Before you Buy Software...

• For Windows users: Microsoft Office 2007 Enterprise (includes Access, Excel, Outlook, Publisher, PowerPoint, Word), and Microsoft Windows XP SP2 (operating system) or Microsoft Windows VISTA (operating system) are available to Schreiner students for $25 each at the Library circulation desk. [Office on DVD only -- see note below]
• For MAC users: Microsoft Office MAC 2008 is available to Schreiner students for $25 at the Library circulation desk. [Office on DVD only -- see note below]
• Also for Windows users, McAfee antivirus software is available free to Schreiner students (in the Computer Lab, Dickey 112).
• If you want wireless access to the Internet, click here to learn how to prepare your computer.

above information last modified 7/28/08 .

Before you Buy Hardware...

Technology changes so rapidly that computers become "obsolete" within a few years, so choose a computer with specifications near the top of the line at the time you buy, to insure that it will continue to be useful for three or four years into the future.

As of Fall 2007, two computer standards for Schreiner students are listed below: the minimum we believe is acceptable, and a "more desirable" level.  (Attempting to run the current version of Office with less speed and memory than the "minimum" will be painfully slow and frustrating, if it works at all.) These are best used to evaluate a computer you may already own; if you are buying new, consider comparing your options to our latest purchases, also described below.

• P.C. (i.e. Windows desktop computer):
  • Minimum: Pentium III class with USB connection, 450 MHz or faster, with 256 MB RAM, and a 40 GB hard drive or larger
  • More desirable: Pentium 4 class with USB connection, 1 GHz or faster, with 512 MB RAM or more, 40 GB or larger hard drive (80 GB preferred).
  • Our recent purchases for student classrooms (provided for comparison if you are shopping "new") are Pentium 4 class with USB connection, 3 GHz processor, with 1 GB RAM, and 80 GB hard drive.
• Version of Windows: We suggest Windows XP Service Pack 2 (Home or Pro), Windows 2000 Service Pack 4, or Windows Vista. We find them to be superior to earlier versions in stability, ease of setting up wireless network connections, USB support (including USB flash memory, AKA "jump drives"), etc.
• Macintosh:
  • Minimum: G3 with 450 MB RAM and 10 GB or larger hard drive
  • More desirable: G3 (with OS X v. 10.2.8 or later), 700 MHz or faster, with 630 MB RAM and 40GB or larger hard drive
• Laptops -- The actual specs should exceed the P.C. "suggested" above, and the advice to buy near the top of the line to delay obsolescence is especially applicable for laptops. And if you want to use our wireless network access, you should probably get a laptop with wireless "built in". Although we can furnish a wireless PCM/CIA card, these extend out of the laptop itself and are vulnerable to damage, so you may appreciate the safety, convenience, and reliability of having "built-in" wireless.

Other Miscellaneous Advice...

Schreiner provides wireless Internet access, or you may choose to arrange for alternative access, such as dialup, DSL, or cable modem. (Installation of any other wireless is strictly forbidden, because it interferes with the wireless we provide.) "Network Access" in the navigation at the left gives details.

The choice of computer is directly related to the software that will be used. The campus standard is the Windows operating system with Microsoft Office in the student computer classrooms and labs, and most faculty and staff offices. (Student labs and classrooms will be using Windows XP and Office 2007 for the 2008-2009 academic year)

Although students are free to run whatever software they wish, the Microsoft Office suite is strongly recommended so that students may hand in material to teachers without the problems caused by incompatible file formats. In particular, the native file formats used by MS Works are not compatible with Office. Office (Access, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Publisher, & Word) is available to Schreiner students for $25 at the Library circulation desk. A more complete note about software available is at the top of this page.

Issues with Office 2007 vs Office 2003:
  Office 2007 is the version in use in computer classrooms and other student-accessible computers on campus for the 2008-2009 academic year. Some students may still have Office 2003 on their own computers. (Note that they can buy Office 2007 at the library circulation desk for $25--this is probably the best thing to do.)
  Office 2007 file formats are different from file formats of earlier versions of Office, so there are problems inherent in moving back and forth between versions. Office 2003 will be the version in use at on faculty and staff computers, and we have provided faculty with the ability to open Office 2007 file formats in Office 2003 on their office computers. Students using Office 2007 will find that it can convert files saved in Office 2003 format, and that they have the option to save files in the Office 2003 format by the deliberate use of "File > Save As" and choosing "Office 97 thru 2003" format as the file type.

Avoid MS Works: If students are using MS Works, Word Processing files only may be saved as "Rich Text Format" (.rft) format, which MS Word will understand. But this requires the conscious action of the student at each "Save", and has proven to be a constant point of confusion. The other components of Works do not even allow that option. Give serious consideration to spending $25 for Office.

above information last modified 7/28/08 .