TheDonkey
Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt
+163|5687|Vancouver, BC, Canada
Hey guys,

I've been accepted into University so I went out and bought myself a Thinkpad T520 (Arrives in 2 weeks).
It's got a 9 cell battery, and I might buy the additional 9 cell wedge which extends life to nearly 24 hours of continuous use.

I'm going into computer engineering,

What sort of stuff should I expect to use this thing for, and how often?

I'm putting either OneNote or Evernote on it for sure, and I'm guessing it'll be used for lecture notes. For anyone that's been through school recently (or currently enrolled), any tips on use/general comments about how useful it is vs pen and paper or whatnot?

Thanks.
unnamednewbie13
Moderator
+2,053|6741|PNW

If your computer engineering is anything like my computer electronics was, expect to use it to just write notes for a long time. And that's only if you're allowed to noisily clack on your keys during a lecture.
TheDonkey
Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt
+163|5687|Vancouver, BC, Canada

unnamednewbie13 wrote:

If your computer engineering is anything like my computer electronics was, expect to use it to just write notes for a long time. And that's only if you're allowed to noisily clack on your keys during a lecture.
Ultra-quiet keyboard on this thing (supposedly, it's a business-class (laptop and everyone always raves about how great the keyboard is)
Uzique
dasein.
+2,865|6440
i dunno what it's like in the computing courses but people that typed during lectures were fucking annoying

pen + paper is pretty good
libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual. http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/
Shahter
Zee Ruskie
+295|6745|Moscow, Russia

Uzique wrote:

i dunno what it's like in the computing courses but people that typed during lectures were fucking annoying

pen + paper is pretty good
this^
if you open your mind too much your brain will fall out.
TheDonkey
Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt
+163|5687|Vancouver, BC, Canada

Uzique wrote:

i dunno what it's like in the computing courses but people that typed during lectures were fucking annoying

pen + paper is pretty good
Apparently "everyone" uses laptops now. (According to my dad's girlfriend who was going through nursing school)

The more I think about it, the less I expect to actually use this thing for "school", but it's a great machine to have in a modern era either way. And portable is always good.
unnamednewbie13
Moderator
+2,053|6741|PNW

Uzique wrote:

i dunno what it's like in the computing courses but people that typed during lectures were fucking annoying

pen + paper is pretty good
This, really. As quiet as quiet keyboards can get, it's still like having someone drumming their fingers on the desk next to you. I've tried it, and quickly went back to pen/paper because it was less distracting and I could write certain figures more quickly on paper than I could with a computer.

If not allowed during lectures, the laptop will probably end up being used to do work on the OP's lab time and compile notes after class. A business-class machine should be good enough for that purpose. I wouldn't bother grabbing extra batteries or anything like that; I'd just keep it plugged in as needed.
TheDonkey
Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt
+163|5687|Vancouver, BC, Canada

unnamednewbie13 wrote:

Uzique wrote:

i dunno what it's like in the computing courses but people that typed during lectures were fucking annoying

pen + paper is pretty good
This, really. As quiet as quiet keyboards can get, it's still like having someone drumming their fingers on the desk next to you. I've tried it, and quickly went back to pen/paper because it was less distracting and I could write certain figures more quickly on paper than I could with a computer.

The laptop will probably end up being used to do work on the OP's lab time and compile notes after class. A business-class machine should be good enough for that purpose. I wouldn't bother grabbing extra batteries or anything like that; I'd just keep it plugged in as needed.
Yeah, it's a really nice machine. Stock it runs 9 hours on a battery, and I'm really good with finding power when needed. Lab reports and typed out notes for sure.
Jaekus
I'm the matchstick that you'll never lose
+957|5148|Sydney
Shouldn't this be in the Tech section? Just seems more suited to there.
Little BaBy JESUS
m8
+394|6118|'straya
I never use my laptop in class, only between classes when i've got work to do and time to kill. Everyone here has laptops, but 99% of lecturers/tutors have banned them.
TheDonkey
Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt
+163|5687|Vancouver, BC, Canada
Should I bother shelling out for an SSD?

$200 seems steep, but DAMN they're fast, and slightly less powerhungry.
Winston_Churchill
Bazinga!
+521|6708|Toronto | Canada

yeah, nobody uses laptops for lectures.  the only ones i see using it are when lecture slides are available.
unnamednewbie13
Moderator
+2,053|6741|PNW

Jaekus wrote:

Shouldn't this be in the Tech section? Just seems more suited to there.
Yeah, and if I move it, completely random people will hop in and start griping about how it was unilaterally moved.

Not tonight.

TheDonkey wrote:

Should I bother shelling out for an SSD?

$200 seems steep, but DAMN they're fast, and slightly less powerhungry.
No.
TheDonkey
Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt
+163|5687|Vancouver, BC, Canada
I figured this was more of a University life advice thread (I guess I failed to explain that), so it would be out of place in tech.

Anyways, I learned something new tonight. Thanks guys.
Shahter
Zee Ruskie
+295|6745|Moscow, Russia

TheDonkey wrote:

Should I bother shelling out for an SSD?

$200 seems steep, but DAMN they're fast, and slightly less powerhungry.
if it's got a 7200rpm drive and 4gb ram - and it looks like it does - i'd say $200 would too much. don't bother.
if you open your mind too much your brain will fall out.
TheDonkey
Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt
+163|5687|Vancouver, BC, Canada

Shahter wrote:

TheDonkey wrote:

Should I bother shelling out for an SSD?

$200 seems steep, but DAMN they're fast, and slightly less powerhungry.
if it's got a 7200rpm drive and 4gb ram - and it looks like it does - i'd say $200 would too much. don't bother.
Only 2 gb of ram as I ordered it, the 4gb upgrade was $80. I'm gonna buy another 4gb stick for $25 of newegg and hit it up with 6gb total.
FlemishHCmaniac
Member
+147|6382|Belgium

TheDonkey wrote:

Apparently "everyone" uses laptops now. (According to my dad's girlfriend who was going through nursing school)
It might depend on what course you're taking. In my four years of uni, I've noticed that people bringing their laptop to an auditorium are a very small minority. And they usually all just end up playing solitaire or checking facebook.
TheDonkey
Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt
+163|5687|Vancouver, BC, Canada

FlemishHCmaniac wrote:

TheDonkey wrote:

Apparently "everyone" uses laptops now. (According to my dad's girlfriend who was going through nursing school)
It might depend on what course you're taking. In my four years of uni, I've noticed that people bringing their laptop to an auditorium are a very small minority. And they usually all just end up playing solitaire or checking facebook.
Interesting. I guess we'll see within the first week or so in September.

On an unrelated and very Tech-note(I don't want to spam threads), aside from the basics of defragging, ccleaner, disk cleanup, and keeping crap uninstalled, how do I keep this new laptop running at top speed as long as possible?

Before, I've had the luxury of large HD's so I could just partition and image the drive for easy restoring, but with only 320gb in the new one, it's not as comfortable to do that.
unnamednewbie13
Moderator
+2,053|6741|PNW

TheDonkey wrote:

FlemishHCmaniac wrote:

TheDonkey wrote:

Apparently "everyone" uses laptops now. (According to my dad's girlfriend who was going through nursing school)
It might depend on what course you're taking. In my four years of uni, I've noticed that people bringing their laptop to an auditorium are a very small minority. And they usually all just end up playing solitaire or checking facebook.
Interesting. I guess we'll see within the first week or so in September.

On an unrelated and very Tech-note(I don't want to spam threads), aside from the basics of defragging, ccleaner, disk cleanup, and keeping crap uninstalled, how do I keep this new laptop running at top speed as long as possible?

Before, I've had the luxury of large HD's so I could just partition and image the drive for easy restoring, but with only 320gb in the new one, it's not as comfortable to do that.
How to keep it running fast? Don't install anything you don't need on it, don't surf for porn or warez, and keep Microsoft Security Essentials and some other suite running on it. Only 320GB? Sorry, I laughed to myself there. I'll keep my stories about working with unearthly 10MB powerhouse drives to myself.

Also, Flemish had a point. Computers can be just as distracting to their users as they are to people around them.
Shahter
Zee Ruskie
+295|6745|Moscow, Russia

TheDonkey wrote:

Shahter wrote:

TheDonkey wrote:

Should I bother shelling out for an SSD?

$200 seems steep, but DAMN they're fast, and slightly less powerhungry.
if it's got a 7200rpm drive and 4gb ram - and it looks like it does - i'd say $200 would too much. don't bother.
Only 2 gb of ram as I ordered it, the 4gb upgrade was $80. I'm gonna buy another 4gb stick for $25 of newegg and hit it up with 6gb total.
don't forget to make sure it's got x64 system installed then.

On an unrelated and very Tech-note(I don't want to spam threads), aside from the basics of defragging, ccleaner, disk cleanup, and keeping crap uninstalled, how do I keep this new laptop running at top speed as long as possible?
with 6gb of ram you can turn pagefille completely off eliminating any possible slowdown associated with that.
if you open your mind too much your brain will fall out.
aerodynamic
FOCKING HELL
+241|5723|Roma

Uzique wrote:

i dunno what it's like in the computing courses but people that typed during lectures were fucking annoying

pen + paper is pretty good
i use my computer to record the lectures.
https://bf3s.com/sigs/8ea27f2d75b353b0a18b096ed75ec5e142da7cc2.png
unnamednewbie13
Moderator
+2,053|6741|PNW

That way you can space out the entire time?
TheDonkey
Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt
+163|5687|Vancouver, BC, Canada

Shahter wrote:

TheDonkey wrote:

Shahter wrote:


if it's got a 7200rpm drive and 4gb ram - and it looks like it does - i'd say $200 would too much. don't bother.
Only 2 gb of ram as I ordered it, the 4gb upgrade was $80. I'm gonna buy another 4gb stick for $25 of newegg and hit it up with 6gb total.
don't forget to make sure it's got x64 system installed then.

On an unrelated and very Tech-note(I don't want to spam threads), aside from the basics of defragging, ccleaner, disk cleanup, and keeping crap uninstalled, how do I keep this new laptop running at top speed as long as possible?
with 6gb of ram you can turn pagefille completely off eliminating any possible slowdown associated with that.
Yep, x64 for sure. I will very well keep the pagefile idea in mind. Thanks!
It also has an SD slot which could be used for ReadyBoost, would that actually help or would it be pointless/hurtful with 6gb of ram?


I've been considering getting a livescribe pen so I have a happy medium between paper notes and types notes/whatever, and I can import everything into a single notebook, and the pen records lecture audio while associating it with what you write (so you can click a piece of text in the PC client and it'll play back exactly what the prof was saying at the time).
But $200 and paper is expensive so probably just a dream.
aerodynamic
FOCKING HELL
+241|5723|Roma

unnamednewbie13 wrote:

That way you can space out the entire time?
well, so that sometimes i could fall a sleep for like 5 minutes.
https://bf3s.com/sigs/8ea27f2d75b353b0a18b096ed75ec5e142da7cc2.png
Lucien
Fantasma Parastasie
+1,451|6623
pen and paper. Do not bring a laptop to lectures, you're just distracting yourself

I've only ever used my laptop for uni when I've had programming classes.
https://i.imgur.com/HTmoH.jpg

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