Web Worker Daily

Over on TheAppleBlog, Charles wrote about some cunning laptop sleeves that are designed to foil would-be thieves by disguising your precious computer as an ordinary old newspaper. Both the mitemite sleeve (for MacBook Pros) and the ItaliaCraft Newsprint sleeve (for MacBook Airs) are designed to protect your computer from scratches and should do a reasonable job of fooling the bad guys, although I doubt they would stand up to a close inspection.

However, these sleeves are fairly expensive (around $86 for the mitemite sleeve, or $62 for the ItaliaCraft sleeve, not including international shipping). If you’re concerned about laptop theft, making your own version out of a padded envelope or even some old newspapers could be a cheaper — and more convincing — option.

Do you deter thieves by disguising your laptop while you’re out and about? How?

We like stuff, it’s fair to say, and I only just said so earlier today, in fact. But like having multiple applications running at the same time, having lots of gadgets close at hand will unavoidably split your focus — which is a bad thing if you’re trying to do more singletasking like me, and less driving yourself insane doing 50 things at once.

So as part of my new program of simplification, I’m re-evaluating what kind of kit I roll with on a regular basis. My weapon of choice used to be a large, multi-pocket bag (or two) with ample room for my computer, camera, and countless other attendant knickknacks including portable hard drives, USB keys, and most recently, a small secondary screen for auxiliary tasks like monitoring Twitter or my IM client. Read the rest of this entry »