must haves

<p>so, this soon to be UCLA freshman has no clue what to bring to college. </p>

<p>can anyone here recommend what to bring, and what not to bring? I know first years typically bring too many things, and i want to avoid that. </p>

<p>also- i have been saving up money and am also wondering-
1) is an ipod worth it? \
2) and what about tablet pcs? i think those are the bombdiggity! should i buy one? i think they would esp. useful for classes with lots of diagrams and equations (i really want to be organized and have everything on my computer).</p>

<p>money isnt really a problem- so yeah- your opinions?</p>

<p>
[quote]

also- i have been saving up money and am also wondering-
1) is an ipod worth it? \
2) and what about tablet pcs? i think those are the bombdiggity! should i buy one? i think they would esp. useful for classes with lots of diagrams and equations (i really want to be organized and have everything on my computer).</p>

<p>money isnt really a problem- so yeah- your opinions

[/quote]
</p>

<p>You can't bring your bedroom, but if you live at a drivable distance, then you could bring less.</p>

<p>1) Yes, as long as you protect it and keep it safe. I haven't heard of anyone who got it stolen, but maybe I'm just limited in what I hear.
2) I only know one person who has one. I have no judgment on your values - buy one if you can afford it. Just keep in mind that it may be another valuable with a chance of being stolen.</p>

<p>its definitely early to be thinking about what to bring in my opinion but, i know there's a few threads around here somewhere with a giant list... i'll look for and point it out for you...</p>

<p>Update: here's a link <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=60217%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=60217&lt;/a>
It's in the Class of 2009 section...</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Yes, a Ipod is a must at UCLA. Some of your classes will take awhile to walk to, so you want to have something to keep you busy while your walking. It is nice to have but make sure you keep an eye on it, theft in concentrated areas is common at UCLA, libraries especially. </p></li>
<li><p>Tablet PC, may not be a good option. I only know one person that has one, and he regrets getting one. I would recommend either a Apple Ibook or a Dell Inspiron, those are the two common model that you see with UCLA students.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>yes, haha it may be too early, but one can never be too prepared (or too excited) ;)</p>

<p>An Ipod is certainly not a MUST have. Its really nice if you can get one though. </p>

<p>As for laptops, UCLA has had a rockin good deal on macbooks, which is why you'll see ALOT of students here sportin one. </p>

<p>The link posted by ck outlines what you pretty much need. Theres another thread somewhere here that listed things you needed, but it wasnt as comprehensive as the ones ck posted. </p>

<p>If you have a private bathroom (dont know about shared) get some mats. I almost slipped repeatedly when getting out, but then again, I shower with flip flops on. </p>

<p>But wow, way to think too far in the future. Just go stare at your congrats page for a little more haha.</p>

<p>
[quote]
But wow, way to think too far in the future. Just go stare at your congrats page for a little more haha.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>you're talking to a girl that started researching colleges in the eighth grade. yeah. i know. pathetic. i dont need to hear it. haha :D</p>

<p>you don't need a tablet PC</p>

<p>
[quote]
can anyone here recommend what to bring, and what not to bring? I know first years typically bring too many things, and i want to avoid that.

[/quote]
Hey, try checking out the <a href="http://www.housing.ucla.edu%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.housing.ucla.edu&lt;/a> site and click on the "ASK" option. Search the forums for "list to bring" or something. It'll show you what's prohibited. </p>

<p>2) and what about tablet pcs? i think those are the bombdiggity! should i buy one? i think they would esp. useful for classes with lots of diagrams and equations (i really want to be organized and have everything on my computer).
- IMO, they're a bit unnecessary. I rarely use my laptop for classes (and yeah I'm referring to non-math/science courses). That's just me though. I haven't seen any tablet-PCers around... What's your major anyway?</p>

<p>You don't need an iPod or a tablet PC. I have a classmate who doesn't even use the "tablet" function of his tablet PC. :rolleyes:</p>

<p>What's this deal on macbooks. Do tell :)</p>

<p>Eh, I've got an ASUS R1F-K018E. It's not vital that you have one, but it works wonders for organizing items if you rather do that digitally. I've seen greatest use from my Tablet in math/sciences classes; the ability to pick colors, draw perfect graphs, and notate points to refer to later is handy. </p>

<p>Someday, I hope to find more e-books and PDF slides for all of my classes. For some of my PDF lecture slides, I can cross-reference a certain part directly to a part in the provided PDF readings, etc. </p>

<p>Best advice is to check out a Tablet PC yourself, if possible. Try out Microsoft OneNote 2007 too, as that's a Tablet PCer's most valuable application.</p>

<p>apples> 2.00Ghz Core 2 Duo Mobile T7200, 1GB DDR2, 80GB, DVD?RW DL, Mac OS X for 999$. PriceGrabber.com has it at 1299. This is the 13.3 inch one.</p>

<p>in the 'college life' forum, there was a topic on laptops. but yeah can anyone elaborate on the benefits of a mac vs windows, etc. i really think im more a pc person, but mac users are constantly trying to get me to switch. </p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=318500%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=318500&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Hi, I'm a PC. :rolleyes:</p>

<p>But seriously, there's usually no reason to switch (especially if it's one of those "reasons" given by those Mac ads).</p>

<p>Just about the only reason I'd switch is if there was a need for some particular program (say some professional media app that the Mac is well known for) that's not available for Windows.</p>

<p>The only benefits, imo, to using a Mac is just reliability and safety. However, with some common sense and some awareness (i.e., not visiting shady sites, installing random software, opening attachments), it shouldn't be an issue on any platform.</p>

<p>Hate those commercials. Some of them are REALLY dumb. The one about how Vista causing a user to have to upgrade his/her box just made me scream "***." At least PC users have the option to upgrade, LOL.</p>

<p>I have both a PC and a Mac and for minimal usage (word processing, website viewing, etc), theres almost no difference between the two. Theres some differences to me, which might not actually be differences to anyone else. </p>

<p>Right off the top of my head, the biggest differences is finding software that will replace your windows software. Sometimes you have software you REALLY like on Windows, but if you switch, you suddenly have to find new software, which may cost you $$$. In addition, OS X looks nicer imo. Also the file system confuses me in Mac. Finally, if you like to watch highly encoded video from the net, you'll be stuck with rather crappy players for Mac.</p>

<p>All of the concerns with with a Mac are really brushed off with the fact that I have Windows and OS X on my MacBook. I still prefer a PC because its meant to run Windows. I can't help but feel gimped when I run Windows on my Macbook even though the speeds are pretty much the same as a PC. In any case, I have the safety and security of OS X and if I ever need to do anything with Windows, I have that option too (I'm running Windows with bootcamp so its as if I am running it natively, not with virtualization; I also have virtualization though).</p>

<p>Tablet PC?????? LOL Just Bring old skool notebook is fine. Most people don't even bring computers to class.</p>

<p>i guess i should save my money for something more useful then..
haha its just that tablet pcs are SO COOL!</p>

<p>isnt there a way to put microsoft office onto a Mac?
Also which programs are there where you can use the Windows OS on a mac?
What about games etc?</p>

<p>also when you bring your notebook are you completely running off battery power or are there outlets anywhere?</p>