Auto-stitch - a superb, automatic image stitcher for creating 1D and 2D panoramas. Developed at the University of British Columbia, it is very simple to use. A free, fully functional Windows demonstration version is available. ArcToolbox - A collection of tools for manipulating, converting, creating, analyzing and editing GIS data. Some overlap with basic functions in ArcCatalog, but with many unique utilities. The tools provided vary with licensing level. That said, you should aim to buy a laptop that’s not too old. Cheap laptops from a few years ago were slow when they launched and might feel even slower today, as programs and the web have become more demanding for older computers. What to look for in a cheap laptop

ArcCatalog - Software for GIS data (and metadata) browsing, creation and conversion to other formats. Similar to Windows Explorer, but with GIS-specific utilities and functions. The functions available vary with licensing level. False economy is rife in the wor ld of laptops. We run you through the best cheap models we've found, and explain where you can compromise. In all honesty, the device had not received much attention since the last report due to other commitments, so this was all the more annoying as usage hours were very low for such a fault to develop – it’s not like it had been taxed to within an inch of its life. Stereonet software - Allmendinger's Stereonet is a popular choice that is free to the academic community Cheerful designs: Some budget laptops have more colourful, slightly rugged designs. While this won’t ever make or break a laptop buying decision, it can be a nice bonus.Move - produced by Midland Valley Inc., is a program that is great for rapid construction of 2D deformation models

Processor: Intel Atom and older Intel Celeron processors (look out for model number starting with N3 and N40, such as N3060 or N4020, as these are old and slow). If you’re thinking of buying a cheap laptop, you should know what you can and can’t do with your new machine. Pros of cheap laptops

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Battery life: Because these laptops have low-power processors, they often have exceptionally long battery life. Some of the best models we’ve tested easily last more than 10 hours, so you shouldn't get caught out if you’re away from a power source for longer than you expected. Low storage: Small and cheap laptops, especially Chromebooks, have little storage. These laptops are best for working on documents stored in cloud services such as Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive. If you have a large collection of photos and videos, you might need to keep them on an external USB hard drive. Don't buy a Chromebook with less than 32GB, and avoid Windows laptops with less than 64GB. AllTopo Pro - Manufacutered by iGage Mapping, this software product offers statewide data sets based on the USGS online resources. It is not integrated with ArcGIS, but it is a great way to build and maintain digital, USGS topographic sheets. You can use it to build georeferenced big topo sheets that should be uploadable into ESRI products.

I suspect that some of the amateur radio applications I use are a bit old and are developed by hobby coders. This being Windows 11, and a little less tolerant of old and badly written apps, I do believe that one of these is to blame. This could be an issue if it turns out to be one of my favourite programs. But, that’s the risk we take with running hobby software on the very latest OS; you can’t maintain compatibility forever in to the dim and distant past. GeoPad 110 supporting my other activities GeoMapper provides the visual user-interface that allows a geologist to implement mapping using intuitive, self-explanatory buttons that are touched using a stylus (Brimhall et al, 2006) Office Productivity Software Pokescope - this feature allows the user to view full-screen, full-color 3D images on a computer, view large print stereographs, view 4"x6" stereo prints without cutting and mounting, and browse traditional stereo cards. Chromebooks are also worth a look. In fact, your child might already use one at school, as these are popular among educational institutions. Read our guide to the best Chromebooks for more.We'd recommend a smaller, 11-inch screen (to make the laptop easy and safe to carry around). Avoid big, heavy laptops that a child will struggle to carry. ArcScene - A 3D viewer that has capabilities for fly-through, 3D rendering, animation creation, etc.