best laptop for journalism student
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loco4socce
I will be an incoming freshman studying journalism. My basic requirements is that it has a cd/dvd burner, lightweight, long batterylife, lots of storage and operates quickly. I don't really do much gaming but I do use programs such as Photoshop and Publisher.
Right now I've kind of narrowed it down between the Macbook and the Dell Inspiron 1525. Any help would be great to help settle the great mac v. dell debate.
Answer
If you are entertaining OSX, last time I checked, Publisher (part of high end Office 2007) doesn't exist for OSX. Maybe you can bootcamp it though. I'm not a journalist but I have a feeling that you might like TabletPC's. Vista has voice recognition as well and you can use a notebook app called OneNote (also part of high end Office 2007 ...or Student Ed.) that it pretty cool.
For Vista, look at the MS requirementsâ¦and double it at least and make sure it's certified. Triple if you can affordâ¦then Vista should rock your socks. If you learn how to use it, Vista features and technology blows XP awayâ¦when it works. ;) You want it to last so get 64-bit Vista Home Premium or Ultimate. Itâs mega-fast with 64-bit apps as well as lets you upgrade > 4GB TOTAL RAM (system RAM + graphics card + other devices).
But if you have old programs, they might not work (esp. with 64-bit version). Google âVista compatibility listâ. Knowing a bit about computers helps getting the old problematic ones to work (Internet has a lot of solutions that smart people share).
Ultimate is the best but if you donât think you need anything that fancy, Home Premium is good too. Get a good video card if you want Aero graphics (at least 256MB 128-bit in the newer cards). Better if you can afford.
Vista uses extra RAM to store commonly used files in a new activity known as âdisk cachingâ. The computer uses artificial intelligence to determine which files will be used most and copies it to RAM (where it is much faster than accessing your hard disk). This includes components of the programs you use on a regular basis. When you need more RAM for programs you launch, etc. the computer purges the âleast likely usedâ files from RAM to make room for the new program. Thatâs why if you look at the performance monitor, Vista always has near zero âfreeâ RAM. So in theory, the more RAM (for disk cache) you have, the faster your computer will operate. This can also be augmented (to a lesser effect) with a USB flash drive with a technology called ReadyBoost. Just stick it in and select âSpeed up my systemâ and leave it there.
Vista Home Premium and Ultimate has Windows Media Center, where with a TV card/USB adapter (if not integrated) of the type that fits your TV/Cable, acts similar to TiVo. You can play your videos, schedule recordings, etc. You can get a wireless keyboard / mouse or gyro-mouse and it will be sort of like remote control. If you do this, get a big Hard Disk.
Deals of America and Tech Bargains catch good deals on HP and Dellâs and sometimes you can get like $500 off! XPBargains has deals on Tablet PCâs!
http://www.dealsofamerica.com/
http://www.techbargains.com/
http://www.xpbargains.com/best_deal.php/tablet_pc_deals.htm
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Unless you are an artist, most Universities (and programs) as well as the rest of the world use Windows. WinMacs are popular but for the price, Macs donât run Windows as well as other brands, but sometimes it doesn't really matter that much to most users. In addition some just want it for fashion and like them to match their iPods.
Macs are durable because many have an accelerometer in there that can "increase the chance" of saving your hard drive when you drop it. Like those used in airbags. The power cord is also magnetically attached so it reduces the chance that you yank it off the table.
OSXMacs can exclusively install Final Cut Pro (which is good for media work). Adobe CS is also good and available for Windows but works better on OSX. The Windows version actually looks like an OSX port. Many OSX keepers are artists as usual. Emotion workers are generally not as good with computers as logic workers so OSX is good for them. Because itâs less complicated and harder to mess up, a lot of computer newbies also use Macs and you will see a lot of âGet a Mac! They are so awesome!â without any technical explanation to back up that opinion. ;)
Mac Pros:
OSX stability
OSX is easy to use
Dual-bootable to Windows
More durable than many brands
Trendy
Mac Cons:
Not as much peripheral support
Not as much software support
Windows doesnât run as good
Expensive
Minority
Windows PC Pros:
More customizable
More choices
More styles
Cheap hardware
Vista has best gaming capability (Direct3D 10)
Windows PC Cons:
Less stable (unless you are an IT pro)
Many are relatively not as fashionable
Not as user-friendly
Some extra features in Windows requires advanced knowledge to use
The extra features require better hardware despite your use of them or not
Details of features can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Vista
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_OS_X
Some brand statistics: In terms of recent sales, the top 3 manufacturers are HP, Dell, and Acer (Gateway). Apple is #4 in USA.
http://community.winsupersite.com/blogs/paul/archive/2008/04/24/mac-q1-2008-market-share-3-26-percent-worldwide-6-26-percent-in-the-us.aspx
Pretty good deal on a powerful laptop: $900 - Gateway M-6851 NoteBook Intel Core 2 Duo T5550(1.83GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 4GB Memory DDR2 667 250GB HDD 5400rpm Dual layer DVD Burner ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600(512MB GDDR3 Dedicated Memory)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834101154
How technologically wired can a person get?
Windflower
Hello, I am a grad student at Regent University in their journalism program. I am working on a piece for class about how technologically wired a person can get. I'd appreciate it if some of you out there can tell me if you think that we, as a society, are becoming too dependent on technology and if we can incorporate -- and afford-- all of the available gadgets in our lives. We're not talking about refrigerators or vacuums but media devices, like iPhones, cell phones that do everything, iPods, portable DVD players, etc.
I decided to ask this online since, well, this is an example of our being technologically wired. But, really, how much is too much? Feel free to e-mail me as well with more thoughts at steplon@regent.edu
Have a good night and thanks! :-)
PS: When answering, please include where you're from.
Answer We indeed over rely on technology, I bet none of us could imagine the day when we don't have electronic appliances... Some of them couldn't live a day without their handphone, some teachers couldn't teach without the use of laptops and visualiser...
As for my case, I really couldn't bare to think that just one fine day, I decided to listen to some
music and realise that I don't have any electronic devices in my house, it's pretty heart-breaking casue I love music a lot... And lots of people watch TV to destress so imagine their expression if they don't have TV...
Therefore, we are indeed technologically weird.... Btw, I'm from Singapore...
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