My mom (born 1959) remembers having the opportunity to "tour"  a computer when she was in grade school... and though she doesn't remember much from the experience, she DOES remember the gentleman who gave the tour declaring, "I don't know why anyone would want a computer smaller than this."  At the time, the size of a computer required the space of an entire room. 

What a ways we've come since then!  Acer's "ASPIRE one" is one of the most compact computers you can have, if you don't count cell phones.  This little guy has been perfect for what I got it for---taking back and forth with me to...