Which laptop should I get to replace my turntable?

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

I'm about to take the plunge, as most full-time callers already have, and change from using records to digital sound. This will allow me to widen the scope of the music I am able to use, as well as saddle me with the task of transfering in real time the 2-3,000 dance records in my current repertoire to the computer. I'll continue to use records along with the laptop for a while, until that's completed. New square dance music is primarily being issued in mp3 format, and I imagine that will be the main format I use. (It's what almost all the callers are using.)


The machine will be dedicated to my professionally used music, so i don't need fancy graphics, just a screen I can read even on a stage with some glare.


I'm looking toward the lower end of laptops, and have been asking everyone -- callers and otherwise -- for recommendations. So let me ask you -- what would suggest? HP? Dell? 40 gigs? Has to have a CD burner of course.

I've used only Macs until now, but I'm moving on with this purchase. Too few options available to Mac. The final straw was when my son realized he had to go PC next time because the pro edition of Maya (animation) is not available for Mac, and this is in the creative graphics field that we always thought would remain Mac's speciality.

[Jazzzoline]

I got a IBM Thinkpad laptop Iseries.. and the sound was messed up, mic would never work properly. I wouldn't recommand it for sound.

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

I'll still be using my EV mic plugged into the amp for the dances. Don't think I'll be needing one for the computer.

[moneyp]

I'm not really up on the notebook scene. Dell had some crazy deals going for a while, but they appear to be over. I'd check out the recommended specs for the software that you want to use and try to get something more potent than that, so that you won't have to upgrade again. A DJ friend of mine uses the Sony VAIO, and he's happy with it.

I would recommend that you get an external firewire hard drive (LaCie is my usual brand) and store your music on that, so that if your laptop craps out and you have to send it in for repair or otherwise replace it, you won't have to worry about your audio files. Also, audio and video files will retain more consistency if they're on a seperate drive from the OS. Of course, this means making sure your laptop has some firewire ports, which should be a necessity anyway.

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

One of the Agilent engineers who dances with me also suggested an external hard drive. I think I will.

Dell still has some good deals, and are cheapest option, even after the upgrades I'm considering. What I've heard mixed reports about is their in-home service -- two dancers very satisfied, one totally frustrated.

I had been hoping to get a custom machine built, but i guess you can't really do that with notebooks.

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

A friend and fellow caller came to my dance Friday up in Lake County, and he had recently made the changeover to notebook (from mini-discs in his case). He is also a computer technician, and one of the main people I rely upon for advice on things computerish. He's been pleased with his HP, the machine looked great, I fiddled with it a bit between tips, and he explained his reasons for choosing that particular model/chip combination. He also doesn't mind if I pester him with a bunch of questions until I get up to speed with a PC (vs Mac) and learning to work my music into it. So I figured if I could find the same laptop he had at a good price, I'd have an expert at my disposal who knew not only the general techniques but the specific model. Under other circumstances I might feel a bit guilty about exploiting the guy; but I taught this guy how to call and got him started on the other side of the mic, we've been friends for years, and my sense is he's happy to do this for me. Today I found the type he has for $200 less than he paid for it in November, so I bought it and should be working on programming my first alternative square dance music into it later this week. By next week at this time I should be calling to some Nickel Creek, Bill Frisell and John Zorn (Scrapbook's going to take some more advanced skills, with those varying tempos.), and should be learning how to clean up the sound on all that old vinyl I'll be converting to digital memory.

HP 4545

[Ron Thorne]

Cool, Steve! I wish you the best in this new venture.

Looks like a powerful new tool.

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

Not only a very cool tool, Ron, but 7.5 pounds vs. about 40 lbs of vinyl I typically lug to my dances. I'll still need to tote the speaker and amp, etc., but giving up those 30+ pounds will literally lighten my load.

[moneyp]

Congrats, Steve! I'm not really crazy about HP equipment, having had to support them at one of my previous gigs, but maybe things have changed for the better, and comfort is a big aspect of using a laptop, so if you've test-drived and liked this one, that's good.

I will say their default installs come with a lot of garbage you don't need. If you can get your buddy to format the drive and just install XP on it, you'll have a lot less clutter on that drive. I'd also recommend going out and buying a copy of Norton Anti-Virus rather than payiing annually for LiveUpdate. You'll save money and if you ever need to reinstall, you have the disc with you.

Yes, use your techie friends! That's what they're there for!

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

Originally posted by mone peterson
I'd also recommend going out and buying a copy of Norton Anti-Virus rather than payiing annually for LiveUpdate. You'll save money and if you ever need to reinstall, you have the disc with you.

I'm not sure I get this. My friend was saying that the advantage of Norton was that it automatically updated itself every time you went on line. If buy the program do I avoid the updating fees?

[moneyp]

Originally posted by Squaredancecalling Steve
I'm not sure I get this. My friend was saying that the advantage of Norton was that it automatically updated itself every time you went on line. If buy the program do I avoid the updating fees?

Exactly.

What you get with HP is a bundled copy of the software, and free LiveUpdate for sixty days. After sixty days, you have to pay a fee which allows you free LiveUpdate for a year, I believe. The fee, as I recall, was pretty close to the cost of the software, anyway.

If you buy the software, you install it and you get free LiveUpdate forever. I have the same copy of NAV that I bought in 2001 on my computer, and it still works.

[Lois Gilbert]

I would recommend a Toshiba Satellite. The reasonably priced have great sound built harmon kardon
3 fireport CD/DVD burner included in the top end but you can go midend and just get the cd burner. Their tech support is good and they operate the closed to a MAC that I've seen. HP/Compaq are the same thing and I agree with however didn't like their hardware too much (printers are ok)

I've had Dell laptops (which Bob Brookmeyer now owns)
I've had IBM which Dena DeRose got

But I'm not ready to sell the Toshiba for a while to go yet!

My 2cents for what it's worth

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

Thanks, Lois, but I've already ordered the HP. I hope I have fewer complaints about the hardware than you and Mone!

Mone: my friend, Lawrence -- the caller/techie with the same machine -- disagrees with your Norton advice:

>> •If you buy the software, you install it and you get free LiveUpdate forever.•

"Nope.

What he said about the OEM copy bundled with hardware having a
shorter subscription to updates included is true -- the OEM version
usually has a 90-day free subscription. At the end of that, you have
to renew the subscription online for, I believe, about $35. That
gets you a full year (not just the remainder of the year, but a full
year from the date of renewal). Subsequent renewals are $25 per year.

The retail box does *not* include an unlimited subscription -- it's a
one-year subscription. (Actually, 366 days.) At the end of that
time, it's $25 to renew for another year.

(I've done enough of the updates for people that the prices stick in
my mind! It's not difficult to do, but it's surprising how many
people would rather pay someone to do it for them rather than just
follow the directions onscreen.)

The retail box for Norton sells for about $45 up here. It might be
cheaper down in SR -- I haven't checked. But, you aren't any worse
off getting the bundled OEM version, even if you do have to renew the
subscription in 90 days -- you'll still come out $5-$10 ahead.

The bundled version is usually either Norton 2002 or Norton 2003,
rather than the Norton 2004 which is currently being sold retail.
This usually only matters if you have to call Norton for support --
they sunset their products every two years, so 2002 is no longer
listed directly on their support site. (Searching the site will turn
up articles for it, though, and it still updates properly.) The main
difference between 2002 and 2003 was the addition of IM scanning --
that is, automatically scanning files transferred by instant
messaging applications. If you don't use IM or transfer files that
way, then there's effectively no difference between 2002 and 2003.
The 2004 version, from what I've seen, has no major differences from
2003, except that it now has "product activation" -- a form of copy
protection designed to keep people from buying one copy of the
software and installing it on all of the computers at work.

What he said about having a separate disk for reinstalling is a point
to consider. However, if that ever becomes a problem, you can buy a
retail copy at that point. However, the Norton installation program
is included on the HP's hard disk, so you *can* separately install
Norton if need be, without having to use the Restore CD to completely
redo your hard disk.

My advice would be to stick with what comes with the computer.

Lawrence<<

[moneyp]

Steve: All I can tell you is I've had Norton 2001 running on my PC for over two years and I've *never* had to renew. If there's a subscription limit, it may be on the newest iterations.

[Ron Thorne]

Originally posted by mone peterson
Exactly.If you buy the software, you install it and you get free LiveUpdate forever. I have the same copy of NAV that I bought in 2001 on my computer, and it still works.

I felt like a real sucker after reading that sentence. Futhermore, I was pissed with Symantec if was true that they penalized a customer for downloading their anti-virus software rather than buying a retail package with the CD. I upgraded in 2003 at a cost of $29.95, which included one year of defintions. I recently renewed my annual subscription for Anti-Virus definitions for $19.95, a price I've always paid. So now, I'm even further confused by the prices I see being discussed above, not to mention Moné's freebee definitions.

To purchase Norton Anti-Virus 2004™ software from the Symantec website costs $49.95, or a download plus a backup CD costs $59.90. There is a current rebate of $20.00USD available with the boxed version. The following language is at the bottom of the list of features on their website:

*Twelve months of virus protection updates included with purchase of Norton AntiVirus 2004; annual subscriptions available online for subsequent updates per computer.

Moné, it sounds like either you got a hell of a deal or know someone at Symantec. :-)