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Home > Students > Computer Purchase & Repair > Bringing a Computer to College |
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Many students and their parents seek advice when deciding what to do about bringing a computer to college. We hope the information in these pages helps you with your decision.
Allegheny students are not required to bring a computer to campus. However, most students do choose to bring their own computer to campus and increasingly the computer they are bringing is a laptop. With wireless internet access available in Pelletier Library, Campus Center, Residence Hall lounge areas, the majority of outdoor common areas, and a growing number of the academic buildings, a laptop will give you the freedom to study in many convenient locations.
Students that choose not to bring a personal computer to campus have access approximately 200 public use computers spread throughout campus in public and departmental computer labs.
Our public labs and faculty computers run the Windows operating system and the Office suite (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Access). We recommend that computers being brought to campus run Windows XP Pro, SP2 or Windows Vista. We also recommend purchasing MS Office 2007 for ease of file exchange with professors.
Do NOT buy antivirus software before coming to Allegheny. You will be required to uninstall any antivirus software on your computer when you get to campus and install Allegheny's antivirus software, which is available for free download once you are on campus.
If purchasing a laptop keep in mind that they are more costly to repair than desktop computers. Also, their portablility puts them in harms way more often than a desktop computer and makes them more susceptible to accidents. Because of this, we strongly recommend that every laptop brought to campus have 4 years parts and labor warranty and 4 years of accidental damage insurance. While these will add to the initial cost of the laptop, they will pay off in the long run. Accidents involving laptop computers are very common on a college campus-a spilled drink on keyboard, a book dropped on a laptop, someone stepping on a laptop left of a floor, or sitting on one left on a bed. An accidental damage policy will cover the repair of the laptop in any of these situations.
The laptop pictured here belongs to an Allegheny student who did not purchase accidental damage insurance. He's hoping his tape "repair" will last through the rest of his college career. Don't let the life span of your laptop depend on your skills with duct tape - buy accidental damage insurance!
Allegheny College partners with a local vendor to provide a convenient laptop purchase and on campus service. The program offers the students to purchase a pre-configured name brand laptop ready to work with Allegheny's infrastructure. Details are still being worked out on this year's options once settled. Incoming students will receive detailed information about this optional program in upcoming mailings regarding new student orientation.
Coppola Enterprises is a local vendor that maintains an office within Murray Hall to provide the Allegheny College community personal computer sales and support. Students interested in purchasing a personal computer through Coppola Enterprises should contact them directly:
More information regarding the personal computer options available through our local vendor will be included in the next orientation information packet due to be mailed in early July, 2009. You may also view the flyer online (requires a PDF reader).