<p>I'm going to be a bio major, and i don't really plan on taking any courses that will require anything besides research papers/essays on microsoft office...
My laptop doesn't really live up to the requirements that they have on the Case website. However, i only think i'll need it for writing papers and surfing the web etc...(no music downloading or anything like that)</p>
<p>do you think i'll be okay with what i have(Dell Inspiron)?</p>
<p>When you enroll don't they make you agree to their computer contracting stating that your computer is up to their standards?</p>
<p>just to clarify my problem, my computer is just lower in memory/RAM..but there is no reason i shouldn't be able to connect to Case's online information things.</p>
<p>You don't need certain specs (ie RAM, processor speed, etc)...just a gigabit card. I'm not sure if its absolutely required, but I'm pretty sure than you need it to even use the internet here. Also, a wireless card is really nice. The university uses 802.11 b/g. The entire campus and I think Universtiy Circle is wireless, which is way ahead of the curve.</p>
<p>Check this out.
<a href="http://www.case.edu/its/getting_connected/Computer_specification_recommendations_Students.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.case.edu/its/getting_connected/Computer_specification_recommendations_Students.pdf</a></p>
<p>I'm planning on buying a new machine, either a Thinkpad or (if I can swing the price) a Macbook Pro.</p>
<p>i use wireless internet, but i have no idea what a gigabit card is or if i have that? exactly what does it do/use for?</p>
<p>I'm getting a macbook pro in June for my graduation present from my dad.</p>
<p>jakem333: a gigabit ethernet port is the current stsandard for wired networking--this would be highly advantageous for use in your dorm, as the speed of data transfer via that is exponentially greater than that provided by a wireless connection</p>
<p>so is this gigabit ethernet port just some kind of specific cord you get, or do you need a whole installation/modem thing to do it..sorry for my computer illiteracy everyone lol.</p>
<p>you need a gigabit card. theyre around 50 bucks. just go to besutbuy or circuitcity (or their websites) and look for gigabit cards for notebooks. They'll hook you up. They plug into the pcmcia slot on your notebook.</p>
<p>well
technically you can use a 10/100 Mb ethernet card on a Gigabit network but you need different hardware to connect to the wall. Check out the eStore at <a href="http://www.case.edu/its/estore/epartners/allied/%5B/url%5D">http://www.case.edu/its/estore/epartners/allied/</a>
and look under Laptops and "10/100 Ethernet" if you bought that hardware or similar hardware, you should be OK. you'll be running at a connection speed that is 10x as slow as your buddy who did buy a gigabit card though.</p>
<p>actually, all you need is an ethernet cable and the 10/100 Mb ethernet card. Since you said you won't be downloading much, I dont' think you'll need the extra speed a gigabit card would allow you. Most people here don't have one. If you were to get a gigabit card, you'd need to buy a special ethernet cable capable of handling the high speeds.</p>
<p>if you are going to go with the "10/100 Ethernet" hardware talked about above, and are somewhat computer savvy (ie enough to compare 2 products and determine if they're the same) look into getting different hardware than Case links to...basically that box is huge and provides linkups for several computers...I got a box that is about 4"x4"x1" (less than a quarter of the size of the other one)...it only connects my computer, but the smaller size is really nice to have, gotten lots of comments about how nice it is... (mine is a NetGear brand)</p>
<p>The Case box mounted to the wall, so I really don't see any need to bring a smaller box as the box the school provides isn't going anywhere.
Jakem333 if you don't care about speed then just bring what you have.
That box can take 10/10, 10/ 100 and 10/100 if you have an Ethernet card and a cable you'll be fine. Plus you said you have wireless on you laptop so you can always just connect with that.
The days of coming to Case and having to drop $300-$500 on gigabit cards, fiber optic cables and Ethernet switches (my days) are finally over.</p>
<p>well if i only need that $50 card, then it's really no biggie. But i think i'll just deal with a slower speed if i have to spend 300-500 just to make it work.</p>
<p>I'll bring what i have to orientation and see how it goes.</p>
<p>they provide the converter in the room and so you need the gigabit card if you want it to go fast. you dont need to buy the converter on your own. like i said the cards at only 50ish dollars. For the most part ethernet cords that can handle the speeds are widely available if not close to being standard in stores. You should read the fine print though</p>
<p>You can buy a gigabit cardif you want the full speed (sencond fastest in the nation), although i don't know if they make them for laptops and i don't know how much they cost if they do. But if your laptop already has an ethernet port, which i should, it would be 10/100 which is plenty fast.</p>
<p>I was wondering what softwear applications case lets you get for free. One of the main ones I was wondering about mathematica or mathlab. Does anyone have the list because I wanted to access it but I have to look at it from a case IP adress so I was wondering if a Case student knew?</p>
<p>I'll dig up the list later (it has the standard stuff you'd expect), but for now...
~ Mathematica is free but requires a registration code every year and is sort of a hassle to install... personally I don't use it as a result.
~ Mathlab is free if you're on campus and connected to the network as there are 80 spots you can use. I've never had a problem with this, however, except the one time I tried to log on while an engineering class was on at the same time in the middle of the day... if you really like Mathlab you can get a student license at the bookstore for less than a hundred bucks to use off campus and such.</p>
<p>Mathematica <em>cringe</em>
I've used that way too much in my BC Calc class.</p>