When I first started my classes this past week, I noticed that a
lot of students were using laptops to take notes. Most of these
seemed to be PCs - I saw several Dells, a couple IBMs, and one or
two that I didn't recognize. I noticed that most people seem to be
running Windows XP, and a number of them had the little Centrino
sticker on them.
I didn't really expect a lot of people to have Macs, but I've
seen at least three being used in class. From talking to some of
the other students, I've learned that a number of people seem to
have iBooks or 12" PowerBooks (like mine). Most students
seem to have purchased their laptops not too long before leaving
for university.
One of my friends back home in the US ended up going to college
in Boston, and, like many people, she needed a new computer for
school (her family's old Dell was being used by her brothers). Her
parents bought her a new iBook G4
to take with her. Since she's going to art school, she probably
won't be taking very many notes with it, but it's nice to have a
portable in case she wants to take it places.
She called me up this morning and voiced her surprise that the
computer actually came with "fun" software already installed. I
said something like, "Of course it does. Do you expect to buy a
$1,600 computer that's completely useless until you spend another
$500 on software?"
But her attitude is an attitude many
people seem to have about computers. When they get a computer built
for them, it usually has Windows installed and nothing else.
They've got to spend another few hundred dollars on software before
they can do anything productive with it, and most PCs that you buy
new today don't come with very useful software.
Or, more likely, the preinstalled software slows down the
computer so much that it's only really useful after you reformat
the hard drive and reinstall Windows!
IBM does tend to be a bit of an exception, given that many of
their consumers tend to be businesses, schools, or other
professional users. They keep the add-ons at a minimum.
Apple is the other exception. One of the keys to having a
reliable computer for doing schoolwork is to have as little "junk"
installed and/or running as possible.
Apple does install its basic (and useful) applications with
OS X. iCal, iTunes, iMovie, iPhoto, etc. all come preinstalled
with the OS. The new consumer Macs come with AppleWorks,
GraphicConverter, and GarageBand as well (my friend couldn't stop
talking about GarageBand - apparently she recorded some rap songs
that she wrote, used the built in tools to add beats and sound
effects behind it, and was quite surprised and pleased with the
results), neither of which I would consider to be "junk" software
(unlike many of the "extras" PC manufacturers tend to install).
Basically, an iBook comes with everything that you would need to
take notes, use the Internet, and make presentations for school
without you ever having to install extra software or change any
system settings.
Of course, most people will install other programs, but
the nice thing is that you don't actually need to.
One might argue that if you bought a Dell or some other PC,
which usually come with a basic word processor and a few other
things, that you'd never actually need to install more software
either. That's true, but without at least uninstalling some of the
preinstalled software first (and changing a few settings), the
computer won't run as fast as it could or should.
Considering that my friend has never actually spent significant
time using a Mac before (she has used both my PowerBook with
OS X and my blue G3 with
OS 9 to look things up online), she seems to be doing pretty
well with it.
The tools she needs are right there on the computer, and she was
able to use the time saved from having to install software for
better things - like moving the wooden and faded blue velvet 1970s
couch that she bought at a thrift shop upstairs to her apartment.
