Grad. School Supplies?

[wcwilkerson21]

hey all what do you think about getting the use our of an Ipad for a History MA or PHD. I find it very helpful in my current degree of Fashion Marketing as we learn Creative Suite and can use the ipad to put together our Portfolios but im not sure how helpful the Ipad would be once I get into my History major.

Thanks

[antecedent]

I can't imagine already having an iPad would hurt you in anyway. I don't know how practical they are for taking notes on - if you could write them by hand or if they can handle the speed at which you'll have to type to keep up with lecture/seminar notetaking - but it would sure be portable! That's one of my main criteria, since I don't foresee myself doing any heavy programming or anything and I'm pretty sure I'll have to commute a lot.

[Eigen]

I find my iPad pretty useful to have around, but it hasn't really "changed the way I work" or anything. I tried taking notes on it, and didn't find it worked particularly well... But it's light and portable, and I have my entire library of literature on it, as well as all my current documents and projects. Being able to quickly pull up anything I've been working on, pretty much anywhere, is great. Dropbox and Goodreader sync up very well to ensure that whenever I have an internet connection, I can sync up all my files, and then have them on hand later whether I'm connected or not. It's also nice to couple with Keynote and a VGA adapter to give presentations and such, and again, I almost always have it with me.

It doesn't in any way replace a laptop, however, and if they came out with a smaller one (7.5" or so) I'd get that in a heartbeat for greater portability.

[GreenePony]

Re: Thumb/Zip/ whatever drive

I would highly suggest one that can go on your key chain. A good friend gave me a 7GB Cruze for high school graduation, I still use it and it's been awesome and I rarely lose it which for me is an accomplishment. The loose drive that I had, kept falling out of pockets and whatnot since it wasn't attached to something and I would hate for something actually important to be on it while lost. I'm sure by now you can get ones even more substantial but I've only filled it up twice, and that's when I had several lengthy playlists saved on it while running a dance organization and keeping some school files on it.

[NinjaMermaid]

How has no one mentioned alcohol yet? Get a beer making kit and buy wine by the dozen - you will save bundles of $$. AND don't forget to get some "fast recipe" books too. You really do save money (and eat better) when you cook at home. I also agree with investing in all-in-one LASER printer. Toner costs about $40, but lasts me almost a year.

Coffee supplies are a must, of course, and everyone else has made some great suggestions. Just remember that although you may like being digital, having analog copies can be very helpful. I personally like having digital copies of articles for record keeping and paper copies for notating that I organize in 3" binders. I have a color coded highlighting system that really helps me get through a stack of them in a relatively short period of time. I know I *can* highlight on Adobe Pro, but it just is not as fast and for me, and not as memorable as when it is in my hands.

[Behavioral]

A beer that a peon like me makes is no beer worth drinking.

For me, beer and alcohol is something meant to enjoy, so I wouldn't settle for home-made when I'd never get to the same taste. $5 Stone IPA bottles are hard to come by in Illinois (since I moved from California), but I happily pay for a stock at home.

Wine in bulk, though, I agree with. If I find a vintage/expression I like, I'll buy half a dozen bottles.

My scotch collection is way too small right now, so I'll probably be cutting back on beer and wine so I can afford a few new bottles.

[Sigaba]

I just bought this Filson backpack. Rugged and good-looking and made in America.

How does it do in the rain?

[MashaMashaMasha]

How does it do in the rain?

It's not waterproof - the zippers and seams aren't reinforced to make it waterproof. But the material is water resistant and so far it has held up just fine. I wouldn't ride my bike to school (12 miles one way) in the rain or anything, but for regular transit commuting, it's just fine. Super important here in Seattle

[Gradmunkey]

I'd wait on the laptop, if you don't already have one. I have found almost all of the classes I attend forbid using them in class. I can use a tablet when researching at the library, and I can pull most papers from the library electronically from my home or office. I also read papers on my tablet, like an e-reader. I have a desktop, a laptop, a netbook and a tablet, and I rarely use anything but the desktop and the tablet. I also still print out most papers and make notes and highlights by hand. YMMV.

On filing vs scanning: I scan my own returned papers to archive. But I wouldn't scan student papers. Keep the hard copies. Just box them in banker's boxes and alpha order by course and term. You can toss the whole box when the storage period ends. That's how most of my profs did it. I would think unless you have a fast auto-feeding scanner, scanning all those papers by hand would be insanely time-consuming. FWIW, most print and copy shops will fast-scan for you for a very reasonable fee. So if you want to scan whole boxes at the end of a term, consider taking it to be done.

[InquilineKea]

YES.

I say skip the binders, hanging file folders, filing cabinet, etc. Most profs and professionals in the throes of research seem to do most everything electronically anyway. Many class materials will be available on online web sites, like Blackboard, etc.

Now faced with the task of moving my stuff 3000 mi for school, I have been trying to pare down my amount of paperwork for weeks. Months! It is heavy to move, heavy to ship, a pain to find things again. The more I can get on my computer, the better. It is SO MUCH EASIER to find a crucial article from a computer search with an author's name or a few key words, rather than worrying where the hard copy is, or being in my office and realizing its at home, etc. (My organized files have been rearranged and disrupted by many moves).

And back it up often! I have two 16 GB flash drives, a 60 GB hard drive, and just bought (unopened) a 1 TB hard drive I plan to set up this summer.

This pretty much repeats my thoughts exactly.

Speaking of which, I'm thinking of going paperless as much as possible because of this. So I'm thinking that a tablet PC (like a Lenovo Thinkpad) would work wonderfully well for that. The Lenovo Thinkpad seems to have a thinner stylus than the iPad, so it's a lot easier to take notes on it. Plus, I might not even have to print most papers out ever again (although I'm not sure how hard the screen will be on my eyes).

Another thing about backup: there's always the small risk of a "catastrophic" failure in your room or office - say - some burglar breaks in your house or your house catches on fire, in which case you might potentially lose all of your hard drives. To insulate against this risk, I've simply bought CrashPlan so that I can back everything up to the cloud. I'm not sure if that's the best solution though - there could be others as well.

[ANDS!]

This pretty much repeats my thoughts exactly.

Speaking of which, I'm thinking of going paperless as much as possible because of this. So I'm thinking that a tablet PC (like a Lenovo Thinkpad) would work wonderfully well for that. The Lenovo Thinkpad seems to have a thinner stylus than the iPad, so it's a lot easier to take notes on it. Plus, I might not even have to print most papers out ever again (although I'm not sure how hard the screen will be on my eyes).

Another thing about backup: there's always the small risk of a "catastrophic" failure in your room or office - say - some burglar breaks in your house or your house catches on fire, in which case you might potentially lose all of your hard drives. To insulate against this risk, I've simply bought CrashPlan so that I can back everything up to the cloud. I'm not sure if that's the best solution though - there could be others as well.

Send everything through Gmail (unless you don't trust them) or Google Documents.

[Bumblebee]

Another thing about backup: there's always the small risk of a "catastrophic" failure in your room or office - say - some burglar breaks in your house or your house catches on fire, in which case you might potentially lose all of your hard drives. To insulate against this risk, I've simply bought CrashPlan so that I can back everything up to the cloud. I'm not sure if that's the best solution though - there could be others as well.

I have a safe box in my room (that in theory resists flooding and fires) and that's where I keep my hard drives (when I'm not using them), my passport, and other important documents. It didn't cost much (less that $30) and it gives me some peace of mind.

Edited March 25, 2012 by Bumblebee

[InquilineKea]

Send everything through Gmail (unless you don't trust them) or Google Documents.

Heh, I archive the most important stuff in Gmail, but my inbox is already 84% full.

I have a safe box in my room (that in theory resists flooding and fires) and that's where I keep my hard drives (when I'm not using them), my passport, and other important documents. It didn't cost much (less that $30) and it gives me some peace of mind.

Interesting - so water doesn't flow through safeboxes at all?

[ANDS!]

I forget where I read this, but I think you can - for 5/gb bucks a year (?) - upgrade your storage space.

[siarabird]

Also, there's dropbox.com for online storage. You can sign up and get 2gb free. It's a pretty neat little system.

[Bumblebee]

@InguilineKea, in theory it doesn't. The one I bought is the SentrySafe H2300. It costs around $50, but I have enough room for several external HDs and documents. According to the manual it resists fires of up to 1550ºF and is waterproof. I have no intention of verifying if it's true, though. I'll just trust the manufacturer.

[Cici Beanz]

I'm thinking about purchasing a livescribe smart pen. Has anyone tried one of these?

I'm also planning to get one. They just look so cool!

[Cici Beanz]

How has no one mentioned alcohol yet? Get a beer making kit and buy wine by the dozen - you will save bundles of $$. AND don't forget to get some "fast recipe" books too. You really do save money (and eat better) when you cook at home. I also agree with investing in all-in-one LASER printer. Toner costs about $40, but lasts me almost a year.

Coffee supplies are a must, of course, and everyone else has made some great suggestions. Just remember that although you may like being digital, having analog copies can be very helpful. I personally like having digital copies of articles for record keeping and paper copies for notating that I organize in 3" binders. I have a color coded highlighting system that really helps me get through a stack of them in a relatively short period of time. I know I *can* highlight on Adobe Pro, but it just is not as fast and for me, and not as memorable as when it is in my hands.

Not that I have anything spectacular to add to this, but I just had to comment on how we seem to have very similar priorities when it comes to this stuff. Everything you mentioned it at the top of my list, and for the same reasons.

[ANDS!]

I'm also planning to get one. They just look so cool!

They work very well; the paper you have to use though I think sucks, but people have made their own. I used a persons pen and was surprised at how effective it was.

[abc123xtc]

I never heard of Livescribe before this thread. I'm always astounded by technology. I might have to get one!

[stell4]

I have a bad neck so too much weight on my shoulders can cause a lot of pain, migraines sometimes. I like to use a hiking back, day pack size. The hip straps help keep the weight off of my shoulders and I can still bike with it comfortably (unlike those packs that have the rollers that you pull) and you can slip you laptop into the pocket for the water bladder. It's a good option for anyone with back or neck issues, plus you can use it hiking too!

[coonskee]

Oh my goodness I'm getting far too excited for a grad school shopping spree.

[bjvanuden]

Can anyone recommend a good reading/desk lamp? There is no way I will be reading for hours on end by the university fluorescents.

[Sigaba]

Can anyone recommend a good reading/desk lamp? There is no way I will be reading for hours on end by the university fluorescents.

I like using lamps with full spectrum bulbs. If you can find such a lamp at your local COSTCO, consider getting two.

[Cici Beanz]

They work very well; the paper you have to use though I think sucks, but people have made their own. I used a persons pen and was surprised at how effective it was.

Interesting. I'll have to google making your own...I have no clue how one might go about that.