Re: [tlug] Ubuntu Laptop Assistance Please + Rant about Akihabara

[Lyle H Saxon <llletters@example.com>]

On Fri, Jun 8, 2012 at 1:06 PM, Jawaad Mahmood <jawaad.mahmood@example.com> wrote:
> It's sad that they have turned Akiba into another generic part of Tokyo.  My wife cleans my ears for free, hence no need to visit anymore, except for HDs at times.

Indeed!  I've watched over the years as the best shops have
disappeared one by one.  At this point, the only thing I would go to
Akihabara for is used equipment, but even for that, the best used
shops have also disappeared, so pretty much there's nothing I would go
there for now.

Speaking of Akihabara - I was talking to someone last week who said
they went to Akihabara with a young person (early twenties) and the
young person asked why there were so many electronics shops there!  I
think that's about what it's come to.  Akihabara is for "anime" and
video games.  The remaining electronics shops are headed for
extinction, and then for a walk-in computer store, it'll just be
generic same-all-over-the-city steel & concrete stores (I dare say
there is probably not so much as one single computer store in all of
Tokyo made of brick...), and various on-line stuff.

As for a large store having employees that only know mainstream stuff
- the downward pressure on prices from the Internet pretty much
guarantees that the staff will know next to nothing.  They're young,
inexperienced, and working for low pay.  Even at that, the large
stores may well go bankrupt.  Look at what's happened with books and
Amazon.  A lot of people are now buying cameras and computers via
Amazon too.  Prices for new laptops appear to start around Y30,000.
You said you're willing to spend Y150,000.  For that, you can get
*five* squeaky-new laptops via Amazon....  Service form a steel &
concrete store?  R.I.P.

Lyle