<p>You can buy a replacement battery for MacBooks. They’re easily replaced.</p>
<p>The CD drive might be fixable. Try some of the advice on Apple’s support pages. You could try resetting the PMU. There are fixes listed on this page: [Apple</a> Portables: Troubleshooting the slot load optical disc drive](<a href=“http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2801]Apple”>http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2801).</p>
<p>Of course, back up any file you want to keep, before you try to fix anything! Back it up onto something remote–a separate hard drive, for example.</p>
<p>We have been a PC/Windows family for years. My son decided he wanted a Mac Book for BS so we made the purchase a few months ago so he would have time to learn how to use it. In no time, he was doing anything he needed to do on the Mac. The learning curve to transition from PC/Windows to a Mac was no big deal. He loves his Mac.</p>
<p>We also purchased the Apple Care plan to put our mind at ease in case anything went wrong with the laptop or if he had a question about something.</p>
<p>We purchased the basic Silver 13" Mac Book and decided to go with the iWorks software for word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations. iWorks is more stable on a Mac than “Microsoft Office for Mac” and it is much cheaper. Plus iWorks can open MS Office documents and can save to MS Office format.</p>
<p>Wireless setup is a breeze on a Mac as well. It is fully integrated and the setup took literally seconds.</p>
<p>Apple runs specials all the time where you get a free printer or even a free iPod, so look for those deals. I believe they also offer a discount for students.</p>
<p>We went to the local Apple store to get the “hands on” experience, but when it came time to buy, we purchased on-line to get the on-line offers.</p>
Periwenkle. I am not sure if Apple will “punish you” but you have to “swear” that you are what they offer to. If you note, Boarding school / High School STUDENTS are NOT eligible for the discount while TEACHERS are. COLLEGE STUDENTS are.</p>
<p>Other than that, at my d’s school, 95% had Macs and the IT and school were Macs. I have also heard that Andover may be giving Macs now instead of Dells?</p>
<p>Also, with the new macs, you can start up in Windows instead of MacOS if you have a problem.</p>
<p>One thing my ds like is that with Apple, you have 24/7 phone support (you call and leave your number and they will call you back and talk you through almost any problem) - I don’t think the PCs do that.</p>
<p>The Air is expensive, but VERY light. Problem with it is that you cannot do DVD so need external drive to watch a movie, etc.</p>
<p>Princess’Dad, I was looking for Apple’s number–and I found the “education store”, with our child’s school name at the top of the page. It’s a $50 discount on a new macbook, text states: “students save $50.” As the only students at this boarding school are high school students, I’d say it applies, if you can find your child’s boarding school on the Apple site. I don’t know if the school has to register with Apple.</p>
<p>We didn’t participate in the “buy a computer, get an Ipod” offer, which is in the college store, and we didn’t do a rebate, which I see on the college pages now. It was only a small discount. As we bought the Mac for our child before the mac/ipod offer came in, I don’t know if it’s available for boarding school students.</p>
<p>Also, I don’t think it’s a do-or-die limit in any case. A relative bought a laptop for a high school student taking a course at a local community college, and even the terms and conditions for the mac/ipod offer lists student ages of 13-18 (in that they need parental permission.) I suspect the point of the offer is to build brand loyalty in students at the moment they leave home for school.</p>
<p>If you note, there are two sites. If you do the college site, the boarding school will not show up; if you do the k-12, it will. Below are the eligibility notes. Specifically students from College. Faculty staff from k-12.</p>
<p>Will they “come after you” if you click the boarding school for your child, probably not, but it is illegal and sort of like pirating software.</p>
<p>Eligibility</p>
<p>Those eligible to purchase from the Apple Store for Education Individuals include faculty, staff, students and parents as follows:</p>
<p>K12 - Any employee of a public or private K-12 institution in the United States is eligible. In addition, school board members who are currently serving as elected or appointed members are eligible. PTA or PTO executives currently serving as elected or appointed officers are eligible.</p>
<p>Higher Education - Faculty and staff of Higher Education institutions; and students attending, or accepted into a Higher Education institution are eligible to purchase. Purchases from the Apple Store for Education Individuals are not for institutional purchase or resale.</p>
<p>Higher Education Parents - Parents purchasing on behalf of their child, who is a student currently attending or accepted into a public or private Higher Education Institution in the United States, are eligible to purchase.</p>
<p>As to ipod vs ipod touch, if they want it for music, the regular ipod has much more memory. If they want it for internet access and applications, the touch is the way to go. It is an iphone without the phone (although you can call on skype on it).</p>
<p>If you order a mac, you can add more RAM and memory. I would add as much as you can afford as that will give you more years. D has hers almost full of itune music. As suggested above, got her external harddrive and had her put music and pictures there.</p>