Laptops in Vet School

[that redhead]

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Do you feel that having a laptop is necessary in vet school? Obvioulsy having a computer with internet access is necessary, but is there something other than notes that a laptop would be valuable for? I made it through undergrad taking hand-written notes, I have a desktop now and I intend to hand-write notes as well as record/review lectures when vet school starts - do I need to invest in a laptop?

(Thank you for your response over in the vet forum, SOV 😉)

 

[moosenanny]

I think it is vital to have a laptop in vet school. Davis makes us get them, and our school is very laptop-oriented, though, so your school may be different. There are actually times we are required to use them (we had a computer-based Nutrition lab this past quarter). Check with your school/current students there to see if there are ever times you need to have access to a computer at school.

In undergrad taking notes by hand worked well for me too. Professors would go slower, and even better, they'd often write on the chalk board so they could only go as fast as we could all write. However, at Davis every lecture is given by PowerPoint, and some of the professors go so fast that our fingers are flying and we can still barely keep up (I type at lightning speed)!

I started out the school year hand-writing everything, but I soon realized this was cumbersome, wasteful of paper (since I'd print the lecture slides), and not as effective. I love having all my notes on my laptop so I can look things up easily.

There are some relatively affordable laptops out there . . . or you could get creative and buy something like an ipad and a bluetooth keyboard. My classmate just did this and is using the iPad as a tablet with a stylus pen, plus typing.


Also, this doesn't make having a laptop vital, but we get tons of emails throughout the day. Some of them are time sensitive, but many aren't. Even still, it is nice to respond during breaks between classes so I don't come home with 50 new messages in my inbox.

 

[HopefulAg]

I don't think it's vital but my hand would die if I didn't have one and there's no way I could keep up with the pace of some professor's rate of lecturing writing vs typing.

 

[libster06]

I think it's been said before on other threads that it really depends on the note style or curriculum format of your school. Some students, like me, pay for notes at the beginning of the year. Other students, perhaps those who have a strictly PBL-based curriculum, may not get notes. Also, I use my laptop to access our class website (maintained by some of our classmates) and we all share different types of information through certain class websites (good pictures, study guides, helpful dissection videos, etc.). The video resources alone are a great reason to get a laptop. Youtube isn't just for fun, it has a lot of educational videos on it. Also checking email. I check my vet school email several times a day, and sometimes we get things the night before a test in the email which are very helpful. Our computer lab at school is not really set up in a way to allow for computer use and note writing/looking at at the same time. PLus, the computers at school are VERY slow and not all of them work well all the time.... so having your own lap top would be more reliable. Plus the convenience of having everything I listed above with you at all times rather than at home (I have studied radiology pictures on my laptop in the waiting room while my car was being worked on).

 

[Nechochwen]

I agree with libster on the school format, but also I think it definitely depends on how you study and take notes. I know that some people here just right on the printouts or powerpoints. I do all of my note-taking on my laptop, but I know some of the people I study with have to have the paper and pen. I think at the very least, an inexpensive netbook is good to have internet access, both for e-mail/updates as well as quick research help.

P.S. Had an awesome time at Symposium, moosenanny. You guys did a great job! 👍

 

[BlacKAT33]

I agree with lots of the responses already. It's possible but:

-your school may require you get one
-your hand will ache from writing so much
-you wont be able to keep up during the lecture with hand written notes (if u like to write details, and if your schools profs talk as fast as Penns lol)
-you'll miss out on checking your email during the day and probably miss random emails about getting exams back, change of schedule or change in lecture location, wet labs/lunch talks that you forgot about but want to attend
-we have lots of labs that are on the computer (histo, neuro etc)
-computer aid sites for classes (anatomy, developmental bio etc)
-unless you take only the notes for that one day, your back pack will become exponentially bigger by the day, and if you do take the notes out for that one day i'm sure all of your papers will become disorganized and maybe lost because there are wayyy too many subjects and wayy to many lectures

So it is possible, but it would make your life a lot harder. And Ive noticed the farther along I go in school, the more online stuff there is.

 

[ImNotThatGirl]

i'm not in vet school yet, but when i was in undergrad i really liked having a laptop. Sometimes i can't focus if i try to study at my apartment, so it's nice to be able to take a laptop to the library where it's quiet and there are less distractions. 😀

 

[moosenanny]

P.S. Had an awesome time at Symposium, moosenanny. You guys did a great job! 👍

I don't mean to hi-jack, but I couldn't let this comment go without saying thanks 😍

 

[Chinola]

Any opinions on size of the laptop? I'm about to order one from Dell and I'm debating between the 14", 15" and 17". I would love the 14" for the smaller size when I'm carrying it but idk if the screen will be too small and will drive me crazy.

Opinions?? Thanks! 🙂

 

[BlacKAT33]

Any opinions on size of the laptop? I'm about to order one from Dell and I'm debating between the 14", 15" and 17". I would love the 14" for the smaller size when I'm carrying it but idk if the screen will be too small and will drive me crazy.

Opinions?? Thanks! 🙂

hmm i think mine is a 12 in ?? im too lazy to look it up lol but this is perfect size for me. i cant imagine carrying anything bigger in my backpack. Although, i do have a sensitive back and my bf always says my bag is realllly light when i think it is heavy haha

You can always get a bigger screen and hook your laptop up to that when you're home studying

 

[awaring1]

There are some relatively affordable laptops out there . . . or you could get creative and buy something like an ipad and a bluetooth keyboard. My classmate just did this and is using the iPad as a tablet with a stylus pen, plus typing.

You must tell me if this worked! If I get called off one waitlist I will be required to buy their tablet PC but if I end up going to UCD Ireland I will need to update my computer. I think the tablet option would be great for my learning style but I love Macs and it would make me sad to go to a PC. Does the iPad work for them?

 

[AHorseOffCourse]

I'm not in vet school and have no idea if it will work, but FWIW that's what I'm going to do. Have ipad and wireless keyboard and use that in class. I'll take my laptop only if I have to and most of the time I'll try to leave it at home and use a cloud ap to pull files off of it as I have to. Although I loved having a lap top, I wasn't palnning on replacing it for a variety of reasons - I was going to get a desktop once I went back to school - however that idea has now been squashed because of the required computer purchase. My current plan is to get a really good monitor, keyboard, and mouse for home to use in conjunction with the laptop, and then use the ipad for most of my travelling.

Because of my commute I'm very likely to have to study in weird places on the go, and the ipad will make it easier.

 

[cowgirla]

I would go for a smaller screen! My current laptop is a 16 inch, and it is HEAVY. (well, it also has a 12 cell battery, but still). I hate carrying it around all day, it kills my back, and is just a pain overall.

I just ordered a tablet pc and cant wait for it to get here. It has a 12 inch screen, so should be much better.

Like someone said, you can always buy a big monitor for at home, or what I did for histo was hook my laptop up to the tv via an HDMI cable. Laptop has a remote and I used that to flip through powerpoints of pictures on the big screen 🙂 You can get a monitor for pretty cheap, even more so if you are willing to go used and get a slightly older model.

Personally, I think a laptop is vital, but then again, I'm addicted to mine. Use it in all my classes, keep myself organized, play on SDN during immunology.... And checking email, studying in weird places (I study best at starbucks- go figure. when its quiet my thoughts are too loud and they distract me), etc etc. There are a few people in my class who never seem to use a laptop, and I guess they would have a different perspective.

 

[AHorseOffCourse]

Wanted to add - I have a 12" screen on my laptop and could not concieve of lugging around anything larger on a regular basis. The laptop I'm buying for school has a 13"+ screen and is one of the reasons for my decision.

My work computer has a 15.5" screen and it is a PAIN to lug through airports and while travelling.

 

[petvet33]

Does anyone know anything about the Bamboo writing stylus/pad? I will be attending UIUC this fall, and they recommend that we get a tablet so that we can write directly on our powerpoint slides during class. However, I am a die-hard mac fan, and I have a relatively new macbook that I really don't want to have to give up! Are writing pads that connect to your computer a feasible option for vet school? Or does anyone know of any other options for mac users besides an ipad?

 

[goldielocks137]

Like someone said, you can always buy a big monitor for at home, or what I did for histo was hook my laptop up to the tv via an HDMI cable. Laptop has a remote and I used that to flip through powerpoints of pictures on the big screen 🙂 You can get a monitor for pretty cheap, even more so if you are willing to go used and get a slightly older model.

Thats a pretty good idea!

I have a slightly different question: I was thinking about getting a second lap top for school. I currently have a macbook pro and although it's the smallest one, I think it's heavy whenever I take it places. And also, I kind of wanted to leave it at home where I know it's safe and get a cheaper computer that I won't worry about. Plus, I don't want to bog down my computer 4 years worth of school notes. And I think that a tablet computer sounds really cool and would be awesome to have for profs that use powerpoint. I told a friend that I was thinking about doing this and she really thought I was insane (although most non-prevet people think we're insane for a lot of the things we do). So I was wondering what other people think

 

[that redhead]

I'm glad I asked! It seems like getting a laptop would be best for classtime, and I can always use my desktop or hook my laptop up to the 32" TV that my boyfriend gave me (when he replaced it with a 46", but still!) He even said I can hook my laptop up to it.

I think I'll start to investigate some less expensive/delux options and go for something pretty simple since I'll still be bringing the desktop with me. Thanks for your opinions, everyone 🙂

 

[moosenanny]

You must tell me if this worked! Does the iPad work for them?

I PM'ed the girl from my class who is doing the whole iPad thing, so hopefully she will respond with her first-hand info. I've talked to her and she seems really happy with the whole arrangement (other than when professors post their slides at the last minute) . . .

 

[minikitte]

Hey everyone, One of my classmates and fellow SDNer recommended that I share my thoughts about the Ipad with you all. =)

So I am a die-hard Mac person. When I was accepted I had to choose the MCP or a tablet (which I heard horrible reviews about the ones that they were planning to offer). I, of course went for the Mac but felt like I would be missing out on the tablet versatility.
So I now have the Ipad, which can almost replace my Macbook pro. I love it. So there are a few apps that you need to make it work for note taking...

-dropbox [$0](kinda works like mobileme but is just somewhere for you to store notes virtually and transfer b/t your comp and ipad)
-iannotate [$10](this is the app that you use to upload your pdfs, has awesome note taking capabilities, from typing, handwriting (w/ stylus [acase - $12 on amazon]), highlighting, underlining, stamping, etc.)
-noteshelf [$5](this is if you want to have a little notebook of paper to draw and take hand notes)

I love it, one thing to mention is that I recommend making up a wrist guard out of some fleece. While I am not completely free of my laptop yet, I hope to be able to not bring it to school soon. Also I do have the wireless keyboard for taking notes, if I want to type a lot.
With the iannotate app, it works w/ pdfs only, so you need to have access to another computer in case you need to convert them (as some of our teachers don't post the lectures early enough). But you can buy the keynote and pages apps [$5 each] which I am sure would solve this problem.

=)

 

[that redhead]

Hey everyone, One of my classmates and fellow SDNer recommended that I share my thoughts about the Ipad with you all. =)

So I am a die-hard Mac person. When I was accepted I had to choose the MCP or a tablet (which I heard horrible reviews about the ones that they were planning to offer). I, of course went for the Mac but felt like I would be missing out on the tablet versatility.
So I now have the Ipad, which can almost replace my Macbook pro. I love it. So there are a few apps that you need to make it work for note taking...

-dropbox [$0](kinda works like mobileme but is just somewhere for you to store notes virtually and transfer b/t your comp and ipad)
-iannotate [$10](this is the app that you use to upload your pdfs, has awesome note taking capabilities, from typing, handwriting (w/ stylus [acase - $12 on amazon]), highlighting, underlining, stamping, etc.)
-noteshelf [$5](this is if you want to have a little notebook of paper to draw and take hand notes)

I love it, one thing to mention is that I recommend making up a wrist guard out of some fleece. While I am not completely free of my laptop yet, I hope to be able to not bring it to school soon. Also I do have the wireless keyboard for taking notes, if I want to type a lot.
With the iannotate app, it works w/ pdfs only, so you need to have access to another computer in case you need to convert them (as some of our teachers don't post the lectures early enough). But you can buy the keynote and pages apps [$5 each] which I am sure would solve this problem.

=)

Thank you for the information! I was pretty skeptical of the iPad but I saw a kid using it + wireless keyboard in class to take notes today and I'm impressed! Small, light-weight and serves the purpose (just note-taking, since I have a desktop at home). I think I may go out and play with one over the weekend or sometime in the near future 🙂

 

[cartya]

Make sure to check with whatever school you are going to. At Kansas State each student is "given" a laptop during orientation and we are required to have it with us everyday. We aren't allowed to have personal laptops since the ones they give us come with certain programs that monitor student activity (it's been rarely used in my classes as a 1st year this year though). All of our notes are posted online and we use Microsoft OneNote. Of course there are some students that prefer paper notes and they simply print off the notes and bring them to class.

 

[deleted266066]

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[BlacKAT33]

Random question for those with Lenovo tablets - was your shipment/delivery ridiculously slow? They have already pushed back my "estimated ship date" twice, and assuming it doesn't get pushed back again it will end up being 2 months after I placed the order to the time the computer (x220 tablet) is in my hands.

I did "customize" certain aspects, but have had lots of experience ordering from Dell and never had that long a wait. Maybe they spoiled me, but I was used to having a new customized machine in working order within 3 weeks max from time of order.

There are a few time sensitive reasons as to why I was hoping it would be in by early June, but that's not looking hopeful :-\

I feel like I got mine within a month? I had a ton of customizable features.
Maybe they are overloaded with people ordering for the new school year? I ordered my laptop April 6th last year so everyone was still in school. Now, everyone is out of school and buying new laptops for college (so with a normal shipment of about a month the increased demand could cause a 1.5-2 month delay) ??

If you need it for an important reason call customer service. I called them because I had questions and they were really nice to me (called 2 diff times with 2 diff people). I even got a free blue tooth upgrade just because the dude was nice and i guess he didn't really care lol. Maybe they randomly do that to help promote their product but it worked because I always rave about them now lol I even ended up writing a letter to the guys boss in hopes of promoting him because he was the best costumer service rep i have ever talked to for any type of company in my life