Suggested Minimum Personal Computer Features
A Reference for Prospective Engineering Students
The OSU College of Engineering does not require engineering students to have their own personal computer. The College does maintain a predominantly Windows/Intel PC environment with most computers using a version of Microsoft’s XP® operating system. Engineering students are provided access to certain College computers and software in support of their academic programs. However, the following computer related information is offered as a guideline for individuals who wish to obtain their own personal computer in anticipation of an academic career at The Ohio State University in the College of Engineering.
| Desktop | Laptop |
|---|---|
| Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor or equivalent, 2 GHz |
Intel® Pentium® M Processor or equivalent, 1.5 GHz |
| 512 MB Memory (1GB if shared video memory configuration) |
512 MB Memory (1GB if shared video memory configuration) |
| 40 GB Hard Drive (with 20 GB available) |
40 GB Hard Drive (with 20 GB available) |
| 64 MB OpenGL-capable graphics video card (shared memory is okay if 1GB main memory) |
64 MB OpenGL-capable graphics video (shared memory is okay if 1GB main memory) |
| An LCD type monitor with 15 inch display* | 14 inch display |
| Ethernet Network Interface Card (NIC)** | Ethernet Network Interface (NIC)** |
| Wireless Networking Adaptor (802.11 b/g)*** |
Note that the above suggestions are MINIMUMs.
The features are ‘driven’ by the assumed use of Autodesk Inventor® Pro software, and The MathWorks MATLAB® software as used in the OSU First-year Engineering Program courses. Also, once enrolled, students are eligible to purchase Microsoft Office and other Microsoft products at reduced pricing (more detail found at http://oit.osu.edu/site_license/ ).
* LCD monitors are lighter in weight and more space efficient than CRT type monitors.
** All campus dorm rooms are wired for internet access.
*** The OSU main campus has many wireless network access points, with more added regularly. So a wireless network feature on a notebook could be put to good use.