Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Advice for a College Student Buying a BlackBook

Hello. Here's my advice. I just completed my freshman year in college and asked most of the same questions when I was getting ready.

In regards to Office vs. iWork. I was really comfortable with office. I took 3 classes in high school which ads up to about a year and a half of learning the basics of word, excel, access, and powerpoint to really advanced like mail merge and behind the scenes of Access and making data cross to any number of said apps. I decided to go with iWork. Personally, after a few weeks of really using it with notes and papers, I prefered it. iWork's only downfall is it doesn't have an Excel counterpart (rumored to be coming out in its next release (code name Numbers)). I do presentation design on the side, and Keynote blows PPT out of the water. Hopefully with the next update all the little things that drive me nuts will be fixed, but other than that, Keynote is great!

ALSO, look into the Student Developer Program (much better thank the student discount). It starts with a $99 (US) subscription fee. After being verified as a college student, you will get a Student Developer starter kit in the mail with an OS X install DVD and some test code and things like XCODE and a really cool t-shirt. Anyhow, the best part is you get a once in a lifetime (literally, you only get it once) hardware discount that is AMAZING. When I bought the MBP in my sig, with iWork preinstalled and everything listed, it was about $2,400. it would have been about 3,200. So if you are going to buy a lot, do it with the discount (ie - Apple Display, external HDD, other software, etc.)

I hope this helps. I know it did me. Best of luck!

- Steve

EDIT: Also with the Student ADC, you will get Leopard when it is released this Fall for retail sale for free (part of the deal).
 
Eve said:
So, I'm not technically a college student yet, but I just graduated high school and I am about to enter my first year of college in September. Anyway, as a graduation present my parents told me they'd buy me a Mac. Here is what I've decided upon:

MacBook 2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo - Black
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
iWork '06 preinstalled
200GB Serial ATA @ 4200 rpm

I'm also getting a burgundy sleeve, The Sims2, and The Sims 2 University.

Anyway, I have a couple of questions.

1) Will I have any trouble connecting to the internet at school? They have WiFi in some parts of the campus, but I also need an ethernet cable for the dorm. Will it come with an ethernet cable or do I need to buy one?

2) With getting iWork preinstalled, how comparable is it to Office? I'm going to be writing a lot of papers and I wonder how much trouble I am going to have using the word processor on this. Is it very hard to get used to or is it really easy (as I would expect from Apple)?

3) How well will my BlackBook run the Sims 2? I know Macs aren't preferrable for gaming, but this will still run well, right?

4) I've heard a rumor that they offer a free iPod deal starting in June, anyone know how true/false this is?

Thanks for your time. I may have more questions to come, but answering these will help a lot. I know I'm going to get a Mac, no doubt about that, it's just more of the specs and things that I am not sure what to do about it. Any other suggestions would be helpful. Thank you again.

*Edit*
I nearly forgot, I am also getting AppleCare Protection Plan, is this worth it?
Click to expand...
Get word because if you have to email your assignements in pages will not work.
 
kellah said:
Also, if your university has a computer store or you can buy an ethernet cable there, get it on campus. BestBuy charges what? $30 for a 25' cable... I got a 25' at my university for $1.50
Click to expand...

Friend, your campus has yet to be tainted by the touch of Volde…er… eFollett.
 
amd4me said:
Get word because if you have to email your assignements in pages will not work.
Click to expand...

Not true. There is an Export option that supports Word, PDF, HTML, RTF, and Plain Text. Keynote exports to Quicktime, PowerPoint, PDF, PNG Images, SWF Flash, iDVD, and HTML.

Both keynote and pages will also open docs and presentations made in Word and PPT usually without a hitch.
 
steve jr. said:
ALSO, look into the Student Developer Program (much better thank the student discount). It starts with a $99 (US) subscription fee. After being verified as a college student, you will get a Student Developer starter kit in the mail with an OS X install DVD and some test code and things like XCODE and a really cool t-shirt. Anyhow, the best part is you get a once in a lifetime (literally, you only get it once) hardware discount that is AMAZING. When I bought the MBP in my sig, with iWork preinstalled and everything listed, it was about $2,400. it would have been about 3,200. So if you are going to buy a lot, do it with the discount (ie - Apple Display, external HDD, other software, etc.)

I hope this helps. I know it did me. Best of luck!

- Steve

EDIT: Also with the Student ADC, you will get Leopard when it is released this Fall for retail sale for free (part of the deal).
Click to expand...

That's an insane discount! It would be 25% off the MBP. This is viable option for me since I'm looking to buy a new MBP and start writing small apps. Hmmmm...:cool:
 
Student Developer Program is very interesting. A couple things though, I'm not 18 yet, and don't turn 18 until July. Also, I'm not technically enrolled yet, I don't think. I mean, I've sent of my enrollment deposit and stuff, but I haven't signed up for classes or anything, yet. I don't think I do that until I get up there in August. I don't know if I can wait until after I get there to order because I'm really going to need the computer you know? I do realize my college will have computers available for my use, but the idea of that really isn't very appealing to me. Will a letter of acceptance be good enough to get involved with this? Or what do I need to verify that I am a student (or will be a student)? I could wait until July if I needed to, but I don't know about waiting until August.

As far as the iWork vs Office deal, I am very torn on the subject and I am now even more confused than when I began the topic. Haha.
 
"1. How do I verify my student status so my ADC Student Membership can be activated? After you purchase an ADC Student Membership and receive an Activation Code via email, you must verify your student status before ADC will activate your product. The verification steps are:

Visit the ADC Member Site to confirm that you are a student in your ADC Profile. After you click the Student Status checkbox, you must also provide your student ID number and school name.

Proceed to the Activations area in the ADC Member Site and use the Code you received via email to start the Activation process.

Fax a copy of your passport or other official identification (such as a driver's license or student identification) along with a current or upcoming course schedule or other official proof of enrollment from your college/university.

North America 1-408-974-7683
Europe 44 (0) 131-458-6988
Australia 61 2-8223-9347
Hong Kong 800-908-212
Japan 81-3-3570-8075
Singapore 1-800-2775-3248

Your Student Membership will not be considered Active and you will not receive any Student member benefits until your verification fax is received by ADC. If you need assistance, or a local fax number is not available in the list below, please contact ADC.

Note that the ADC Student Membership does not include code-level technical support, access to pre-release software, or use of the ADC Compatibility Labs and students may not be transferred these benefits by others. If your development requires such benefits, please consider purchasing an ADC Select Membership instead."

4. I am a college student, but I am not yet 18 years of age. Can I still join the ADC Student Membership?
You are required to be at least 18 years of age to join the ADC Student Membership and to agree to the ADC Terms and Conditions. We have many community resources available for all student developers that do not require membership.

Other important information at http://developer.apple.com/faq/students.html#anchor1
 
Just want to correct devilot,
Office 2004 does release patch. It just released a patch a few weeks ago..
Which increases its stability..
 
steve jr. said:
ALSO, look into the Student Developer Program (much better thank the student discount). It starts with a $99 (US) subscription fee. After being verified as a college student, you will get a Student Developer starter kit in the mail with an OS X install DVD and some test code and things like XCODE and a really cool t-shirt. Anyhow, the best part is you get a once in a lifetime (literally, you only get it once) hardware discount that is AMAZING. When I bought the MBP in my sig, with iWork preinstalled and everything listed, it was about $2,400. it would have been about 3,200. So if you are going to buy a lot, do it with the discount (ie - Apple Display, external HDD, other software, etc.)

I hope this helps. I know it did me. Best of luck!

- Steve

EDIT: Also with the Student ADC, you will get Leopard when it is released this Fall for retail sale for free (part of the deal).
Click to expand...

Could you please tell me where it says that you would get Leopard for free? I just found that they offer the current version ("Student Members receive the current version of Mac OS X and Xcode via mail") and that premier and select memberships receive the Leopard Starter Kit.
 
Haha. Actually I had to do a little digging to find where I saw it. I'm going to forward you to this thread and take a look at post #8 to be specific. Basically, it's an official unpublicized perk. And it also makes sense. "Student Members receive the current version of Mac OS X and Xcode via mail" So I guess if you happen to be a registered member during a release, you get the new OS when it goes on sale for retail. I was planning on doing the same thing, but then Apple had to go and change the date on me.
 
Eve said:
So, I'm not technically a college student yet, but I just graduated high school and I am about to enter my first year of college in September. Anyway, as a graduation present my parents told me they'd buy me a Mac. Here is what I've decided upon:

MacBook 2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo - Black
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
iWork '06 preinstalled
200GB Serial ATA @ 4200 rpm

I'm also getting a burgundy sleeve, The Sims2, and The Sims 2 University.

Anyway, I have a couple of questions.

1) Will I have any trouble connecting to the internet at school? They have WiFi in some parts of the campus, but I also need an ethernet cable for the dorm. Will it come with an ethernet cable or do I need to buy one?

2) With getting iWork preinstalled, how comparable is it to Office? I'm going to be writing a lot of papers and I wonder how much trouble I am going to have using the word processor on this. Is it very hard to get used to or is it really easy (as I would expect from Apple)?

3) How well will my BlackBook run the Sims 2? I know Macs aren't preferrable for gaming, but this will still run well, right?

4) I've heard a rumor that they offer a free iPod deal starting in June, anyone know how true/false this is?

Thanks for your time. I may have more questions to come, but answering these will help a lot. I know I'm going to get a Mac, no doubt about that, it's just more of the specs and things that I am not sure what to do about it. Any other suggestions would be helpful. Thank you again.

*Edit*
I nearly forgot, I am also getting AppleCare Protection Plan, is this worth it?
Click to expand...

here's what i think.

1. ethernet cables aren't that expensive, you can pick one up for just a few bucks at any store with computer items. but i would suggest you wait until you get to school to find out what exactly what the networking entails, but most likely it will mean a wired port and cables (which sometimes come with it). not too expensive.

2. don't get iwork as some have already pointed out here, get neooffice or openoffice, free alt. to ms office (which isn't universal yet).

3. not sure. but i heard not that well.

4. not sure either.

procare: you can buy the extended warranty for up to a year after you buy your macbook, so you don't have to worry about it right away. if you think the computer will cause major problems based on your first year, get the extended package, but if not, don't.

hard drive: i personally would just stick with the 80 gb (or whatever the base size is) and leave that in, and get an external drive. you can easily get at least 250 gb externals for less than 100 bucks now, and that will be helpful come backup storage time.

i would go for the 2.16 white instead, unless there's a reason you must get the black. and max out the ram with apple, order it online.

about the education discount, i think if you give them your acceptance letter, i think that's okay, from what i heard from here, they are pretty lenient with their education discount, since i ordered my macbook days before graduating back in december, and was thinking about holding out for ilife 07 (which never came).
 
steve jr. said:
Haha. Actually I had to do a little digging to find where I saw it. I'm going to forward you to this thread and take a look at post #8 to be specific. Basically, it's an official unpublicized perk. And it also makes sense. "Student Members receive the current version of Mac OS X and Xcode via mail" So I guess if you happen to be a registered member during a release, you get the new OS when it goes on sale for retail. I was planning on doing the same thing, but then Apple had to go and change the date on me.
Click to expand...

Thanks! I guess this deal isn't worth it for me though as I was planning on buying a Macbook (about $30 in savings and OS X.5 about $69 = $99), unless keyboards and mice also get discounts.
 
Congrats on your new Mac :D They are the best!

I just wanted to add my two cents to the iWork vs. Office discussion. I wrote all of my papers this past school year in Pages. When you print, there really isn't any difference between the two programs. Pages also gives you the "Export" option in the file menu which allows you to save paper as a Word (.doc) document. I sent papers formatted like that to professors and other students and they never had any problems opening them on their PCs. I personally find Pages much easier to use than Word, but I've always owned Macs and I'm much more comfortable with Macs than with PCs.

If you need Excel or PowerPoint, you might want to consider Office, but wait to buy it with the education discount from your school. (Personally, I think the Keynote presentations look amazing and they really get you noticed when the rest of the class is using the same PowerPoint slide! ;) )

Good luck! :)
 
Hey Eve, just wanted to say congrats on your future black Macbook purchase! :) We seem very similar in the sense that we're both girls heading off to college and wanting to try our luck at a Macintosh laptop, haha. You seem very set on what you want to get and I think that's a good thing! I know you'll love your new machine... I can't wait to get mine! I know what you mean on having to wait until school actually starts to get your hands on your laptop. I'm ordering mine after WWDC (which is the 3rd week in June) just because. :) Let us know when you've purchased, what all you decided on & when it arrives!
 
Thanks for all the wonderful advice everyone!

I think I'm going to purchase what I originally posted, included the iWork preinstalled. I want to give it a shot because I really don't like using office and since there is the export feature, it shouldn't be hard to email things and what not. Plus, I can always get office later if I decide I want it right?

I am very excited to order! I wish I could order today, but alas I am going to excercise some patience and wait until the iPod deal and after WWDC just to make sure nothing new comes and everything. This isn't my first mac, but the Mac I'm using right now is really old and not just mine (my family all uses it). So this will my first brand new one that I can do whatever I wish with! I am very excited and will definitely let you all know when I order and when it arrives! Thanks again for the input, it really did help, even if I did change my order any.

Katielb- Where are you going to go to school?
 
Eve said:
I think I'm going to purchase what I originally posted, included the iWork preinstalled. I want to give it a shot because I really don't like using office and since there is the export feature, it shouldn't be hard to email things and what not. Plus, I can always get office later if I decide I want it right?
Click to expand...

Yes you can always learn it later. But do it sooner than later. Because future employers don't care for iWork. They'd rather have you know Word, Excel, and PPT inside and out.

Yes, there's an export feature, but formatting doesn't always come 100% through.
 
Oh, I do know how to use Word, PPT, and Excel. I've been using Word and PPT since I was in junior high. Plus, I took a class freshman year and sophomore year that taught me Excel, plus more on Word and PPT. So, no worries there. I suppose I could get behind in knowing how to use them what with updates and what not, but the basic concept stays the same and they are fairly simple programs to use anyhow. :)
 
tuxfan said:
Thanks! I guess this deal isn't worth it for me though as I was planning on buying a Macbook (about $30 in savings and OS X.5 about $69 = $99), unless keyboards and mice also get discounts.
Click to expand...

Yeah, the developer discount is really only worth it for pro machines. The discounts on the "consumer" level machines is only a few bucks. Might as well save that "once in a lifetime" discount in case you want to move up the chain toward the end of college. Might be a nice graduation gift ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back