do i need a desktop and notebook

im attending university, going into my second year. and since this year i will be living in the same city as my school i was wondering if it would be a good idea to get a imac and also use my powerbook g4 12-inch or just use my notebook.

i really want a desktop also but i was wondering if this would be a waste of time. sometimes i find my laptop screen kind of small to use at home. but i also know that if i get an external screen i would still have to keep my notebook open.

i really dont know what other options to think of. thanks..

also i will be creating a fitness website and writing a small online book. i will also be controling a ebay business. so i was wondering if this should persuade me into getting a desktop also.

i dont know im pretty confused.

thanks again.
w...b

Search the forums and you will find millions of threads about this.

My theory on having multiple computers is that they should be very different from one another, otherwise it is kind of a waste. If I had two macs or two pc's sitting side by side, I would always end up just using the better one. Here is my scheme on having both a desktop and a notebook. Pick which platform you use to actually get your work done. That one should be the notebook, and the more powerful of the two. Therefor the desktop would be just for the heck of it, so that would be the slower one, and of the other platform. I have always been a PC user (and have to use one for school), so I have a nice PC laptop. I find macs neat, so i got a powermac g4 from a surplus auction. Two computers, no redundancy.

I'd only consider buying another system if you have a purpose for it that the laptop cannot handle or you do not want to didicate the laptop to.

What purpose? Do you require extra horsepower for something like video editing, gaming, software development? Are you going to have a web server running 24/7? Do you need an Intel box to run Windows natively & fast?

Otherwise I'd go with an extra monitor and also an external keyboard & mouse. I believe that Powerbook allows you to use an external monitor as a true extra display. You'll save a lot this way too. Money you can put into other things like a backup drive or hosting your fitness site.

There is one good reason to have two similar systems. If one gets stolen, a hardware failure occurs, or a meteor hits it, you can still keep working with the second system. But it takes discipline to keep the systems synced up well. You know, your e-mail, bookmarks, address books, etc. Of course if both system are next to each other when the meteor hits, they are both toast. :robot: