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What's in my school backpack [2k14]

1

1van

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 13, 2014
7
0
Cincinnati, OH
Hi! I, and along with many others are going to start school again in a few days, and I figure why not share what I am taking to school in terms of technology, and why. I think this is useful to new-comers to technology that may not know why we need "Macbook Pro's", or 2 laptops instead of 1. This topic is meant for that purpose, but this is a forum driven by the community, so I'm not too concerned if it drives off topic a little bit.

Late 2011 13" Macbook Pro | i5 2.4Ghz | 4GB of RAM | 500GB HD
This is my first Mac laptop, sometimes I hate having it, and regret it, but for the vast majority of the time, I greatly enjoy it. It's a pleasure to use, the build quality is excellent, and I'm very happy with how it's done considering how much I've used it since Dec. 2011 when I got it. I use it for my productions class in school, I'm going to film sports events for school, and edit them in Final Cut/iMovie/After-Effects to create a highlight for the school news show we produce every day.

Chromebook.
There's no need to show specs here. Everyone knows what a Chromebook is, it's a web browser with a keyboard. School issued, can't deny it, just going to use it for the online tests.

Beats Studio Headphones (Wired)
This was one of my most recent purchases, I had used the Apple EarPod headphones over the summer, excellent headphones (Really Earbuds). The only problem is that I am never nice to headphone wires, Bluetooth doesn't work well in school because we have wifi-routers running multiple (3) wifi networks at every given moment, and that interferes with Bluetooth a lot, so I just got the wired version, I'm not unhappy. Very nice headphones.

16GB iPhone 5 | Verizon
I got this phone two years ago, nothing really special, hopefully will be replaced by a iPhone 6, depends on the features, etc. No problems with it, screen in one piece, virtually no cracks.

What devices do you bring to school? I'm trying to decrease the amount of stuff I'm carrying as opposed to Freshman (9) year where my backpack weighted 37 pounds. No laptops either. Fun.
 
Really? Schools around where I live have backpacks everywhere. Maybe it's just because it's a university city? I'm not sure.
 
My school back pack is still full of a **** load of last years papers... And I mean **** load. The weight of that paper is mind blowing... Hmmm. Maybe I should fix that...
 
1van said:
Really? Schools around where I live have backpacks everywhere. Maybe it's just because it's a university city? I'm not sure.
Click to expand...

In anything other than college, many schools have banned backpacks and school lockers because of drugs and fear of weapons.

----------
The Doctor11 said:
My school back pack is still full of a **** load of last years papers... And I mean **** load. The weight of that paper is mind blowing... Hmmm. Maybe I should fix that...
Click to expand...

Imagine how tough it would be if you couldn't carry a backpack in school ?
 
Plutonius said:
In anything other than college, many schools have banned backpacks and school lockers because of drugs and fear of weapons.
Click to expand...

I think the only thing my school should be worried about is the seniors driving their trucks down the hallway for their senior prank and doing burnouts. (I live in a farming community)
 
I'm not going to college this year as I'm taking another break. But I'll share what I carried last year:

Late 2011 13" MacBook Pro
I was in 2D Animation last semester and we used Adobe Flash Professional. I don't particularly like the iMacs we have at college because the screens are huge and I have to either corner the application to the lower left side, or I have to get up and walk around just to see the other side of the document. It's SO pathetic! Haha. So that's why I bring the MacBook Pro along. It really helps that there's a bunch of outlets at the bottom of the desks too. They were useful for lab hours where all we'd do is work on our projects.

1st generation iPad Mini
I have a Wacom tablet now, but I used it to sketch out ideas and do my storyboards in Sketchbook Ink and Bamboo Paper. I also would push out the PDFs the teacher gave us to Evernote, which now that I think about it, I'm not quite sure why the heck I managed it using that workflow to begin with.

Bamboo Creative Stylus
My stylus of choice. I took out the batteries though because I always press the buttons when I don't want to. I still like it though.

8GB SanDisk Cruzer Pop
For pushing files back and forth from my machine to a class machine.

Kindle Paperwhite 2
I wait for like a hour outside for someone to get me (I can't drive) and pass the time sitting on a bench reading.

iPhone 5S
I write small memos/todos in Vesper. I like it because you can organize the notes into keywords. Plus it lets you pick an image to go with it.

It's amazing how much paper we're given in school. I shouldn't have thrown out any of the papers or notebooks from my first year of college, but I did. Oh well. What could I do? It was hundreds of pages.
 
Jessica Lares said:
I'm not going to college this year as I'm taking another break. But I'll share what I carried last year:

Late 2011 13" MacBook Pro
I was in 2D Animation last semester and we used Adobe Flash Professional. I don't particularly like the iMacs we have at college because the screens are huge and I have to either corner the application to the lower left side, or I have to get up and walk around just to see the other side of the document. It's SO pathetic! Haha. So that's why I bring the MacBook Pro along. It really helps that there's a bunch of outlets at the bottom of the desks too. They were useful for lab hours where all we'd do is work on our projects.

1st generation iPad Mini
I have a Wacom tablet now, but I used it to sketch out ideas and do my storyboards in Sketchbook Ink and Bamboo Paper. I also would push out the PDFs the teacher gave us to Evernote, which now that I think about it, I'm not quite sure why the heck I managed it using that workflow to begin with.

Bamboo Creative Stylus
My stylus of choice. I took out the batteries though because I always press the buttons when I don't want to. I still like it though.

8GB SanDisk Cruzer Pop
For pushing files back and forth from my machine to a class machine.

Kindle Paperwhite 2
I wait for like a hour outside for someone to get me (I can't drive) and pass the time sitting on a bench reading.

iPhone 5S
I write small memos/todos in Vesper. I like it because you can organize the notes into keywords. Plus it lets you pick an image to go with it.

It's amazing how much paper we're given in school. I shouldn't have thrown out any of the papers or notebooks from my first year of college, but I did. Oh well. What could I do? It was hundreds of pages.
Click to expand...

Not bad at all, I really like the idea of using Vesper. I had a Kindle, never really liked it, my dad accidentally broke it, 3G + Wifi version, I wish he hadn't broken it, but it would not have been very useful otherwise :p My school is transitioning from paper, to Chromebooks. We'll see how they do, I don't have a lot of confidence in the 70 year old teachers. Thanks for Sharing, Jessica :)
 
What about pens, binders, paper, a calculator? I just graduated last year and we were still using all those ancient tools :D
 
Oh this is a pretty cool thread. I'll play.

- Macbook Pro 13" 2010 (2.4 Ghz C2D, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Nvidia 320M)
- WD My Passport 1 TB external HD
- Sandisk 2GB titanium USB drive
- Kensington lock
- AT&T 5S
- Anker 15000 mAh External battery charger for my phone
- Audio Technica ATH-ANC27 (still deciding if it will useful to carry, if not maybe just my ear buds)
- Ti84+ SE
- Books, paper and pens.

Depending on how heavy this gets, I'll probably leave the headphones, external HD, and external battery. But those are my plans for now.
 
I am in my 3rd year of Engineering school.
This semester my bag will be filled !!! not looking forward to the walks across campus with a heavy bag...

I use a 511 Rush 24 bag

I have several pens and mechanical pencils, 2 calculators, digital recorder, 1 TB Hard drive and my iPad Mini, all of these items are in the front pocket on my backpack.

In the main pocket I keep several text books (4), paper notes books and my 13" MacBook Pro (2012)

Side pockets I keep some rulers and drawing tools for hand drafting items on paper.

I have a back pocket that can fit a Camel Back but I keep it empty for now until I find a good use for that pocket.

I also carry a iPhone 5 (sprint)
 
A 1500 page hardcover accounting textbook.

A 2" binder overstuffed with printed notes, examples, and HW problems.

A basic calculator and a few pencils and pens.

On the very rare day, bring my Lenovo laptop (in sig) to class. Like a total of 3 classes ever (out of 24).

At least that was in my bag for summer courses. For the fall, I'll probably also need to include my trusty 1 subject notebook and I might need to invest in a 3" binder for this semester. And by invest I mean take one of the countless unused binders from work.

I love my tech, but I hate it when it comes to school. It's almost always a distraction and an inferior way to learn. I'll stick to my pen/pencil and notebook/legal pad.
 
Plutonius said:
In anything other than college, many schools have banned backpacks and school lockers because of drugs and fear of weapons.

----------



Imagine how tough it would be if you couldn't carry a backpack in school ?
Click to expand...

interesting, so I guess they run w tablets in those schools instead of books then? or are the books rented and used in classrooms?

I remember when I had to carry 5-6 big books with me when I was in HS, damn AP classes homework...
 
As far as technology goes, I carry the following items with me to class on a daily basis:

•15" MacBook Pro w/ Retina Display for various tasks when I'm on break between classes and for notes on rare occasions, depending on the class

•iPad Air for the majority of my note taking in class, using the app Notability. I also keep all of my textbooks on it so I don't have to carry around 20lbs of additional weight for no reason.

•Jot Flip Stylus for taking notes. One of the best styli I've used - no rubber nib means no resistance against the display of the iPad which makes writing so much easier. Before switching to this stylus, I used the Bamboo stylus which was pretty great too.

•iPhone 5s which basically contains my life in electronic form. Though it stays with me in my pocket and not my backpack but I'll include it here anyways. My class schedule, my student email, and everything else important to me is on my phone. Plus it's a phone.

•TI-84 PLUS Silver Edition graphing calculator used whenever needed. Though it's been prohibited in a few of my classes. In any case it has Tetris on it.

The rest of my backpack is filled with pens, pencils, notebooks, lab manuals, lab coat and goggles, and various other non-technological items.
 
I'm no longer a student but when I travel with a backpack, it has my rMBP and Olympus OMD EM5 camera.

Thats about it, my next trip is next month to San Francisco and I'll be using my new Crumpler cut of Horror backpack, Its a much thinner design that will only hold my rMBP and iPad. Since I'll be bringing my laptop where ever I go in SF (for the most part), I wanted something less bulky then my old trusty Tom bihn brain bag backpack
 
malman89 said:
A 1500 page hardcover accounting textbook.

A 2" binder overstuffed with printed notes, examples, and HW problems.

A basic calculator and a few pencils and pens.

On the very rare day, bring my Lenovo laptop (in sig) to class. Like a total of 3 classes ever (out of 24).

At least that was in my bag for summer courses. For the fall, I'll probably also need to include my trusty 1 subject notebook and I might need to invest in a 3" binder for this semester. And by invest I mean take one of the countless unused binders from work.

I love my tech, but I hate it when it comes to school. It's almost always a distraction and an inferior way to learn. I'll stick to my pen/pencil and notebook/legal pad.
Click to expand...

Yeah well my laptop is the only way I can learn. Why because due to some disorders my hand writing is almost illegible to myself and I am way too slow at writing anyways. It maybe a distraction for YOU fine, but for me I don't know how I would keep up with the rest of the class without my computer.
 
iPad Mini 2
For quick browsing, reading articles, checking emails, BlackBoard Learn, casual gaming, watching YouTube during breaks or classes when I don't feel like using a laptop.

Mid 2012 15" Retina MacBook Pro
I love my Pro but I hate the days where I have to carry it with me. It's so heavy. But when I know that I'd be doing intensive work, I need to bring it along.

Late 2010 11" MacBook Air
I write up my reports, essays, work on powerpoint presentations, spreadsheets, etc. on this one.

Apple USB SuperDrive
Really essential since the MacBooks I own don't have optical drives.

Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter
I bring this with me only on the days where I have to present in class.

2 portable hard drives (WD and Seagate), both 1TB
The WD hard drive is my source of entertainment. My movies, shows, music, etc. are all on it. The Seagate has my school work: reports, articles, documents, pdfs, presentations, etc. I don't know what I'd do if those hard drives got lost. Don't want to even think about it.

HyperJuice Plug
This is an external battery pack. I use it to charge my devices so I tend to always have it fully charged before I leave.

MacBook Power Adapters

iPod Touch 5G
Nosy people ask why I don't have my music on my iPhone. I just like to store my music on a separate device.

32GB iPhone 5S
My daily driver, what more can I say?

Textbooks
Mass Media in a Changing World
A History of the Modern World
Cisco's IT Essentials PC Hardware and Software Course Booklet

Bamboo Stylus by Wacom
Texas Instruments TI-84
Five Star® Notebooks - I don't carry binders, I love those notebooks because they have pockets and I put my papers in there.
ID card- won't be able to enter without it

* I also like having a book in my bag. Fiction or non-fiction, whatever I'm currently reading I take with me. I like to turn off all those gadgets I take with me and technological distractions and just read even if it's only for 10 minutes.
 
Last edited:
TechGod said:
Yeah well my laptop is the only way I can learn. Why because due to some disorders my hand writing is almost illegible to myself and I am way too slow at writing anyways. It maybe a distraction for YOU fine, but for me I don't know how I would keep up with the rest of the class without my computer.
Click to expand...

Don't get so defensive man!

I'm not picking on you in particular when I say this... I see the whole, "I have this or that, so I have to use this/I act like this/etc because of it" all the time.

We are all equal here. BUT... Depending on the learning experience you get, you have to find ways to deal with problems that arise from teachers not presenting information that works for you - Like if they aren't very good with giving you a very good visuals, hands on, or letting you hear information. Some of us find technology in the education environment as a distraction, some of us don't. Some of us can do our note taking in our head, some of us have to write down every word the teacher says.

It is why we have universities, colleges, and community colleges, because they all cater to the different styles of education people can handle. And it's why they teach you so many different note taking styles.

Don't be so black and white. It is that kind of thinking that will steer people away from you and lead them to create stereotypes. Do what works for you, and leave it as that. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how you get things done, it's that you get the same results in the same or less amount of time.
 
Jessica Lares said:
Don't get so defensive man!

I'm not picking on you in particular when I say this... I see the whole, "I have this or that, so I have to use this/I act like this/etc because of it" all the time.

We are all equal here. BUT... Depending on the learning experience you get, you have to find ways to deal with problems that arise from teachers not presenting information that works for you - Like if they aren't very good with giving you a very good visuals, hands on, or letting you hear information. Some of us find technology in the education environment as a distraction, some of us don't. Some of us can do our note taking in our head, some of us have to write down every word the teacher says.

It is why we have universities, colleges, and community colleges, because they all cater to the different styles of education people can handle. And it's why they teach you so many different note taking styles.

Don't be so black and white. It is that kind of thinking that will steer people away from you and lead them to create stereotypes. Do what works for you, and leave it as that. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how you get things done, it's that you get the same results in the same or less amount of time.
Click to expand...

I understand, it's just that when people "Oh this method of taking down notes isn't really effective" it makes me mad because they should take into consideration, for some people a laptop may be the ONLY way they can learn.


Now anyways, what's in my bag:p

MBPr
-Just an amazing laptop all around used for a lot of stuff, I'm teaching myself C on this as a hobby and I use it for school by using the iWorks suite and the google docs.

Skullcandy Hesh headphones

- These are really nice and loud plus very bassy, surprisingly around the $80 mark as well!

Logitech wireless mouse

- Really good sensitivity and lasts on battery forever! A great wireless mouse.

Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter

- Hardly used but just in case I need to present, I'll use this I guess.

16GB USB

- filled with tonnes of stuff lol.


I'm planning on getting a thunderbolt dock just because.
 
Last edited:
TechGod said:
I understand, it's just that when people "Oh this method of taking down notes isn't really effective" it makes me mad because they should take into consideration, for some people a laptop may be the ONLY way they can learn.


Now anyways, what's in my bag:p

MBPr
-Just an amazing laptop all around used for a lot of stuff, I'm teaching myself C on this as a hobby and I use it for school by using the iWorks suite and the google docs.

Skullcandy Hesh headphones

- These are really nice and loud plus very bassy, surprisingly around the $80 mark as well!

Logitech wireless mouse

- Really good sensitivity and lasts on battery forever! A great wireless mouse.

Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter

- Hardly used but just in case I need to present, I'll use this I guess.

16GB USB

- filled with tonnes of stuff lol.


I'm planning on getting a thunderbolt dock just because.
Click to expand...

If you are in a dorm room consider a chest you can lock your digital/valible equement can be locked up when not using it. The one thing you can count on in dorms, five fingers are very fast at swiping things from rooms.

Plus alwYs keep an eye in your personal beer! That the one thing that is the most stolen! :D
 
satcomer said:
If you are in a dorm room consider a chest you can lock your digital/valible equement can be locked up when not using it. The one thing you can count on in dorms, five fingers are very fast at swiping things from rooms.

Plus alwYs keep an eye in your personal beer! That the one thing that is the most stolen! :D
Click to expand...


Ha! I'm 16 and going to college atm, not university:)

But don't worry I'll keep an eye out for what you just mentioned:p
 
I'll play. I love these threads. I'm starting a two year MBA program on Monday.

  • Timbuk2 Command Bag
  • MacBook Air 1.7 i7, 8Gb, 512Gb SSD in incase neoprene sleeve
  • iPad Air 32Gb Wifi
  • iPhone 5 64Gb
  • Mini DP to HDMI & VGA adapter
  • 6' HDMI cable
  • 2 3' Lightning Cables
  • 12 volt USB adapter
  • Moleskine A4 ruled notebook
  • Legal Pad
  • University Folder
  • 4 function solar calculator
  • Logitech r800 wireless presenter remote
  • 5 G2 black .7mm pens
  • 5 .7mm mechanical pencils
  • Moo business cards
  • Spare MBA power adapter
  • Water bottle
  • Reading/Computer glasses
  • Chapstick, Naproxen, and Calcium Carbonate

I'm trying something new with textbooks - going iPad only with the exception of one book which is $70 more to get ebook vs a 120 day rental on Amazon. School material will be digitized using ScanSnap ix500 at home and then placed into a binder for longterm storage.
 
I guess I forgot to mention I also have a early 2011 mbp with 8GB RAM(upgraded after purchase) and the normal 320GB HDD.

It's really not used much after I got my late 2013 rMBP. Plus the battery head;th is at 69 percent so I might do a restoration project on it soon.
 
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