in search of lost technology: Getting a Computer, part 1

^Tried to spoof Proust's "In Search of Lost Time" with that title but failed miserably, as I am looking for something that is neither lost nor just generalized technology. You'll have to forgive my pretension.

As part of the recent changing of plans, one of the things I must come to terms with is getting a computer of some sort. The crucial decision will come down to two separate choices:

• Desktop or Laptop?
• Where to get it?

(I had a third choice of "what brand" but my date--and current personal computer consultant--basically said fuck the brands. So we're fucking the brands, apparently.)

While the laptop is the staple of college students, there's no denying a desktop is more convenient is several ways: always plugged in, more hard drive space, an actual keyboard and mouse (you can only do so much with that stupid fingerpad, and heaven forbid you use the little "mousestick" wedged on top of the B key like your laptop's having some sort of mini erection). But as someone still working out the details of moving out of the parents' house, the mobility of a laptop is key, even if it does mean I'd always need an outlet handy for long-term use. My date has noted he does have a spare desktop he can put together for me; the only issues are that I'd need to furnish a monitor and, well, it's fairly old computer.

Of course, another option would be to save up and buy a brand-spanking new laptop or desktop right out the box. But aside from the expenses and the desktop/laptop dilemma, I have no idea what constitutes a "good" computer in terms of RAM or memory or, well, pretty much anything. The only certain thing I have decided on is to rule out Apple.

A quick aside about Apple: it's not so much that Apple has bad products that makes me want to avoid them, but rather 1) their shit is way too expensive, 2) I hate this cult of Apple which lets them sell shit that's way too expensive, and 3) their shit isn't compatible with anything, especially for as expensive as it is. Asus, for example, has shit that's reasonably good, reasonably priced, and comes without Apple's hubris. When $1000 is the low end of a company's laptop lineup (especially when half that money is really just to show off their stupid fruit logo on top), I think it may be time to reassess.

Anyway, the cheapest option seems to be to let my date give me his old desktop and convince my parents to give me one of the old CRT monitors collecting dust in the basement. Of course, that leaves me with an older computer that I can't lug off to college day in and day out, and he tells me that I'd end up having to buy more RAM and possibly a hard drive or two so that it does all the normal computer stuff at a normal computer speed. This kind of makes me want to just start off fresh with my own shit, as I am a huge fan of getting everything all at once and all in one place, if possible. But we'll see.

This past Tuesday my date took me browsing at a lot of little computer shops and Microcenter to compare laptops versus desktops versus buying RAM and hard drives. I came away thoroughly confused and no closer to any real decision about which to get, but at least I now have a rough idea of prices:

Apparently a good laptop is going to run me $300 to $400--perhaps even $500 if I wanted to go all out--and a decent one without much memory or RAM (or one of those mini fit-in-your-pocket laptops) something around the order of $250. For the price of a good laptop I could get a desktop that would do much more than that laptop could, but without a laptop's added mobility and the convenience of buying everything in one package. A decent flat screen monitor will put me back $100 to $150 depending on whether it's new or refurbished, LCD or just simply flat, and widescreen or not. Keyboards, I learned on Tuesday, are insanely cheap, and mice, though slightly more expensive, are also not dreadful on one's wallet. RAM and hard drives seem to be priced at under $100 for your basic needs; of course the amount of storage on there will largely determine a more specific price for those.

All in all though, I realize that I should probably save up at least $300 as an absolute bare minimum to even have a shot at affording the cheaper end of these options, and more realistically I'd have around $450 or so if I want to actually be able to consider these different options. Bottom line: I'll keep you guys updated on how this adventure will end when I actually have some money.