Laptop for College?

[Netko]

You don't want to spend more than ten minutes a day on a computer in your first semester, maybe one day a week for 30 minutes, or else you risk failure in an engineering program. I honestly would not unpack my desktop at first at all, and wait until the second semester and use school computers (which are locked out with no games for a reason -- think about that) to check e-mail. It's only 4 months.

If you really want to make it in engineering, if you really want to see what you're made of, fuck the laptop. Too many people fail because of computers, and I'm not saying you're one of them, but you basically do not know until you get there if you're ahead of the pack and can spend every night jerking off, or if you bring up the rear and have to work your ass off. And if a program is worth your cash anyway, it's impossible to jerk off and do well or even live.

See above for the answer, but if his university has a good online community your advice is pretty much the way for him to fail. See, the faculty knows about those sites, they aren't idiots. The assistants probably graduated only in the last couple of years! So often, the exams and other tests tend to get constructed in a way that presupposes that you had extensive exposure to the exams and tests and all the other materials available of the previous years. Going in all gungho, I can learn it all! way is exactly the perfect way to fail because you overlooked the things the faculty stressed as important. Managing your time so that the computer does not become a distraction is extremely important, however not being involved in the online community at your university is the stupidest advice possible. Times change, adapt or die.

[brianeyci]

Dark ages my ass. Who's university is in the dark ages, which does not have a large modern building with hundreds of brand new reliable computers? Fucked up the printer, what a joke. I choose not to participate in message boards, MSN, and all that other bullshit because it's a big time waster. I check my answers by talking to them in class and making friends face to face, not posting on a message board nobody has time to check and the professors who are in general conservative don't give a shit about e-mail and message boards. And they can't, because each one has hundreds of students.

"Studying to the test" is also bullshit, for shitty universities which use the same format of test every single year with the numbers changed. Ask Mike; having tons of old tests and solutions for old exams only works as shitty universities. It helps, and you should do it for an edge, but should not be any different than doing exercises from the textbook unless the professors are lazy and don't make a new challenging test every year.

You make a huge assumption that managing your time carefully with a computer around first semester is possible at all, which is total bullshit. Many people cannot, and I already mentioned you don't know how much work you need to put in, how smart you are, until you're past your first semester. Rolling the dice with that crap is retarded. You need to cut distraction down to zero in a program that fails two out of three guys after first year.

[brianeyci]

Times change, adapt or die.

I don't know about you but I can print out all past tests and solutions and need to manually write them out by hand. Simply looking is not enough -- participation is important and often you need to look at the steps yourself.

I don't need an "online community" to survive. Better not mention "online community" lest I sic Stark-o out. I'm sure he has a lot of things to say to people who think an online community is a surrogate social life.

A website which has past tests and exams and solutions to print out is not a community, not by any stretch of the imagination.

[Fleet Admiral JD]

I just got my college laptop through my mom from HP--I bought a tablet model, in fact, the tx1410, part of the tx1000 series. Even though I'm still a high school senior, I've been using it during my independent research periods for my work therein, and it's been incredibly handy. As in, now that I've lived with it, I don't know how I lived without it. If you do wind up getting a laptop, this is the computer I'd recommend. 2.2GhZ processor, 2 gigs RAM, 250 gig hard drive. It's small, but I'll be damned if it isn't a great little computer.

[Netko]

Times change, adapt or die.

I don't know about you but I can print out all past tests and solutions and need to manually write them out by hand. Simply looking is not enough -- participation is important and often you need to look at the steps yourself.

I usually use them as checkpoints. Learn the material, write one of the old ones as if you're actually taking the test, see how you did and what you missed/didn't know, fix the hole (by using various sources but mostly finding out how to do the problem, and doing it on several practice problems), repeat. Deduct 20% of the score on the old tests to get a realistic expectation on how you'll do on the real one. Before you complain about learning to the test, I should note that the first pass better be damn comprehensive or you can deduct 50% right at the start. The old tests are just a tool to see where you still have holes and to learn the structure and pacing of the test (which doesn't change and which is often a problem with the more complex exams where the allocated 2h-3h just isn't enough if you don't know the material well and also if you don't know how much time you can spend on a problem for which you don't immediately know the exact procedure for).

I don't need an "online community" to survive. Better not mention "online community" lest I sic Stark-o out. I'm sure he has a lot of things to say to people who think an online community is a surrogate social life.

Fuck the online community as a social life - I agree that is idiotic (not that the non-coursework subforums aren't popular). But use it as a learning tool and assistance. Its slightly worse then having a learning buddy, but its available 24/7, so you consider it as a virtual learning buddy that ain't so great and combine it with actual learning buddies - a very good way to master the material in my opinion.

A website which has past tests and exams and solutions to print out is not a community, not by any stretch of the imagination.

But which has dedicated forums per course for discussion and mutual support, has a file resource for uploading various materials, most of which are actually community made tutorials, scripts and summaries, but also the old tests, lab exam questions and the like is. Like all such "social" sites, it depends on good user participation, but if it exists at the university (by your posts it obviously doesn't at yours) you're being a fool not to use it as a resource. And to do that effectively, you need your own computer that is accessible to you as much as possible.

[Mayabird]

Don't get a laptop, but if you do, don't take it to class. Seriously, NOBODY ends up using it to actually take notes in class. You end up getting a little bored, decide to check your email, see what's going on in the news, and then it's the end of the lecture and you've got nothing. It just ends up being an expensive way to flunk out, as if college wasn't already expensive enough.

You know when professors post lecture slides before class? Here's an idea: PRINT THEM OUT. You can take notes on the paper, and you can carry them around to study later. Nobody's going to try to steal your notebook, but they might try to steal your computer. Once the class is done, if you don't want them, there are recycling bins all over the place for paper.

This is advice from someone who went to a predominantly engineering school and got a science degree. I saw it. I lived it. I wasn't crippled at all by having just a desktop. In fact, it ended up being a boon. There were computer labs all over the place that I could access between classes if need be when I couldn't get back to my room. Just about every professor, even the liberal arts ones for English and other such state requirements, had online stuff, and I handled it just fine using my computer in my room and computer labs.

Seriously, people did just fine before expensive electronic toys.

[Pu-239]

I've been able to pass my classes even with the distractions provided by electronic devices in class, but I usually got more out of textbooks than lectures anyway- professors do cover finer points that I've missed out on however, which I regret missing (passing doesn't mean you know stuff well, I suspect there is rampant grade inflation at my school, or it's too easy (I go to GMU for cost reasons, which isn't particularly known for it's engineering courses, mostly Law and Business if anything)).

Thinking it over, I'm inclined to suggest don't get one; get a bike instead so you can bike to your room and back quickly . I've found my folding bike incredibly nice for biking between classes when I'm feeling lazy/want to get somewhere quickly. I'd say postpone purchasing a laptop until you're halfway or entirely through the first semester if you do get one.

Even if you're a commuter like me, the time between classes could better be spent socializing and hanging out with real people.

[brianeyci]

I know now why I don't participate in online communities.

On a lark I went looking around and it does exist. I answered someone's question about an upcoming quiz, and phrased something like this: "If you do 9 a) the retard way, it takes way too long."

I come home and an e-mail with a link to wikipedia's manners article is waiting . I didn't even call anybody a retard and in comes the miss manners. Fucking cunts.

[Gandalf]

I was looking at getting a laptop for my uni stuff, which is just history.

I have a friend at Dell, which means that I might be able to get one cheaply. But I wanted to know if Linux could be put on a laptop, I've heard of it being an issue, but I don't want Vista and its supposed issues.

[Beowulf]

I was looking at getting a laptop for my uni stuff, which is just history.

I have a friend at Dell, which means that I might be able to get one cheaply. But I wanted to know if Linux could be put on a laptop, I've heard of it being an issue, but I don't want Vista and its supposed issues.

Yeah. Certain ones you can even have Linux put on at the factory. On the other hand, Vista doesn't have a lot of issues, and some of the ones they complain about are both to help protect users against Malware, and will be tweaked with SP1, which comes out... uh... soon.

[Gandalf]

Yeah. Certain ones you can even have Linux put on at the factory.

Bitchin'. Because I Ubuntu, so I'd love to give it a go. I'm also terrified at the idea of my laptop crashing mid lecture.

On the other hand, Vista doesn't have a lot of issues, and some of the ones they complain about are both to help protect users against Malware, and will be tweaked with SP1, which comes out... uh... soon.

That's good to know, will SP1 be a free download, or will I have to pay for it?

[Beowulf]

On the other hand, Vista doesn't have a lot of issues, and some of the ones they complain about are both to help protect users against Malware, and will be tweaked with SP1, which comes out... uh... soon.

That's good to know, will SP1 be a free download, or will I have to pay for it?

Unlike Apple, MS doesn't make you pay for point releases.

[TimothyC]

On the other hand, Vista doesn't have a lot of issues, and some of the ones they complain about are both to help protect users against Malware, and will be tweaked with SP1, which comes out... uh... soon.

That's good to know, will SP1 be a free download, or will I have to pay for it?

Unlike Apple, MS doesn't make you pay for point releases.

Can, erm, May, I sig that?

[Beowulf]

That's good to know, will SP1 be a free download, or will I have to pay for it?

Unlike Apple, MS doesn't make you pay for point releases.

Can, erm, May, I sig that?

If you wish.