How Many Laptops Should A Developer Own?
A technical writer and .Net software engineer who is committed to building technological infrastructures capable of solving the challenges of netizens now and in the future.
How many laptops does a software engineer need? (Hint: 1 is a wrong answer). Have you ever been in a situation where you urgently need your laptop and it picks that exact moment to update/hang/restart as a result of an error? The average professional needs two laptops because situations like this can have huge consequences if one has to deliver a presentation.
HAVING MULTIPLE LAPTOPS IS A NECESSITY NOT A LUXURY
For software engineers, there are a ton of other things that can compromise our laptops which is why I believe a software engineer needs three laptops. I know of a professional with four laptops and this is because there are very funny situations that can occur when your laptop behaves in a way you don't understand. Having a spare laptop or two will ensure that your productivity isn't sabotaged by a faulty laptop or due to the laptop crashing. The possibility of dropping your laptop, cracking your screen or causing other mechanical injuries to your laptop isn't as low as you think which is why a spare is more than necessary, it's a must.
I personally had a taste of this experience yesterday night when one of my laptops was unable to properly run an application I needed due to persistent firewall issues which prompted me to try other alternatives. I know of many cases where developers lose valuable work because of a compromised laptop. The average software engineer puts a huge strain on their laptop(s) which is why it helps to have a couple of spares within reach, it is also why we ensure we synchronize our activities on the cloud while using version control for code in order to ensure that we are never caught in a sticky situation.
