<p>When are we supposed to be getting this catalog? The blue book says mid may but hasn't that passed? has anyone else gotten theirs?</p>
<p>lol, funny post. the catalog is generally a rip-off anyways. seems cool but it’s really kinda lame.</p>
<p>p<em>hp</em>fan, So would you not recommend that we buy things through the Blue Devil Delivery program?</p>
<p>Put it this way, I did not buy anything through it, I don’t regret not doing so, and I don’t see much reason why someone would have different motivations than I did.</p>
<p>What kind of things are you thinking about getting? What do you need? Basically:
- clothes/shoes/towel
- lamp
- tower fan (if no air conditioning)
- laptop
- sheets/blanket/pillow</p>
<p>And you’re set! No need to buy any of that from Duke. The sheets (i’ve heard) are low quality and overpriced. If you want a laptop, I’d just wait until you get to campus and then check them out. Duke does offer a nice warranty, but it does cost you around $200-300 extra. Personally, I just got mine directly from Lenovo and have had absolutely no problems. Plus, you can almost get a new computer for $300 nowadays…makes a $300 warranty seem a bit much. (Note the $200-$300 is already figured into the laptop price so it won’t look like it’s more, but if you compare prices, it is.)</p>
<p>oh, also, a backpack :)</p>
<p>If I were buying a laptop for college, I would get at least a 3-year warranty, even if it’s not through Duke. Crap happens in college, if things go south (which it almost always does) then you are covered. </p>
<p>Note: this is only if your machine is worth at least $1000, otherwise, it’s probably not worth the price.</p>
<p>So you recommend buying a computer from Duke, just not through their delivery program? At BDD, it sounded like if you buy from Duke and there is ever a problem, you can get it fixed for free…it is worth it? And would you recommend a Mac or PC? I personally prefer PCs, but it seems like a lot more colleges/college students are getting Macs.</p>
<p>No, I personally wouldn’t buy a computer from Duke because I like to customize my machines. That said, Duke’s computers aren’t bad, they are just limited in selection and a little bit more expensive than what I’d pay. </p>
<p>A warranty means that if there’s ever a problem, within the warranty period, the company will fix it for free, regardless of whether or not you bought from Duke. Having worked with OIT for a bit, I’m almost positive that they only handle software issues in house. Almost all of the hardware problems are sent off to the manufacturer. What Duke computers provide that buying yourself doesn’t is the fact that you can drop off your computer at the help desk on campus and pick it up there also for your repair needs. That said, almost all computer companies will overnight boxes for you to ship your computer in via overnight/2-day shipping anyway, even with regular warranties and delivery is right to your door (dorm door). So it’s not really too much of a difference</p>
<p>Mac vs. PC, go with what you like. I’m a PC person but Duke supports both.</p>
<p>I’d echo what SBR said. The Duke computers are all decent, but they are not the newest top-of-the-line models. Duke buys computers in bulk and then sells off the stock, meaning you are going to be buying a year-old machine. Buying from Duke is convenient but you give up the chance to customize your machine. Also, a lot of manufacturers will give you a student discount (I know Apple and HP do).
In terms of warranty, I have an Apple and the Apple store at South Point (about 15 minutes from campus) is great. My trackpad started freezing up and they replaced it on site, no questions asked, in about 2 hours. Duke OIT will help you with software issues even if you don’t have a warranty through them, and they’re usually pretty helpful. If you do have the warranty most hardware stuff is sent out anyway, so you’re probably better off with a manufacturer’s warranty. Something else to consider is that your Duke warranty does you no good when you aren’t at Duke - so if you’re studying abroad or home for the summer, you’re out of luck.</p>
<p>I noticed on the Duke OIT website that the computers in the labs are kinda old. How come Duke hasn’t updated its computer lab equipment?</p>
<p>Not all computer lab equipment is old, the computers in the library, especially the iMacs are quite new. </p>
<p>But here are some reasons for old computers:</p>
<p>1) some computer labs have low traffic, so it’s not imperative to have the latest and greatest</p>
<p>2) some computer labs (engineering labs) require expensive servers instead of regular desktops and those are updated less frequently</p>
<p>3) the economy is still down in the dumps</p>
<p>The computers in the labs are generally just fine. I wouldn’t worry about them. I’ll 3rd SBR’s response on buying Duke comps.</p>