<p>Okay, just about anyone that has a MacBook Pro will tell you they love it. db, shoe and I all have MacBook Pros, and both shoe and I are in the e-school. </p>
<p>As shoe said, most programs you will need come in a mac version, and for those that don’t either boot camp or vmwear fusion work extremely well. I personally had no issues with speed with my year old 15" MBP and vm wear. </p>
<p>As to cs, the program they get you to use is Dr. Java and the Mac version is identical to the PC version, and actually installs easier due to Apple’s built in Java support. And no offense to hazel, but passing cs 101 might just have been the happiest day of my life (besides getting into UVA of course ;)), and if you’re lucky you wont have to take cs ever again…that’s not to say you won’t like it, but it’s not for everyone.</p>
<p>Spark notes: trust student’s experience, you now have two students telling you that you’ll be happier with a Mac, and it really is no hassle for e-school. If you get a Mac and have any issues, just PM me and I’ll give you a hand installing VMwear or Boot Camp (although it really isn’t that hard), and note that you can get student pricing on vm, and you can get vista and office for $10/ea from the bookstore.</p>
<p>WD, hope you enjoy your time in the great white north, you should check out the west sometime if you get a chance. I’m not trying to harp on you and do consider Windows 7 a very good operating system, but for the average student (e-schoolers included), I truly consider Mac OS X a better system for day to day use, and a system that offers the most options. </p>
<p>Galoisien, the e-schoolers that are good with linux/unix also wear pocket protectors.</p>
<p>I grew up in San Diego, lived in Europe for 11 years, Pa for 4, Phoenix for 5 and liked Florida for all of 3 years, then settled here 12 1/2 years ago.
I have been around a bit.
I failed to mention that I run MAC OSX on my Dell Mini 9". :)</p>
<p>Like I said, if you like Mac, then things went smoothly for most, yet some people had strange issues. Just reporting what people told me. I still stand by you need to learn how to do everything for CS in two operating systems if you use a Mac, but it’s not HARD, it’s just one extra thing you have to do. As a CS TA I could probably lose my job if I advocated windows, j/k, but I don’t think Mac has any advantage over Windows in intro CS from my observing experience.</p>
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<p>I did say 1/3 of the class actively struggled. 1/3 of the class keeps up. 1/3 of the class doesn’t get why everyone else is struggling. I’m glad you passed. I hear similar sentiments from most past students (as I get to know that 1/3 strugglers very well obviously), I’m quite used to it. As for avoiding CS post first year, CS201 is a required course for Systems, but it’s supposed to actually be easier than 101. What can I say. Out of all of the students this spring in my labs, there are 0 CS majors and 2 CPE majors. So sad. Then again I’m not a CS major so maybe I shouldn’t be talking.</p>
<p>I agree, I have no problem running Fusion on this machine. And, anything above the entry level MBP comes 6MB DD3 memory, and let’s face it, memory is CHEAP these days. As for the hard drive, have you checked out how EASY it is to swap out a HD? The unibody’s are AWESOME in that sense. I have a 2.66GHz, 6MB RAM, and 7200 320 HD and my baby screams. Snow Leopard is only going to increase that speed. But in a year or two (whenever SSD prices drop) I’m planning to upgrade to a SSD, and it’ll be as simple as removing a few screws. I’m planning on keeping this baby for yyeeaarsss and I’m happy with that thought
Also, as far as warranties go, Apple will fix anything and everything that breaks on this thing. Yay Applecare. As far as accidental damage: as an adult, and someone who uses this thing everryy day, and my schoolwork is VERY dependent on the machine, I treat it like an egg. Hopefully others can do the same. That’s why I don’t mind not having accidental coverage. Also, my home owners insurance covers it in case of anything, so really, I see no point to accidental coverage. Students should get their parents to look into getting it insured with their home owners insurance company.</p>
<p>All in all, I love my Mac, will never go back. Beautiful machines that work flawlessly. And, best of all, I dont have to deal with Vista. But Windows 7 looks promising, and if students decide to go the PC route, they should definitely buy a Windows 7 ready machine.</p>
<p>My son and I were happy with the price for the Dells from the UVA plan, especially with the four-year warranty. That seemed like a good price to have service included and take a big burden off our minds about having something go wrong, as has happened to plenty of students I know.</p>
<p>My iBook fell in my apartment twice (as a result of NOT having the magnetic cord that comes on the new MacBooks…) and I tripped once on Grounds and landed on my book bag (with the computer in it) and nothing ever happened. In the latter instance I may have sprained my ankle really badly, but my computer still worked. It’s now been 5.5 years since I bought that computer and it does run a little slower, and it does not sit entirely level, but it does its job just fine.</p>
<p>Be a responsible adult, don’t spill your coffee on your computer, and treat the computer as the device it is, a $2000 machine. But if you do spill something on it… I had an iBook before my MBP and spilled a whole can of diet coke on the keyboard, it still worked fine. And yes, the vast majority of y’all’s parent’s homeowners insurance will cover your computer. </p>
<p>Get a Windows 7 compatible computer if you get a PC, it’s coming out in October and runs much better than Vista. If you want to try it out, you can download a free version of the Release Candidate, with a 1 yr license from Microsoft.</p>
<p>Also, if you do get a PC, the Lenovo that they are recommending for SEAS (T400) is a really good deal and great computer, and cheaper if you buy it through Cavalier Computers rather than Lenovo directly. </p>
<p>WDStrong, will Windows 7 Business be available under the Campus Agreement for $10 when it comes out?</p>
<p>You get office pre-installed, as well as some network utility that you can download in 2 seconds yourself. If you don’t buy the computer from the school, Office will cost you $10.</p>
<p>Despite the virulence, the Cav Computer price for the Lenovo T400 is a darn good price. The cheapest equivalent configuration I could find online was over $2,100 and those computers aren’t ready to go.</p>
<p>But that may be more than you need. </p>
<p>As an e-schooler – I would say that you should consider buying a computer with not much more than a two-year lifespan – you can find something for less than $800. As I have learned, the potential for obsolescence or just the hazards from being lugged around is just too great. Warranty service isn’t going to help that. Trouble is, if you do a lot of heavy duty e-work, the $800 computer might be somewhat underpowered. </p>
<p>Make sure you check out the keyboards. Many of the Lenovos have great keyboards – also make sure you get a computer with Vista Home Premium or better, since Home Basic is awful and is not eligible for the free Win 7 upgrade in October. </p>
<p>Also get a 22 inch or larger monitor so that you have dual monitor capability. I use two HP monitors which also pivot to landscape or portrait mode – great for reading or composing long documents.</p>
<p>I see a lot of netbooks around. I have a Dell which is great for checking email or the Web when I’m traveling but it is strictly a second computer. Too painful and too slow for real work.</p>
<p>Also sign up for online backup – many services are free or near-free such as Mozy, Dropbox, Skydrive, and Gmail so you can retrieve docs from anywhere.</p>
<p>I’m a math major, you do your work on paper (proofs) so computers are irrelevant as long as it can run Mathematica for when you might want it from time to time.</p>
<p>Yes it is $10 with a student ID. On a side note, I posted in the “computers” forum that it was $12, but I was thinking about Mathcad, not Office, in case you saw my post there.</p>
<p>ITC is dying…I feel like this will be like the death of ISIS. Everyone complained, but when it was finally killed off, the replacement sucked even more.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the good infor guys. I just had a quick question: Does any one know about a CA’s (computer advisor)? What exactly is their job and how are people selected for it?</p>
<p>You can’t buy the $10 office online. You have to come to the store, these are rules per Microsoft.</p>
<p>Windows 7 - Today the program was released to manufacturing. Until Microsoft and the University work out the license deal, I can’t tell you anything. Why? Because we simply don’t know. But don’t look for anything until after Xmas. We will have the retail version available at full retail cost for those people that want to jump on the train right away.</p>
<p>Oh, be advised that new Apples have little tags inside the computer that change color when they get wet, or the computer is in an area where there is really high humidity. You can’t get away with spilling water in the machine, let it dry, then bring it in… Those tags turn color and Apple wont allow warranty repair.</p>
Then again I’m not a CS major so maybe I shouldn’t be talking.</p>