Laptop Dilemna
So, I want to buy a laptop for law school now so I have plenty of time to customize it and get comfortable with it by the fall, but the schools I am choosing between do not yet support Vista -- probably because Examsoft hasn't stated that they are compatible with Vista yet. I could just get a refurbished laptop with XP on it, but I want Vista and I don't want to have to pay more to upgrade later. I am almost positive that the schools will have to support Vista by the fall since all the new laptops have Vista on them now, but I don't want to take a chance on getting a laptop with Vista and then not being able to use it to take exams. So, anyway, the obvious thing to do is to just wait, but I hate waiting.
3 comments:
About 2 weeks before my first ever law school exam, a bottle of soda exploded on my laptop's keyboard.
I had to use the school computers (which I believe most schools have in a computer lab, and make it an exam-taking option).
I never ever ever have used my own laptop. I loved using another computer. I loved being in a less populated place, I loved not having to stress that my computer was going to crash, and I liked having my exams be something ... almost sacred.
I recommend checking into whether or not your school has computers that you could use if your laptop isn't supported.
Officially Windows XP will be available to Windows Partners for another 24 months and OEM's for another 12 months. So although unlikely, it is very possible that your law school could wait as long as 2-3 years to switch to Vista. I would call the law school and speak to someone on their IT staff and found out if they are testing Vista and planning to roll it out before you enroll.
Chris,
Thanks. I did contact the law school about a month ago and they said they hadn't yet determined which versions of Vista they would support, but it sounds like they do intend to support Vista. The law school I will be attending does not require that student shave laptops, so the main issue will be whether I can take an exam on a Vista computer. When I emailed ExamSoft a month ago they said "We are currently in the testing phase with the version of SofTest that will run under Windows Vista. We currently do not have an estimated release date, but hope it will be in the near future." I emailed them again today, so we will see what they say.
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