<p>Which macbook did you get? The one with the super-drive? I couldn't see myself shelling out an extra $150 just for a black case. Did you get the AppleCare plan? I'm definitely getting some type of extended / accidental warranty.. Best Buy really duped me when I bought a laptop last year. Their warrantys are worthless. I'm gonna get my Macbook directly from Apple. I don't want to deal with the middle-man anymore.</p>
<p>I've actually never heard of "A Bit of Fry and Laurie" until you just mentioned Stephen Fry and I read his Wikipedia page. I'll check it out on YouTube because there are a couple of clips on there.</p>
<p>I got the 2 GHz white MacBook. I don't think I have a super-drive, and I didn't get the AppleCare plan. Probably a bad idea. But I had already made it 2 GB RAM and 120 GB of disk space, and my mother didn't want to pay for a billion dollar laptop. I did get it directly from Apple. I'm just going to try to take care of it. </p>
<p>You are amazing if you actually looked up Stephen Fry just because I mentioned him, especially if you used almighty Wikipedia. Yeah, he and Hugh met at Cambridge when they were about 20, and have been a comedic duo ever since. People in the U.S. don't really know that Hugh Laurie's a comedian because of his serious (albeit sarcastic) role on House. And you use YouTube! We are the same person. A few recommendations:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKMUUd30YTc%5B/url%5D">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKMUUd30YTc</a>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FGf_KWFbcU%5B/url%5D">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FGf_KWFbcU</a>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic8nK4BcRN4%5B/url%5D">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic8nK4BcRN4</a>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUxWdIQVT_c%5B/url%5D">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUxWdIQVT_c</a></p>
<p>From reading the laptop requirement, there isn't much at all to be worried about. As long as you're not buying an 8 year old laptop off ebay, you should be fine. The only software they require / recommend is Windows XP (Pro) and Microsoft Office (which is also available on Mac OS X - Office v. X) and an anti-virus program.</p>
<p>They also may be using Active Directory infrastructure, which Mac OS X also supports. I'd e-mail the dept. asking them for more specific details</p>
<p>does anyone know about windows Media edition? I'm probably going to end up in warrington, and I know ME is based off of either home or pro, but I can't remember which one. The laptop that i'm primarily looking at comes standard with Media edition, and I'd like to keep it if I could, but don't want it to screw up anything.</p>
<p>dan, from the wikipedia article (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_XP_Media_Center_Edition%5B/url%5D">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_XP_Media_Center_Edition</a> ):</p>
<p>
[quote]
Although Media Center is based on Windows XP Professional, Microsoft has disabled its ability to join an Active Directory domain. This effectively precludes the use of Media Center in a corporate environment. Media Center still retains most other Windows XP Pro-specific features, such as Remote Desktop and the Encrypting File System.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>This could prove to be an issue. I don't know if the business school uses Active Directory. If I were you I'd contact someone at the CBA and ask them about it. <a href="http://www.cba.ufl.edu/dmbtc/students/computerrequirements.asp%5B/url%5D">http://www.cba.ufl.edu/dmbtc/students/computerrequirements.asp</a></p>
<p>One MAJOR thing that should be taken into consideration (if buying a laptop) is the weight! My best friend has a laptop that she is required to bring everyday that is so heavy that we call it "the toddler". It is one year old and was expensive, but she now has a bad back from the weight!
My laptop weighs 3lbs and I am so happy with it! I know that if I had a heavy laptop there's no way I would take it off my desk. If you're getting a heavy laptop, try a desktop instead.</p>