I bought an EeePC!

So Radioshack Source by CC had a good price on an EeePC with a 4GB internal drive and a bundled 4GB HCSD card.

I have to say this is the most amazing computer I have ever owned. I didn't know until I was researching them before buying that it came with a webcam (the quality of which is decent) and I didn't know until I opened the box that it came with a neoprene sleeve. With the sleeve I can just put the computer in the sleeve and put the sleeve in my book bag and it will keep it safe from scuffs and the like. I was planning on having to buy a case!

I played around with the included Linux distribution for a bit, and it certainly seemed set up to make this device easy to use and include all the tools you'd need (web browser, Open Office). With Linux on the drive there was ~1.2GB free space on the drive.

Then I wiped it and installed Windows. Not having a USB CD-ROM drive it was a little involved, but generally straight forward. I installed a slipstream XP-SP3, then installed the hand full of updates since SP3. I installed Office 2003 + latest service pack + 2007 converter files, VLC media player, 7-zip, Firefox 3 (the new zoom and fullscreen modes are essential), VPN client for my school and a couple other things. I removed some of the extra windows and office files, and now the computer sits with 2.2GB free on the 4GB drive.

It takes 30 seconds to boot, 10 to shutdown, and maybe 5 to go into and out of standby.

I brought it to work because I needed to collect data from a meter in the field and it was much better then lugging my 15" HP around. Plus I was able to plug into the ethernet connection of the device.

The biggest downside of the device is the 7" screen. The EeePC 900 line has a 9" screen, and a bigger internal drive, but does cost more.