> And I used to do Java development in eclipse/netbeans with db, ide and appserv all running on one machine that had 2GB and I never had any issues... memory hogs hello.
This matches my own experience pretty well. I have a MBP with 8GB of RAM and a Linux box with 16GB of RAM at work for Java development, but that's because our Java web app at work requires 7GB+ (!) to get off the ground.
Most of my own personal development, be it Java (IntelliJ) or Python (ditto) or C++ (XCode or Eclipse) or C# (MonoDevelop), is done on a MacBook Air with 4GB of RAM with no problems. I'm getting a MBP (yes, with 8GB of RAM, the horror!) largely because I want to be able to replace the optical with a second SSD so I can dual-boot Windows (and because 1680x1050 in a 15" laptop is kind of really friggin' nice, 1366x768 is kind of cramped).
Plus, even if the writer of this post was on point--8GB of RAM is dirt cheap in 2012.
I'm rather off-topic, but your monitor resolution comment made me smile.
I'm currently trying to squeeze the last dying days out of my 15.4" Dell Latitude D810 with its expansive 1920x1200 native res. It's a 7 year old machine, but I can't stand the thought of losing it, because the only laptop I know of with that resolution today is the massive MBP 17".
16x10 aspect ratio is pretty much a thing of the past now. It's a sad feeling to think that my next laptop will have lower resolution than what I've had since 2003.
A refurbished ThinkPad T61p, Core 2 Duo, can unofficially be upgraded with 8Gb and an SSD, 1920x1200 in a 15" screen is now under £300. It is also many years old, but I suspect that a former top of the line ThinkPad would beat any modern bottom of the line laptop for the same money, and better screen spec too.
I'm uncomfortable about how old it is, though, hence wondering if you mean your laptop is falling apart, or if you mean it is too low spec for modern use.
I meant my laptop is physically about to fall apart - the screen doesn't stand up on its own any more, and needs to be propped up with some hefty tomes from my undergraduate days. I'm not able to upgrade it, really, either. I stuck an extra Gig of RAM in it, but the HD interface is an IDE, and there really aren't many non-SATA SSDs available.
Might look at a refurb as you suggest - thanks for the heads-up!
This matches my own experience pretty well. I have a MBP with 8GB of RAM and a Linux box with 16GB of RAM at work for Java development, but that's because our Java web app at work requires 7GB+ (!) to get off the ground.
Most of my own personal development, be it Java (IntelliJ) or Python (ditto) or C++ (XCode or Eclipse) or C# (MonoDevelop), is done on a MacBook Air with 4GB of RAM with no problems. I'm getting a MBP (yes, with 8GB of RAM, the horror!) largely because I want to be able to replace the optical with a second SSD so I can dual-boot Windows (and because 1680x1050 in a 15" laptop is kind of really friggin' nice, 1366x768 is kind of cramped).
Plus, even if the writer of this post was on point--8GB of RAM is dirt cheap in 2012.