Our 14yr starts high school this year (actually she’s out getting her class assignment right now) and for the past few months she’s been trying to convince us that she needs a laptop. “Is the desktop computer you share with your sisters no longer functional?” Maybe someone can tell me why a 14yr old need a laptop, since she can’t give me a solid reason.

I recently read…

The “Frugal Parent” Back-to-School Tech Guide

What? Back to school already?

Sorry kids. The past few months of sleeping until noon are over and now it’s back to the grind until next spring. Naturally, you must have new clothes, new books and above all, at least one new techno-gadget of some kind and preferably a new personal computer.

The back-to-school- period for the retail technology industry is the second most active spending time of the year; ranking just behind Christmas in terms of sales of new personal computers, printers and portable devices from cell phones to iPods.

If you’re a parent, you will be spending some relatively serious dough, so make sure you do some hardware homework before you max out your Visa. Remember too, it doesn’t have to be this way as there are some inexpensive ways of accomplishing the same thing. For example, consider the following guidelines:

Which students REALLY Need a Computer?
Most students in high school and junior high do NOT need portable laptop or notebook computers while nearly all university and college students DO require them. Even in university, the majority of the time portable PCs are used is for note-taking and even that may be redundant as most professors have their lecture notes posted on line or the lecture itself is available on a Podcast. Still, for note taking a notebook PC with an application like Microsoft’s OneNote is great for recording lectures and while adding your own notes. Anyway, check with the school as most of them have some decent computer labs for the kids to use; meaning you won’t need to buy junior a new laptop.

Basic Cost
If you’re budgeting, keep in mind a desktop computer is about half the cost of a laptop; which in turn will run around $1,500 to $2,000. But does a new laptop make sense? Giving a junior high student a brand new, high end HP or Lenovo notebook is like giving him a brand new Beemer when a used Taurus will work well. Most students are not running AutoCAD or SAP-based accounting/financial systems; meaning their computer hardware requirements are minimal. Translation: A used desktop PC will probably do just fine. Watch for expendable, used PC’s from the office and don’t be afraid to ask your boss if you can buy one of the surplus boxes and monitors. Make sure they throw in the software, too. Spending $500 at the office sure beats dropping $1,500 at Best Buy.

Applications
The standard applications used by students are: word processing and email and the Student version of Microsoft Office 2007 or a copy of Open Office (free!) will be more than adequate. However, what your children will not tell you is most of the time; they use MSN Messenger and other “chat” applications – especially the ones that employ PC-equipped Webcams. Remember that a PC is not much good unless it is connected to the ‘Net. So make sure your home computers are connected properly with a decent router and do NOT share router access passwords with the family. Why? That`s because of….

Security
Having control of all the PCs in the house is the 2007 method of re-establishing control over your children. For example, blocking Internet access from midnight to 6 AM from the router is a powerful tool. So remember Gregs’ Basic Parental Management Tip # 1: That is, taking away television and the telephone from your children does nothing in terms of punishment. But take away Internet access and you’ll have them mowing the lawn, removing the trash and doing the dishes – ANYTHING to get back to the Web. This brings up Greg’s’ Basic Parental Management Tip # 2 which is: Kids will do practically anything to remain connected to their friends. So, parents - keep that in mind and use this to your advantage.

Printers and related Supplies
Ah yes, printers. A touchy subject, actually. Sure, they are necessary, although many students will do their work on the home PC, save it o a USB key and take it to school where it is printed on the school laser printer. However, when I mention printers, I am really talking about printer ink cartridges and the unnecessary use of printing color pages. Don’t get me wrong: Print cartridge costs have come down dramatically in the past year and sure; all students need and want to print great-looking reports with exploding pie charts and trendy images they’ve copied from a Web site. However, that doesn’t mean they have bang out three or four color drafts and therefore drain the ink. Suggestion: When you buy a new printer, like an HP inkjet model, make sure you buy one or two spare cartridges at the same time. Then, tell the kids, the ink cartridge cost is on them for the rest of the year. You will be surprised at how “printing smart” they will become. Also, keep a secret “emergency” cartridge on hand and if they don’t need it, use it as a stocking stuffer at Christmas.

OK. Now what to Buy?
Sorry gang. That must wait until next week when I recommend new desktop, portable and other devices for the connected, plugged-in, back to school geek or geekette.