simply what is ethernet and would a student need it?

Question

I am buying a laptop for my daughter who is going to university---
what are the 'must have' components she would use in the next 5 years?

Answer 1

MINIMUM requirements
* Ethernet card - for highspeed internet access (cable modem & DSL)
* Dial-up modem for slow speed internet access over telephone
(you need both because you never know what kind of internet access will be available)
* CD player/burner (NOT just player) - need to make backups of important files.
* 40 gig Hard drive
* 512 meg RAM (memory - some say 256 meg, but too many programs require much more memory than they used to)
* Printer (any name brand)
* Word Processor software (students with an ID can often buy cheaper - you might want to wait)
* Electronic spreadhseet software (students with an ID can often buy cheaper - you might want to wait)

NICE TO HAVE (If they don't cost much more)
* 1 gig RAM memory
* 80+ gig hard drive
* Notebook/laptop computer
* Wireless - If laptop(for using school network at library or at other 'hotspots')
* CD/DVD Player/burner - DVD is a higher capacity storage medium
* higher quality stereo sound card - not REALLY a necessity but students do like music and it's cheap entertainment.
* higher quality speakers (see point above - you can get acceptably good computer speakers for 20 -30 dollars US)

THINGS SOME STUDENTS WILL NEED
*HQ Photo capable printer.
* Scanner

Answer 2

She will need

- an ethernet port (so she can connect to internet with a wire)

- a wireless card (so she can connect to internet without a wire)

- microsoft XP home and microsoft office (the highest version you can afford) or the Mac equivalents of that, if you're going Mac.

- USB ports (you won't find a laptop without these anyway)

- as much memory and disk space as you can possibly afford (do NOT skimp on that!!)

To save money you can skimp a bit on processor speed (but not too much - you can go two stops below the fastest, but no lower than that). If you buy her a big screen, it will be easier on the eyes but harder on the shoulders. Ask how she feels about that - is she gonna carry it about a lot? then think smaller.

Tablet screen is an option but not very important for her kind of work.

She doesn't really need a dial-up (old style) modem.

If you buy Dell, they will probably offer a free printer. Don't get too excited, it's a rubbish printer and the ink costs a fortune. Better to swap it for a processor upgrade or something.

Five years will cost you two laptops, but don't worry about the second one yet.

PS you could try www.cnet.com for reviews of current technology. The fashion just now seems to be HP, Sony or Dell. Do not buy a noname or second hand. You don't need to go to PC World unless you want a human to talk to. Once you've talked to your human, leave and buy from somewhere else.

Answer 3

well, you will need a laptop with a wireless LAN 802.11g
she'll also need a DVD/CD player and burner.
Internet service is a must have, so you'll have to get that.
you might have to pay for service fees wich are usually 9.95 dallars
a month or sometimes even less.

Answer 4

802.11g built in Wireless Networking
10/100 Ethernet Networking
512 MB of RAM (1 GB would be better, but 512 is MINIMUM)
Dual Core Processor
3 year warranty

802.11g is a standard that is used for wireless networking - notebooks that display 802.11 b/g or 802.11 a/b/g are simply saying they are compatible with all current standards. g is backward compatible, so as long as it says g somewhere in the 802.11 you're fine.

Ethernet is the networking - Generally it's used to refer to WIRED networks where you plug the bigger phone looking connector into the laptop - virtually every laptop made today includes it. You might see 10/100/1000 - that's fine... it's better, but it's rarely going to be used by the "individual" over the next 5 years and I would not consider it a must have.

512 MB of RAM - this is the workspace - think of it like your physical desk space. The more desk space you have the more files, books, etc you can have open at the same time. When researching and writing this is important. 512 for Windows XP is pretty much minimum now thanks to the poor programming of many companies and how they like to put little programs on your computer to "help you", even when in reality most of these programs will rarely be used. Windows Vista will require MORE memory, so, while the computer should be upgradable, you're probably better off buying it now with 1 GB than adding the memory later (though it's certainly possible; just check the specifications for "maximum Memory" - 1 GB = 1024 MB - so 512 = .5 GB and max is usually 2 GB or 4 GB with laptops made today.

A Dual core processor is like getting TWO processors in one. To go back to the desktop metaphor, it's like having a second person to work on the project with you - two people can't work on the exact same thing at once, so it won't really help speed when you're only using one program at a time, but if you need to be writing a report in word and you need to be surfing the web for information, then one "person/processor" can run the program for web surfing and the other can run Microsoft Word. Note: It's better to get a faster processor NOW and upgrade the memory later because memory is easily upgraded - processor is NOT as easy to upgrade.

Make sure you get one that has a built in DVD reader. The smaller, lighter models don't always have them (most laptops will, just the smaller, lighter models don't always). The DVD reader should also have AT MINIMUM CD-Writing abilities. MOST sold today will, but NOT all. A DVD Writer is a nice to have and may become more than nice to have (more of a necessity) in 5 years.

Most people will be just fine with any size hard drive sold today. Larger ones can cost more money, but you might want to look for FASTER drives, like those labeled as 7200 RPM - Hard drives are among the slowest parts of the computer and a faster hard drive will mean an overall faster computer. If your daughter plans on going nuts and downloading tons of music, movies, and tv shows, then a larger hard drive would be advisable, though she can always buy an external USB hard drive and store things on that if she needs the space; those drives can often be much larger than the built in drives.

The 3 year warranty is VITAL for a laptop. Laptop parts are more expensive than desktop parts AND they take more abuse because they are (generally) traveling and moving around a lot, compared to a desktop. As long as the damage isn't obvious neglect and carelessness, manufacturers will often replace the parts under warranty - but only if you have a long enough warranty. If you can, you might want to look into an accidental damage warranty such as Dell's Complete Care. If you read more about it, the Complete Care package should protect the laptop and replace/repair it in the event of accidents, such as dropping it, spilling something on it, etc. It will NOT cover Deliberate damage - like sticking it under your car's tire and running over it. Obviously, these coverages cost money NOW - and can be significant... but it will be cheaper than buying a new laptop in 18 months.

Now, Mac or Windows? MOST of the world uses Windows... If your daughter is going to school for graphic design or possibly fashion, then you should look into a Mac. If she's going for business courses of some kind, then a Windows system would be better. THOUGH, Apple is now allowing Windows to be run on their computers, but I have not done this and I'm not SURE how well it works and how compatible it really is. Apple's are good, but they don't have as much software available for them. Besides, the apple operating system (Mac OS MIGHT (no inside info here, just my professional opinion), Mac OS MIGHT be released in a couple of years to run on ANY computer in which case she could put it on later.

I would NOT suggest buying the laptop with Office Preinstalled. Instead, buy it without office and go to Staples or some place like that and buy the Academic (Student/Teacher) version. The complete Office suite can be as little as $150 or so... maybe cheaper. Typically it would cost $350-$500. OR you could try just using the FREE program OpenOffice from www.openoffice.org - it's office compatible, but a little different. For the VAST majority of tasks - if not all tasks - it should be just as good or even better than Microsoft's expensive product.

There are currently two versions of Windows available - Windows XP Pro and Windows XP Home - I wouldn't bother with Pro unless you think she might need to connect it to a business network (I would say unlikely). Pro costs $100 and does have a few extra features, but for a student, they shouldn't generally be needed.

For a printer, you might want to look into a brother MFC 440cn or similar printer. I have a slightly older model and I'm pleased with it. Among the things I like, it is flatbed so I can copy/scan books, it uses individual ink cartridges (so if one color runs out, you don't have to replace the entire cartidge like in HPs and Epsons), it's networkable, it acts as a Scanner, a Copier, a Fax machine, and of course, a printer. the one I have even has a card reader for digital photos.

Lastly, remember that every vendor has a failure rate. Check Consumer reports and other reviewers. You want to minimize the odds of failure while realizing you COULD just be unlucky.

I DO NOT recommend Sony - their warranty policies and service (based on my experience and that of the company I worked for) is AWFUL. It took 30 days and several phone calls to convince them there was a problem that the laptop needed fixed by them - then it took another 30 days to get it back from them when we returned it. They look nice... but the company doesn't care about it's customers, in my experience. I'm not a fan of HP/Compaq either. Lenovo (IBM) and Dell would be my choices depending what you can afford. Toshiba, Panasonic, and Fujitsu I don't have sufficient experience to recommend or not. And I would NOT go with a "cheap" no-name brand laptop (or recently "popular" manufacturer like "Averatec" or something. You want to buy from a company you can be reasonably confident will be around in 18 months when you need that warranty honored. (Note, my experience with Dell Support - and I've called often for my clients over the last 12 years - has been good - not perfect, but good. And when you need to return the laptop to them (assuming you don't get onsite service), it's QUICK - 3-5 days... not a Sony-like 30.

Answer 5

basicly i think you should let her get one that she wants and then it will have everything that she needs however macbooks and macbook pros from apple.com are the collest things to have for a student
goodluck

Answer 6

going to go to university and does not now what ethernet is, sad