Computers for Law School 2011

[geoduck]

i had read about the small palmrests, but i actually don't rest my palms on my keyboard (my typing technique is uniquely terrible)

I like how the keyboard slowly slides across the desk while you type.

with a non-slip pad i could probably finally break the 180 barrier

Holy shit.

That's pretty impressive for Qwerty. I think my top clocked speed ever was 145. He's right, though. I use the palmrest when I'm just dicking around, but when I'm really going at it they are always elevated. Using the palmrest too much is pretty bad for your hands anyway and is a great way to get RSS.

[Stoic]

I haven't switched over to Windows 7 yet, but I am curious as to whether or not I should upgrade this E420 to Windows 7 professional. Is it necessary? Is home edition just fine? I'm just uncertain as to what additional features makes professional stand out. I always thought it was something for company use.

[071816]

So is it a wise idea to use a laptop while it's charging if you can help it? I'm trying to preserve my battery life. I've been hearing conflicting things re: this.

What else can I do to maximize battery life?

[geoduck]

So is it a wise idea to use a laptop while it's charging if you can help it? I'm trying to preserve my battery life. I've been hearing conflicting things re: this.

What else can I do to maximize battery life?

You are hearing people flap their lips who knew exactly what to do with batteries... in 1999. We don't use Nickle Cadmium batteries anymore, so there is no more memory effect. For modern batteries, all that matters in terms of use is the cycle. The more cycles, the less life. If you use 20%, then charge 20%, that's a 5th of a cycle. Do it 5 times and you've taken up a charging cycle. It's fine to use your laptop while it's charging. I mean... what else would you do? Wait till it's at 100% till using it while plugged in?

So to get the most life out of your battery, you just need to control how long it takes to go through a cycle. So keep the brightness at a reasonable level when you're on battery and avoid tasks that require servos to move any physical part. This includes the use of any sort of optical disc or running a program that has to do lots of hard drive seeking, like playing games or editing video. Both of those also tax your graphics card and processor more, which reduces battery life. If you're running on SSD and don't even have a disk-drive, then you're sitting pretty. Games and video will still lower your time through the cycle, but nearly as much as if they needed to continuously access different parts of the hard drive.

Edit: I still do the thing where, when I get something with a battery, I immediately charge it to full and then use it until it dies before recharging it. This has nothing to do with battery memories but is to calibrate the software to more accurately reflect how much power you get on a charge. This may or may not be an antiquated practice by now.

[fatduck]

If you're running on SSD and don't even have a disk-drive, then you're sitting pretty.

this is an overstatement to say the least

[geoduck]

If you're running on SSD and don't even have a disk-drive, then you're sitting pretty.

this is an overstatement to say the least

It's an accurate statement. I said try not to run any servos while on batter power. If he's on an SSD, he's running no servos. He'll still lose power from the computation, but not the extra bit from physically moving objects.

[fatduck]

If you're running on SSD and don't even have a disk-drive, then you're sitting pretty.

this is an overstatement to say the least

It's an accurate statement. I said try not to run any servos while on batter power. If he's on an SSD, he's running no servos. He'll still lose power from the computation, but not the extra bit from physically moving objects.

sorry, forgot who i was talking to for a moment

[071816]

Appreciate the response geoduck.

Sometimes if I'm sitting at home for most of the day not going anywhere I will take the battery out and just use the laptop with the charger in. Is this retarded? Do other people so this?

[geoduck]

If you're running on SSD and don't even have a disk-drive, then you're sitting pretty.

this is an overstatement to say the least

It's an accurate statement. I said try not to run any servos while on batter power. If he's on an SSD, he's running no servos. He'll still lose power from the computation, but not the extra bit from physically moving objects.

sorry, forgot who i was talking to for a moment

Any chance at clarification as to what is meant by that? I'm not trying to lead anyone astray in this thread and I know that a good amount of my technical knowledge is dated, but I was not aware that the statement that moving physical parts = extra power expenditure was controversial.

Edit: I guess that could be misinterpreted to mean that if you have an SSD, everything is awesome and you can do absolutely anything without power consequences. I'll clarify that I was referring solely to being in the clear in regards to power-drain from moving objects. The other power drains all still exist and have to be managed if you are trying to squeeze the absolute most out of your battery. Ideally you can plug in any time you have to do intensive work, but that's not very realistic.

[geoduck]

Appreciate the response geoduck.

Sometimes if I'm sitting at home for most of the day not going anywhere I will take the battery out and just use the laptop with the charger in. Is this retarded? Do other people so this?

This is retarded and just asking to have something happen that makes you lose power. Keep the battery in.

[071816]

Lol ok thanks

[risktaker]

Okay, I am too lazy to read though 31 pages. I am a PC guy, and I need to buy a laptop in the next two days. Insurance covers the cost because my last laptop got stolen. Pretty sweet deal because my old HP was a pile of crap. So can you guys please recommend 2 of the best laptops you can think of for law school? I can spend up to $850 and still get it from free, so keep this in mind while giving suggestions. Thanks!

[beach_terror]

Okay, I am too lazy to read though 31 pages. I am a PC guy, and I need to buy a laptop in the next two days. Insurance covers the cost because my last laptop got stolen. Pretty sweet deal because my old HP was a pile of crap. So can you guys please recommend 2 of the best laptops you can think of for law school? I can spend up to $850 and still get it from free, so keep this in mind while giving suggestions. Thanks!

http://www.lenovo.com - enjoy.

[risktaker]

Okay, I am too lazy to read though 31 pages. I am a PC guy, and I need to buy a laptop in the next two days. Insurance covers the cost because my last laptop got stolen. Pretty sweet deal because my old HP was a pile of crap. So can you guys please recommend 2 of the best laptops you can think of for law school? I can spend up to $850 and still get it from free, so keep this in mind while giving suggestions. Thanks!

http://www.lenovo.com - enjoy.

Thank you for answering. Which one would you recommend?

[beach_terror]

Okay, I am too lazy to read though 31 pages. I am a PC guy, and I need to buy a laptop in the next two days. Insurance covers the cost because my last laptop got stolen. Pretty sweet deal because my old HP was a pile of crap. So can you guys please recommend 2 of the best laptops you can think of for law school? I can spend up to $850 and still get it from free, so keep this in mind while giving suggestions. Thanks!

http://www.lenovo.com - enjoy.

which one?

Anything in the Thinkpad line is extremely durable and awesome.

[northwood]

Okay, I am too lazy to read though 31 pages. I am a PC guy, and I need to buy a laptop in the next two days. Insurance covers the cost because my last laptop got stolen. Pretty sweet deal because my old HP was a pile of crap. So can you guys please recommend 2 of the best laptops you can think of for law school? I can spend up to $850 and still get it from free, so keep this in mind while giving suggestions. Thanks!

pick 20 random computers under 850- cut and past them on a dartboard, drink a few pitchers of your favorite beer and throw a dart. wherever the dart hits- thats the cpu you get.

[071816]

Okay, I am too lazy to read though 31 pages. I am a PC guy, and I need to buy a laptop in the next two days. Insurance covers the cost because my last laptop got stolen. Pretty sweet deal because my old HP was a pile of crap. So can you guys please recommend 2 of the best laptops you can think of for law school? I can spend up to $850 and still get it from free, so keep this in mind while giving suggestions. Thanks!

http://www.lenovo.com - enjoy.

which one?

Anything in the Thinkpad line is extremely durable and awesome.

This is correct.

[Mike12188]

Just bought a nice 23" LG LED display as a 2nd monitor for my macbook for $140. Now just gotta by a usb mouse and I'm good.

[risktaker]

awesome! thanks guys. Northwood, I will do the dart game with the lenovo laptops.

[risktaker]

any particular laptop in the thinkpad series? T series or X series? I don't do any gaming.

[northwood]

whats the difference between microsoft windows7 and microsoft windows 7 professional?

[risktaker]

Thanks northwood. Sorry, I am not computer savvy.

[beach_terror]

whats the difference between microsoft windows7 and microsoft windows 7 professional?

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/wind ... ts/compare

Most notable is you can't join a domain with Home Premium.

[northwood]

Thanks northwood. Sorry, I am not computer savvy.

neither am i. im still stuck as much as you are, but want to get the purchase out of the way.

[risktaker]

beach terror, do you prefer the T series or the X series? Is it worth it to upgrade to a 9 cell battery?