GHCA'S LAPTOP INITIATIVE
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HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS
SHOPPING TIPS FROM MR. SURRANWhen shopping for a laptop, there are some specific things you should be looking for. First, if you think you have found a laptop you like, go read a review about it. In fact, read two! I recommend searching for the laptop on Amazon.com. Even if you do not buy it from Amazon, you can still read the user reviews. Most are written by real people, and if a laptop only has 2 stars out of 5, then you best keep on shopping. Once you find a laptop that has a good review, look specifically at two of the specs - wireless distance and battery life. These two things are more important than speed, memory, or even screen size. If a laptop has lousy wireless range, it may have a hard time sending a signal through the walls at GHCA. If the battery life is poor, then your child risks having his / her laptop die in the middle of class! Also consider weight. Carrying a laptop around all day can become burdensome if it has much weight. That's why I like the Asus Eee PC - it's light and the size of a small Bible! Very portable and comfortable to hold. Also consider how sturdy the laptop is. Nobody wants to see a student drop their laptop, but if they do, a lighter, smaller laptop has a better chance of surviving than a large, heavy laptop (inertia). Not everyone will agree with me, but you may want to stay away from Windows Vista. At the very least, do some research on Vista, especially running on laptops. Google it! I know a few who love Vista, but the experts in my industry are very down on it. You can still get laptops with Windows XP on them if you shop around. Of course, you can always get Linux on a laptop and save money! Invest in a good carrying case. Lots of padding. Laptops usually do not survive being dropped, but if in a cushy case, the odds are much, much better. You'll obviously want to stress the important of care to your child. GHCA will also offer some lectures regarding this in the Fall. Did I mention that you should read the reviews? The best way to know if you are getting gold or garbage is to read the review! Also, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE FREE LAPTOP PROMOTION THROUGH THIS YEAR'S BIKE-A-THON !!! You can help the school, keep tuition down, and get a free laptop that has already been tested on GHCA's network! HOW CAN YOU GO WRONG? INITIAL SETUPAt the beginning of the school year*, students will make an appointment with the System Administrator to have their laptops configured to work with our network. This includes entering the secret WPA key, configuring the OS and browser to use our servers, and checking the laptop's security measures. There is a $20 fee associated with setup (slightly more if you request extra service, like the installing software). However, once the laptop is configured, it should be set for the student's lifetime at GHCA. Any further setup required due to changes on the GHCA network will be done free-of-charge. QUESTIONS?There are bound to be questions about a project as ambitious as our Laptop Initiative. Please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page to see if your question has already been answered. If not, email me at laptops@ghca.com and I'll add your question to the list!
* because of the phase-in deployment next year, the first quarter will be used to setup our wireless network and connect students to our WLAN. We hope to have all students with laptops online by the beginning of the 2nd quarter, 2008.
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