A common question that new writers ask is what tools do you use to write with? I have used just about everything under the sun, from Vi to Scrivener. What I use now, may not be what I use later, but it’s what I’m comfortable with. Being comfortable with your tools makes all the difference.
I use a white, Intel MacBook, with 2 GB RAM and running OS-X Snow Leopard. I write in Open Office Writer and I use the Open Office Calc program to do my outlines in. I use the Mac Dictionary and sometimes a browser to do research. I back up my files using Dropbox. This arrangement lets me move from the laptop to the Linux box in the garage without being tied to either OS for a specific program. On Linux, I use Ubuntu 9.10 on a 512 MB Pentium 2.
The Linux box is on its last legs and I would like to replace it with another laptop, probably an HP 13 inch model about the same size as the MacBook that I will install Ubuntu on. But unless the MacBook dies on me, I will make due with these old machines.