<p>I have a beautiful 2006 iMac that I love. It runs perfectly, I've taken good care of it, it's clean and fast, etc.</p>
<p>My mom suggested me getting a laptop for college and she and my dad can have my computer. I'm considering it, but if I decided I wanted to bring my iMac to school ...how, um, do I get it there?</p>
<p>I live in Hawaii; going to school in California.</p>
<p>Do I pack it in a box and ship it to the dorm ahead of time? I can't just take it on a plane with me ...it's big! And my peripherals and everything ...does anybody have any experience bringing a desktop to college?</p>
<p>I packed it all up before I left and then had my parents ship it to me once I arrived. Just pack everything with lots of padding (I kept the boxes the bigger components - monitor and case - came in, as they had specially-shaped Styrofoam etc.), and you should be fine.</p>
<p>I'd second that suggestion. A lot of baggage handlers have sticky fingers too. Pack it well and ship it via insured UPS/FedEx/DHL. I'd insure it at a good value too- for DHL international (don't ask) a $1700 laptop was $15 to insure, which is peanuts, and if they lose the computer, you get to upgrade.</p>
<p>Just make sure you backup ALL of your data in case it gets smashed or lost.</p>