dell rocks!!! i have the inspiron 4000 and i love it.

I've got the dell latitude cpt and LOVE it!!!!! I've worn most of the letters off the keyboard I use it so much!!! I use it WAY more than the desktop I had before this laptop.

My sister received an iBook for Christmas, and she loves it.:D

One more vote for Laptop!

You can bring them everywhere, you can do wireless internet with them (which people usually be impressed with), you can do your assigments/papers wherever you like: cafes, parks, libraries, your rooms ...

Love my laptop :)

Car,

The sorority houses at USC have wireless ethernet access so you can use your laptop anywhere in any of the houses and go online. I believe that the dorms are using the same wireless technology now.

The sorority houses are also really full right now so desk space is at a premuium -- another reason that laptops are great.

Laura

eek, just ordered a dell inspiron 8200 notebook. Can't wait to get it!

100%, unilaterally, w/out a doubt . . .

LAPTOP. All of the 'cons' listed so far can be worked around - battery-life issues prove negligible during normal use (hell even in the library you can plug the thing in), and high-speed ethernet access is available to the laptop most places on campus I'd assume.

As for brand - the people voting Dell are on to something, but I prefer Sony - I have a Vaio, and it's been nothing but sweet to me. Definitely look into them - a little more expensive, but more than worth it.

Thanks and a question...
 

Thanks everyone for your help!! :)

I will definitely get a laptop then. I, unfortunately, can't write papers in the presence of others and the littlest of noises bother me! (Amy, I will be frequenting Leavey/Doheny on a regular basis, haha.) Also, I only use my comp for papers, email, and IM.

I have a question for you guys...would taking notes in class on a laptop be considered "dorky" or "nerdy"? My sister told me that people who take notes on a laptop are thought of as dorks. I just type a lot faster than I write!

Thanks again for all your help!

a laptop is great, but in all reality, I dont know anyone myself included who takes it to the library. i did once, but would not do it again...I dont feel like hiking across campus with my laptop at 10 pm to work on a paper. but make sure to get a good warrenty!! you can also get an external mouse for maybe $20 tops, and hook it to the back of you laptop, which makes moving around easier...i have a port replicator so I can hook up everything and them some and still have plenty of space for the extras (speakers...:D ), plus it just pops right out when I wanna take it home with me or elsewhere....

I too suggest a laptop, and if you're worried about hooking stuff up to it like a printer, monitor, mouse, keyboard, and all that crap, get a docking station. you can slide the laptop in and out of it. that's what i have at work, and it's awesome. i can take my laptop on travel with me, and not have to worry about hooking it back up when i get back.

laptop definitely

but DON'T take it to class!!! people will look at you like you have 4 heads and will talk trash.

if you're that worried about your notes, buy a little tape recorder and bring it with you. but i even doubt you'd need that.

don't worry, you'll do great!

**edited to add**
also, if i were in class with someone who was typing and typing away on a computer while i was trying to pay attention, you better believe i would complain to the professor or a higher up. (i HATE the sound of a keyboard! ;) )

no laptop in class, dude.

First, yeah you'll probably look like a tool - it's a special kind of geek that can pull it off. Also, if you're taking smaller classes (out of the lecture hall), and there's only like 25 people in there . . . yeah, not normal to whip out the computer.

Second, for some classes it just doesn't work - classes with special notation, or any sort of charting/graphing, you're screwed (any science/math class, econ, etc). Chem on the computer doesn't happen.

Third, I wouldn't want to carry it around all day.

If you want to donate your computer to some random thug, go with a laptop. Bottom line: LAPTOPS GET STOLEN all the freaking time on college campuses.

I think it's different for everyone... I had a laptop last year... it was ok, but couldn't do as much or hold as much info as a PC... plus, i never brought it someplace else to do homework or anything... the main difference is that i could bring it home on vacation and not have to worry about it getting stolen... but I'll be in an apartment this year and am getting a desktop... just cuz it can do more, actually is cheaper to buy, and don't have to *really* worry about it getting stolen as much as in a dorm... for a dorm, i'd say go for the laptop, but i think it's different for everyone :)