August 31st 2007
I’m taking an introduction to computer programming class this semester and the program that’s required is only Windows-compatible. That gave me a bigger reason to go out and buy another laptop. Besides the fact that Don needs his own, but it’s always helpful to have a computer with Windows since the rest of the world kind of forgets that there’s another operating system out there (some of you will know what I mean, others will say, “Huh?”)
Yesterday Don and I went shopping, for computers and the rest of our school supplies. We found a nice Gateway laptop at Best Buy for $399. Here’s the specs:
- Intel® Celeron® M processor 520 with 533MHz frontside bus, 1MB L2 cache and 1.6GHz processor speed
- 512 MB PC2-5300 DDR2 memory
- DVD-ROM/CD-RW combo drive
- 14.1″ ultrabright widescreen
- 3 USB ports
It does come with Windows Vista and I was disappointed. I wanted to get a computer with Windows XP, but I couldn’t find a new one that still had XP anywhere. I didn’t want to get a used one. We also upgraded the RAM to 1.5 GB because I read on Best Buy’s website that this computer needed to be upgraded or it was way too slow, since apparently Vista uses over 300 MB just to start up. It ended up being just under $600 with the upgrade/installation and tax, which wasn’t too bad.
I’m actually quite happy with it so far. The first thing I did when I got it home was to reinstall the OS to get rid of all the stupid trial programs. Then I installed Spybot and Ad-Aware. I also turned off all the Vista security features. Windows Defender is quite annoying, I must say. And after being spoiled by Apple’s touchpad, this one’s super sensitivity bothers me. While I’m typing, my hands will brush above it, and it thinks I clicked so it messes up my typing. It’s done it four times while I wrote this post actually. All in all, it’s a great bargain.
Posted in Computers with 4 comments
August 29th 2007
Because I have $50 in my bank account and my parents aren’t helping with paying for college, I naturally had to take out some student loans. After I got my refund check (two weeks after my school got my money from the bank) and then after another week of my bank holding the check, I will finally get my refund of a little under $5000 tomorrow. I’ve already budgeted myself out for this semester and this is just one part of my financial aid for the fall. I’ll be getting another $1750 at the end of September. After I take my cut for this month, I’m putting the rest into an online savings account with a high interest rate.
I’ve narrowed it down to WaMu and CapitalOne. Their interest rates are really good (WaMu 4.89%, CapitalOne 4.88%) and APY for both is 5%. Minimum to open an account is $1. No minimum balance, but for WaMu, you get charged monthly fee of $4 if balance goes below $300. Also, if I go through WaMu, in order to get those rates, I have to sign up for their free checking account, which I was considering doing anyway because Bank of America sucks. Downside to this is there aren’t any branches near me. The closest is two hours away. I am, however, allowed to transfer money online, which is what I’d do anyway. I also get free checks and a debit card so that’s what’s necessary anyway.
Posted in Financial Aid, Money with 8 comments
August 27th 2007
I am a big user of Del.icio.us and I’m sure many of you are as well. Since I’m also a big Stumbler and Digg reader, I go through many new websites a day. Sometimes I like a site, browse it a bit and then want to move on. So instead of properly bookmarking it since I know I’ll want to find it later, but won’t remember where to look, I created a special category called “lookattheselater.” My personal favorite tag because that way I know I haven’t completely finished browsing those sites and they need further inspection.
When I’ve already read all the articles on Digg or Consumerist, have checked my message boards and blogs and I’m out of things to read, sometimes I go back through those websites. Here’s ten of those websites:
Posted in Tricks with 4 comments
August 24th 2007
This is only my first semester, but I already had to buy seven books. I found a great way to save some money and still end up with all the books needed.
Which edition?
First step is to ask your professor, when they’re going over the syllabus is the best time, if the newest edition is necessary. Most professors, my mom included, don’t necessarily need or want you to have the newest, most expensive edition unless whatever changed is exactly what is needed for the class. Usually the new edition has a few grammatical fixes and a fancy new cover and that’s all.
Bookstore prices
Go to the official campus bookstore and go to the unofficial bookstore(s). My school is smaller, but still has both of these. My mom teaches at a larger university with 30,000 students and they have three off-campus bookstores. Go to each and check the prices on the books you need, make a nice comparison chart that will save your life.
Online prices
Now, go home and check Amazon, Ebay, Half.com, and do a Google search. Add these prices to your chart. Make sure you have the correct edition! I can’t stress that enough. Also, find out what shipping costs and when you will get the books. Find out if the company/person doesn’t ship for up to one week or whatever else their policy is. Find out the return policy, just in case.
Compare
Now that you have your nice chart comparing prices/shipping charges, do a little math see which deal is best. Do you actually need these books tomorrow or can you wait until Monday? If you need them now, see about applying for a free trial with Amazon Prime (I got one) or see if your aunt has an account. If it’s cheaper or necessary to get them in the bookstore, go for it. If it’s a better deal to get them online, do that.
This way you get the best deal you can no matter what. All it takes is a little work. It took me an hour total to track down seven books and start the process. Not so bad to save nearly $200. Five books were much cheaper online, one was about $20 less in the bookstore. One book I had to get at the store because it’s one of those ridiculous “customized textbooks” just for my school. What a scam.
Posted in Academic, Money with 11 comments
August 24th 2007
Two creative baseball fans created a Mark Texeira tribute song on YouTube. Normally, I’m not one for watching stupid videos all day, but this is a good one. For those of you who don’t know, Mark Texeira is a professional baseball player who is currently playing first base with my favorite team, the Atlanta Braves. His current batting average is .296 and we are glad to have him with his 10 homeruns and 38 RBIs.
Posted in Misc with no comments
August 19th 2007
I’ve been a loyal Netflix customer since April. When I turned eighteen and finally had some of my own money, I started my subscription. My parents used it before and I liked the idea of never having to go to a store to get movies they probably didn’t even have.
Currently, I’m on the 5-at-a-time plan, and when I time everything right, I end up with 10 movies in one week. That’s a great deal for about $32 a month after taxes. That comes out to about 80 cents per movie. Incredible.
And then I read about Netflix’s superior customer service over at Consumerist. Even more incredible. I haven’t had a reason to call, but if a problem ever arises, I won’t be dreading that talk with a CSR.
While Netflix keeps lowering their prices and Blockbuster raises theirs and takes away treats like in-store coupons, it’s pretty obvious who’s going to win this video war. And I think the biggest reason Netflix will take out movie-mogul Blockbuster is because they keep their customers happy. I mean, look at me, writing a great review of a company that takes my money when I’m a poor college student and only have so much money to throw around.
Posted in Reviews with 1 comment
August 12th 2007
I’m sure no one will read this post. It’s not an interesting one anyway. This is just the lovely first post of a brand new website. I decided that since I’m starting a new phase of my real life, my internet life should follow suit. I’m upgrading from a blog I had throughout high school to one I shall have throughout college.
This is a fresh install of Wordpress on a brand new domain I purchased through E-Starr (also where I am hosted). You can find more about this website on different pages and learn more about me through posts, etc. Enjoy.
Posted in That College Kid with no comments
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