Stick with familiar Mac when choosing a laptop

I want to buy a laptop and don't know where to start. I need something that is light, has a large screen, is user-friendly, dependable, and doesn't offer options I will never use. Most of the time I use a computer as a word processor.

I receive manuscripts by e-mail or floppy (sometimes hard copy) and usually return them by the route they came. I have never needed a CD-Rom.

I work on a Mac Performa 6200 which, although a bit slow, I find straightforward. The only time I run into difficulties is when I am sent material that hasn't been converted to read on a Mac. I am not sure whether this is a major problem for the sender or an oversight. The only other facility I would find useful is to be able to fax.

I use Claris Works on the Mac, which I much prefer to Word, but this may simply be what I am used to. I do a lot of subscripting, superscripting, space checking, keying in of Greek, and these functions I find easier on the Mac.

JAMES DYER Hong Kong Being less familiar with the Macintosh platform, I turned this question over to Mac guru Chris Walton.

If you want to buy a computer so you can learn about computers, buy a Windows machine. If you want to buy a computer so you can get some work done, buy a Mac. You are used to the Mac platform, stick with it. Having said that, Mac laptops have two undeniable shortcomings. Macs tend to emphasise power over size and they lack a floppy drive. Most notebooks don't have built-in floppy drives anymore, they attach by a cable. The same is true with Apple notebooks, but you will have to buy the drive from a third-party vendor. As for compatibility, you won't lose anything with a Mac. There is no issue with e-mail. I suspect the reason you were unable to read some files lies with the file translator that came with your Performa.