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- 2004.09.10

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When I first started my classes this past week, I noticed that a lot of students were using laptops to take notes. Most of these seemed to be PCs - I saw several Dells, a couple IBMs, and one or two that I didn't recognize. I noticed that most people seem to be running Windows XP, and a number of them had the little Centrino sticker on them.

I didn't really expect a lot of people to have Macs, but I've seen at least three being used in class. From talking to some of the other students, I've learned that a number of people seem to have iBooks or 12" PowerBooks (like mine). Most students seem to have purchased their laptops not too long before leaving for university.

One of my friends back home in the US ended up going to college in Boston, and, like many people, she needed a new computer for school (her family's old Dell was being used by her brothers). Her parents bought her a new iBook G4 to take with her. Since she's going to art school, she probably won't be taking very many notes with it, but it's nice to have a portable in case she wants to take it places.

She called me up this morning and voiced her surprise that the computer actually came with "fun" software already installed. I said something like, "Of course it does. Do you expect to buy a $1,600 computer that's completely useless until you spend another $500 on software?"

iBookBut her attitude is an attitude many people seem to have about computers. When they get a computer built for them, it usually has Windows installed and nothing else. They've got to spend another few hundred dollars on software before they can do anything productive with it, and most PCs that you buy new today don't come with very useful software.

Or, more likely, the preinstalled software slows down the computer so much that it's only really useful after you reformat the hard drive and reinstall Windows!

IBM does tend to be a bit of an exception, given that many of their consumers tend to be businesses, schools, or other professional users. They keep the add-ons at a minimum.

Apple is the other exception. One of the keys to having a reliable computer for doing schoolwork is to have as little "junk" installed and/or running as possible.

Apple does install its basic (and useful) applications with OS X. iCal, iTunes, iMovie, iPhoto, etc. all come preinstalled with the OS. The new consumer Macs come with AppleWorks, GraphicConverter, and GarageBand as well (my friend couldn't stop talking about GarageBand - apparently she recorded some rap songs that she wrote, used the built in tools to add beats and sound effects behind it, and was quite surprised and pleased with the results), neither of which I would consider to be "junk" software (unlike many of the "extras" PC manufacturers tend to install).

Basically, an iBook comes with everything that you would need to take notes, use the Internet, and make presentations for school without you ever having to install extra software or change any system settings.

Of course, most people will install other programs, but the nice thing is that you don't actually need to.

One might argue that if you bought a Dell or some other PC, which usually come with a basic word processor and a few other things, that you'd never actually need to install more software either. That's true, but without at least uninstalling some of the preinstalled software first (and changing a few settings), the computer won't run as fast as it could or should.

Considering that my friend has never actually spent significant time using a Mac before (she has used both my PowerBook with OS X and my blue G3 with OS 9 to look things up online), she seems to be doing pretty well with it.

The tools she needs are right there on the computer, and she was able to use the time saved from having to install software for better things - like moving the wooden and faded blue velvet 1970s couch that she bought at a thrift shop upstairs to her apartment.

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