Information Technology Services
These computer specifications are here to serve as a guideline for new computer purchases. Each of these configurations will have a usable lifetime of four or more years.
As a general rule, you should NOT include any productivity or anti-virus software in any planned computer purchase. Information Technology Services owns site licenses for Microsoft Office and McAfee Virus Scan, which we are happy to install on any University-owned computer. In addition, staff and faculty can pick up CDs for these and other software packages at the ITS Helpdesk.
Avoid computers which don't offer Windows XP Professional as an option, as it is an indication that a computer is not compatible with Windows XP. If a computer isn't compatible with Windows XP, it could severly limit the helpdesk's ability to support software and solve problems.
Some computers offer a 'Windows Vista Downgrade, Windows XP Professional' - this is perfectly acceptable.
The versions of Windows sold by computer manufacturers, such as Dell, only supports approximately 3.25 GB of RAM. Buying more than that won't actually give your system more resources.
On some systems your only choices will be 4 GB or 2 GB - 4 will undoubtedly perform better than 2, but keep cost in mind.
Most applications have very simple graphical needs, and the standard 'integrated' graphics processor will be more than enough.
Tasks such as 3D games, video editing or watching hi-definition movies benefit most from dedicated graphics processors.
Alsmost all documents are much less than 1MB in size, such as Word documents, Outlook emails, Excel spreadsheets, etc.
Pictures, movies, and sound recordings are larger - if you save a lot of this kind of content, you may want a larger hard drive
Please keep in mind that the more data you have, the longer it will take to backup and restore data should something happen to your computer. In extreme cases, the helpdesk may have issues finding a place to put large amounts of backup data.
The hardware listed here is good enough that the laptop will have a usable lifetime of over four years. Some parts wear out faster than others, and a warranty is the only way for the helpdesk to guarantee that there will be speedy turn-around should something happen to your computer.
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Avoid computers which don't offer Windows XP Professional as an option, as it is an indication that a computer is not compatible with Windows XP. If a computer isn't compatible with Windows XP, it could severly limit the helpdesk's ability to support software and solve problems.
Some computers offer a 'Windows Vista Downgrade, Windows XP Professional' - this is perfectly acceptable.
The versions of Windows sold by computer manufacturers, such as Dell, only supports approximately 3.25 GB of RAM. Buying more than that won't actually give your system more resources.
However, some of the time your only choices will be 4 GB or 2 GB - 4 will undoubtedly perform better than 2, but keep cost in mind.
Most applications have very simple graphical needs, and the standard 'integrated' graphics processor will be more than enough.
Tasks such as 3D games, video editing or watching hi-definition movies benefit most from dedicated graphics processors.
Alsmost all documents are much less than 1MB in size, such as Word documents, Outlook emails, Excel spreadsheets, etc.
Pictures, movies, and sound recordings are larger - if you save a lot of this kind of content, you may want a larger hard drive
Please keep in mind that the more data you have, the longer it will take to backup and restore data should something happen to your computer. In extreme cases, the helpdesk may have issues finding a place to put large amounts of backup data.
The hardware listed here is good enough that the laptop will have a usable lifetime of over four years. Some parts wear out faster than others, and a warranty is the only way for the helpdesk to guarantee that there will be speedy turn-around should something happen to your computer.
Hide
Alsmost all documents are much less than 1MB in size, such as Word documents, Outlook emails, Excel spreadsheets, etc.
Pictures, movies, and sound recordings are larger - if you save a lot of this kind of content, you may want a larger hard drive
Please keep in mind that the more data you have, the longer it will take to backup and restore data should something happen to your computer. In extreme cases, the helpdesk may have issues finding a place to put large amounts of backup data.
Alsmost all documents are much less than 1MB in size, such as Word documents, Outlook emails, Excel spreadsheets, etc.
Pictures, movies, and sound recordings are larger - if you save a lot of this kind of content, you may want a larger hard drive
Please keep in mind that the more data you have, the longer it will take to backup and restore data should something happen to your computer. In extreme cases, the helpdesk may have issues finding a place to put large amounts of backup data.
