A Necessary Tool

Unfortunately I've come to the realization that I'll probably have to buy a new laptop this summer. This one is 3 years old and acting a little funky and starting to show its age as far as the operating system goes. The XP is not necessarily compatible with my students' newer Vista OS. I hate that! Cool thing is this evening I priced (on the HP website) a new HP dv5tse with upgrades, i.e., 4GB memory, 320 GB HD, 12-cell + extra 6-cell battery packs, plus software (MS Office, Photoshop, etc.) for about $1100. That's about the same I paid for this computer in 2006; a HP dv1000 w/ only 520 MB memory, 80 GB HD, and a 12-cell battery pack, and no extra software (they did give me a free 3-in-1 printer though). This computer has been solid...never getting the BSD...so far. It is getting more and more cranky though. I'd rather spend my money on something else...like a new digital SLR Canon Rebel. Computers just get old and obsolete instanteously. I am going to let our tech guy look at the specs on the HP before I commit to anything.