Laptops for osteopathic medicals schools

[lkluvstennis]

Hi everyone,
I am going to PCOM this fall. I know that PCOM doesn't laptops but I was wondering which would be a good one to purchase. Also, what features should it have. Thanks.[*]null

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[beakerbetty]

At NSU-COM they don't require that you own a laptop. I, however, purchased a really sweet one. I type pretty fast and would use it to take notes right in class. This would save me the time to type them from my notes.

As to which one you should by..that all depends on what you plan to use it for. Call the computer people at the medical school and ask what type of programs are available to you and what specs are needed to run them.

Also, you need to decide what platform you like and is pratical and compatible at your school. Alot of people like the ibook by Mac. Others prefer to regular notebooks. It all depends on you and your school.

If you decide what you want you can go online and shop around. I purchased a Dell and love it. I heard that they are really good and comfortable. (Mine is)

Good luck shopping!!
-beakerbetty

 

[muonwhiz]

I also purchased a Dell Inspiron 8000 laptop a couple of months ago. The box is nice, but I've had alot of trouble with the Windows Me operating system. I finally had to just reload the whole thing and all of the drivers yesterday, a royal pain in the posterior. Be aware that when you buy Dell that if something goes wrong, you have basically 2 options: use of their built in service programs (which can be hard to access if you can't get online or if Windows Me is acting up) or speaking to a tech agent on the phone (plan on waiting on hold for 30 minutes at least before finally speaking to a human - they make it as inconvenient as possible). There are no Dell distributors or sales outlets that you can go to for advice or repairs. The Dell comes with a one year free warranty, don't buy more. As soon as my warranty expires I'm taking it to a computer dealer that I know if/when trouble arises. But in fairness, I have heard alot of people complain about crap happening with Windows Me, and not just on Dell machines. Good luck with your choice.

 

[Ponderer]

beakerbetty,
can you give me a tip of advice, how do you take your class notes via laptop? perhaps if you can endow me with some of your techniques?

thanks

 

[DaNugget79]

LECOM requires all students to have laptops, and every seat has an internet connection. I just got the best I could find out there (1 Gig speed, 256 RAM, 20 gig hard drive, DVD/CD-RW combo...) Now I know I'll be up to date with my computer for at least the six months. I also shelled out 200 bones to get a Best Buy care package just so I don't have to worry about anything for the next three years. And my cousin who's a Microsoft Tech says Windows Me sucks, big time. It crashes a lot. If you can get your hands on Windows 2000, do it.

Nugget

 

[swdave]

Avoid Windows ME at all costs. It is buggy and unstable. I do contract consulting for about 10-30 hours a week and I've chosen to not even service Windows ME. Someone calls me with an ME related service call? I tell them to find someone that services that product. this is something I've never done until the buggy MS ME came along.

 

[Katy2004]

Originally posted by muonwhiz:
•I also purchased a Dell Inspiron 8000 laptop a couple of months ago. The box is nice, but I've had alot of trouble with the Windows Me operating system. I finally had to just reload the whole thing and all of the drivers yesterday, a royal pain in the posterior. Be aware that when you buy Dell that if something goes wrong, you have basically 2 options: use of their built in service programs (which can be hard to access if you can't get online or if Windows Me is acting up) or speaking to a tech agent on the phone (plan on waiting on hold for 30 minutes at least before finally speaking to a human - they make it as inconvenient as possible). There are no Dell distributors or sales outlets that you can go to for advice or repairs. The Dell comes with a one year free warranty, don't buy more. As soon as my warranty expires I'm taking it to a computer dealer that I know if/when trouble arises. But in fairness, I have heard alot of people complain about crap happening with Windows Me, and not just on Dell machines. Good luck with your choice.•

Just to defend Dell a bit, I've had my Inspiron 5000 for over a year now, and I love it to death. Although their customer service is hard to reach at certain times a day (try calling after 5pm), once you actually get to talk to a customer service rep they're always top notch. I smashed my screen on a roadtrip this spring, and Dell replaced it within two days for free because it was included in my warranty. You can't get much better service than that.

 

[shep]

I just wanted to second the opinion that Windows ME stinks and to avoid it at all costs. If you can get 2000, do it. I was a programmer/consultant prior to my med school voyage.
For those of you taking notes and keeping IMPORTANT stuff on your computer, back it up. I know you've heard it before but you will get burned at some point if you do not. You can count on that.

 

[birdflysatnite]

I am curious where is a good place to go get a nice laptop excluding Best Buy and circuit city?

 

[birdflysatnite]

Oh and also, can you get a laptop that has Windows ME and buy either Windows 98 or 2000 and install it into the laptop to replace ME or do you have to buy it with 2000?

 

[swdave]

Birdfly:

You can certainly install 98 or 2000 on a ME machine. You have to be comfortable with installing an operating system from the "ground" up.

To make it easy, buy with 2000/98 but if not, you can certainly ERASE the disk and install a fresh install of the operating system u want. I don't suggest installing 2000 with ME still installed.

Dave

 

[muonwhiz]

swdave, you had better come to AZCOM and not go to DMU! I'm personally going to hire you to replace my operating system with anything other than Windows Me! And I'm looking forward to meeting you at orientation!

 

[acaban]

Just wait until Windows XP comes out. Then the nightmare will begin. Let's see who wants to service that puppy. He He He

AJC