Computer Information for Students

Guidelines for New Computers

The following departments have instituted specific computer recommendations and/or requirements for majors.

  • Department of Architecture – required purchase for second year students
  • School of Visual Arts – highly recommended purchase for second year students
  • Department of Integrative Arts – required purchase for second year Graphic Design students

Please contact those areas for more information. Click here for individual college/major computing specifications.
http://computerstore.psu.edu/colleges.htm

At this time, we do not recommend that other freshmen start college with a new computer. For computer-intensive majors especially, you will not need the computing power until your sophomore or junior years, when your "new" computer is already 2 or 3 years old. Students waiting until their sophomore or junior years will not only be able to make a more informed decision about what will meet their needs, but will have the computing power when they need it the most.

However, those wishing to purchase new computers can do so at academic prices through Penn State's Computer Store. Call 814-865-2100 or toll free 800-251-9281 for more information or visit the Computer Store web site at http://computerstore.psu.edu.

Recommended minimum configuration for a new computer (either desktop or laptop):

  • Intel Core 2 Duo (recommended) with Windows XP SP2 or Vista installed
  • Intel Core 2 Duo Apple Computer with OS 10.5
  • 2 GB+ RAM minimum
  • 80GB+ hard drive
  • 8x double-layer (DVD ± R DL / DVD ± RW / CD-RW)
  • 256MB+ of video RAM (a separate graphics card not shared memory)
  • USB ports (2.0 version)
  • IEEE 1394 Port (aka firewire or iLink)
  • Minumum 100MB Ethernet port, 1GB Ethernet port recommended
  • Modem optional but recommended (for off-campus connection)
  • Monitor - 17" or larger (necessary for desktop, optional for laptop)
  • 802.11G Wireless Card for laptops

Guidelines for Older Computers

Although the college recommends bringing a used computer for the freshman year, it cannot guarantee that these minimum configurations will last all four years.

Minimum Configuration for an older computer:

  • (Mac) G4/G5 or better processor with OS X 10.4 installed
  • (PC) Pentium IV+ with Windows XP or better installed
  • 1GB+ of Memory
  • 40GB+ hard drive
  • DVD-ROM / CD-RW drive
  • Removable media (USB keychain device, portable hard drive)
  • 56K speed (or faster) modem (for off-campus connection)
  • 10/100MB Ethernet card
  • 802-11G Wireless Card for laptops

Please note: Newer versions of software will require more machine power. We cannot guarantee that an older and slower machine will be able to run tomorrow's software sufficiently.

Software Guidelines

Penn State recommends that you have software that will allow you to send and receive e-mail, browse the Web, publish to the Web, write reports and do spreadsheets. In addition, it strongly recommends anti-virus software.

Most of these applications are available free or at a reduced cost to students from the Computer Store. The operating systems will come free with the purchase of a new computer.

Individual departments may also require additional software.

Recommended Basic Packages

  • Windows XP or Mac OS X 10.4 or higher
  • The Information Technology Services Help Desks provide a CD with anti-virus software, Internet software, including Eudora e-mail, Netscape and Internet Explorer, FTP clients and telnet clients. This CD is free. The programs are also available for download for currently registered Penn State students from http://downloads.its.psu.edu.

Additional Recommendations

We recommend that you have an external drive that will allow you to backup important files easily between your computer and University computers. If you will be dealing with large amounts of data, such as movie files, photographs, etc., we recommend a travel-ready pocket drive (at least 40GB). This drive should have a USB 2.0 interface minimum, but Firewire (ieee1394) interface would be a good addition. If price is a concern, 1GB flash drives are available for less than $100 from the Computer Store. Some sort of backup device is essential to protect your data.

Useful Links

Students with laptops should check out the wireless pages at http://its.psu.edu/wireless/.

More information on the Student Computing Initiative

The Student Computing Initiative encourages students to have immediate access to a personal computer. More information can be found at http://clc.its.psu.edu/Labs/StudentInfo.aspx.

For
students living on campus
Residential Computing (ResCom) is a student organization that has information about computing in the residence halls. During arrival weeks, ResCom staff focuses on getting residential students connected to the network as soon as possible. More about ResCom can be found at http://www.rescom.psu.edu

Accessing Penn State Resources

On-Campus Computer Store (814) 865-2100 toll free 800-251-9281

 

Main URL
http://computerstore.psu.edu

Software information

http://its.psu.edu/software.html