Computing: Netbooks are small computers that are cheaper and lighter than full-scale laptops. They have their merits—but do not ask too much of them

计算：网簿是比全尺寸笔记本电脑更廉价、更轻便的小型电脑。它们有自己的优点——不过，别要求太多。

STEVE JOBS says Apple does not know how to make a $500 computer “that’s not a piece of junk”. Yet this article was written on a small computer that costs less than that—and barely a quarter of the price of the Apple iMac that sits on the desk beside it. Small, cheap mini-notebooks like this, or “netbooks” as they have come to be called, are not as fast or as capable as a big computer like an iMac, and in performance terms they trail behind most laptops. But they are certainly not junk, and for some people they may be the best computers money can buy.

史蒂夫·乔布斯表示苹果造不出500美元的电脑，“电脑又不是一大块废铜烂铁。”然而，本文倒是在一台小电脑上写成的，这台电脑不用花那样的价钱——它的价格几乎只有书桌上在它旁边的苹果iMac的四分之一。类似这样小型、廉价的迷你笔记本电脑，或者按照原来的叫法，所谓“网簿”的速度和能力都不如像iMac一样的大电脑，而且在性能方面，它们也落后于大多数笔记本电脑。但它们肯定不是垃圾，而且对有些人而言，它们可能是金钱可以买到的最佳电脑。

Netbooks are a hot-selling consumer product. The first to appear on the market, a year or so ago, were aimed at children. But now they are proving popular not just with families and first-time computer buyers but also with power users who want something small, lightweight and cheap.

网簿是一类热销的消费品。大约一年前第一次在市场上出现，瞄准的是小孩子。不过眼下的市场证明，它们不仅广受家庭和第一次电脑买主的青睐，而且也受到需要轻巧廉价的高级用户的欢迎。

They typically have screens measuring seven to ten inches diagonally. They have built-in wireless networking, but lack an optical drive for CDs or DVDs. Some use flash memory for storage instead of a hard disk, which makes them more robust and extends battery life. Netbooks generally cost less than $500. IDC, a market-research firm, reckons worldwide sales of netbooks will reach 10.8m in 2008 and more than 20m in 2009, during which they will represent 11-12% of the entire laptop market.

它们的屏幕对角线长度典型地为7到10英寸。内置无线联网功能，可是没有用于CD或DVD的光驱。有些使用闪存代替硬盘来存储，这使它们更加坚固耐用并且延长电池的寿命。网簿的价格一般不到500美元。市场调查公司IDC估计，2008年网簿全球销售量将达到1080万台，2009年将超过2000万台，在这期间，它们将占整个笔记本电脑市场的11-12％。
Keep it simple
保持简单易用

Most current models, including Samsung’s NC10, much of the Asus Eee range, the MSI Wind and the Acer Aspire One, use Intel’s Atom as their central processor. This is the chipmaker’s smallest processor, designed specifically for low-cost and portable devices, not for intensive number-crunching. But because a lot of things that people do with computers, such as e-mail, writing and web browsing, do not require fancy graphics or lots of processing power, netbooks can still be extremely useful.

最流行的型号，包括三星公司的NC10、大部分华硕Eee系列、MSI的Wind和宏基的Aspire One，都采用了英特尔的Atom作为中央处理器。这是这家芯片制造商最小的处理器，专为低成本便携式设备而设计，不适用于密集的数字运算。不过，由于人们使用电脑做的许多事情，例如e-mail、写作和浏览网页，都不需要花哨的图形或者大量的计算处理能力，所以，网簿可能还是大有可为的。

The number of netbooks available is growing as more producers pile into the market (but not Apple—at least, not yet). But if you are buying one, avoid the temptation to get the slickest, most powerful machine available. Much advice on offer online suggests souping up the specification of a netbook so it can run Microsoft’s Windows XP operating system, rather than the free, open-source Linux system that is offered as standard on many netbooks.

随着更多的厂家（但没有苹果——至少还没有）挤进这一市场，市面上可买到的网簿型号越来越多。不过，要是想买一个，就应该避免这样的诱惑，即把最光滑、功能最强的机器买到手。许多网上销售广告暗示加快制定网簿规范，使其能够运行微软的Windows XP操作系统，而不是在许多网簿上作为标准提出的自由与开源的Linux系统。

Yet increasing the specification only makes sense for people who want to run (and to pay for) Windows and specific Windows-based applications. The extra hardware and software costs start to push the price of a netbook towards that of a standard laptop, which will invariably be better because it has a bigger processor and superior graphics. For many users, the basic, free software shipped with a netbook will be quite enough.

然而，越来越多的规格只对需要运行（并付钱购买）Windows和基于Windows的专用程序的人有意义。附加的软硬件成本开始把网簿的价格推高到标准笔记本电脑的价格，笔记本电脑总是要好一些，因为它有更大的处理器和卓越的图形界面。对于许多用户来说，与网簿装在一起交货的、基本的免费软件将完全够用。

The most basic model of the Acer Aspire One can be found for £179 in Britain and around $300 in America. It simply switches on and runs with the minimum of fuss. It has 8 gigabytes (GB) of flash storage and 512 megabytes of RAM, which is a bit puny. But that is perfectly adequate to run the customised version of Linux that comes pre-installed on it, along with a suite of software, including Open Office. With no hard drive, and a switch to turn off the wireless connection (not the fastest in the world), power can be conserved. So a bigger, bulkier battery may not be necessary either, unless you want to use the computer untethered for long periods. Because it boots up in a few seconds, rather than thinking of the Acer as a mini laptop it might make more sense to view it as a beefed-up personal digital assistant, such as an old PalmPilot or Psion, but with a better screen and a proper keyboard.

在英国花179英镑可以买到大部分宏基Aspire One基本型号，而在美国大约要花300美元。它一开机就可运行，麻烦极少。它有8GB的快闪存储器和容量稍微少一些的512MB的RAM。但运行预装的Linux定制版本，连同一套包括Open Office在内的软件却完全胜任。网簿没有硬盘驱动器，有一个转向无线连接的开关（不是世界上最快的），能节约用电。因此，大一些的笨重电池也就可能没有必要，除非您想要长时间不插电使用电脑。由于它在几秒内启动，所以，与其把这种宏基电脑看作一个迷你笔记本电脑，倒不如把它看作增强型个人数字助理，例如旧式PalmPilot或者Psion，不过有更好的屏幕和适用的键盘，这样才可能恰如其分。

But what about the lack of storage? Again, the way the machine can be used addresses this problem. First, netbooks are designed to be used with the net, which is where an increasing number of people now store a lot of their stuff, such as e-mail, videos and photos, and where people do other work with online applications. Second, with three USB ports it can always be plugged into devices, such as a portable hard drive, to store things locally. Storage space can also be boosted by plugging a small SD-card flash memory (16GB versions are now widely available) into one of two ports, one of which is designated to act as semi-permanent storage.

但存储容量不足怎么办？这种机器又有办法可以用来解决这个问题。首先，网簿本来就打算联网使用，现在，越来越多的人把他们的电子邮件、视频和照片统统塞进网络存起来，网络也是人们应用在线程序做其他工作的地方。其次，三个USB端口总是可以插入像便携式硬盘驱动器这样的设备，以便就地存储各种数据资料。通过把一片SD卡式闪存（现在广泛使用的各种款式是16GB）插入两个端口之一，其中一个指定作为暂时存储空间，也能够增加存储空间。

As for the software, Open Office was surprisingly easy to use—a doddle for anyone who has used Microsoft Office. Moreover, the ability to save work in different formats presented no compatibility problems when sending files to a Windows-based machine. Photo software and other applications were simple to use too. The machine is not up to much for playing games, but then a dedicated games console beats most computers when it comes to games anyway.

至于软件，Open Office令人惊讶地易于使用——对于用惯微软Office的人都不费吹灰之力。此外，当把文件发送到基于Windows的机器时，能够按不同格式保存起来，没有出现兼容性问题。照片软件和其他应用程序也简单易用。这台机器玩游戏就不怎么样，但另一方面，说到游戏，一台专用游戏机无论如何胜过大多数电脑。

The Acer has a built-in webcam, which makes it ideal for video-calling services such as Skype. Admittedly, installing third-party software can be a bit of a fiddle, and some of the advice available online threatens to lure users into the tangled depths of the Linux undergrowth, where few people will want to venture. But as netbooks become more prevalent, such difficulties are likely to ease.

这种宏基产品内置网络摄像头，把它当作如Skype一样的视频电话服务是很理想的。诚然，安装第三方软件可能略嫌麻烦，而在网上可以找到的一些忠告，似乎将会诱惑用户深入到缠结在一起的Linux灌木丛，很少有人会在那里冒险。不过，当网簿越来越流行的时候，这些困难有可能缓解。

The upshot is that netbooks are great as cheap, simple and small computers for performing basic tasks—especially if the pre-installed software does what you want it to. They will never satisfy power users who want to edit video and play elaborate games, but they are not meant to. Provided they do not expect too much, most users will be delighted with them.

结果，网簿因其便宜、简朴和小巧而成为执行基本任务的非凡电脑——尤其是，如果预装软件正是您想要的。它们将永远不会使需要编辑视频并玩精心制作的游戏的高级用户满足，但它们原本就不打算这样做。如果期望不是过多，大多数用户都会喜欢上网簿。