Laptops at the gaming table.

[Voadam]

I don't own a laptop but one of my players does and hebrings it to our games. I found it very convenient for a couple of reasons:

When I was playing 2e I had the core rules expansion CD with all the core books plus the completes and did not need to bring a rule book just the module I was cannibalizing and the setting sourcebooks for the adventure.

Now we are in 3e

I find the srd easier to use than most of the rule books.

We have a lot of recap information on e-mails and it is helpful to be able to get exact quotes of some of the conversations "You're pact with the greater devil 3 years ago was for, let's see oh yes terms X, Y, and Z."

I prefer getting things on pdf instead of hardcopy for storage puposes, and I think 20 of my last 25 rpg purchases were pdfs.

Since it has been used only as a DM reference tool in game, it has been helpful and useful.

 

[Quickbeam]

One of the fellas in our group uses his laptop for everything except rolling the dice and looking up rules/spells, during our sessions. In his defense, it's not obtrusive in any way, and he did create his own character sheet which he can easily manipulate and update in-game.

Myself and another player have very good handheld RPG programs, and on occasion we'll use those. But for the most part I like my pencil, paper and eraser.

 

[falunas]

I have one, an I'm using it as a DM and a player.

I have scanned all my books and made it pdf files(and spent a lot of time to do that), it's very useful as I don't have to take 20 lbs of books to run a game.

I'm using autorealm to do all my maps and I'm using a second screen to display some part of it(using layers with autorealm) to the players, it makes the combat sequences going faster

I've also made my own excel file to have a combat tracker, so I can sort everybody by initiative score and can track every active effects for each rounds on each PC and NPC engaged in combat

I'm also using winamp and a bunch of mp3 file to play some background music

I'm still using my dices for every roll... and laptop has improved our gaming sessions

 

[Arkham]

If I had a laptop, I'd be using it at the gaming
table. ( Note that I almost always DM. I would
not use it if I were playing. ) As it is, I sit
next to my desktop, and access maps, SRD, etc from
it during, before, and after games.

 

[fsck]

laptop

I have an extremely powerful laptop:

Dell Inspiron 8100
15.1" UXGA screen (1600x1200 NATIVE)
1.2 Ghz Mobile Pentium-III
512MB RAM
64MB DDR ATI Radeon 7500 graphics
30GB hard disk
8x/8x/4x/32x DVD/CD-RW combo drive
Integrated 10/100 ethernet and 56k modem
PCMCI 802.11 wireless NIC
on-board firewire, USB, S-Video out

I am also a touch-typist, my latest test (about two weeks old) putting me at 600+ characters per second, 124 words per minute, 99% accuracy. I am often the "secretary" during meetings at work, taking word-for-word minutes.

Having said all that, my gaming group prefers me not to use the laptop because the typing is a modern-day distraction that tends to ruin immersion. I tend to agree, although I didn't at first.

But on the bright side, when we want some impromptu LAN gaming, all I have to do is bust out the laptop and plug in. No monitors, no cables, no fuss. With dual batteries I can go for about six hours without juice.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

I have a laptop from work, but I would only consider using it as a DM, not as a player. There's too much stuff on the table as is, and a laptop for every player would get very cluttered very quickly. Also, as people have mentioned, the opportunity for distractions is great. I'm play with three different groups, and while two of the groups are very good at not getting distracted, the third is a constant struggle at times to maintain focus. Laptops would not help in that situation.

There would be a lotof work involved getting the laptop to equal books as a DM'ing device...

 

[James McMurray]

I had to vote no, but only because I don't own a laptop. Also, fsck, I have to ask: 600+ characters per second? Puhleeze. I guess that falls into your 99% accuracy level?

 

[byxbee]

When i used to DM, i would have a stat block or two for the major NPCs and use it for reference.

I would also import some baddies from Jamis Buck's NPC Generators and some treasures. made life easier.

I didn't use it for notes or hit points or combat tracking. Just as a visual reference.

Mainly i didn't use it for typing because all of the keys didn't work (laptop glitch, pretty standard in old machines). So i would just do all of the work and then display it on the laptop screen. Worked out pretty well.

 

[Siridar]

I use a laptop about 80% of the time as a DM, but never as a player.

I use my laptop mainly for sound effects and background music. I also have the SRD on it and some nifty little programs and generators.
I use excell almost exclusively. That where I keep short notes and keep track of everything. Then I just re-type stuff in a longer format in word or Html. I also keep my website on my laptop so it makes for easier updates if I introduce a new NPC or special magic item.

I comes in handy, but I occasionally do everything using paper and index cards. Usually when I'm too lazy to set up my laptop.

 

[fsck]

puhleeze all you want

Scoff all you want, but it was a legit test (an essay on Dante's Inferno, full of quotations, numbers and other hard stuff to type).

600+ cps does translate into about ~120 wpm. Yes, it was at 99% accuracy. To be fair, though, I had a warm-up, it was only a five-minute test, and on equipment I was completely familiar with.

On an unfamiliar keyboard I have to drop speed about 15-25% in order to maintain accuracy. On retarded keyboards with poor key response (i.e. they aren't very springy) that goes down even more.

But it's not at all out of the range of possibility - heck, my mom was a court stenographer for a while and she did over 180 wpm at one point with 100% accuracy.

If you find yourself jealous, four words: "Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing"