Re: Off-topic: What laptop to buy for my daughter for college?

[Patricia M Godfrey pmgodfrey@xxxxxxxx]

Agree one hundred percent about Dells. My professional association got a
Dell desktop, and it was problematic from day one. AMD CPUs give one the
most "bang for one's buck," but there aren't many laptops that have them.
Steer clear of Celeron chips; they may no longer be manufacturer's
rejects, but they're underpowered, even for a student's needs. Many
people disagree, but I've had good luck with Compaqs on the second-hand
market, but that was before the merger with HP. Get a copy of  and look at the ads; also at the online shopping section in the
back, which lists many sites where one can compare prices and read
reviews.

About the IBM-Lenovo deal, one must realize that almost all PCs nowadays
are Made in China anyway. I am a great advocate of lesser-known brands,
partly on distributivist principle, partly because (with a few
exceptions, like the desktop before this) I've had good results with
them. Not many make laptops, but Acer does, and so do some of the
builders in Computer Shopper.

Good Luck.
Patricia M. Godfrey
PMGodfrey@xxxxxxxx