[Ronnie]

hey, i am an IT student and my curriculum involves the use of visual studio, dbms and other general programming stuff. i need a good, solid laptop for college work. however, a proper laptop is way out of my budget (which is around $350).

that is why i turned my thoughts to a netbook. is a netbook good enough for general, certification level programming? what config and models should i look at?

any suggestions would be much appreciated

[mikee]

Netbooks are generally the same spec wise. Is battery life important to you?

My friend has an msi wind u100 which goes for roughly $350 now

If you need a bigger keyboard look at the hp mini 110.

both are in your price range

[Ethan_Kaizer]

If you really want a netbook, I recommend the MSI Wind as well. However, it might be a bit on the weak side if you're an IT student.

With a budget like that, you might want to look at a lower-end laptop like the Compaq CQ60:

Newegg.com - Recertified: COMPAQ Presario CQ60-215DX NoteBook AMD Athlon X2 QL-62(2.00GHz) 15.6" 2GB Memory 250GB HDD 5400rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 8200M

Compaq is a decent brand, and it'll be more powerful than a netbook.

You could also try Dell.com or HP.com, or other computer brands, as most will offer student discounts.

[Puddle Jumper]

I use a MSI Wind for college and it has been great. I have been much happier with it than I was with the 14" Compaq it replaced and I actually think the MSI is easier to work on despite it's smaller screen and keyboard. It will run MS Office 07 and Visual Studio 2005 without a problem however it isn't the best at multitasking.

The advantages of going with a netbook in you price rage is you will generally get better battery life, a higher quality display (The Wind's display is particularly good), and better build quality (although that will vary from brand to brand).

The disadvantageous vs a conventional laptop is you will generally have a lower resolution screen and lower performance.

If you also have a fairly modern desktop (Athlon 64 or better) the disadvantages aren't to bad however if this will be your only system you may want to be sure you can live with a netbook's limitations.

[zmatt]

Originally Posted by Puddle Jumper

I use a MSI Wind for college and it has been great. I have been much happier with it than I was with the 14" Compaq it replaced and I actually think the MSI is easier to work on despite it's smaller screen and keyboard. It will run MS Office 07 and Visual Studio 2005 without a problem however it isn't the best at multitasking.

The advantages of going with a netbook in you price rage is you will generally get better battery life, a higher quality display (The Wind's display is particularly good), and better build quality (although that will vary from brand to brand).

The disadvantageous vs a conventional laptop is you will generally have a lower resolution screen and lower performance.

If you also have a fairly modern desktop (Athlon 64 or better) the disadvantages aren't to bad however if this will be your only system you may want to be sure you can live with a netbook's limitations.

I agree 100%

Netbooks are great for college. especially if you follow the 2 PC principal. They are small, light, have great endurance and have enough accessories to to ensure that it will get the job done.

[SPMurphy8]

Having both a netbook and larger laptop (Acer Timline) and being in the IT field in College I would recommend getting a bigger laptop. Not just memory, storage wise but the laptop itself. The netbooks are smaller and easier to carry around but looking at the small screen and even trying to do visual studio on one of those bothers me. Just my opinion though.

[victoriturbe2005]

How does the a memory upgrade affect my netbook??
Specs:
Acer Aspire One 10.1"
Upgrade: from 1 GB to 2 GB of RAM
OS: windows 7 (I changed it from XP)

[Trotter]

It would allow it to run more out of its own memory instead of having to offload stuff to the hard drive. Basically, it would let it run faster and easier.

[zmatt]

going from 1 to 2 gigs should see a healthy boost in performance. 1 gig is pretty anemic nowadays, but 2 gigs is about the standard for midrange notebooks.