Thoughts on Laptops

Yesterday I was in a classroom that had a COW (Computers On Wheels) to do a lesson on Keyboarding. Something happened that happens pretty often when classes that I have been working with try to do a lesson with everyone on laptops. A bunch of kids cannot get on and it took about 20 minutes before we ditched the lesson because there were only 10 minutes left. Plan B was practice on putting their hands on the home row several times with their eyes closed with no typing. 

I have observed this type of thing often with laptops. I like laptops in the classroom and it seems better than a lab to me, but it is always time consuming passing them out and putting them back. They seem much better suited to be available when needed for a small group or individuals. As a teacher you can then say to the students to get a laptop and let them switch if the one they get was not plugged in or is not working for some reason. 

I wonder about the experiences of other people. Have you had success using the laptops on a cart with the whole class? What tricks do I need to learn to make it work more smoothly?

Here are a few links to what others have said:
http://edtechie.wordpress.com/2009/09/29/managing-laptops-and-carts-in-the-classroom/ - This one is from New York. He includes links at the bottom to others.

http://it.seattleschools.org/blog/schools/laptopcarts/ - Concentrates on management issues (ie. how to sign the cart out, etc)

http://blog.classroomteacher.ca/841/pros-and-cons-of-having-a-class-of-laptops/
This is the best one and the most current. It talks about the pros and cons of having laptops in the classroom.