RIP Wetherby
My computer has died. There's apparently something wrong with the Motherboard, and there's no fixing that.
So, it looks like I'm on the market for a new laptop. And I need to settle on one ASAP, as I'm intending to do some research at the beginning of January in LA, and while pen and paper worked for the Victorians, it's not going to help me on a mere 6 days of archival digging!
Dilemma - to buy a cheap laptop, and find the best warranty I can (this last one lasted 2.5 years... it should have gone for longer!)? Buy another refurbished laptop from Dell... (thinking no.), a new laptop from Dell (cheaper one), or invest in a Mac laptop, which has a 3 year warranty. Laptops can range from £300 to £710 for the cheapest Mac.
And the exchange rate is really good for the Americans for the moment, which means the pound is back at the rate it was when I first came over in 2001, .66 pounds to the dollar, as opposed to .5. So it's cheaper to get a laptop over here. Plus I get the british keyboard.
Now, loans should be coming through for this year, and it's just living expenses, as I don't have to pay tuition fees this year. The allowance is £740 a month. Now, do I use a month's living expenses on a nice laptop? I'll get paid at the end of this month, and then at the end of December, but sha'n't get paid at the end of January, but shall again at the end of February (I'm back on temp pay, and one has to submit one's hours by the middle of the month, and I'm gone for the pay-month of Dec-Jan).
Geragh!
So, it looks like I'm on the market for a new laptop. And I need to settle on one ASAP, as I'm intending to do some research at the beginning of January in LA, and while pen and paper worked for the Victorians, it's not going to help me on a mere 6 days of archival digging!
Dilemma - to buy a cheap laptop, and find the best warranty I can (this last one lasted 2.5 years... it should have gone for longer!)? Buy another refurbished laptop from Dell... (thinking no.), a new laptop from Dell (cheaper one), or invest in a Mac laptop, which has a 3 year warranty. Laptops can range from £300 to £710 for the cheapest Mac.
And the exchange rate is really good for the Americans for the moment, which means the pound is back at the rate it was when I first came over in 2001, .66 pounds to the dollar, as opposed to .5. So it's cheaper to get a laptop over here. Plus I get the british keyboard.
Now, loans should be coming through for this year, and it's just living expenses, as I don't have to pay tuition fees this year. The allowance is £740 a month. Now, do I use a month's living expenses on a nice laptop? I'll get paid at the end of this month, and then at the end of December, but sha'n't get paid at the end of January, but shall again at the end of February (I'm back on temp pay, and one has to submit one's hours by the middle of the month, and I'm gone for the pay-month of Dec-Jan).
Geragh!