The netbook, what exactly is it? The netbook is a lightweight computer typically smaller than an ordinary laptop (less than 14 inches) and less powerful. However, they usually have battery life in the 8 hour range and weight significantly less, often only a couple of pounds. The light weight small size and reduced cost compared to a regular laptop means they are creating a whole new market segment.
Netbooks have a wide range of uses, many of them are in places where a laptop was either awkward or just plain not feasible. I have a friend in the military who has been known to carry a netbook around in the cargo pocket of his uniform. It is also much more feasible to slip a netbook into a carry-on bag for a flight than it is to carry a separate laptop bag. The relatively long battery life also means it can last an intercontinental flight without dying.
Linux has also received a boost from netbooks. Most netbooks can run Windows Vista but the performance would be very poor and Microsoft has placed significant restrictions on selling XP. Many Linux distributions are much less resource hungry than Vista and many are even less hungry than XP. Given the common uses as internet portals and media watching Linux does fine. Gaming is not as feasible for Linux but most big name games require much more powerful than a netbook has anyway which makes for much less of a limitation.
I just bought a netbook last weekend. My laptop I use at home is about to die, and I decided that I don't need a lot of anything on my home pc. I spend 8 hours a day at work staring at a computer, and now that I am 5 weeks away from finishing school, I am certainly not going need anything at home except internet access. I don't run any big software programs, and certainly don't play video games - so the netbook is an inexpensive way to get me where I need to go. I really love it - it's small, goes anywhere in the house with the wireless network, and I don't feel I wasted a lot of money buying stuff I don't need.
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