College and computers.. or laptops

[SoundTheSurrender]

Okay, so when I go off to college I can either

A. Build a Pc

B. Buy a Macbook

C. Buy a PC laptop (don't know what kind)

D. Both

I really don't know what to do. I will be in a dorm with another person ( I don't know this person) I am frightened that my stuff will be stolen because I don't trust people too much. I don't even trust my friends that well except for a few. If my dorm mate is honest his friends that he brings over may not... or if he leaves the door open.. you know..

I do game a lot, but school will be first. I usually play Warcraft 3. I don't think I will come home every weekend, althought I will sometimes.

Who is in this situation..?

 

[notfred]

Don't bring a laptop unless you plan on carrying it around campus to classes with you. DOn't plan on carrying it around campus to classes with you unless you're a CS or CE major.

 

[neutralizer]

1. Room with friends.
2. Discuss how to prevent losses in the room. I'm sure he doesn't want to lose his stuff either.
3. Laptops are easier to steal.
4. Desktops are cooler and you can lock them to your bed.

 

[neutralizer]

Originally posted by: notfred
Don't bring a laptop unless you plan on carrying it around campus to classes with you. DOn't plan on carrying it around campus to classes with you unless you're a CS or CE major.

Actually I never use my laptop for CS classes. I use it predominantly for humanities when the professor talks too fast for me to take proper notes.

 

[Blazin Trav]

Small form factor pc imo. Laptops are risky... I didn't end up using mine much.

Just depends what you think you will use MOST.

 

[kami333]

Personally I liked having both.

Never took my laptop to class (typing up notes after class is a great way to review), but I did go to the library/cafe/outside often since a change of scenery is nice way to refocs after a couple of hours. You can't always study in the dorms, sure you could go to the computer center but that gets old after a few weeks.

People here strike me as being a bit paranoid of having their laptops stolen. Be smart, don't leave it sitting in plain sight without a lock or in the room if you are gone for a couple of days (ironically, senior year there was a rash of thefts over fall break in the freshmen dorms, one of the master keys was stolen or something, since everyone had left their desktops a lot of them got stolen).

 

[ohmide]

Everyone at my University seemes to use a laptop. With prices being where they are it might be easier to go that route. Of course lock it up...can't trust anyone. Personally I wouldn't pay upwards of 2k for a mac

 

[neutralizer]

Originally posted by: ohmide
Everyone at my University seemes to use a laptop. With prices being where they are it might be easier to go that route. Of course lock it up...can't trust anyone. Personally I wouldn't pay upwards of 2k for a mac

In my apartment, three of us have desktops, one has a laptop as the main comp. Of course, the ones with desktops also have laptops as a secondary comp. I find browsing, working, and gaming is just much easier on the desktop.

 

[Meuge]

Laptops FTW, unless you absolutely MUST play games. Get a 15+ inch screen so that you could work on it for long periods of time without killing your eyes, and lock it inside your desk when at school, and get a wire lock for when you're elsewhere.

 

[beer]

No one ever takes notes on a laptop for engineering/math classes. Most notes are for lectures and involve lots of figures and formulas and block diagrams, etc. that are impossible to type out. The only people that take notes are those in couses where you can type (and not diagram) everything hte professor says - history, gov't, etc.

 

[chusteczka]

It really depends on how much you intend to work with a computer and if you need an advanced word processor or if you intend to require a faster machine with more storage space.

Laptops work very well for referencing class notes and checking email while studying at the library. An external hard drive in your room can serve for more storage space and backup purposes. Additionally, an external hard drive can be locked or placed in a locked closet.

 

[Wonderful Pork]

I'd go laptop, but I'm not much of a gamer and don't really see the need for 2 machines while in college (unless you are doing graphic design and need a ton of processing power to render or something).

Honestly, most of the lab work/group stuff i did was in the schools computer lab. I just typed up papers, surfed the net, and used AIM in my dorm room.

 

[SoundTheSurrender]

haha, I'm still stuck.. Macbooks are 1100 for the one I want... The pc I could build could be anywhere from 600 to 1000. No idea on a laptop..

 

[EyeMWing]

Laptop with a docking station FTW. If I lived on campus, that's the route I'd take.

 

[Ika]

how well would recording (i.e. voice recorder) the professor's lecture work? if it does work well, a desktop would probably be preferable.

 

[beer]

Originally posted by: Aflac
how well would recording (i.e. voice recorder) the professor's lecture work? if it does work well, a desktop would probably be preferable.

Again, this is something I've never seen anyone actually do. Maybe it's one of those cool-in-concept ideas, but aren't most class lectures tied heavily to what is being shown on a whiteboard or overhead or powerpoint slides? If it's slides, why do you even need the recording? And if it's whiteboard related, what good is just the voice going to do?

 

[fatpat268]

Originally posted by: beer
No one ever takes notes on a laptop for engineering/math classes. Most notes are for lectures and involve lots of figures and formulas and block diagrams, etc. that are impossible to type out. The only people that take notes are those in couses where you can type (and not diagram) everything hte professor says - history, gov't, etc.

tablet pc ftw

 

[beer]

Originally posted by: fatpat268

Originally posted by: beer
No one ever takes notes on a laptop for engineering/math classes. Most notes are for lectures and involve lots of figures and formulas and block diagrams, etc. that are impossible to type out. The only people that take notes are those in couses where you can type (and not diagram) everything hte professor says - history, gov't, etc.

tablet pc ftw

And then you're duplicating the functionality of a $.99 notebook :roll:

 

[neutralizer]

Originally posted by: beer

Originally posted by: fatpat268

Originally posted by: beer
No one ever takes notes on a laptop for engineering/math classes. Most notes are for lectures and involve lots of figures and formulas and block diagrams, etc. that are impossible to type out. The only people that take notes are those in couses where you can type (and not diagram) everything hte professor says - history, gov't, etc.

tablet pc ftw

And then you're duplicating the functionality of a $.99 notebook :roll:

You can type on a $.99 notebook? :Q

 

[SoundTheSurrender]

I'm not really looking for taking it to class, althought if I did have a laptop, I would be taking it everywhere I go due fearing it would get stolen. A desktop would be harder to steal. I would make sure of getting a server tower... but the components would be able to get taken out.

Just thinking about this is making me mad because I can't decide..

 

[Wonderful Pork]

Originally posted by: beer

Originally posted by: Aflac
how well would recording (i.e. voice recorder) the professor's lecture work? if it does work well, a desktop would probably be preferable.

Again, this is something I've never seen anyone actually do. Maybe it's one of those cool-in-concept ideas, but aren't most class lectures tied heavily to what is being shown on a whiteboard or overhead or powerpoint slides? If it's slides, why do you even need the recording? And if it's whiteboard related, what good is just the voice going to do?

Some profs do not allow their lecture to be recorded. On the other hand, some profs record video + audio and post it online so you can watch lectures at your own leisure so YMMV.

 

[neutralizer]

Originally posted by: djmihow
I'm not really looking for taking it to class, althought if I did have a laptop, I would be taking it everywhere I go due fearing it would get stolen. A desktop would be harder to steal. I would make sure of getting a server tower... but the components would be able to get taken out.

Just thinking about this is making me mad because I can't decide..

Lock the side window. I think the major thing is talk to roommate on closing the door and etc. As for the laptop, as long as you keep the bag on you and don't leave unattended with strangers, you should be fine.

 

[EyeMWing]

Originally posted by: djmihow
I'm not really looking for taking it to class, althought if I did have a laptop, I would be taking it everywhere I go due fearing it would get stolen. A desktop would be harder to steal. I would make sure of getting a server tower... but the components would be able to get taken out.

Just thinking about this is making me mad because I can't decide..

If you're concerned about component theft, get a chassis with locks on it. Most of the good ones do, anyway.

 

[Jmman]

Well, I use an ultraportable 12 inch laptop (PC). It is about the size of a book, so it goes everywhere I go. All of my classrooms have wireless internet as well, so if I get bored with the lecture, I just surf the net, read email, etc......

 

[beer]

Originally posted by: Jmman
Well, I use an ultraportable 12 inch laptop (PC). It is about the size of a book, so it goes everywhere I go. All of my classrooms have wireless internet as well, so if I get bored with the lecture, I just surf the net, read email, etc......

And this is the only use I've EVER seen for laptops in classrooms. Don't you think that if laptops and tablet PCs were such a slick, useful idea, that someone, somewhere would have used it to take notes? I've been through four years of EE and I've never - not once - seen someone actually take notes on a laptop for an engineering class, on a regular basis. It's just not practical and no matter how you try to do it, you'll always be missing something. If you use a laptop, you can't diagram figures and block diagrams and formulas quickly (quickly = faster than you can write them down on paper). If you're using a tablet PC, then you're constantly having to alternate typing of notes and handwriting of everything else - do you think that's any faster or more efficient?

spiral notebook + the little message flags taht you can buy for $3 at wal-mart to flag important things + highlighters + pencil ftw....

The only thing laptops are useful for is writing code or running through matlab homework somewhere other than in the lab. But you're not doing that in a classroom while you're actively being lectures, but probably at a coffee shop or something.