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01-09-2008, 09:31 PM
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#16 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Aug 2006
Threads: 18
Posts: 107
| Haha this is actually really silly, but why not.
How do people carry around their laptops? Totes (for me) get old real fast... | 
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01-09-2008, 11:25 PM
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#17 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2007
Threads: 1
Posts: 34
| It depends on what class you're going to. I prefer taking handwritten notes so in actuality I would rarely need a laptop, but if I were going to a boring lecture or a super long seminar, I would bring my laptop to go online or work on stuff. I would say 1/2 of my seminars and 1/3 of my lectures have laptop carrying people. | |
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01-10-2008, 12:27 AM
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#18 | | Member
Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Philly
Threads: 4
Posts: 807
| To carry around laptops most people get a neoprene sleve/pouch for it and put it in a backpack or the like. Laptop bags are also popular, and I swear that maybe 1/3 the campus has owned or owns the same damn red swiss army knife laptop backpack that I do that they sell in the bookstore.
If you're in Wharton, you need access to a Windows PC. If you're tech savvy, this means you can run WINE on linux or BootCamp/Virtualization software on a mac, but if you're not I strongly recommend getting a dell or lenovo laptop. This isn't a case where they're being jerks, there is software in a number of classes that is windows-only and Wharton computing does not support macs ( I work there, believe me). The people I've known who use macs all are geeks and loaded boot camp up the first day it was available.
Windows Vista and Office 2007 are officially used and supported by Wharton. If you're buying anew computer with Vista preloaded, everything should work fine. JMP works in Vista, SPSS works in vista, and even the obscure of the obscure Wharton class software works in vista (S-PLUS, What's Best). The penn ISC wiki also documents the only thing not working on vista at this time is financial software that the staff uses for purchasing, which is actually an IE7 issue.
No one really takes notes on laptops. Some people use them for distraction in class, and others like to follow along with the prof in powerpoint or on a web site. Some professors "ban" laptops from class. | |
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01-10-2008, 03:25 PM
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#19 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Threads: 5
Posts: 78
| hmm... mattwonder, you mentioned something about vista. What if i really really really really don't like vista and want to use xp? is that okay too? | |
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01-10-2008, 05:56 PM
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#20 | | Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Threads: 15
Posts: 1,234
| xp is just fine; most of the classes of 08, 09, and 10 have xp laptops and have no problems using resources. | |
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01-10-2008, 09:50 PM
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#21 | | Member
Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Philly
Threads: 4
Posts: 807
| Yeah, XP will be fine from a practical standpoint. You may want to get Office 2007 though since it's quickly becoming the standard (and has a really cheap ultimate version student license for 60 bucks .:: Microsoft presents :: The Ultimate Steal ::.)
(off topic 
As a technical standard, if you enter as a freshman in 2008 with XP, that means people are saying they essentially want to use XP into 2012 and I wonder how Microsoft will continue to support it. Vista does have some fundamental changes, but adoption has been slower than they wanted. It'll be interesting to see in a year (or two) what percentage of the population is using what. As for Penn, they (ISC) will continue to support whatever's dominant on campus, and the trend to Linux and Mac only means more diverse support for XP as well. | |
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03-09-2008, 08:12 PM
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#22 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Philadelphia-UPENN Wharton'10
Threads: 5
Posts: 108
| If you have questions about purchasing a Dell, please feel free to email me, Davinah- UPenn's Dell Rep. I can be reached by email, DChilds@dellrep.com | |
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03-09-2008, 08:14 PM
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#23 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Philadelphia-UPENN Wharton'10
Threads: 5
Posts: 108
| Also, thanks for asking me questions! I hope it helps... | |
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03-31-2008, 08:09 AM
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#24 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Oct 2007 Gender: Female
Threads: 22
Posts: 75
| And what about Sony laptops?
What do you think about Sony Vaio SZ series?
Is it a good laptop for Wharton freshman? | |
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03-31-2008, 04:35 PM
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#25 | | Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2007
Threads: 9
Posts: 175
| College student on a budget? My perpetual recommendation would be to look into Linux. It's sort of like a free Mac. It's even more invulnerable to viruses (I think it's something like .01% of viruses work on it, and even those really suck at doing anything), faster (designed lighterweight), better graphics/effects (for example, you can make have 4 desktops, and have them displayed on a cube. So one face could have your office apps, another games, another email/internet, etc), its more stable (few freezeups and no blue screen) and best of all, again, it's free. Which shaves off 100-400$ on your computer. And because its faster, you can get a cheaper computer with it. All in all, you generally can get a linux computer for half the price of a similar Windows/Mac.
The only reason I would tell you not to get one is that gaming, though possible, is not easy on a Linux computer. Certain games actually work better, such as Unreal Tournament, but unless the game is designed for Linux, there's a chance it might not work at all. But if you don't PC game, then you'll have no problems.
If you have any questions about Linux, you can always pm me! | |
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