I don't think the price for PCs will matter. You can always grab a bluetooth keyboard if you want to type something out, and there are even web based IDEs available, which means that you're not limited to platform. Right now, you can add a keyboard to your droid or iphone and start hacking away.
Additionally, the programming experience is in many ways focused too much on the text based code itself, and less on the act of creation. It may be that changing the PC/developer interface causes a revolution in the way that people program.
I mean, on the other hand, there's plenty of other things I could code on. I have a Nintendo Switch with root access, but that doesn't make it an appealing device to write code with. Hell, SSH could run on Apple Watch with a Bluetooth keyboard. Once again though, there's simply no point. You may as well get a laptop, it sounds like you only intend to use it with a keyboard anyways.
Wrote some code on an iPad this morning on my way to work.
Never again. It's not even a question of the software being that of a glorified phone.
Even using a 3rd party code editor with its software 'coding keyboard' it was an exercise in inefficiency and anti-ergonomics. So by the time you've added a Bluetooth keyboard, you've effectively got yourself a ramshackle laptop that isn't quite as useful as an actual laptop.
I've written code (mainly bug fixes) on my Android tablet just fine. Used a terminal with Vim, then used SGit to commit and push my code to Gitlab. I've also written Python scripts to use in Tasker.
Yes, typing is a pain, but that's an ergonomics problems, not a lack of openness. I got a cheap BT keyboard, which works fine on Android. You can also use a plain USB keyboard with an OTG cable, though power might be an issue.
I used to have a Palm Pilot around 15 years ago. On that was an app that supported a C dialect. So I wrote a Snake clone in it. Was actually fun. But yeah, there was a pen and a custom input language, I think that's more efficient than fitting a keyboard on to a tiny space.
There's a trend that all kinds of computers become like Stereos. They become very practical to use for recreational tasks and a limited amount of professional tasks. That's not including programming though. I mean a Chromebook is for instance a laptop perfectly suitable for programming but you need to go through some discomfort to configure it for that, although I guess it became easier with time.
Not the same person, but programming on phones with Bluetooth keyboards is very common for people learning in developing countries since everyone has a phone, and many do not have a laptop.
At least virtualisation for x86(_64). I'm not sure if a keyboard is a must... I'd like to have a bluetooth keyboard for my Galaxy Note II (connecting my pc's USB keyboard kinda sucks and is too large to take with me), but mostly tablets are not meant for productive work anyway.
Of course a lower price with identical or more features will attract more sales, that's a moot point. The question is whether it will increase profits.
But it can be done to an extent. Grab a cheap external BT keyboard, a folding monitor stand, and Termux or a Scheme interpreter, or a BASIC interpreter (I haven't looked, but I assume they exist), and you're there.
I've done a lot of programming and writing on the phone that way.
I tried coding on a phone just for the technical challenge and to see how I would manage, and I just couldn't do it. I'm a good typist on my phone, but with very technical and finicky things such as code, you need special care and precision, that for me, works only best on a desktop workstation with a proper keyboard.
I tried coding on my iPad on a beanbag, but found I was 10x more productive with a workstation with chair, mouse, etc. I think I have bad dexterity. I've seen others happily coding away on beanbags in the office and don't know how they do it.
Coding on a phone is very doable if you have decent eyes. There are a number of good editors and ssh clients available. The real problem is the input. You can really get a near laptop level of productivity if you have a good keyboard. The best, far and away, is the ThinkOutside/iGo Stowaway. Luckily, even though it's discontinued, over ten years old, and was originally made to connect to PDAs before the iPhone even existed, the Bluetooth version works fine with modern phones. You can still find them on Amazon and Ebay. (https://www.amazon.com/Stowaway-Ultra-Slim-Bluetooth-Blackbe...)
What makes it such a killer product is that it's:
1. Small and light enough to carry in your pocket, folded
2. Almost a full keyboard -- it's got all of the modifier keys, arrows, and symbols you need for programming. You do need to use a modifier to type numbers, but this is easy to get used to.
3. Very comfortable to type on, good sized keys, good action and travel
4. Possible to use on your lap. The folding mechanism locks into place, and there is an attached stand for the phone. Other keyboards are nearly as good, but have to be placed on a hard surface, or they'll fold up.
Plenty of people code on tablets with keyboards, especially in environments where the computation is offloaded (eg ssh, Cloud-based IDEs, Jupyter, etc).
You can probably read all the content of the courses on your phone and even run a basic Python/R interpreter on it, but no. Phone keyboards suck for programming and there are a ton of programs you can't run on a phone (like RStudio or Python IDEs).
Just get a cheap desktop and keyboard on Craigslist. I've found ones for as little as 20USD. Or you might be able to use a Raspberry Pi, if you're into that.
I'm writing this with my 10.1 Android tablet and a bluetooth keyboard. As I do with most of my HN posts. I would code with these if there were a good IDE for Android. That's one of my dreams. I'm not sure what you mean with "prop up the screen"? You just pair the keyboard via bluetooth once, then it automatically works if you turn it on. You just touch on a text input and start typing. I have a Motorola laptop sized android specific keyboard that has android specific keys (home, search, back etc). But any PC bluetooth keyboard works. There's literally thousands of them, any regular desktop keyboard works. Most of the limitation comes from apps, there aren't enough productivity apps for most people's need. (I guess a blogger wouldn't mind, but as a developer, I need more than just android. But the keyboard is great vs having just the touch screen. I can't seriously write a whole paragraph with just touch.
A keyboard is a must have for anyone with a tablet imho. But maybe it's just me, I can't take touch keyboards seriously. How the hell do you guys live without arrow keys?
I have the Bluetooth keyboard, but it (sadly) doesn't solve that: the apps are just not mature enough for serious typing in many situations (especially if that "typing" includes "coding").
I look forward to doing what I do on my desktop and more on a tablet, but the typing aspect isn't quite there yet. Why fear something like full Photoshop on the go, or a real suite of programming tools at your disposal?
If the typing issue was resolved (without adding a clunky, external keyboard) Then there it would effectively replace the laptop in my eyes.
Additionally, the programming experience is in many ways focused too much on the text based code itself, and less on the act of creation. It may be that changing the PC/developer interface causes a revolution in the way that people program.
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