On the eve before leaving for my co-op position in Toronto, Ontario, I've finally decided to add some content to this rather small website.

Following the feedback from many of the kind readers who have contacted me, I have begun a FAQ section -- currently only a few questions from the latest reader, but I will be compiling more as soon as my move is complete. Enjoy!


My quest for a Tablet PC began sometime in February of 2004, when, while researching standard notebooks, I came across a Microsoft webiste detailing a hybrid between a wacom tablet (which I had been oogling over for a few months), and a notebook. A computer screen, you could write on? Certainly such an idea had crossed my "invention wish list", but to hear it detailed as though it actually existed....

It wasn't long after that my entire notebook research was dedicated to finding out more about these Tablet PCs -- my colleagues in the tech-support department seemed skeptical about such a computer. "It won't be stable!" "It will fall apart in your hands." "You'd be better of with one of these DELLs." While at first discouraged (considering I was surrounded by beautiful SXGA Dell's with DVD-Burners on a daily basis), my arrival at TabletPCBuzz.com rekindled the quest. It was on that wonderful forum, that I first discovered the Toshiba M200, the TabletPC, that, at the time, seemed absolutely perfect for me.

Weeks passed. Months passed. I received my acceptance letter from the University of Waterloo (along with a nice entrance scholarship!) Still no TabletPC. Why? Fact is, I couldn't find any! TabletPCs (at the time), were quite scarce here, even in southern Ontario. And threads concerning the quality of the screen of the M200, as raised on the Toshiba Forum at

TabletPCBuzz.com prevented me from just ordering the computer. A brave friend of mine agreed to travel north two hours one Saturday, to a computer store in Toronto, that claimed to be selling the Toshiba 3500, the predecessor to the M200 -- arriving, I found not only the 3500, but also a 14'' Acer on display. Initiallly, our attempts at demoing the hardware were foiled by the lack of a pen within range -- one the store owner claimed had been misplaced. Fortunately, after some time of our staring at these technological curiosities, an eager employee located a pen, and unlocked the demo units.

I knew in an instant the 14'' Acer wasn't for me -- IT WAS HUGE! I couldn't believe I could say that, given how much I (supposedly) loved the 17'' Dells at work. But in Tablet Mode, it really was quite the burden on the arm. The 3500 was much better, but the screen disappointed me. Very dull, quickly losing clarity as I tilted the screen

Partially disappointed, I returned home eager to research the newer M200, to see if this screen issue had been resolved. A kind, new M200 owner on TabletPCBuzz took some videos of the screen, rotating from different perspectives -- together, we hosted them on this website (http://www.fentrax.com/m200) At this point, while my desire for a tablet PC was still very strong, the M200, supposedly the best choice on the market (for technical reasons), left a bitter taste in my mouth. Combined with the release of the Dothan processor in the US, and the (excrutiatingly) tepid response from Toshiba.ca to even reveal a corresponding upgrade, I very nearly dropped out of the tablet market, what with school starting up in less than a month.

One morning, a call from my father's friend: "New Tablet PC? At our local computer store? On display now?"

Not a few hours later, our small group (me, my friend, his dad, and my dad) marched into Superior Computers ready to investigate the new hardware. I quickly spotted the tiny (12'') machine amongst the other (overbearing) Toshiba notebooks. The LG LT20. Very light in the hands. Incredibly bright screen. I immediately started angling the tablet to test the screen, picking up the (finally!) provided pen, and working with Windows XP Tablet Ed. like a pro (remember, I had barely 10-15 minutes of actually working exposure to Tablet PCs before). A representative from LG, a Mr. Jetu Mistry (now in charge of the notebook division of LG Canada), arrived shortly after the store opened (we were the first ones in), to give any demonstrations needed. I believe he quickly sized up my technical ability, skipped the usual marketing tactics, and started to explain how *he* used the LT20 in his everyday life. Every question I had was answered. He was clever enough to point out that they had run Linux succesfully on the machine (tickles any computer science student's fancy when a salesman mentions Linux).

Cutting this short.... I walked out that day having ordered the LT20, Jetu's private cellphone and e-mail written on my receipt, and very confident in my decision. Delivery was a bit skewed (apparently very popular), but arrived in time for me to "get" acquainted before going off to school.

And so this site -- a short photoblog of the notebook, unpacking, examining. I have further plans for this site, including a FAQ/Tips & Tricks secion, with LT20 specific optimizations or configurations that have proved useful to me. If you're interested in other details, or want more information, feel free to make use of the contact form (removed due to spam).

I hope you enjoy!

Sincerely,

Jesse Hallam