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March 29, 2024, 03:38:34 am

Author Topic: Are laptops necessary?  (Read 5783 times)  Share 

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Orson

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Are laptops necessary?
« on: November 24, 2015, 02:12:36 pm »
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I'm most likely going to do BEng & BComm at Monash next year. I was wonderimg if we need laptops. I'd rather build my own PC, and that won't be portable. Would it ne good to have one? I nearly always do my notes and stuff on paper, I would probably type reports though.

Thanks..!
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clidedescope

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #1 on: November 25, 2015, 01:25:45 pm »
+1
I personally don't think I could get through university without a laptop. I'm the type of person who downloads the lecture slides (if the lecturer has made them available prior) and then types up some of what the lecturer says in the same document, so I end up with a thorough batch of notes. Without having a laptop, it wouldn't be possible for me to do this, unless I watched the lecture online (which I never end up doing).

You also might want to consider if you had to do group work in a tutorial; not having a laptop can be difficult in that case, especially if you need to submit an assignment that same day, which does happen in some units!

Ultimately, it depends on how you personally learn. My brother went all out by building a custom-PC and buying a Mac, but unless you're rolling in money, it's a pretty extreme solution.
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Aaron

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #2 on: November 25, 2015, 01:35:37 pm »
+1
I started uni with a laptop - a small lightweight one is beneficial (it's difficult to carry around a big bulky laptop that weighs quite a bit). Especially when there are significant queues for publically available PC's at uni. It really depends on how much you require the use of a computer.
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sjayne

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #3 on: November 25, 2015, 02:16:55 pm »
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I didn't have a laptop when i started and found it really difficult. (also cause at melb computers are hard to come by)
I started handwriting notes but it got messy especially if I missed something, and I always felt a little bit disorganised.
Getting a laptop meant that I always had everything I needed in one place but not everyone has one and you could also try without for a few weeks
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pi

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #4 on: November 25, 2015, 02:31:50 pm »
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Get a laptop. Make sure it's light, portable, and can run all the programs that it needs to (given B.Eng is on the cards).

Zealous

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #5 on: November 25, 2015, 02:41:37 pm »
+1
I'm most likely going to do BEng & BComm at Monash next year. I was wonderimg if we need laptops. I'd rather build my own PC, and that won't be portable. Would it ne good to have one? I nearly always do my notes and stuff on paper, I would probably type reports though.

Thanks..!

I just finished first year Com/Eng at Monash.

You're going to have to do ENG1060 Computing for Engineers and ENG1003 Engineering Mobile Apps which are coding units. You'll need MATLAB and Brackets for those. I can't imagine doing it solely in computer labs or at home - having the programs on a laptop is extremely useful.
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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #6 on: November 25, 2015, 02:47:08 pm »
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I just finished first year Com/Eng at Monash.

You're going to have to do ENG1060 Computing for Engineers and ENG1003 Engineering Mobile Apps which are coding units. You'll need MATLAB and Brackets for those. I can't imagine doing it solely in computer labs or at home - having the programs on a laptop is extremely useful.
What laptop do you use yourself, if you don't mind?

Zealous

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #7 on: November 25, 2015, 02:50:16 pm »
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What laptop do you use yourself, if you don't mind?
I'm using a Asus Zenbook UX303LA. I actually had a Lenovo Yoga 14" (1470) but the touch screen started glitching out so I swapped it for the Asus. Much better laptop overall (although a little more expensive).
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Escobar

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #8 on: November 25, 2015, 03:48:28 pm »
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is a laptop recommended for commerce?


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pi

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #9 on: November 25, 2015, 03:50:15 pm »
+1
is a laptop recommended for commerce?

I think most students from any degree find a laptop helpful :)

Orb

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #10 on: November 25, 2015, 04:21:55 pm »
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I think most students from any degree find a laptop helpful :)
\

Are tablets/Surface's okay or are they unrecommended?
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Aaron

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #11 on: November 25, 2015, 04:25:29 pm »
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Are tablets/Surface's okay or are they unrecommended?


I have a surface - if you don't type that much, they are okay. However if you type ALOT (e.g. essay writing, programming), then I personally don't recommend a tablet or surface. You are better off getting a lightweight laptop (one of the small ones).

Since my area is IT, programming is difficult on the surface attachable keyboards, so essay writing would be similar I would assume. Just my personal opinion anyway.
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keltingmeith

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #12 on: November 25, 2015, 04:27:32 pm »
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\

Are tablets/Surface's okay or are they unrecommended?
I have a few friends who use surfaces and they cannot live without them.

I also have a cheap tablet which works quite well (granted, really only as a tool for lecture notes).

Depending on your course, though, you might need something with a bit more power. I originally bought a Chromebook because cheap and lightweight, but recently discovered I need a bit more horsepower (and Windows) for my intended career path (/honours work). So, make sure to do some research there.

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #13 on: November 25, 2015, 04:38:25 pm »
+1
definitely worth getting one can't beat a laptop for browsing dank memes
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Russ

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Re: Are laptops necessary?
« Reply #14 on: November 25, 2015, 04:38:31 pm »
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I tried a lot of options over several years, but the best by far has been a macbook pro with windows in a virtual machine (not boot camp). The build quality/battery life/screen etc. on the macbook has been easily the best and you can start windows up within 10 seconds and then alt/command tab between the two