I suggest you read the instructions first, then try running it on a PC using a LiveCD. This lets you try it without actually buying an OLPC. An alternative is an Intel Classmate PC. The original design, made by many small companies across the world, is intended to be more rugged than consumer netbooks, which are not particularly robust. Classmates are usually available running Microsoft Windows XP. Examples include the Zoostorm FizzBook Bang, and the forthcoming Archos Classmate, which looks the same. A chip-based SSD (Solid State Drive) should be more robust than a conventional hard drive, even when shock-protection is included. This could be important when travelling by motorcycle, where the vibration levels will be very high. You can use your body as a shock absorber by carrying the PC in a well-cushioned backpack, not in a pannier, but it's still risky.

There is a big market for "ruggedised" notebooks for public services and military services, and there are Mil-Spec standards to cover them. Panasonic is perhaps the best known vendor, with its Toughbook range. In fact, it has five classes of Toughbook from "business-rugged" through "fully-rugged" to "ultra-mobile-rugged" designed using MIL-STD-810F. Ruggedness obviously comes at a price. The Wikipedia entry for Rugged computer also has some useful information.

Waterproof calling

Can you recommend an utterly reliable, waterproof mobile phone? I work in remote areas for the avalanche service in Scotland in the winter and modern "waterproof", "rugged" phones seem flimsy by comparison to the Motorola 8000 "brick" that I used to have.
Tom Rupar

JS: There's clearly a need for rugged mobile phones for emergency services and military uses, and perhaps a much bigger potential market among outdoor enthusiasts who want to take their phones climbing, skiing, sailing and so on. One example is the Sonim XP1, which was promoted as the world's toughest phone. This was also sold as the JCB Toughphone. Sonim now offers the XP3 and some more consumer-oriented models such as LM801. Rivals include the Samsung M110 and Samsung B2700 rugged phones: see for details. With phones you can check the IP number. For example, a phone rated IP57 is rated 5 for resistance to dust and 7 for resistance to water. Bigger numbers are better.

Do I need .Net?

I've been given a secondhand IBM ThinkPad running Windows XP Professional, and I'm getting a lot of updates for the Microsoft .Net Framework. I only use the PC for browsing with Firefox and IE 8, plus accessing my email on Yahoo. Do I need it?
Ron Shaw

JS: Microsoft launched .Net a decade ago to provide a simpler way of creating Windows programs. Quoting Wikipedia: "The framework's Base Class Library provides a large range of features including user interface, data and data access, database connectivity, cryptography, web application development, numeric algorithms, and network communications". It's also through .Net that Microsoft has retrofitted Windows XP with new technologies developed for Windows Vista. This includes Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), the new graphics subsystem used by, for example, Silverlight. Although .Net doesn't appear to do anything, an increasing number of programs won't work without it.

USB blocking

I would like to set up a restriction so that a guest user cannot use any of the USB ports on my PC.
Mweni Chibwa

JS: Usually, this kind of facility is provided via an Active Directory (AD) server and Group Policies, but home versions of Windows don't support Group Policies. Microsoft Knowledge Base article 823732 has a workaround for Windows XP that involves editing the registry. However, searching for "USB blocker" will turn up examples of utilities that will do the job, including NetWrix USB blocker, which is free. There's also uHook USB Disk Security v2.2, which provides more comprehensive data-theft defences, and, it says, "is designed keeping in mind the requirement of a home PC user". It costs £13.74, but there's a trial version.


• Frank Teasdale and others asked why I still used dial-up. My laptop travels the world and there are plenty of places that don't have broadband. Also, it provides a fallback in the UK, though not one I've used for several years.

Today's best video

  • Alhassan Kemokai

    I survived Ebola

  • Freerunner James Kingston climbs up a crane in Bangalore - video

    View from above

    British freerunner and film stuntman James Kingston climbs crane in Bangalore
  • Grouper florida shark

    Huge fish eats shark whole

  • Cameron

    PM: Beheading suspect quite likely British


Today in pictures