Should I use a laptop or PDA for college?

[Milliamp]

I've decided I'd like to use either a laptop or a PDA to take notes for my classes next semester. I've heard of a number of people using PDA's for this but not too many people using laptops and the recommended hardware for this usually seems to point in the direction of the PDA.

Mentioned reasons for PDA
Cost, they are cheaper
Size. One less case to carry around
Theft Harder to steal, cheaper to replace if stolen.

Reasons for laptop
Cost is not much of an issue because I may buy a laptop anyway.
size, the additional case to carry is a point for the PDA side but with the keyboard they are likely to consume a similar amount of desk space.
Theft is not that big of a problem, I've already attended a couple semesters on campus and think the laptop should stay safe.
I am used to using a full size keyboard, I own 3 of the same keyboards because I hate having to adapt to new boards, laptop should have the lager of the 2 boards.
Comp-Sci major, can do homework assignments and program on laptop
Anal about the programs I install and functionality of my operating system, like many other comp geeks there are programs I use day to day that I would have a difficult time trying to do without on a PDA. I also make about as many changes/tweaks as possible to windows and dual boot my systems with a linux distro.
Also considering a laptop because I don't have admin access at work to install software I need, so I could also use the laptop at work.

Reasons for pen.
I don't know what my professors will allow me to use and the clicky sound of the keyboard may be distracting to the class.

Should be mentioned that I have never used A PDA or even seen one up close, so I am not familiar with the functionality or the current PDA market. Anyway, does anyone have experience with these in a classroom environment and want to give me some/any advice or information.

 

[randomlinh]

no offense to you.. but you're the annoying clicker

Of course, that also depends on the room you're in. In my physics lecture, it didn't matter.. in my archaeology (core class.. boring as hell), it was in a regular sized room and really annoying.

I would opt to stick w/ the laptop if you're going to get one anyway. Altho, for me, paper and pen is best because i tend to write everywhere and make little diagrams. One of those tablet PC's is what i'd really like to have in class.

i should mention my friend used his palm IIIxe for notes w/ a keyboard.. he ended up playing games more than paying attention

 

[Shooters]

As an engineering major, I can say that it would be virtually impossible for someone to take notes efficiently in class with a laptop with all the equations and diagrams we have to deal with. PDAs are great for staying orgranized and storing miscelleneous information like e-mail addresses and phone numbers, but I can't imagine taking notes with one. I say stick with the good ol' pencil and paper combo.

 

[Milliamp]

I wouldn't use it for things like engineering or math. At home and work I plug most information into a treepad database and think it could be useful to have my notes in a similar database. Another reason would be that my hand writing is messy when I am writing fast, I can type faster and still be able to read what?s left when I am finished. Backspace, spellcheck and other text editing functions are also a plus.

Also, what would the noise difference be between a palm and a standard dell laptop?
What PDA would be best for a class?

Know any websites or recommended sources of information for this type of thing?

 

[WhiteMyth]

Personally I"ve been using an ipaq this last semester and love it. Got a targus keyboard (same size as a laptop but it folds to the size of the pda) and it's great for taking notes for most classes, not really math equation type stuff though.

 

[Athlon4all]

Laptop. A PDA needs a regular desktop/notebook PC in order to be used effectively so before you know it, you'll be saying with just a bare PDA (even a powerful iPAQ) "I wish I had a notebook or desktop PC"

 

[Rhombuss]

I'm a mechanical engineering undergrad, and before I entered the program, I was thinking of getting a laptop for notes and things in lectures. I was glad I didn't buy one because like the others have said, you can't take physics/calculus down on a keyboard . I still don't think using a laptop or PDA is that feasible for note-taking, as you should only take down important notes and be listening intently 80% of the time. If you have a laptop, chances are you will have the tendency to be a typesetter rather than a student attending a lecture.

 

[Duck0fD3ath]

I own an iPaq 3800 and can tell you from experience that they are not ready for prime-time quite yet. Pocket Word and Excel suck compared to the full PC versions. They have so little of the original functionality it's rediculous. Also, PocketPC 2002, as good as it is, is still pretty bad if you want to use it in place of a laptop. MS has a ways to go before it becomes a fully functional OS. Get a laptop.

Additionally, good luck typing or writing out your notes in class, you'll need it. I strongly suggest you plan on writing notes with pen and paper (learn shorthand), then after class transfer your notes to your laptop. Unless you're a court stenographer or a 200 wpm secretary, typing out class notes is hard. And the clicking annoys the hell out of the rest of the class. And pen-based computing is too error prone to be efficient.

 

[Milliamp]

Originally posted by: Duck0fD3ath
I own an iPaq 3800 and can tell you from experience that they are not ready for prime-time quite yet. Pocket Word and Excel suck compared to the full PC versions. They have so little of the original functionality it's rediculous. Also, PocketPC 2002, as good as it is, is still pretty bad if you want to use it in place of a laptop. MS has a ways to go before it becomes a fully functional OS. Get a laptop.

Additionally, good luck typing or writing out your notes in class, you'll need it. I strongly suggest you plan on writing notes with pen and paper (learn shorthand), then after class transfer your notes to your laptop. Unless you're a court stenographer or a 200 wpm secretary, typing out class notes is hard. And the clicking annoys the hell out of the rest of the class. And pen-based computing is too error prone to be efficient.

I kind of use my own shorthand when taking notes but I still type faster than I can write. I think I've decided the following

I will go with laptop over PDA.
I was going to buy a laptop anyway but I may not use it for class mostly because the typing will probably be an annoyance, I still feel I can take more efficient notes with a laptop.

I will 'test' it in some of the classes where it may not be annoying. In classes that frequently utilize computer access I can probably use the laptop in place of the restricted low-end workstations the school has. This is kind of what I was thinking anyway, I think I am better off not taking notes on the laptop then not taking noted on the PDA because I am likely to find a use for the laptop outside of note-taking whereas the PDA would probably be used to cover empty shelf space in my room.

 

[MWink]

Reasons for pen.
I don't know what my professors will allow me to use and the clicky sound of the keyboard may be distracting to the class.

It really depends on the keyboard. Some laptops have really loud keyboards, other have really quiet ones. The keyboard on my Dell Inspiron 8200 is extremely quiet (I love it!). The keyboard on my OLD Dell Latitude XPi is very loud. Also, I've heard most of the time the complaints about laptops are fan noise related not keyboard related.

BTW, at my school I've noticed almost no one uses a laptop in class (not even in Comp sci classes). Though I do know some people who go to other schools and use their laptops in class all the time.

 

[woolmilk]

I would suggest a piece of paper. You can copy the notes to your
medium of choice later at home.
A pencil is fast, fault tolerant and does not rely on batteries.
Dont you fear a laptop could be falling on the floor and breaking ?
Or be stolen ? For phone numbers, appointments and email a pda
would come in handy - at least if you have a short memory like me

 

[shikhan]

I've found that its near impossible to take notes on a laptop (or pda). I actually bought a low end laptop for this reason alone, but the hard part is professors have tendency to jump back and forth between one section of the white board to another and its impossible to show this flow in electronics at the moment. And his occurs for me in my CS courses. I've ended up using my laptop very little, just as a means of coding remotely and typing up papers outside or when i'm at friends house. My pda is much more useful, and a helluva lot cheaper.

 

[LostHiWay]

Just use a notebook and a pen for notes. Much cheaper and easier. Plus you won't annoy everyone around you.

The only time I used my laptop in class was when I had a REALLY REALLY boring and simple humanities class. We had about 200 people in it (she took attendance!!). I would sit in the very last row and watch DVD's on it with headphones.

 

[kgraeme]

Obviously the laptop is the more useful device. I have a PocketPC, and while I love it, I can't take good notes in meetings with it. I even have a thumb-type keyboard for it. It works, but I prefer paper.

The advantages of paper are that you can take notes in a completely free-form way. And when you get to entering the notes in your computer, the information is refreshed in your mind which helps retention.

 

[corkyg]

Ideally you would have BOTH a laptop and PDA. A PDA needs a "base of operations" to connect and download to. Note taking devices are not as good as pen and cards or paper. When you are using any such device, you are not really lisening and concentrating on what is being said - you are more focused on the mechnics of note taking. Notes should serve the purpose of triggering memory - and unless there's something there to trigger, a note can become marginally useful.

I would hate to have to do a thesis or essay on a PDA!

 

[cessna152]

I have a Compaq Ipaq 3135. (w00t Monopaqs) I primarily use it for music and organization i.e. class schedule and projects. I attempted to use it to take notes in class. But as stated above its kinda of useless for engineers and drawing diagrams and such. I have the keyboard but it only makes it easier to input written data. None of my classes require this. If you want a PPC don't plan on using it to take notes.

A laptop is nice for the portability. I just never see anyone actually using them to take notes with. They always just end up playing games

In the end, I guess I still prefer the old-school pen and paper. I end up carrying less to class. Just a few sheets of looseleaf and a pen.

 

[Milliamp]

thanks