Shopping for laptops fucking sucks ‘cause I don’t know shit about computers. I’ve never had a computer with a functional webcam or microphone or the ability to play computer games made later than 2005 or a speaker that could play anything loud enough to hear from more than a foot away. How the hell should I know what I want?!

wow that would be such useful advice if only desktop PCs were small and portable and did not require desk tops on which to place them and I could take them with me when I traveled

I know this is a haha funny post, but for anyone who needs it, here's a quick-and-dirty of what you're most likely going to see while shopping for a computer/laptop (w/Examples)!

*HDD is cheaper and more storage while SSD is faster, more durable, and uses less energy.

Ex. A computer with 4GB of RAM will probably shit itself if you try to play a game with with the internet open.

Also the “avoid refurbished computers” tip is dead wrong.

‘Refurbished’ means it’s been in a technician’s hands recently and can’t be sold as new. That’s it. That’s all. In the US the FTC makes it illegal to sell something new if it’s been sold to an end user, so by definition a lot of perfect, ready-to-go hardware must be ‘refurbished’ in order to sell it again, no matter the circumstances.

Reasons a machine might be a refurb:

- Customer bought the item, decided they didn’t like the color, and returned it

- Customer bought the item, couldn’t figure out how to turn it on, and returned it

- Retailer opened the box for some reason and lost some of what gets shipped inside (manuals, cables, charger) and returned it

- Company bought 100 computers but went out of business before they could be installed or used

- Customer got a replacement for a damaged computer under warranty, and the manufacturer fixed what was wrong with the old machine and is now selling it as a refurb

I HAVE PERSONALLY WITNESSED ALL OF THESE SCENARIOS

Bottom line: ‘refurbished’ hardware has been repaired, tested, cleaned, and renewed back to original specifications by a trained technician. If anything, it’s probably MORE reliable now that it’s been doubly-tested. 

All responsibly refurbished equipment comes with a factory warranty... the only refurbs I would avoid are items sold ‘as-is’ without warranty. That’s dangerous unless you know what you’re doing, like buying stuff for parts.

A lot of my most reliable hardware -- servers, laptops, tablets -- were bought as refurbished goods at huge savings. When I go shopping for a new thing I always look at the refurbished options first. 

tl;dr: Refurbished is great!

Finally found the full version one T.T some moves were cut from the pics i got from pinterest 

Trans: As promised on vlive, the “shooting heart” that I create  iKONICS!! Make this a trend !!! ㅋㅋ [cr.]

Uwah one of the cutest things :’) 

You don’t have to be grateful that it isn’t worse.

read that. read it again, and again, and again. somebody, somewhere, always has it worse than you. there is one person on this planet that has it the worst of all, and that person is NOT the only person allowed to be unhappy with their lot. if things are bad for you, they are bad for you. period.

Struggle with this thought a lot, it comes often especially during the bad moments. Reblogging this as a reminder to myself and to you.

Energy Management

A human-based organization method

click on images for better resolution; images also available here (link to google drive)

Other posts that may be of interest:

Studying from home, a new lifestyle during #Covid19 plague

Every library is closed, so are universities and you may be desperate because the library was the only place where you were able to focus.. I totally get you! But as someone who’ve spent most of its school years studying at home.. I can assure you that it’s totally fine! You just need a few techniques and organization skills and you’ll see that everything will be ok ! So here we go : 

Studygram

some helpful links for quarantine

For taking care of your health

For when you can’t seem to get anything done

For organizing all the stuff you have to do

Source: @/mistudies

when things are tough, and you feel like you are at your limit, focus on the next five minutes. what will get you through the next five minutes?

your favorite song?

a cat video?

some deep breathing exercises?

a video game?

a nap?

learning a new word? a new animal? a new hobby?

staring at the sky? sticking your arm out into the rain?

could you roll on the floor, could you put on more comfortable clothing, could you smell your shampoo?

could you write a plot summary of something you love, write a review of something you hate, write about what you think the plot is of something you only know in passing? could you write a story, could you draw your favorite dream? could you draw shapes, just shapes, in the ugliest possible colors? could you rearrange books, could you make a pillow fort, could you read a comic from years ago?

the next five minutes.

and then another.

right now is painful. but bravery would not be remarkable if it was not difficult.

be brave today.

repeat after me:

As students we get told a lot about study techniques and what to do to study, but this often involves the advice of studying in quiet areas instead of suggesting activities that might actually contribute to good grades. In this post i hopefully will answer this apparently difficult question and give you some ideas to integrate into your own study sessions.

Flashcards

Flashcards are scientifically proven to be a good way to retain information, this may be because as you write the cards out you go over key concepts then you get to test yourself on knowledge in the future as you use the cards. They can also be really fun to design and effective if used properly. They can be used as studying by making the cards one session and then maybe going over and testing yourself in another. 

Practice Problems and Tests

Testing yourself is the most effective way to go over material, refresh concepts and also highlight which areas you may need to focus on when studying. You can usually find these in textbooks, off professors or by searching your course online. One night you may set out to do one chapter’s questions or questions on a particularly hard topic. It’s good to write down any issues you had and research them until you understand. Even more importantly is to do tests under exam conditions and time otherwise you will never truly know what you can do under that pressure.

Brainstorm Page

Like practice problems, this method has many of the same benefits. How it works is that you get a blank page and write all the information you can think of about a topic as if you were doing a summary. Afterwards you read it over alongside your notes and record anything you forgot to mention, these things would be key topics to go over.

Notes Summaries

For some people this technique might not be effective as it is recording information very similarly to how it was first consumed, though if you are a visual or kinetic learner it can be helpful. This way you go over your concepts and condense information so it easier to revise when exams come around. You can jazz this up by using your iPad or making notes bright and pretty so it is more engaging.

Mindmaps

Mindmaps are extremely useful in that they help establish connections between ideas within a concept which often furthers understanding. Similar to above they also help revise information taken in class or in textbooks and condense them in an engaging visual fashion.

Using the syllabus

the syllabus is usually set out in the form of questions or things you will need to know about a topic, these will also be the things you will be tested on so if you nail them you are essentially nailing any test. So in a study session i suggest writing out each syllabus point and answering it as if it was a question given to you in an exam to the best of your abilities and focus on getting a strong understanding of how to fulfil that question.You are normally given this before the start of a class if not you should ask your teacher/prof.

Videos

As a visual learning i find watching videos on topics extremely helpful and a way for information to be explained in a new way. So if you are struggling to grasp a concept try watching a video on it but remember to take notes because that way you stay engaged with the material. Documentaries can also really help in tying concepts together and build understanding.

Forums and Discussion

Have you heard people tell you that if you can explain a topic you know it, well this technique stems from that. Say one afternoon you have time to study, maybe get together with people from your class and try to explain things you’ve learn or discuss the whys and hows behind things you’ve learnt. This is a very social and very engaging ways to further understand course work. as always its good to take notes.

Overlearning

For many universities or classes the real difference between those who study and the top performing students is those who go above expectation. This isn’t saying that you should write a advanced paper on something completely unrelated to your content, however knowing evidence from different articles or the view points of different scholars is going to be the quickest way to show the time you’ve invested into the course. This can be done by reading articles, papers, watching documentaries, arguing in forums, searching Reddit, or anything that allows you to gain different perspectives and a more rich base of knowledge on a topic. Of course this is something you would do after compulsory units are nailed but maybe squeeze in time of a week to research the latest science articles or a different historians view or a new English text.

I hope this has been helpful it always helps me to brainstorm these things for you and remember what works. Also comment any of your favourite techniques because i’d love to hear them!

A-Level Advice From A Newbie

So I’m (almost) done with my final AS exams, and having at last completed my first year of college, I feel like I’ve picked up on a lot. I know that there are a LOT of GCSE students on here - particularly in Years 10/11 - who are planning to start their AS Levels in September, so I thought I’d make a post of things I’ve learned (both through success and a lot of failure) that might be helpful!

This definitely sounds pretty basic, but you would not believe the amount of people who either switch their subjects around or drop A Levels entirely within the first month or so. As much as the change is definitely okay and it’s great to switch to what works for you, if you make these changes after a week or two, you’re going to have a LOT of work to catch up on regardless of what course or subject you move to. In regards to A Levels as a whole, here are some aspects that could be helpful to consider based on how you work:

In terms of individual subjects, I feel like there’s a big misconception that all of your subjects should relate to one another, which isn’t true at all! If you have a specific career plan in mind, sometimes similar subjects can be helpful (for example I know people taking chemsitry/physics/biology or drama/media/film), but having a backup plan is always nice! A couple of things to consider with subject choice are:

I am telling you now that you will be told this by every single adult you meet in college. every. single. one. And you’ll probably argue that you don’t have enough work to fill all of the time, or that you’re too tired, or, you know, something that seems reasonable at the time but regrettable three months later.

At my college, we’re expected to put in five hours of study per subject per week, not including homework or in-class time. For most people, this’ll mean around 15 hours a week, which doesn’t seem much, but whEN YOU DON’T USE IT, IT IS SO MUCH TIME LOST. I don’t know anybody who puts in 15hrs/week, but now that it’s exam season we’re all regretting it real hard.

Get your homework done, and find a way to revise your work. Flashcards. Posters. Past papers. If you don’t have any new content to learn, put in the time every week to study the stuff you do have, and I promise you it will pay off.

Honestly this shouldn’t even have to be something that I have to remind people, but here we are.

In sixth form and particularly college, there’s much less of a power imbalance between students and teachers than there is in school; we’re on the same grounds, we’re both pretty independent, and we’re both there doing what we’re doing because we want to be. So have some respect.

A lot of the time at colleges, teachers have actually had experience in the field that they’re teaching and they’re so genuinely excited about the topics; one of the best things I’ve found at my college is how enthusiastic the teachers are, and how much interest they have in anything you have to say, especially if it’s relevant to the subject.

Also, when you show respect to teachers, they show respect to you. Many a time I’ve been given a short but extended deadline on a piece of work just because I’ve dropped a teacher an email or spoken to them before/after class, and in the words of one teacher, ‘the fact that you’re concerned enough to ask is enough proof that you’re putting effort in’.

But yeah. Talk to your teachers. Let them know if you’re missing a class. They’re human beings; don’t be a dick.

Not all places do a lot of these, but I know my college has done a few bits. What I mean by this is things such as higher education/career fairs, work exploration,  and visits from people in specific careers. Even if you think that it isn’t relevant to you at all, you could learn or come across something that could be beneficial or helpful to your future, a qualification, or even just enjoy an hour or so.

I did an afternoon at the StonePillow Homeless Shelter in my town; I didn’t change my mind about my career, I didn’t gain any qualifications from it, but I definitely found it interesting and it certainly had an impact on my worldview.

On the same note, join a club. Not only is this something which can be later used on CVs and personal statements, but you can learn a lot of skills which can help you in your actual subjects.

Not exactly a tip, but something that I really think A Level students need to keep in mind.

There’s a big thing that I keep seeing of A Level students joking about being better than people doing other courses (BTEC, apprenticeships, vocational, etc), and it’s not true at all. Everybody is working equally hard to get the qualifications that THEY need to get to where THEY want to go.

If you’re thinking like this, just stop.

I really hope this was helpful to anybody considering A Levels - best of luck to anybody currently sitting exams!

This is my first guide post ever since I’ve been idle on studyblr (my previous studyblr was dreamingnotes btw!!). I took ALevel last year and currently I’ve been accepted to a local university and received unconditional offers from two universities. 

The subjects I took were all humanities and essay subjects which are : Sociology, Psychology and Literature. While I admit I’m better at writing essays than doing calculations, I also have difficulties with memorizing stuffs. So back then, I used to simplify my notes and it helps me so much- that one day, I was very lazy to study for my Sociology and Psychology mid terms exam so I just read my simplified notes and I got A for Sociology and B for Psychology (which I did not expect!!)

Sooo below are steps on how I usually make simplified notes! (Since it’s a bit long and I don’t want to trouble my followers, it will be under keep reading) :

Keep reading

The Very Basics of Not Killing Your Computer

If you have a laptop DO NOT use it on a soft surface like a pillow or on a blanket, it’ll block the vents on your computer and make it get really fucking hot inside.

If you have a desktop you gotta open it up and blow out the dust sometimes.

If you are moving your laptop in a bag turn the laptop off. Don’t put it to sleep, don’t just shut the screen, turn it off, because otherwise it’s in the bag generating heat and there’s nowhere for the heat to go in the bag. OFF. Not sleep. OFF.

Okay I know that should be obvious but drop damage to your hard drive is bad bad news. Be as careful as you can to set your computer gently on flat surfaces; don’t leave it hanging out on a bed where it can get knocked off, don’t set it on the roof of your car. And yes, just dropping it a couple inches can kill your hard drive or totally shatter your screen.

Look I’ve seen four people ruin their laptops because they had a pen on the keyboard and closed the laptop and it fucked up the screen and the keyboard and it sucks so much and you feel awful after it happens because it’s so avoidable just don’t put things on your keyboard and always check that your laptop is clear before you close it.

You’ve only got one power jack and a limited number of other inputs on your computer and if they detach from the motherboard you’re fucked. USB ports get damaged because people use them a lot and eventually it weakens the connection and then they just stop working and it sucks. You can get around this with USB ports by using a USB hub to connect things like your keyboard and mouse.

For your power plug you just gotta be careful. Avoid tripping over the cord at all costs, don’t yank the plug out of the computer. It will SUCK VERY MUCH A LOT if you have to buy a new computer because the power port lost contact with the motherboard.

Don’t move your computer with things plugged into it. Take the power cord off before you put your laptop in the bag, take out the USB mouse dongle, do not travel with little nubby bits sticking out of your computer that can easily get caught or get tweaked or snap off inside of the thing.

(I really can’t emphasize enough that most of the “it will cost more than it’s worth to fix this” laptops I see are because of USB ports and power jacks. People don’t seem to know that this isn’t something that can be fixed easily; a broken power jack is a “remove the motherboard and resoldier components” job, not a “plug a new one in in fifteen minutes” job and most computer repair shops aren’t going to solder things for you and if they DO it’s going to be very expensive)

You should probably restart more than once a month but whatever. This is actually something that I consider part of reducing heat stress because when your processor is straining to keep up with all the background bullshit that’s running from a program you opened three weeks ago it’s going to use up resources and get hot and look just restart it once in a while.

Also the updates are almost always okay and safe and generally running updates is a good and secure thing to do (though maybe follow a blog dedicated to the OS you run because if there IS a problem with the updates that blog will probably talk about it before the update gets forced on your computer)

Yes you should probably be running an antivirus.

Sophos is free and it’s fine. But don’t pay for it - if you’re using Sophos use the free version.

If you’re looking for something paid and a little more comprehensive I recommend ESET - get the cheap version, renewals cost less than the initial purchase, and feel free to get a multi-year version, the credentials follow your email not the computer so if your computer dies before your license expires you can install the license on a new computer.

DO NOT INSTALL NORTON OR MCAFEE THEY ARE EXPENSIVE BULLSHIT. Kaspersky is whatever. It’s less bullshit than Norton or McAfee but not as good as ESET for about the same cost.

If you think you’ve got a virus run the free version of Malwarebytes and get your shit cleaned.

Again this should be obvious and yet. But seriously, just make a rule for yourself that drinks aren’t allowed on the same table as your computer and you’ll save yourself a lot of headaches.

Okay I fucking hate amazon but here’s a thing you should be using, just search the rest of the internet for “surge protector/UPS” and you’ll find something that isn’t from amazon - APC is a solid brand for this.

Basically you want a fat surge protector that has a little bit of a battery backup and you want to plug your computer (desktop OR laptop) into that instead of into the wall. The benefit of this is twofold:

1) if there’s a power surge the UPS will prevent your computer’s power supply from getting fried and possibly frying parts of your motherboard

2) if there’s a power outage and you’re *at* your computer you’ll have enough time to save what you’re working on before your computer loses power (like, you’ll maybe only have a minute or two on a small UPS but that’s still time to hit CTRL+S and keep from losing work)

At a bare, bare minimum your computer should be plugged into a surge protector but NOT directly into the wall.

[we interrupt this yelling for me to tell you that Western Digital has apparently released their new My Passport line and I’m obligated to inform you that you can get a 2.5″ USB 3.0 backup drive with FIVE FUCKING TERABYTES OF STORAGE for $130. Or you can get 4TB for $93. Or you can get 1TB for $53. basically what I’m saying is that it is not only cheap computer season it is also cheap hard drive season.]

[also if you’re getting a backup drive get western digital not seagate seagate fucking sucks and has a much higher failure rate]

Uh, okay, anyway - Do an image backup of your computer every once in a while so that if you get infected or your hard drive dies or whatever you can just restore from backup and move on like nothing happened.

HERE’S HOW TO DO AN IMAGE BACKUP.

You know what is cheap? USB Keyboards and USB mice. You know what is not cheap? Fixing the touchpad on a laptop or replacing a laptop keyboard.

Get yourself a USB hub, a USB Keyboard and a USB Mouse (wired or wireless, doesn’t matter) and if you’re using your laptop at home plug *that* into your computer.

Also if your keyboard on your laptop breaks it’s fine just to use a USB keyboard instead I promise; if the screen breaks it’s also usually cheaper and easier to get a used or inexpensive monitor than it is to replace the screen. Your laptop is basically just a very small version of whatever bullshit is going on inside a desktop, if the peripherals break but the core components are fine you can just use it like a desktop.

Unless it’s a piece of shit that doesn’t have any USB ports or video out in which case you got ripped off, friend, demand functionality in your devices I’m sorry.

/rant

Healthy Breakfast Ideas for Students

I tried to keep all of these ideas quick and easy, as well as plant-based since that’s how I like to eat!

Made in the morning:

Made ahead of time:

If you want any of my recipes for the ideas listed let me know! I can message them to you or make a separate post

Reflection on this Last Academic Year

Due to the virus resulting in the closure of schools across the world for the unseeable future, I think it is the perfect time to regain your thoughts and reflect on your time spent studying this year.

1. Make a list of habits/things you want to change for the next academic year.

I think this task can be very beneficial. You have been stopped suddenly in your studies and the world has changed drastically around us as we stay indoors. By redirecting on what you were doing well this year and what you weren’t will be extremely helpful in preparation to return to school.

2. Declutter your school life.

In the middle of the school year, the habits you wanted to implement may have been stopped as you became lazier. Now that you have time off, you can reflect on those and reset those goals and habits you desired to have. We’re they too ambitious or did you not put enough effort in?

3. Write your perfect schedule.

In this quarantine, you can take the time to write your desired morning, night and after school routines in detail. This will help you prepare for when you return and you can start as you want to. Make sure to include all the steps in detail and add in timings too if you wish. 

4. Cleanse your digital devices.

For those of you who use your laptop or phone to plan, write notes or study, this time at home can include spending a few hours going through your folders, apps, organisation systems and mail. Clearing unnecessary downloads and documents will clear up space but also make it easier to navigate your digital space. I will be writing a post on what I am doing for this task in more detail soon.

Thank you for reading and I hope you are all staying safe and home (if on lockdown). I give my thoughts to those in hospital and their families who have lost so much due to this global pandemic. Please support your friends and family during this time and stay in touch with anyone who may be alone. As my mum likes to say, be a helper not a taker. Do what you can for those around you even if it’s a phone call to check in :)

I love studyblr because

It gets addictive to read and look at daily mundane but made enjoyable tasks :))

reasons why u should be confident with yourself: