ThinkPads used to be seriously cool laptops. 

"Honeybunchesofgoats" (honeybunche0fgoats) 08/31/2016 at 20:00 • Filed to: ThinkPads

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Yes, that’s a second display.

The famous “butterfly” extending keyboard.

The last one is an X61t convertible tablet. It is beyond a doubt my favorite piece of technology that I’ve ever owned.

I’ll always love ThinkPads, even though I’ve switched to Macs. I remember once having a failed battery and calling their support number at 3 AM on a Sunday morning and speaking to a real, live person in Kentucky who shipped out a replacement battery, no questions asked, that arrived that Monday. I remember having discussions about design on their blogs and forums with their designers.

I don't hate post-Lenovo ThinkPads, but, man, IBM-era ThinkPads really were something special.

Boxer_4 > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:05

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Lenovo laptops are really good. IBM laptops, however, were great.

Svend > Boxer_4 08/31/2016 at 20:09

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I’ve a Lenovo IdeaCentre.

I like it but who comes up with this crap of ‘thinkpad’, ‘ideacentre’, etc... these people should be shot.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Boxer_4 08/31/2016 at 20:14

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I only ever really gave up on them because

1) Lenovo replaced a screen on my X61t (~$600), used shoddy adhesive (which, ironically, they had been recalled for when they were first released), and then told me I’d have to pay ~$400 to get it fixed, because I didn’t notice it in the first 30 days after getting it back (to the tech support guy’s credit, he explicitly told me not to send it in and gave me instructions on what to buy and how to do it myself, but I was still pissed).

2) Even though I exceeded all of the requirements, Windows 8 started crashing after start up and frigging Microsoft made it almost impossible to boot into safe mode.

After my second successful boot into safe mode after about thirty attempts, I just decided to switch over to Macs solely.

lone_liberal > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:15

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I used to work for one of the companies that built the butterfly keyboards for IBM. They also built some of the big commercial keyboards that weigh a ton and last forever.

Svend > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:15

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I always wanted one of those dual screen laptops. You opened it like a regular laptop but then slid the front screen to the left and pulled the screen behind out to the right. So you had two screens and the keyboard right in the middle. Genius.

Honeybunchesofgoats > lone_liberal 08/31/2016 at 20:17

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Do you mean Model M keyboards? Because those were AMAZING.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Svend 08/31/2016 at 20:19

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No!

ThinkPads are so named because IBM used to give employees notepads that had “Think” printed on them.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Svend 08/31/2016 at 20:21

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Literally Think pads.

Boxer_4 > Svend 08/31/2016 at 20:23

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I have a Lenovo ThinkPad W530 and something that was an ThinkCentre m58p at one point. Both have been great, but Lenovo didn’t really have anything to do with the ThinkCentre.

The ThinkPad name actually originated from a memo pad that IBM gave to their employees. It had the word “Think” embossed on it, the longstanding company slogan. I guess the name worked well enough that they continued to name their products in that manner.

Svend > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:26

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I think that person needs shot also.

Have you seen these things you can get at super markets like Walmart, etc... for your home bathroom that say ‘SOAP’, ‘WASH’, etc... Often made from stone or wood and made arty with glitter. WHY? Who came up with this crap?

I’ve never stood in front of a wash basin after using the toilet, thinking what do I do here? To need a large sign to prompt me.

lone_liberal > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:28

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I don’t think they built those, though I could be wrong. I’m talking about specialized keyboards for AT&T, power plants, etc. Big heavy beasts, even when compared to the Model M. The company is Key Tronic.

Svend > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:28

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Bloody hell.

There is even a ‘contact or write to’ for refills.

Turns out the world went crazy a lot earlier than I thought.

Boxer_4 > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:33

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The only issue I have with my W530 is a single dead pixel in the middle of the screen. Otherwise, I’ve been very happy with it. That does sound like quite a frustrating experience with the X61, however.

I’ve begun to move away from using laptops as my main personal computer, opting to build budget Frankenstein desktops instead. In that case, the only one I have to blame hardware issues is myself...

As for laptops, I tend to bounce between Dell and Lenovo. I haven’t been burned by either so far...

Truthfully, I haven’t upgraded past Windows 7, so no complaints there, either.

Svend > Boxer_4 08/31/2016 at 20:33

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If you need pads and stuff with prompts for your employees, then you really need to look at your interview questions and techniques and whether you really need that employee.

Maybe because I’m Biritsh or that I’m getting older but so many things that are obvious annoy me.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Svend 08/31/2016 at 20:34

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I'm perilously close to confessing that I own and use an agenda book, but it's actually pretty common to include information on how to order refills on the last page of a leather agenda or notebook.

Nauraushaun > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:37

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That pop-out second screen is fantastic! I’d love something like that on a current laptop.

bhtooefr > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:40

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Of course, old ThinkPads were terrible in their own ways - the early ones are notorious for cracking lids (I’ve got a sheet of aluminum in my 365XD’s lid to reinforce it, even though it means the lid doesn’t actually fit together quite like it’s supposed to), the 701C is incredibly awful to work on, they’ve had a few models with RAM slot issues... and the T4x series was nothing but issues.

It’s just that, back in the day, everything else was more terrible. And, IBM was very good at documenting how to fix their stuff, when other manufacturers kept that info to themselves.

Nowadays, though? It seems like other manufacturers have gotten their act together, and Lenovo keeps launching lemons. And, try buying some of their interesting models nowadays... they’ve got huge supply issues, it seems.

(I work for one of Lenovo’s competitors, but this is my own opinion.)

The only reason I consider Lenovo hardware is because I think the TrackPoint is the one true pointing device, to the point that I’m using a ThinkPad Bluetooth Keyboard on my desktop just to get a true IBM/Lenovo TrackPoint.

facw > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:41

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I’ve had a bunch of Thinkpads (both IBM and Lenovo), and they are pretty nice. They went through a period of “1366x768 is enough for anyone” which was depressing, but now you can get 1080p on the X260 and 1440p on the X1, though sadly it’s rare to see good deals on either of those (Lenovo outlet often has really nice offers on the lower trims of those models).

Svend > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:42

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‘Agenda Book?’.

“wooooo-saaaaa, wooooo-saaaaa’, okay I’m back.

Shouldn’t it be the second last with the last page being a reorder form though?

In the offices I worked in if we needed a writing pad or other stationery, we went to the supply cupboard and took one. In one office I worked in I was the one responsible for maintaining the stock levels in the stationery cupboard.

Boxer_4 > lone_liberal 08/31/2016 at 20:44

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You worked for Key Tronic?

I picked up an EP3435XTAT ~2 years ago, used it for a year, and then sold it to a friend of mine for more than I paid for it. I then bought an even older version!

Those are seriously awesome keyboards! Very robust, excellent to type on (even though they aren’t mechanical), and the double-shot keys feel great and don’t wear easily.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Svend 08/31/2016 at 20:46

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I think you’re looking at it the wrong way. This is really more indicative of the old school “Bell Labs”-y type business culture (or Google’s 10% thing, currently) where employees are encouraged to share their ideas.

Here’s a great four part history of the IBM PC: http://www.filfre.net/2012/05/the-ib…

The summary is basically that IBM wanted to get into personal computing, didn’t know how, but had autonomous “Independent Business Units.” They basically gave a mid-level manager a team and cash and the end result was inventing the modern PC and making a rando nerd boy they picked up off the street very, very rich.

C62030 > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:46

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Also those badass little trackpad nubbins.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:47

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For years my aunt worked for IBM as a software architect. She got a huge discount that she could give to family. Every year my Mom would get a new top-of-the-line T series for something close to half price.

bhtooefr > Svend 08/31/2016 at 20:47

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Keep in mind that IBM had a colossal workforce even back then, and I’d guess that some people weren’t going into an IBM office every day, so they’d need to be able to order their own supplies.

bhtooefr > C62030 08/31/2016 at 20:49

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(Obligatory alt text: I know a lot of people hate these, but I prefer them to touchpads.)

bhtooefr > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:50

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Also, the first ThinkPad, the 2521 ThinkPad (later renamed to ThinkPad 700T), was a tablet, which made the Think pad connection make sense.

Then, for whatever reason, it got applied to the 9552 (the ThinkPad 700/700C and later 720/720C), which was effectively the successor to the PS/2 Note N51SX/SLC (in Western markets), a rebranded version of the PS/55 Note 5523-S (in Japan).

So, had they not done that, the ThinkPad 700C would’ve been called the PS/55 Note C52 in Japan (oh, wait... it was just called the ThinkPad PS/55 Note C52...), and it would’ve been called the PS/2 Note N52SLC in the US most likely.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Svend 08/31/2016 at 20:51

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Shouldn’t it be the second last with the last page being a reorder form though?

I did steal and horde lots of stationary from my old office because they had magic paper that my fountain pen wouldn’t bleed through.

Honeybunchesofgoats > bhtooefr 08/31/2016 at 20:54

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I miss using a TrackPoint so much. I used to get overcome by barely containable rage whenever anyone would question them.

Svend > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 20:57

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I remember a couple of years ago a notepad that’s main advertising was that you could write on both sides of the paper without it bleeding or leeching through. I remember thinking surely that’s any notepad with a biro pen.

Honeybunchesofgoats > facw 08/31/2016 at 20:57

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In their defense, I nearly had a nervous breakdown when they switched from 4:3 to widescreen ratios, so I can understand why they'd maybe think that their target audience didn't care about screen resolution.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Svend 08/31/2016 at 21:00

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Could have been Rhodia. Nothing beats cheap French produced vellum when it comes to defending against bleeding.

C62030 > bhtooefr 08/31/2016 at 21:01

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That is on (Track)Point™

Svend > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 21:08

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I want the old days back. I grew up in a time when obvious things were just that. If you were stating the obvious you were either a bad stage comedian or be looked at by your friends as if you were an idiot and then they’d call you an idiot.

Now everybody labels obvious stuff for fear of being sued or to cash in on something that they are trying to sell as new, etc...

Svend > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 21:12

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Just signs above wash basins that say ‘wash’, notepads that say ‘think’, etc... just bug me.

Don’t get me started on ‘team building days’, etc...

Captain Obvious says obvious is obvious because the obvious is obviously obvious.

lone_liberal > Boxer_4 08/31/2016 at 21:17

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Yep, worked there for a couple of years as a line tech fixing units that failed QA until they moved all production out of the US. Odds are your old timer was built here in Spokane.

Boxer_4 > lone_liberal 08/31/2016 at 21:23

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That’s very interesting! The newer one is a ‘91, and I believe the older one is either an ‘89 or ‘90. Both still work great!

404 - User No Longer Available > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 21:33

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I’m still waiting on what they can cook up with that Retro ThinkPad skunkworks thing.

http://blog.lenovo.com/en/blog/retro-…

It’s been a year now. Though I think my next one is the X1 Tablet. Had an X120e but gave it away to a friend who lost his house to a wildfire.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Svend 08/31/2016 at 21:39

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Team building days are where you tell you coworkers that if they try to bring you down, you'll bring them down with you, right? I love those!

Honeybunchesofgoats > 404 - User No Longer Available 08/31/2016 at 21:41

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That’s awesome!

Although the correct answer is cat tongue cap until it becomes disgusting, then golf tee cap.

Nibby > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 21:43

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My favorite was the T42. I used it for years during undergrad (even though I had a MBP at the time and I split working on them 50/50 depending on what I was doing). They’re fantastic.

404 - User No Longer Available > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 21:45

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Unfortunately Cat’s Tongue is all but dead. All newer ThinkPads uses the new low-profile cap, and the X1 Tablet even uses an ultra low-profile one, which are all only available as Soft Dome.

I still have a pack of 15 cat’s tongue dating back to my 240Z...

scoob > bhtooefr 08/31/2016 at 21:45

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... I’m calling it the clit mouse from now on.

Svend > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 21:53

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If only.

Have you been on some of the cheaply run ones?

“Imagine this car park is shark infested water and you have two planks of wood and need to get everybody across in one go”, crap.

You want to shout at the prick in the suit, ‘Ay, knob head. If this is shark infested water, I’m not going to use a bloody plank or two to get across, I’m simply not going to attempt to get across it you idiot, stop being a git and just tell people to not be a dick to each other at work or outside of it and let’s go to the ruddy pub already’.

I’m honest with the people I work with, you get two chances with me. First chance lost, I’ll work with you but we’re not going to talk as if we were buddies, let’s do the job and go. Second chance lost, I’ll ignore you other than pleasantries and if we have to work together but ask for a favour and I’ll tell you to f*** off straight away.

sonicgabe > Honeybunchesofgoats 08/31/2016 at 22:09

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We have two or three in various states of something lying around here. I love ‘em. We need to get them all up and running.

Also, a side note on the cat tongue pointer cap. My dad worked for IBM for several decades and at some point worked for a long time with the guy who created that pointer. It is supposed to be a pencil eraser as a tribute to his father who would hound him about always using a pencil when designing and doing math so that one can correct their inevitable mistakes. I actually met the guy once, in the early 90s when I was a teenager.

Sam > 404 - User No Longer Available 08/31/2016 at 22:39

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I’d buy one. They look so robust and official, like if you see someone using one nowadays, you just assume they’re probably CIA or FBI or something.

KatzManDu > Honeybunchesofgoats 09/01/2016 at 03:18

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IBM also had Thinkpads with PowerPC chips that ran AIX, Solaris PPC, OS/2 and Windows NT.

https://web-docs.gsi.de/~kraemer/COLLE…

Axial > Honeybunchesofgoats 09/02/2016 at 01:51

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To thwart that defense, the 4:3 and 16:10 ratios being used before TV-type 16:9 panels took over featured higher resolutions than that 136x768 garbage that proliferated the market for way too long.

CCC (formerly CyclistCarCoexist) > Honeybunchesofgoats 09/02/2016 at 02:29

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The track point is the best (and HP did a massively shitty job trying to replicate it), and the BIFLness of the T60 was probably the pinnacle of my favorite laptops. Better than a MacBook. Perfect laptop would be the T60 but with a 2016-spec processor. That would be amazing....as it’s perfection.

Lenovo quality can also be illustrated by two things. Touchpad and keyboard. They bought thinkpad and still managed to mulch the keyboard and touchpad for Lenovo laptops. I recall my touchpad on my lenovo ideapad was so shitty I permanently used a Razor mouse.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Honeybunchesofgoats 09/02/2016 at 07:50

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I want an X230t or whatever the most recent convertible tablet is. I had the first one that had a widescreen (X220t?) running Windows 7 and it was FANTASTIC. Friggin screen+pen was better than my friend’s Wacom.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 09/02/2016 at 07:54

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Totally agreed. Using a Wacom couldn’t come close to the ease and accuracy of using my old X61t for editing in Photoshop.