College Dilemma

Hi guys. I'm going to college on the 1st studying computer science and was wondering if from previous experience anyone could point me in the right direction. I've been pretty dead-set on waiting for the September update for the possible re-design and most of all the hope that it won't have a faulty GPU. Since the GPU issue was confirmed, I've kind of shut out the possibility of buying a current model to avoid having to deal with that. However, I am living in residence and without an old laptop or desktop that I can bring with me, I'm really not sure if I can last a month or so without a laptop in a computer-oriented major. :S What do you guys think?

Thanks in advance

 

I'd like to remind you that the nVidia 8400m and 8600m series GPUs (the two GPUs that are likely affected) are not defective in the sense that they will instantly break - rather, they are more venerable to heating issues. The manufacturers who were licensed to use nVidia's designs (nVidia doesn't manufacture the cards, they design them) decided they would cut costs by using building materials that didn't match nVidia's specifications. Because of this, these cards are much less risistant to damage caused by frequent and rapid temperature change.

If you feel this is an issue, you can always buy a computer equipped with a ATI GPU such as the HD 2600 or go the Intel Integrated route. Neither of these chips would have the same issues, though you're not going to have a great gaming experience with Intel Integrated Graphics.

If you're worried about nVidia's GPUs you don't have to skip out on notebooks entirely. There are other GPUs out there. Myself though, I'm getting a laptop with a 9800m GT.

Consult the GPU Guide for more information on mobile GPUs.

 

With the rumours that the iPods are going to be released in the next 2-3 weeks, I believe the Mac updates will be in October rather than September. That may be an issue...I really don't know for you. If you are in a hurry, I suggest you browse Windows notebooks with ATI graphics cards, or if you can wait until October, I don't expect Apple to keep its MBP on the current NVIDIA chips, so that'll fix that problem!

 

Thanks for the responses guys. While I will get applecare either way, worrying about an imminent (or at least quite likely) failure at some point and the loss of peace of mind is what bothers me, not to mention having to get it repaired and all that entails. I would love to wait and get the updated version with a hopefully unaffected GPU but that might not be possible. Again, does anyone have experience with computer related courses in college? Will I be able to last a month without a laptop on campus?

Thanks again, just don't want to have to buy now if I don't have to.

 

I am a comp sci major and quite frankly I use the computer labs most of the time even though I have my own laptop. A laptop will definitely help, but I know that you can go without a laptop in college for sure. Just use the computer labs for the time being.

 

i've just started uni (bsc computer science and engineering) and i haven't had the need for a laptop since i started 2 weeks ago..i told my sister to wait for the re design to buy me a macbook pro...ive sold my vostro a few months ago.

 

This has been my experience also. Especially since you are an incoming CS student. A lot of work is done, or can be finished, while you are in the lab session. It was like this for me for the first two semesters. Once your in your third or fourth year having access to your own personal computer is almost a must for those big projects with tight deadlines.

If you have access to computers 80-90% of the time and think you can pull it off, it might be worth waiting for a refresh as you'll get more for your money.

 

Well how available are the computer clusters in your campus? I'm a CS student and I had to go without my MBP a few times when I sent it in for repairs. It was doable, but not convenient.

 

Thanks again for the opinions guys. At this point I'd have to say I'm leaning towards waiting it out in hopes of an unaffected GPU and something more than a speed bump. To Chris and others that have taken CS in university/college, what's the first year like? I know all schools/programs differ but is it completely necessary to have one due to all the jargon in notes, etc...., or are notes still doable with paper/pen and lots of labs (like do you need it for class most of the time?)? If I had an old desktop or something I could put in my dorm room or I was a history student, this wouldn't be an issue.

 

Honestly, most people in my computer classes write their notes in notebooks. That seems to still be the most convenient way of doing things. I have given taking notes on a computer before and it was nice for copying down programming lines, but wasn't so hot when needing to draw out something. You can definitely get by with handwritten notes.

 

Well intro courses are typically easy but subsequent classes can quickly turn into living hell. College is quite a few magnitudes tougher than high school. As for note taking, some professors do not allow laptops in lecture as some students will just browse the internet. Lectures are typically very fast pace so note taking can be a bit tough. Many teachers will post their lecture slides on their website. If so, print them out for the lecture and skim through the material. Write notes in the margins and later that day, revisit your notes. What is important is that you develop an understanding of the material, not that you get the professors words down on a piece of paper (or word doc). If you still don't understand the coursework, don't hesitate to drop by your professors office or go to a teacher assistant for some one on one.

For note taking, writing by hand has several advantages. It is much easier to write out mathematical notations and diagrams (I would also start learning LaTeX as Word pretty much sucks). It also removes the temptation of checking your email or doing something non course related during lecture.

As for desktop vs laptop. A laptop is nice in that if you have a question about a piece of code you wrote, you can take your laptop to right to your professor/TA to show him/her. Also for group work, the mobility of a laptop gives you much more flexibility on where you can meet up to work. A desktop is nice in that it will confine you to your desk and where you will more likely stay in "homework mode." With a laptop, you may just take it to your bed/couch relax, maybe surf the web for a few minutes to give yourself a much needed break ... and next thing you know it, its the end of the day and you've got nothing done.

 

Also a CS student. Survived a full semester without a laptop. Second semester had a T60 that got stolen, was only a bit more convenient, more distracting than convenient though. Taking notes on laptop doesn't work if you take any courses with lemmas, theorems, and of course their proofs.

That said, getting a $999 macbook now.

 

IF you don't mind me asking, how did it get stolen. I worry my macbook might get stolen in college. I'm attending a big state university in 4 days.

 

There are many current generation MBP users out there that have never experienced any GPU issues. I purchased my MBP last November and until this month it has seen heavy use every day without issues.

Thats not to say that it won't have an issue tomorrow but its not like every current model MBP experiences GPU problems. I do run SMC Fan control, and occasionally bump up fan speeds under high cpu loads. Maybe that helps.

One caution about Applecare - its not like the "serious" warranties you can get on high end PC's where you can expect repair next day. You could be 5 or 10 days without your machine for a repair. Not that I've ever had a Mac break in the 15 years I've owned them, but thats likely not everyones experience.

 

"Hi guys. I'm going to college on the 1st studying computer science and
was wondering if from previous experience anyone could point me in the
right direction."

Congratulations on going into a great major!

"I've been pretty dead-set on waiting for the September update for the
possible re-design and most of all the hope that it won't have a
faulty GPU. Since the GPU issue was confirmed, I've kind of shut out
the possibility of buying a current model to avoid having to deal with
that."

Good decision. Even if you get AppleCare, you might have a problem when
it is outside the warranty and not get the expected full life from the
system.

"However, I am living in residence and without an old laptop or desktop
that I can bring with me, I'm really not sure if I can last a month or
so without a laptop in a computer-oriented major. :S What do you guys
think?"

Others have mentioned that you can get buy without a computer at most
universities (some require them) by using their labs. That said,
sometimes the labs can be crowded during programming crunch times
and it is nice to be able to work on homework problems in your dorm
or if you're away from your school (say at home on a weekend or on
a trip for sports).

"To Chris and others that have taken CS in university/college, what's
the first year like? I know all schools/programs differ but is it
completely necessary to have one due to all the jargon in notes,
etc...., or are notes still doable with paper/pen and lots of labs
(like do you need it for class most of the time?)?"

It's easier to just use a paper notebook and a pen or pencil. The
desks might not really have enough room for a laptop and doing the
math symbols can be a pain on a laptop. That said, there's a product
called SciWriter that is a WYSIWYG math editor. Our son used it for
a few papers - didn't try using it in class.

I'm a software engineer and most people use paper to take notes in
meetings. The only time when engineers use their laptops in a meeting
us during code reviews or if they are leading the meeting and need to
do presentations or if all of their notes are on the laptop. Some do
bring in a laptop to read email, etc. but most don't where I work.

jimboutilier wrote:

"There are many current generation MBP users out there that have never
experienced any GPU issues. I purchased my MBP last November and until
this month it has seen heavy use every day without issues."

The MBPs failing now are those built from June to August 2007. This is
from a spreadsheet of failed MBPs - the spreadsheet has the first six
characters of the serial number to identify batches, the date of
purchase, date of failure, results of various fix attempts, whether
the system was brought in for service, results such as multiple
repairs for the problem and sometimes the amount paid when AppleCare
didn't pick up the cost. When I saw forum posts on the problem a
while back, I indicated that I had three MBPs that were all fine.
Until one died.