Decisively Indecisive

I need to buy a computer.

My trusty Toshiba PC is almost 5 years old. I received it as a surprise Christmas gift in December 2006 after my previous computer's motherboard fried. I told my Dad that I would go halfsies on a new computer with him because I thought at the age of 20 I was "grown up". Thankfully, they had already purchased the computer on sale so I wouldn't have to pitch in...phew. But the computer is actually six years old if you count that it was on the market for a year before my parent's purchased it. It has been awesome and resiliant and the hardware has never failed me. I once dropped a glass picture frame on it that left only a small dent in the outside case. Everyone who uses this computer hates it, mainly because of its size. The tiny keyboard is perfect for my tiny hands. Unfortunately it is a single core processor and I think might have 2G of ram. The fan has been going on it for about a year now and the computer like its about to take off. Cbert...I'm sure you can relate. The only problem I ever had with it was a Windows 7 issue that corrupted my harddrive when it began to fight with the Linux Mint operating system (I miss you) that I used to have on here (WINDOWS!!)

So, I am purchasing my first new computer with all my money...and I'm so fucking indecisive. This process has been off and on for about a year now and I'm not in any better place than I was a year ago. I don't really have any external excuses. I have the money to buy whatever I want and am not really attached to any sort of brand...even though my lab doubles as an advertisement for Apple products. I don't know what I need or what I don't need...I just can't decide! When I see a computer, I see a $1000-$2000 financial commitment that I want to last for 5 years. This commitment issue is probably my first problem...I feel sorry for my future husband.

So here is a list of things I need:

1. This is my home computer, so it is not all academic. I want to be able to nicely edit and organize my photos, music, and other media I have downloaded for free. I have no interest in making videos or anything, but sooner or later I'm sure I will be very very into editing my photos so I want something that will be good for that.

2. I need to be able to remote into my computer at school, which is a PC. I have been told that I can remote (or use the VPN) from Mac to PC but I have never seen this. And I haven't decided if I want my home computer to double as a processing computer during my data collections.

3. I want to somehow be able to easily back up all my files and keep all that shit organized so that you all do not receive an email from me saying that my computer has crashed, I lost all my thesis data, and  that you won't be hearing from me again because I'll be too busy cutting my wrists with a butter knife.

4. Portability. I already own an iPad, which is portable enough. But it currently does not support decent word processing (I hope it will soon enough). You can use pages, but there currently is no way for me to properly edit Word documents with track changes. Lame. I currently don't do much work at the library; however, the cabin fever I got during my comprehensive exams has changed the way I look at working at home. Also, I have been in the US 3 times in the last 4 months. My iPad is great when I'm not doing work; however, if I needed to do major edits to a presentation it sort of lets me down. To be fair, that is really not its purpose though.

What a ridiculous list. I think I have realized that I am not looking for what computer to buy, I'm trying to decide what BRAND to buy - PC or Mac. I sort of have a dilema of desktop or laptop but I think that one will be easier to solve. So here are my pro's and con's of all of them:

MAC
Pro: You are suited to academics like no one else. The only reason I bought an iPad was because it offered so many more options and nicer PDF editing programs than anything android. Also, those android tablets were really made for entertainment purposes...so you got off lucky there. You make it so easy to back things up and organize things. And apparently I can still VPN into my PC computer at school.

Con: You are a fucking brand that makes people go all or none with Apple products. I have an Android phone (Samsung Galaxy S) and its so easy to view what files are on the phone, where they are stored etc etc. On my iPad, I don't know where the fuck the files are. I know they are on there, but I can't easily get them from my iPad to my PC....WHY must you be so damn exclusive! Things aren't organized in common folders. I have the same file opened in Papers and iAnnotate and Dropbox and its a mess. Play nicer Apple and I probably would have bought more of your products, which seems backwards I know. You are also expensive and I have no idea if the added price is really worth it for my needs.

PC
Pro: Everyone uses you. My dad gets all the program licenses for free. No learning curve. I know I won't have compatibility problems with the unique programs we use since they are all available for you first. I don't really have any problems with Windows but things have become more and more of a hassle.

Con: Do you know how impossible it is to get the laptop I want in a PC!? 14" laptops are unavaliable. 15" laptops have a NUMBER PAD on the side. Seriously, who wants that added weight on their laptop? Nothing is in stock anywhere. They are also, for the most part, ugly.That shouldn't be a selling point...but that is how hideous most of them are.

Desktop (not based on a brand)
Pros: Powerful. Large screen and much easier to do heavy work on.

Cons: I won't be able to bring my computer anywhere so I will be stuck in my room working....I can't have that.


So there you go. I change my mind everyday. After my purchase of my DSLR in May I learned that I probably won't be able to decide on one for more than a few hours at a time and the minute I purchase it I will probably completely regret it. So I need people's input. Look at my needs, look at my pros and cons, then tell me what to do. Offers to buy the computer for me are also welcomed.