Making the Most of the CloudBook: Your Tips Needed

When we first got our CloudBook last Friday, we were wondering if we had gotten a preproduction unit with a preproduction version of the OS, because we initially found that some of the buttons in certain configuration windows were appearing below the screen. When we wrote to Everex’s Paul Kim about the problem, he initially responded:

I found the same issue with the initialization screen as you did: It looks like the gOS team loaded the wrong size opening windows on a few of the press samples. I’m talking to them now to try to see what happened but will keep you updated.

So we spent all weekend playing with the CloudBook, but unsure of whether we had the same CloudBook that other users were receiving. As we waited for a reply from Everex, other users started receiving their CloudBooks and noticing the same issues we were having with buttons below the screen, with slow booting, and with Wi-Fi connectivity (which gets better after you download some updates). Yesterday, Paul Kim confirmed that we have the same software as all the other users who received a CloudBook.

So now that we know we’re dealing with the same hardware and software as our fellow CloudBook users, I’d like to focus our coverage on making the most of the machine through tips, tricks, and hacks. I’ve gotten some great advice in the comments section from other users and I’ve seen some interesting tips posted on the forums at CloudBooker and on Jamfish’s CloudBook blog.

Please drop some of your tips or things you’d like someone to try in the comments section below and I’ll get to them in the days ahead. I’d like to start by doing things that don’t involve replacing the OS so we can offer advice to users they can use without replacing the operating system. After that, I’ll be happy to try installing Xubuntu or Windows XP.