hey i was wondering if im gona need binders for every class? would just a laptop be enough? should i get a laptop bag that can hold a binder or two in it as well?

and i already read the other article about parking permits but would anybody happen to have any clue if i should bother still trying to apply for a permit? or is it certainly too late? i wanted to have my car on campus for at LEAST the first month. yea yea i know public transit free HSR pass go statoin on campus bla bla... ill do that in the winter, i dont ever wnat to have to go back to taking buses as long as i can afford my whip. i feel so much more liberated and independent, yet ironically i am dependent on the vehicle that gives me independence

I would suggest against using a laptop for every class. Of course it depends on how notes are given in all the courses you are taking. Math classes tend to be a lot of writing. Chem classes are basically taken straight from the online notes printed before class. I would suggest you use the clipboard you receive during welcome week, and take notes at first. When you get back to rez, organize everything in binders. You don't necessarily need 1 for each class, but just enough to get organized. I usually buy 3 or 4 1.5 inch binders. Over time, you'll realize which classes you can use a laptop for and which you need to write notes on paper for. You can't write formulas on laptops

I'm not sure about parking passes, so someone else would know more about that topic than me.

I personally type up all of my class notes, except for the Math courses. After class, I usually go over the notes I typed up, make a bit of changes, then print them out and put them in a binder. I just find that that makes studying a lot easier than to study off of your laptop for every single test/exam.

hmm i see... well i have 5 courses (though only 12 units worth) so i guess ill grab four binders like you said and see what i need to use... and actually you CAN type formulas on the computer certainly not as fast as you would on paper, especially without getting used to it so yeah i'd definitely use paper when it comes to math. But things like economics and latin i think i might be good with a laptop.

does every single classroom have outlets beside each seat for laptop adapters? or only some?

and if anybody else happens to know about the parking... please holler!

Very few classrooms have convenient places to plug in your laptop (or at least for many people to do so). Newer buildings (or recent renovations of older ones) have more, but you still will probably be relying on battery power for the majority of time you're in class, so make sure your computer can handle it.

As for the notes, what I did was only take a single clipboard with me to all my classes. At the end of the day (or the week if I was feeling lazy), I'd pull out the notes I'd accumulated from my various classes and file them away into binders (or sections of binders) that I'd made for each class. Many classrooms only have the small, fold-out tablet desks at each seat, so it's hard to put a big binder on that. A clipboard works beautifully, so long as you actually organize it once and awhile. As was mentioned above, if you're in residence you'll be receiving a free clipboard from the IRC during Welcome Week, so you'll be all set if that's what you choose to do.

Originally Posted by Logic

hmm i see... well i have 5 courses (though only 12 units worth) so i guess ill grab four binders like you said and see what i need to use... and actually you CAN type formulas on the computer certainly not as fast as you would on paper, especially without getting used to it so yeah i'd definitely use paper when it comes to math. But things like economics and latin i think i might be good with a laptop.

does every single classroom have outlets beside each seat for laptop adapters? or only some?

and if anybody else happens to know about the parking... please holler!

Yeah, I actually did try and type out the functions, formulas and such on Word but it was very time-consuming -- it wasn't worth it.

Not all lecture halls have outlets that are easily accessible. There may be a few on the sides and in the front. I've actually never been to a lecture hall (at Mac) where there are outlets beside every single seat.

I'm sorry I can't help you out with the parking permit thing. You should just contact the Parking & Transit Services office and ask: (905) 525 9140 Ext. 24232.

Also remember to backup your notes (either print them or buy an external drive)! Take it from someone who was dumb enough not too. Even Steve Job's fancy machines die. My harddrive crashed literally a week before exams started second semester. It was not fun.

Originally Posted by furrys

Also remember to backup your notes (either print them or buy an external drive)! Take it from someone who was dumb enough not too. Even Steve Job's fancy machines die. My harddrive crashed literally a week before exams started second semester. It was not fun.

Ouch. well yeah, thats why I bought a mac with all hardware upgrades (yup, expensive!), at the end of the day its one of your most reliable options as an intermediate or expert pc (referring to PERSONAL COMPUTER, F#@$ windows) user.

But yeah that clipboard idea sounds like a beaut, i'm definitely going to run that come september. Thanks for the (probably) most useful idea!

now...

LETS GET DRUNK!!

oh wait one more question... wait no nevermind im sure theres hand soap in the floor's washrooms.

I use binders for every class.. I take my clipboard and transfer the notes from each class to the binder each night.. This year, I'm going to take all my notes once the binders get full, take them to the MSU underground and get them binded so they're easier to study from for exams. It's so cheap to do that and it'll keep everything organized.