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Originally Posted by fatman
hi there. i've recently returned to trucking and plan on getting a laptop for both entertainment and utility purposes. my budget is around 2K. my questions are:
1. is there a particular brand of laptop that has proven itself more sturdy and reliable over others?
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I have an HP Pavilion DV8000 - have had now for about 10 months and it's been great. If you're not going to be doing high-end gaming or something else hardware intensive, you can go with a lower end computer in the 700-800 range at Circuit City/Best Buy.
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2. what components should I get hardware wise? I have a sprint phone and the unlimited data plan now, but no idea of how to interface them. should I bother with a wireless card?
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I absolutely love my wireless card. I use CoPilot which will let others see where you are and send you messages through it. It uses an internet connection for this. So, keeping the computer on the internet online all the time gives me 24hr connectivity with my friends/family. Also, I download pretty much constantly. Having it connected while driving means I'm normally downloading alllll day long.
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3. what software should I get?
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Depends on what you're wanting to do with the laptop in the truck. Here's what I use:
Logs: Drivers Daily Log (
www.driversdailylog.com)
Routing/mapping: ALK CoPilot (
www.alk.com) and Microsoft Streets & Trips 2007
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4. how can I best protect my laptop while driving and what about those notebook stands i've seen that attach to the passengers seat? is there something cheaper and/or better? should I get a padded briefcase for carrying the laptop in and out of my truck?
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My truck (2007 International) has a small shelf at the foot of the bed. I made a mount for my laptop there. I use a small touchscreen monitor in the front of the truck (pics are posted in the anything/everything forum). I looked at the stand mounts before I bought the touchscreen, and I think they're great. But, having my girlfriend with me most of the time means it'd be in her way. I do use my laptop case anytime I take it out of the truck.
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5. what warranties should I consider?
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I just went with the standard warranty that came with the computer. Haven't had any problems yet.
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I am a company driver and drive a 2003 columbia freightliner.
thank you in advance for any and all responses.
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I do want to add a little extra info on the setup I have in my truck, also.
I have my computer as my 'media system' in the truck. I don't have a tv, I don't have a dvd player/vcr. What I do have is a standard laptop (just widescreen) with a DVD drive and a TV tuner. Just with those 2 items I now have saved the money/space of a seperate tv/dvd player, and also can play games, surf the 'net, etc. I also have 2 external hard drives (320gig and 250gig) that I have copied movies & tv shows onto. The last time I counted, I have something like 300 movies and 200-300 tv shows. Mind you, all of this fits in an area less than probably 2sq feet.
The laptop came with Windows XP Media Center Edition, which I 'highly' recommend if you're going to buy a new computer. It's the same as Professional, but includes an incredible media player (which plays dvd's, videos, music, tv, etc). The tv tuner came with a full blown wireless remote (looks like a remote for a normal tv).
So, at the end of my day, I sit here surfing the net. When I'm done, I kick back check what's on tv. Nothing on or can't get any local stations? Oh well, pick a movie out (it's like Video On Demand). Don't want to watch a movie? Pick some music and read a book.
My favorite thing to watch at the end of the day is documentaries. They'll drop me like a boulder. I tried 6 nights in a row to watch a 40 minute show about the Erie Canal. :lol: