CVMBS
Student Laptop Purchase Advice Page
The College strongly recommends that all Professional Veterinary Medicine (PVM) students purchase a Dell laptop computer from RAMtech (The CSU Computer Store in the Lory Student Center Rm. 114) to enhance their educational experience while here on campus. See below for more details on purchasing a Dell laptop.
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Dell Discount Program Questions
If you have any questions about this information, please feel free to contact Geoff Weatherford at:
(970) 491-2627 or Geoff.Weatherford@colostate.edu
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Special Dell Discount Program
RAMtech has arranged a discount agreement with Dell to provide state-of-the-art laptops at significant savings. Each system is running Microsoft’s Windows Vista and is configured to allow the student a variety of access to the internet, including wireless.
Please visit RAMtech to configure and purchase your computer. They will have several different packages available for you to choose from based on cost and features. We strongly suggest the Dell Latitude E6400 series due to its build quality (such as the metal hinges).
The benefits to using the special Dell discount program include the following (default configuration):
- Extremely good warranty package (for most
package offerings).
- Four years limited warranty
- Four years “complete care” accidental insurance
- See the Dell Service and Support chart
- Four years NBD (Next Business Day) on site service
- A laptop computer designed to last you 4 years of constant use including such things as “…premium magnesium alloy construction, longer-lasting paint finishes and robust metal hinges.…” (This is for the Dell Latitude E6400 option.)
- The CVMBS CRG (Computing Support Group) has Dell laptop expertise that can help ensure that your required CVMBS computing programs will run on the laptop.
- The laptop as configured should be able to run the CVMBS applications, and most other normal business type applications, for the next 4 years.
- Extremely good warranty package (for most
package offerings).
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Non-Dell Laptop Recommended Minimum Specifications
Recommended minimum specifications if you intend to use a laptop other than the Dell.
The following should be met in order to run the applications which are currently required for CVMBS.
- Processor – Duo Core CPU
- Memory (RAM) – 2 GB
- Hard drive – 80 GB
- Video card – 128 MB dedicated memory
- Monitor – 14 inch or better
- Multi-media – DVD-RW
- Network/Wired – 10/100 Gigabit Ethernet
- Network/Wireless – WiFi 802.11a/g/n
- Operating System – Vista Business or above (Service Pack 1 or 2), or XP Pro (Service Pack 2 or 3)
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Specifically NOT Recommended
- Apple Macs (unless it is running the Windows operating systems, listed above, under Bootcamp)
- Linux
- The only operating system that is recommended by the College is Microsoft’s Windows Vista or XP. These operating systems are recommended based on courseware you will encounter in your freshman year and beyond, and on the Medical Records software you will use during your clinical years at the hospital. No other operating systems, including Macs and the Apple operating system (see above for an exception), are recommended. In addition, our network is Windows-centric: file and printer shares are based on Windows logins and web-browser interactions require Internet Explorer authentication protocols.