Homeless Online

Getting online is even more valuable for the homeless than it is for anyone else. There are so many resources; shelter, email, phone, voicemail, job seeking, socializing, housing, medical, entertainment, the list goes on.

Libraries and internet cafes are easy access to the internet but without a laptop it can be frustrating with time limits and the expense.

What is the best computer for a homeless person?

From personal experience, I strongly recommend the ASUS Eee PC.

It's lightweight. I used to have a 15" Toshiba (until another homeless person tried to steal it by throwing it out a second story window and broke the screen) and I hated lugging that thing around. The ASUS Eee PC is great, I carry it everywhere, no problem.

It has great battery life. My Toshiba would last 45 minutes if it wasn't plugged in, which is pretty much useless. The model I have gets 6 hours easy and the latest models are advertising 13 hours (which probably means 10, which is still really good).

The main reason I bought the ASUS Eee PC is that I knew it would run Linux with no problem, and it has. Linux might seem scary to anyone who hasn't used it but Ubuntu is great. It's not just easy to use, it's slick and professional. And the main reason homeless people should use it is there are nearly 20,000 free applications you can download. 20,000 FREE PROGRAMS!

Installing Ubuntu is a little more difficult on the ASUS Eee PC because the Eee doesn't have a CD drive but there are excellent directions here. You will need a USB Flash Drive  but that's a good thing to have anyway and they aren't very expensive. Most Linux users will volunteer to help you install Linux on your PC if you ask.