Manifesting said:
MaloCCOM: BTW, I did read your 1st year survival guide. You sound like an extremely bright person who is able to learn efficiently with minimal effort (relatively speaking) and study aids. I am amazed that you have time to be responding to all of these questions on SDN, work on the admissions committee, maintain a website/blog, play intramurals and whatever else you are doing while you are on rotations. How in the world do you find the time??? What are your secrets??? You must be single and childless?
Actually, I am married and have a cat. There are no secrets and I was not very bright. It's all about time management. All you have to do is figure out what are your priorities in life and how much time to devote to each. To me, life was way more important than getting As and Bs. I wanted to pass and do well, but I wasn't going to agonize if I did not do well. The first 2 years of med school are worthless in terms of residency, boards, and the future. All you have to do is jump thru the hoop and pass. As they say, "seven o, DO" As in get your 70% (pass) and you become a DO.
You can still enjoy life and spend time with kids. Yes, you won't have time to read extracurricular. I love reading, and did not read anything but school stuff during my first 2 years.
Also, going to class takes up a lot of time. I am not very smart. I could not afford to go to class and study a few hours at night. I needed more time. So I would sleep in till about 10 or 11. Wake up, study till about 3 or 4. Hit the intrmural fields till about 6. Then come home study till 9 or 10. Then sleep or surf the net, check email, etc. You'll find that most med students are like this.
At CCOM, you get the notes handed to you. All you can be tested on is what is in the notes. So read them over, and over, and over. That's how they stuck in my mind. Yes, I failed plenty of exams at first. That's normal. I'm guessing many people do. But you have to rebound and get studying. Don't be discouraged or cry or get sad, just get motivated. That's what I did. Failing hurts, but get over it quickly and move forward.
Manifesting said:
Anyway, back to the subject of computer usage. What about exchange of notes, charts and other study materials between students? On my tour, it sounded like classmates share information often. I don't want to have compatibility issues with those using Windows. This doesn't happen often, but when it does, it is a big pain and I don't need that hassle. In certain subjects, typing my notes helps me to retain information and alleviates the stress on my writing hand. What about checking one's student email account? That could be handled at school, I suppose, but like I said, I want the flexibility of working at home whenever possible. I think it is great that students can manage the program at CCOM without a computer, but for me, it is going to be a necessity.
So back to my original question: upgrade my iBook (PowerPC G3, OS10.2.8, 800MHz & 128 MB, expandable) or purchase a convertible laptop/tablet PC?
Any other opinions from you tech savy folks?
Honestly, taking time writing notes, outlines, or retyping notes is waaaaay too time consuiming. You won't be able to study. I tried that. I used tomake outlines of everything. Then teh exam came, and I hadn't had time to actually study anything, i was so busy making my outline. I suggest just reading the notes over and over and over. That's the only thing really. There is no substitute for repetition.
As for sharing info with clasmates, usually it's old exams. And they are always printed. You just go to the copier or kinkos and make copies.
As for email, you can check your email from any browswer on any platform. If you want to use a program to download your email in po3 format, mac does that too. It's not exclusive to windows. (I used to repair/sell computers for a living)
A computer is really not a necessity. You said you want to be able to "work at home". I am not sure you understand. Medicine is just reading over and over and over. Ther is nothing real to work. There are no formulas, no equations, nothing that requires a processor. You just need to retain tons of info in your brain. The only way you can do that is by reading it multiple times. Like 4 or 5 times or more.
Working at home may be distracting. Especially if you have kids. You may opt to study in the library at school for a few hours everyday, rather than try to do it at home. Unless the kids are at school.
I hope that helps. I suggest just waiting till you get there and then seeing if you need a computer. You can always buy one. Circuit City is down the street and has great deals. They are already set up and ready to go. Spend your money (loans) on other useful stuff. (not books)
Good luck and feel free to ask more questions.
i'd rather take that $7 and get a yummy meal at Portillos. 
