<p>I am the Apple Campus Representative. It is my job to encourage as many people as possible to switch to the Mac for college. If you are considering it, I highly recommend it ;-)</p>
<p>And of course you can ask me any questions you may have.</p>
<p>Is there a student discount for a Mac?</p>
<p>do most students use mac or pc?</p>
<ol>
<li>Yes, there is a significant student discount for a Mac</li>
<li>I think more people use PCs, but it's not like in business where it's like a 95%-5% split...here it's probably like 60% PCs and 40% Macs. Mac support from the University (and myself!) is excellent.</li>
</ol>
<p>Would you recommend a Mac for a business student? If so, what type?</p>
<p>I hear that IBM would be better</p>
<p>
[quote]
Would you recommend a Mac for a business student? If so, what type?</p>
<p>I hear that IBM would be better
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I would absolutely recommend a Mac for business. Keep in mind that every Mac now sold is capable of natively running Windows (XP and Vista), so for the business apps that require Windows, you can run them.</p>
<p>Then, for the 95% of the time you are NOT running them, you can use Mac OS X which is much more immune to viruses, spyware, hackers, and other junkware...and also much more conducive to productivity!</p>
<p>A Mac is the best of both worlds.</p>
<p>I would recommend a laptop, of which Apple makes 2: the MacBook and the MacBook Pro. Unless you are going to be doing serious 3D stuff, I would get the MacBook, which is smaller, lighter, and cheaper.</p>
<p>As for Lenovo (which loses the right to use the "IBM" brand name soon), they certainly make a better computer than, say, Dell (the other computer offered through Penn), but they only run Windows and don't have the latest features like Macs (even the low-end MacBooks have 802.11n [the next-generation of wireless] bluetooth 2.0, a built-in webcam, and optical digital audio in/out ports...)</p>
<p>Macs also come with much better creative suite software...because there is more to life than business after all ;)</p>
<p>how much discount do you get? i am quite sure that i will get a macbook pro but is there any incentive to buying it through penn.
btw. i am tired of windows. my computer started crashing only after one month.</p>
<p>If there is a student discount for a Mac, how do I get it? Should I call them and tell them I want to buy a Mac or do I get something in the mail after I sumbit my deposit?</p>
<p>I read that wharton students are highly recommended to get PCs since all of the business software is only capable of working in windows, but unfortunately i prefer mac. Do you think it would be worth it to get a mac</p>
<p>Is it really difficult to transition from Windows to Mac?</p>
<p>I don't want to spend the first month of college trying to figure my laptop out. Haha.</p>
<p>802.11n is no use unless we buy our own 802.11n capable routers.
and as you said , even though macs are able to run windows, what is the guarantee that we have windows drivers available for mac hardware.</p>
<p>
[quote]
how much discount do you get? i am quite sure that i will get a macbook pro but is there any incentive to buying it through penn.
btw. i am tired of windows. my computer started crashing only after one month.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Currently you can get the MacBook Pro for $1600, which is normally $2000</p>
<p>Windows does indeed suck ;-)</p>
<p>
[quote]
If there is a student discount for a Mac, how do I get it? Should I call them and tell them I want to buy a Mac or do I get something in the mail after I sumbit my deposit?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>There are two ways to buy a Mac with the discount. The university's computer store (the computer connection, <a href="http://www.upenn.edu/computerstore%5B/url%5D">www.upenn.edu/computerstore</a>) will mail you information on buying a computer at a discount over the summer. The other way, of course, is to come to the computer store and buy one (you need a PennCard).</p>
<p>
[quote]
I read that wharton students are highly recommended to get PCs since all of the business software is only capable of working in windows, but unfortunately i prefer mac. Do you think it would be worth it to get a mac
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Absolutely worth it!</p>
<p>Remember, every Mac now being sold CAN RUN WINDOWS.</p>
<p>We are working with Wharton computing to get them to modify their recommendations to be more accommodating.</p>
<p>There are lots of Wharton students who have bought Macs when they came to Penn. Some have even arrived with a PC and ultimately switched to a Mac (thanks to me :-D). So you will not be alone.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Is it really difficult to transition from Windows to Mac?</p>
<p>I don't want to spend the first month of college trying to figure my laptop out. Haha.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Hey, you got into Penn! You are definitely smart enough to figure it out. The Mac is definitely different (that's why it's better!), but it is not at all hard to get used to. You'll get used to it very quickly.</p>
<p>Check out <a href="http://www.apple.com/support/switch101/%5B/url%5D">http://www.apple.com/support/switch101/</a> for some info. And of course, I am here to help you with any problems you may have.</p>
<p>
[quote]
802.11n is no use unless we buy our own 802.11n capable routers.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>This makes your Mac "future-proof" and ready for the new technology when it is widely deployed. After all, you'll have this computer for a few years. I'm sure there will be more 802.11n routers in 2010 than 2007.</p>
<p>
[quote]
and as you said , even though macs are able to run windows, what is the guarantee that we have windows drivers available for mac hardware.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>You have the guarantee because they already exist. Apple has written Windows XP and Vista drivers for all of their hardware. When you install Boot Camp, it creates a CD of drivers that you then install in Windows. Problem solved.</p>
<p>You've stated numerous times that Macs can run windows. However, do we need to buy the windows XP/vista operating system separately and then install it to run windows on a mac? Or does the mac come built in with windows? Or can you get it from Mac at no cost/low cost? How does this work?</p>
<p>Windows does not come pre-installed on Macs, you must get it yourself and put it on. You can get copies of Windows XP or Vista cheap through various sources.</p>
<p>SEAS students get Windows Vista Business for free from Microsoft. XP can be found for around a hundred bucks. of course, if your old PC came with a Windows installation disc, you can use that. Just don't pirate it, that's illegal ;-)</p>
<p>vista business is free for seas students? awesome. and we can load that on to the macs, right?</p>
<p>Yes it is free, and yes you can load it onto Macs. You can use Apple's own Boot Camp (currently free download at apple.com/bootcamp, will be included as a part of Apple's next OS, 10.5 "leopard") technology for a dual-boot solution, or if you want to run both OSes simultaneously, you can buy Parallels.</p>