During a recent lecture for the Department of Economic Development a couple of people asked me about setting up their laptops.  They are using laptops as their main computers and don’t use peripherals.  Here is a picture of one solution.  The key is to keep your elbows into your sides and stop looking down. As you can see, by using notebooks I can lift the monitor of the laptop up — this stops me from slouching.  It also brings the keys closer to my body and keeps me from reaching.  Now, many may ask, what about my elbows– they are bent past 90 degrees.  True, they are bent more than we really want them to be; however, I would rather bend the elbows then bend the wrists or reach out.  We are keeping the weakest links supported — the shoulders and wrists. 

Just a side note: if you already have trouble with your elbows or nerves don’t use this configuration.  Use peripherals!  They are worth a few dollars. 

Notice the most important point — the laptop is not on my lap!