College Computers: There's More Than One Choice

Tyler Powell

These days colleges like Georgia Tech require the students to have a laptop computer for access to websites like T-Square or Oscar so they can keep up with their assignments and records. Sometimes those computers crash and the students are left out in the cold with no one to help. There isn't anyone to fix these problems on the college payroll, so it is the smart thing to buy a computer thats reliable instead of one you are used too. I am of course speaking of an Apple Macintosh. While I cannot hide the fact that Macs do have problems every once in a while, just like any other computer, their problems are not nearly as serious, like the “blue screen of death” that has so famously irritated Windows users around the world. Where Windows computers have both software and hardware issues, Macs, nine times out of ten, only have hardware issues, which is the fault of the companies that produce the hardware, like Kensington, Motorola, Intel, etcetera. It has only been the first two weeks of our freshman year and already Windows has claimed a victim, where as Mac users have the new operating system Snow Leopard that nearly doubles the speed of all operations.

Students complain of the compatibility issue when switching over to Macs, but this is completely unfounded because Macs can run Windows parallel so that the students can access virtually any application, and the new Snow Leopard operating system has Microsoft Exchange, a program that allows users to exchange information like contacts and calendars between a Mac and a Windows PC, a useful tool for students to share information. Many students believe Macs cost more with less power and usability, but according to a survey conducted by Glenn Derene, when comparing an Asus M51SR with a MacBook, both priced at $1,299, the MacBook won out in both usability and performance.

While I must agree that schools that require computers should have specialist who can fix various problems, I believe students can bypass most of these problems by buying reliable computers so that they are not so dependent on others to fix their computers.