OK, computer!

After hemming and hawing about purchasing a notebook computer, I took the plunge today. I've been wanting to get one for awhile. The time and price were right. I paid attention to the advice of others and deliberated until I felt like I had the proper plan of attack.

I decided to hold off on getting additional memory. Despite warnings of Vista being a memory hog, what can it hurt to use the machine and see how it operates before swapping out both sticks? And Donna's mention of her own memory installation experiences gives me some confidence that I can manage it without causing irreparable damage. (There is a basis for my hesitancy, though. I had a computer one of my brothers had put together. I attempted to add another stick but put it in backward. It was instantly fried, although the computer still functioned.)

The wireless router was installed without too much difficulty. I had to get one of my brothers to talk me through the process over the phone as I have two routers in my set-up. (The other one is for Vonage.) And just like that I can access the internet anywhere in my apartment!

I didn't intend to get a printer, but it was just $11 more. I already had a printer, but I haven't been able to get it to print properly in spite of following every protocol the manufacturer recommends. A commenter to a Salon.com tech article suggested that, when taking into account the exorbitant price of ink, it is cheaper to buy a new printer than getting replacement cartridges. It's hyperbole...kind of. I just got this printer for less than half of one ink cartridge for my old printer, so in this case that was true. For that matter, the ink that came with this printer probably costs more than the hardware.

This is the first laptop computer I've owned since the Bondwell B200 I bought prior to entering college. It was so much more convenient to have a computer of my own than to hope for access on one of the two(!) in the dorm. Ah, the luxury of using DOS, WordStar, and a Star NX-1001 dot matrix printer.

Needless to say, my new notebook can do a bit more.