Guides4 min read
How to code on an iPad or Chromebook with a real Linux VM
The heavy work happens on the VM, so the device in your hands only has to draw a browser tab.
A tablet and a light laptop make poor development machines and excellent screens. Because the compiler, the language servers, and the repository all live on the VM, the device in your hands only has to run a browser well. Most of them do.
The device is a screen
Everything that is normally heavy — indexing a large repository, running tests, holding a container — happens on the machine. Your iPad is not doing that work and does not get warm doing it. It renders a tab and sends your keystrokes.
What works well
- An iPad or Android tablet with a keyboard case, in a full-screen browser.
- A Chromebook, which is a browser with a lid.
- A borrowed or locked-down laptop where you cannot install a toolchain.
What to expect
A hardware keyboard makes the difference between a demo and a working setup — the editor and terminal lean on modifier keys. Beyond that, the honest surprise is how little you give up. The editor is real VS Code, the terminal is a real shell, and the machine does not care what is drawing the pixels.
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