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In my never-ending quest for technology solutions to compensate for my lack of real musical talent, I may have found my next digital crutch. DigiTech taunts me by introducing the TimeBender, a super tricked out digital delay/looper/harmonizer/make-your-guitar-sound-like-a-spaceship dual pedal at the 2009 NAMM show.

In additinon to the crazy echos and delays, I am looking forward to experimenting with the strum-programmable echo patterns, the ”intelligent harmonies” and “dynamic ducking”. The strum programability allow you to create patterns and set tempos by holding down a pedal and strumming the rhythm, recognizes it and lock its harmony selections to that scale. And the dynamic ducking will fill sonic holes with echo, waiting for you to play the next note before fading that passage away. Very nice.

The RE-20 is a modern digital version of a still coveted Roland analog tape echo from the late eighties, the RE-201. The original would be fun to have with all it’s grainy, fluttery tape-echoing goodness, but $1,000 e-Bay price is a bit over my budget. The digital RE-20 emulates the original’s audio and look. From its vintage green control panel design to the drift and unpredictability of its sound, it a sudo-analogish retrofest.

I have an affinity for analog tape. Although I missed most of the era where is ruled pro audio production, I did quite a bit of home recording, editing and experimentation with cassettes as a teen. And remind me sometime to post photos of the tape bow violin I built during my Lauri Anderson phase.

But along comes this squeaky-clean TimeBender. Decked out in sparkly silver, with more knobs, flashy lights and buttons than the old-school Boss unit, it seems to be ready to slug it out with the aging Roland pedal. The basic Boss vs DigiTech debate is never ending, and depending on who you ask, it usually comes down to Boss being the leader and DigiTech is the Me Too manufacturer. Many say that DigiTech products sound “too digital”. But its in the name of the company, so what are they expecting?

I hope to get my hands on one of these in the very near future to try out. When I do, you guys will hear about it almost as quickly as my neighbors will. But at a lower volume.

Pick your favorite metaphor because it’s time for a dance off,  showdown, deathmatch, taste test, point/counterpoint between the Samsung NC10 and the ASUS Eee PC 1000HE. Find out who gets served and who stays standing at high noon. Who will be fragged to giblets. Which PC has the richest, mountain grown flavor, and which is the ignorant slut.

These are the two leading netbooks in their class. Both contenders are decked out in similar specs regarding screen size, amount of RAM (1 GB) and hard drive space (160 GB). They have the same processor although the Samsung CPU runs at an imperceptible 0.06 GHz faster.

Round 1 – Size and weight
If thin is in, then Samsung wins on style points. The sleeker look, the chrome detailing and the front grill all add up to a more stylish approach than ASUS. The ASUS is a bit bulkier than the Samsung by fractions of inches, but it is noticeable. This makes it a tad heavier than Sammy, 3.2 lbs compared to 2.8lbs, but for these lightweights it is hard to notice a difference.

Round 2 –  Screen
The casual observer may not notice that both netbooks sport the same screen size and resolution; 10.2 inches at 1024 by 600. The ASUS screen sits a bit higher when open. This is due in part to the overall larger size, but the hinge mechanism plays a part as well. It doesn’t effect the usability. It is more of an aesthetic difference.

Samsung is the winner in this round thanks to its brightness. Both screens are fantastic with sharp, well defined images and rich color. The refresh rates seem to be the same, as both demonstrated the same amount of occasional screen tearing when playing web videos. The only difference  we could find was that Samsung can be cranked up brighter, I am estimating 15 to 20 percent brighter. It is very noticeable. Nothing comes free and I imagine this price is paid back with shorter battery life when burning brightest. But having the option to turn Sam’s screen up to 11 makes it the easy winner in this tightly contended category.

Round 3 – QWERTYing
As I researched my first netbook purchase, I spent hands-on time with almost all of the brands available at the time. It was the quality of these two keyboards that narrowed my final purchace decision down to these two models.

Typing is as good as it is different on both machines. Both keyboards are large enough for comfortable typing. Samsung claims their keyboard is 93% size of a standard keyboard, ASUS claims 92%. Neither feel cramped when typing. Some netbooks present a learning curve for skilled typists who have to somewhat relearn key positions and reaches. This is not an issue with ASUS or Samsung.

The ASUS “chicklet” keyboard solid and responsive. It also has a more modern feel than the beveled keys of the Samsung which seem a slightly old school. But don’t dis the Samsung for this esthetic shortcoming. Sam’s keys fell just as solid and offer reassuring tactile and audio feedback. The ASUS keyboard may be a tad quieter when typing which some users may prefer.

This category is a tie to be decided by personal preference. Just be reassured to know that you can’t go wrong with either choice.

Round 4 –  Build quality
Another tie. Both units are sturdily constructed. They feel solid enough to throw place into a backpack. The solid build along with the light weight and low price is what make netbooks so appealing.

Round 5 – Mousing
ASUS is the standout winner here. The larger trackpad feels huge when compared to Samsung’s. This is the main advantage of the larger form factor. The edge-on buttons are well designed and easily accessible.

I have written before about Sammy’s trackpad issues, so no need to repeat is here. Just note that ASUS does not have the edge of pad issues that the Samsung suffers from, nor does it have a clumsy recessed toggle button. ASUS’s rodent replacement takes the cheese in this category.

Round 6 – Sound
Audiophiles look elsewhere. No netbook I tested had what could be described as great sound, but under normal conditions all were adequate for typical usage. The ASUS inches ahead here with smarter speaker placement. The speakers appear louder than the Samsung because they are where they should be; pointed at the listener.

Samsung chose to place the speakers on the bottom of the unit, pointed downward. In theory, the sound should bounce off the table top back to the users ears. It does this to some degree when placed on a flat table top, but I seldom find myself using it in these ideal-for-audio circumstances. I did not have an opportunity to compare the headphone jack output, but I will have a full report on Samsungs audio quality pros and cons in Part 4 of this series.

Round 7 – Price
The most basic components, the processor, RAM, motherboard and hard drive, are identical. So all that Samsung NC10 style and design come at a cos, about about $70 more than the ASUS Eee PC 1000HE.

Conclusion – The real winer
There you have it. Both units have their strengths and weaknesses, but the real winner is … You. You just can’t go wrong with either choice. I can’t honestly recommend one over the other.

For me, the cool stylings of the Samsung along with the brighter screen won me over. But the lower cost, louder audio and better trackpad of the ASUS are a compelling argument. My best advice is to lay hands on both and see what strikes you. When you make your decision, please write to me here and let me know what influenced you.

Previous Field Test articles in this series include Part 1 – Coffee Shop, and Part 2 – Back Yard.

You might not immediately think of netbooks as a game platform. When comes to pure horsepower they are more ponies than thoroughbreds. Netbooks are however full featured PCs capable of a myriad of computing tasks, including running most PC games.

Obviously netbooks are computers, but should uber-power users like you and I consider them “real” computers? Do these diminutive devices qualify as “enough” computer to meet ones daily needs? It took me a while, but I recently reached the point of understanding that for my “real” needs, they are just “enough”.

It’s understandable that animators, video editors and motion graphics artists are always pushing the power curve on computing. In a production environment processor speed can have direct effects on creativity, profitability and frustration level. PhotoShop may take a few seconds to apply a complex filter or a favorite set of actions. Final Cut may take a minute or more for an incremental render. But use that filter fifty times a day, or render that timeline a few dozen times, and processor speed becomes a serious consideration worthy of a significant financial investment.

But when selecting personal personal computing equipment this ”need for speed” attitude may not be the best selection criteria. I did this for years, always justifying a power purchase with a “just in case” excuse. Sure I mostly do email, web, Word, Excel and Peggle on my laptop, but one never knows when one may need to edit a 100-layer PhotoShop file, or render a ray-traced mirror balls over checkerboard floor scene, on an airplane, right? Only recently did I realize that the key word in that sentence is “never”.

My first netbook – the iPhone

My first realization of this came with the purchase of an iPhone. I was there on release day, but managed to avoid long lines and camping out. I happen to be vacationing in Tennessee that day, and there were no lines at the Pigeon Forge ATT store.

Soon I found myself using my MacBook Pro less and less. On some business trips it would only come out of its case at airport security checks. Was my $2,500 laptop being replace by a phone?

For quite some time it did. I was able to handle most of my traveling business tasks on the iPhone, and find work-arounds for others. One could make the argument that the iPhone is Apples netbook, but the lack of a full size keyboard however kept me limited to mostly basic communication tasks (if you can call that a limitation for a phone).

As I contemplated my recent netbook purchase, I was finally able to fully shed my computer speed obsession. By analyzing the tasks I was most likely to do on the machine, I was able to fully let go of those just in case scenarios and focus on my real computing needs; Peggle, email, Peggle, web and of course Peggle.

The Caps Lock key predates the electronic marvels we type on today by about 100 years. Talk about your legacy hardware.

Originally called “Shift Lock” on mechanical typewriters, it was quite useful back when the shift key actually shifted something; a lever that physically raised the typing bar. The weight of the typing bar was difficult to hold for very long with only a pinky finger. Pressing the “Lock” key flipped a hook mechanism over the shift lever allowing you to type a series of capital letters without excessive digit fatigue.

I seldom use Caps Lock key intentionally. Usually I discover having pressed it by accident by noticing that ALL MY TYPING LOOKS LIKE SHOUTING. In an era of effortless key presses and compressed netbook keyboards, we have outgrown Caps Lock usefulness and it has overstayed its welcome.

Ruffling the Registry

John Haller mercifully provides us with a Windows system-level method to change evil Mr. Lock into more friendly Mr. Shift. You may prefer to change to a different key or disable it entirely. Visit the Disable Cap Lock web page at John’s blog to download a Windows .reg file that will bring the era of accidental Cap Lock to an end.

The Mac Attack

Lets not leave out my Mac friends. They can go to System Preferences, click on Mouse & Keyboard, click on the Keyboard tab, then click the Modifier Keys… button and finally select No Action from the Caps Lock drop down menu. Five clicks and your done.

A Window of Warning

As John warns on his web site: “Incorrect changes to the registry may damage Windows or other installed software. Be sure you know what a given .REG file contains before merging it into the registry.” I have used these files successfully on my Samsung’s XP install with no adverse effects, but this doesn’t mean you can come crying to me if they break your computer. DO NOT INSTALL ANY REGISTRY PATCHES WITOUT FIRST UNDERSTANDING WHAT THEY DO. (I typed that with my pinky.)

I have been researching netbooks for a few weeks trying to decide which one to go with. The feel of the keyboard was (at first) my most important decision point. I was originally attracted to the HP, Dell and Samsung. I was not able to find a local retailer for the Samsung, and decided early on that I would not buy one that I did not lay hands upon.

After spending time with almost all the models at Fry’s, Best Buy and Micro Center, I narrowed my choice down to the ASUS. Finally, last night I place the order … for the Samsung NC-10.

Why the Sammy? After narrowing down all the models I had physically touched and decided I would be happy with the ASUS, I did one last compare between it and Sammy. I think design won out over price. From what I hear, the keyboard experience is as good as the ASUS so I looked at other factors – Size, weight, disc space and style points. The Samsung won on all these.

Sammy arrives tomorrow from Amazon. (Sorry local retailers. I would have preferred to purchase at a brick and mortar but I could not find this product anywhere but online.) I will post a quick review soon after.