Tablet PCs: Ideal for engineers and architects Posted 2:32 AM by Joel

I'd like to put forth a thesis, and I would love to have it challenged: Tablet PCs are the ideal computing platform for engineering and architectural professionals.

Here's why I think so:

• Contrary to popular impressions, most of these professionals do not spend more than 20% of their time in compute-intensive apps such as CAD or CAE, but rather in a variety of other pursuits;
• At the top of that list of pursuits are meetings, in which it is declasse to open a laptop. Keyboarding in a client meeting is weird, and the upright screen of your laptop makes a wall between you and the others. A tablet PC in a nice leather folder is almost indistiguishable from a yellow notepad, but so much more powerful;
• Tablet PCs, unlike laptops, go with you everywhere; all your email, documents, and - in wireless environs - on-line connections are available to you wherever you are;
• Writing with a pen engages a different part of your brain than typing;
• Having a wirelessly connected computer lets you use otherwise non-productive time in meetings and presentations;
• Having everything in one place, since tablet pcs are finally powerful enough to replace your laptop and your desktop, can be a huge productivity savings.

Well, those are just a few thoughts. (See others at Michael Linenberger's "Seize the Workday" and Tablet PC Buzz.)

What are your thoughts? Agree? Disagree? Why?