Dear Lifehacker, I just finished the HSC this year and am starting university next year. I’ve been told that the average student takes a laptop to university, that a large majority use Macs, and that I should seriously consider getting one. However, I’ve used PCs all my life and while I am quite decent with using Windows, I have never spent the time getting accustomed to a Mac. More »
Dear Lifehacker, Exams are just around the corner/consuming our every waking moment for us university students right now and I’ve been wondering if there are extra things I should be doing, study aside, that could get me that extra edge during exams. Are there ways I can mentally prepare? Are there ways I can physically prepare? I will be studying to my utmost and am looking for ways to essentially, get the most out of my mind/body. Thanks, Studying Hard More »
I went to university so long ago that I was the only person in my year who even owned a laptop, and it didn’t have a hard drive. Things have changed since then, but the ability of campuses to cater for a lecture theatre full of students toting their beloved notebook computer still varies a lot. More »
After you’ve finished university, an annual statement telling you how much you still owe for your education becomes a familiar ritual for anyone who couldn’t pay up front. However, that ritual will change for students who have taken advantage of the HELP (Higher Education Loan Program) scheme, with no more postal statements from June. More »
Dear Lifehacker, I’m a student using a MacBook Pro for uni on which I’ve got Mac OS X & Windows 7 dual booted. I’m constantly switching between the two depending on what I need to do (though Windows is my preferred OS). Recently I’ve noticed that the battery lasts longer on the OS X side than it does on the Windows 7 side, even when only browsing the internet. Why is this? Does this mean that OS X is more energy efficient (& hence environmentally friendly) than Windows? More »
We all know that using the power management facilities on our PCs is a sensible idea to reduce energy usage, but it’s often hard to conceptualise just how much difference doing that can make. The University of Sydney introduced automated power management technologies into its student labs, and saw huge reductions in its environmental impact as a result. More »
Want to hunt down some useful references for an essay? Wondering which topics are popular in different Wikipedia categories? Fancy seeing Wikipedia articles represented on Google Maps? TheFullWiki, a set of Wikipedia search and mining tools, has you covered. More »
When we rounded up ways to save money on university textbooks last week, one option that we didn’t look at is textbook rentals. That’s a growing segment of the market in the US, and it’s looking increasingly competitive in Australia. More »
We’ve covered choosing a laptop or a netbook, but what software do you need to ensure a productive university experience? Here’s some quick thoughts across the key categories. More »
