<p>i wanted input on what type of laptop i should get for next year. What is the split between mac and pc users at the university and does it depend on major (im ILR so i didnt think i needed anything beyond word processing, excell and powerpoint) Thanks for the suggestions!</p>
<p>it really doesn’t matter, pick one that you like and isn’t the crappiest computer alive. if you aren’t diong some major programming/engineering/graphicing, you wont need intense cpus. there are a lot of macs on campus but id say PCs still higher cause you are comparing 1 brand vs like 5-10 major brands</p>
<p>I’m in ILR and never even use my laptop. The people that do bring them to class are usually just surfing the internet instead of paying attention. Everyone else has one if you are meeting up as a group or something, so I usually just bring a flashdrive if I have a file I need to show them (even though I have a laptop…and a good one at that, its just a pain to lug around). If you are in a library, they are full of computers to use, and in your room, a desktop offers much more screen space and are just flat out better machines. I have a pretty sick desktop setup in my single.</p>
<p>However, if you must get a laptop just spring for at most a midrange PC based on what you stated you need it for.</p>
<p>lol i wonder if i know you hermanns…</p>
<p>some people will type out notes in ILR lecture but i prefer the old paper and pen…</p>
<p>you will see more people facebooking/IMing than not…</p>
<p>ILR professors have been known to ban laptops though not more than 1 or 2 profs so far (i’m a junior)</p>
<p>i never bring my laptop to class but i go to the lib all the time. it is great to have a laptop just in case you cant find a free computer etc. id say the split is a little bit in favor of macs on campus. i personally love a mac and have had two of them. they are easy to use, good looking, fast, and have a much better user interface than a pc. </p>
<p>if you decide to get a pc, wait until windows 7 comes out (this summer) before you buy it because it is a well well well known fact that windows vista has huge issues (which is part of the reason apple stock is doing so well).</p>
<p>…windows vista is completely fine, especially if youre buying a new laptop with vista already installed. People who have problems with vista are the ones who try to install it on their 1924 computers with 50 kb of RAM</p>
<p>Or just format the HD and install XP pro on it (thats what I did with my laptop…huge performance gains).</p>
<p>yeah the problem with the vista/OS that comes with your lappy is that it’s full of bloat(unecessary addons and promotional software)…</p>
<p>just install a clean off-the shelf (or torrented/downloaded) bloat-free version and your laptop should be good to go…</p>
<p>Windows 7 will be coming out somewhat soon - and it has the option to disable all of those “bloaty” things.</p>
<p>regardless… it is worth waiting for windows 7 so that you dont have to pay $160 to upgrade, especially considering most tech critics admit vista was a flop for microsoft. i have the beta version of windows 7 installed on my mac and it is pretty good. </p>
<p>if you are worried about cost, i would suggest getting a pc, but i think the mac vs pc compatibility debate is pretty null these days since you can do bootcamp and install windows on a mac (unless youre doing a ton of excel work - its annoying not to have the same hot keys on a mac for excel).</p>
<p>if you want a legitimate copy then yes it is worth it…</p>
<p>i would also suggest getting a minimum of 2gb ram on your laptop…3 or 4 is preferable…</p>
<p>a leaked copy is already available on the internet FYI</p>
<p>The leaked copy can’t be final, as Windows 7 is still in beta.
Microsoft has a massive beta cohort for Windows 7, probably much larger than any previous one; I’m not sure if it’s still open for new beta-testers though.</p>