We at The Daily Clog are all too familiar with the challenges of starting a new life at UC Berkeley: dodging flyers on Sproul, staying up late to finish projects (hello, CS 61A) and just trying to stay afloat in such a prestigious university. It’s a tall order — all the more reason to make sure you’re well-equipped for the job. Here are three things we highly recommend having:
1. A printer
Pure joy.
We know what you’re thinking: “But the SLC! The library!” Which is true … technically. But let’s be honest here — the chances of you actually doing your work on time are about as good as the chances of Stanford and Cal students frolicking in a meadow together. When you’re printing that Slavic studies essay at 2 a.m., do you really want to make the aggravating trek to campus just to print the damn thing? Of course not, because you’re running on 5-hour Energy, broken dreams and a couple of Red Bulls as it is. In fact, there are few gadgets more worthwhile than a printer, and a good one can cost as little as $30 these days. You have no excuse. Don’t know how to set it up? Make friends with an EECS major. He or she could use some companionship.
2. A good tablet
Actually good for something besides Temple Run
These are the wonder devices of the tech industry right now, and they also happen to have amazing implications in education. After all, do you want to be the only schmuck carrying around actual books? Every latte-sipping hipster has already put the needed texts on his or her iPad — and, for once, the hipsters are on to something. These little wonders are also excellent for note-taking and can often save you the hassle of having to lug around a brick of a laptop. Why carry all that junk when an elegant little slate will suffice? But the real kicker: Their prices are dropping even faster than a UC Berkeley engineer’s GPA — the new Nexus 7, considered one of the best tablets ever made, comes in at just $230. If you haven’t joined the tablet bandwagon, college is an excellent time to finally get in on the game. Your back will thank you for it. (Admittedly, so will Google and Apple.)
3. A separate keyboard for your laptop
The tool of a champion. A fast champion
We know: your laptop has a keyboard. Duh. It’s probably decent and maybe even good. But it can’t touch the ease and comfort of a real detachable keyboard (like the one on a desktop.) When you’ve got a date with Rhetoric R1A, it’s time to break out the big guns. Investing in a roomy separate keyboard you can plug into your laptop (for essay-writing and other intense activities!) is something you will appreciate almost instantly. Built-in laptop keyboards are meant to be small and compact. That’s just the nature of their design. But trying to type an essay on one? That’s like being sent Urkel when you really need Rambo. You’ll be amazed how much a dedicated keyboard increases your typing speed, giving you more time for the things that matter — reading the Clog, for instance.
Image sources: Per Petterson jared moran, Yutaka Tsutano and andyrusch under Creative Commons
Contact Sherdil Niyaz at [email protected]