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Liz - lol, no problem at all; caution is a good thing. Matter of fact, I was very cautious, took me ~12 years before I ever bought my first Mac. Seriously, I do agree and understand what you are advocating - however, if I was in her shoes [hopefully the heels wouldn't be too high ], I would indeed get the MB, now, and then have those two years to explore, play, and learn the Mac OS, to grow with it, be familiar with it now, before college hits. Matter of fact, am contemplating getting another MB (most likely off eBay), this one for the boy childs to do such with [one is freshman, other is 3rd grade], so I don't have to worry about my little and humongo Mac's being compromised by their curious fingers...
We have an iMac as well...I'm just advocating caution. She doesn't want to get too far ahead of herself. Her son has two years (he's a junior right now, remember?) to go before he heads off to college.
1) He may go to a college that provides the laptop.
2) A LOT can change on the technology front in 2 years.
Liz
Realistically, I think it's unlikely that the college he selects will provide a laptop; more likely is a scenario where the college will provide requirements for the laptop (software, processor speed, memory, etc.).
With regard to changing technology, Apple has consistently shown itself to be an innovator, while still ensuring that even Windows adherents can use its products. Apple is very technologically nimble, most likely because they also develop their own software, unlike other laptop manufacturers who are Windows hostages. I also find it telling that people who own Macs which are 2 generations old (e.g., a G3 processor) are still able to run OSX Tiger (this would be like running Vista on a Pentium II computer...yeah, right!!).
It doesn't look like SmokyMtnGal is "getting ahead of herself" at all...she's trying to make an informed decision, which is what suggests to me that a Mac may be the right fit for her family.
Last edited by Wanderlust07; 08-31-2007 at 01:32 PM..
Reason: removed redundant article title
I had a IBM PC for my first two years of college. Huge mother of a computer, just heavy, bulky, and honestly, not that sexy. I used the computer on a network and the first day I was on it (Yes, the FIRST DAY), I got four viruses even with anti-virus on my computer. It slowly went downhill from there, leading to the CD-Rom drive failing after six months. After the failing, I was told to wipe my hard drive out, I did it, and the CD-Rom worked for another six months. Then it gave out. Again. That, along with the fact it had another 4 viruses on it. Let's just say it was a nightmare. I'll never buy another PC laptop again.
Then something happened to my PC, rendering it useless, and I bought a Mac. Greatest decision ever. I bought the entry level laptop at that time (iBook G4) and I am still typing off it right now. I bought the three year warantee on it, and it's worked beautifully. The only thing that's gone wrong during the past two years was a hard drive malfunction, taken care of in a day by Apple. The computer just looks awesome, it's more durable than you think, it's so very quiet, and it has all the essentials. For me, I did a lot of math and physics at school so I really never needed my computer for schoolwork, but was quite satisfied with offerings in the iLife suite (iTunes, iPhoto, etc.), along with Microsoft Office. With Leopard coming out soon, I am beyond excited for the future of Apple. I keep hoping my computer will die so I can get a MacBook Pro, but it's probably a good idea it hasn't yet...haha
Most colleges still use PC's...and a vast majority of them request that they use a certain brand. That's why I asked the question *I* did. SMG needs to find out what the college her son plans to attend uses before buying a mac laptop only to find out that it requires he buy a Dell for classes. Liz
This is a very good point & does entirely depend on the course of study. I found out thru helping several nieces who were searching for different programs (radiology, pharmacy, veterinary, sonography) that most college websites don't list anything about a computer, BUT, several did include a laptop with tuition & several others required the student have a Dell laptop with very specific requirements on their 1st day of class.
One niece purchased a $400 demo laptop from a local store, which was fine for doing homework/reports for her 1st year, then had to purchase a better model for future classes that even required a particular speed (they insisted students not use dialup accounts, so her mom had to purchase DSL - they live in the middle of nowhere, so wireless isn't an option) so as to take several online classes & participate in online veterinary real-time chat forums. She hadn't known about the forums at first, because she didn't look for that info either - first college-bound child. My sister was surprised when she found it right on the website, underneath the course descriptions. No worries as the 1st wasn't a waste & not overly expensive (but with 2 kids in college, she could have used that $400 for books), but she said she would have gone for the upgraded model initially, had she known. Never hurts to be informed. Live & learn.
Good luck to your son in his choices & future career! I'm back to college myself, next year, at age 48... VV
I am in the market for a new laptop and have been looking over many brands for a while now. After reading PC magazines article on the best of the best, the Macbook Pro got the editors choice award for best laptop in its class. It starts at about $1500 dollars so it is pricey but several PC mags recommend it above all others. Consumer reports also gave it very high marks. I hope this helps a bit.
Smokey, just a quick correction on my previous post. Apple Macbook Pro (buying direct) starts at $1999. While I have the Article in front of me, here are some stats on the machine.
LED backlit screen
Core 2 Duo processor (up to 2.7 GHZ) T7700 / Standard is 2.2 GHZ T7500
Nvidia Geforce 8600 GT raphics (dirextx 10 and HDCP enabled) is standard
Editors choice for mainstream laptop
Tested battery rundown 2:44
15 " screen
Editors gave it 4.5 out of a possible 5
It does not give specifics on hard disc space etc but the Apple site does, good luck
I have also been looking at the Sony VAIO CR120E , not a bad little machine for the money. Cheapest price I have found is Bestbuy @ $1,199.99 . This machine is comparable in components to the Macbook Pro but much less in cost. Screen on this machine is 14.1" and comes with more software than many others I have looked at. Out of all the laptops (windows based) I am leaning toward the Sony, not sure if the extra $1,000 dollars is really worth it for the Macbook. Happy Shopping
Thanks so much to everyone for their input. One good thing is that my son can get a student discount at the Apple store on whatever we end up choosing. They have a great program where anyone with a student ID can show that and receive the discount. Right now we are going to be waiting on the new operating platform in October before we purchase.
Keep any and all information coming. Have a great one!
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Matter of fact, I was very cautious, took me ~12 years before I ever bought my first Mac. 
Seriously, I do agree and understand what you are advocating - however, if I was in her shoes [hopefully the heels wouldn't be too high 
], I would indeed get the MB, now, and then have those two years to explore, play, and learn the Mac OS, to grow with it, be familiar with it now, before college hits. Matter of fact, am contemplating getting another MB (most likely off eBay), this one for the boy childs to do such with [one is freshman, other is 3rd grade], so I don't have to worry about my little and humongo Mac's being compromised by their curious fingers... 
Another reason to go Mac
