Is there a way to get a Free Computer for College?

I start College in March. I have gotten some loans and grants but just enough to pay for what i can not for School. I really would like to have a computer for when i go but cant afford one. If anyone knows a way to get free or at least a really cheap one plz help me out.

Is there a way to get a Free Computer for College?

Get your local geek/nerd/dork to build you one out of spare parts.

He or she will love you for giving them the opportunity

to show what they can do for a %26quot;neurotypical%26quot; person.

This person might be some loner wallflower from high school,

or the laid-off computer engineer next door (like me).

An *adequate* computer for college can be built from the

cast-off parts left behind as people upgrade.

If the guy/gal doesn't have enough parts on hand,

go scour 'em up yourself --

ask your old high/middle/grade schools if they have any,

your neighbors, friends, relatives, local businesses.

The latter might even be able to get a tax write-off for giving stuff to you! (If you take a monitor off their hands, it will save them the cost of disposing of it, which could be $25 or $50 that you save them, at no cost to yourself.)

There is a hole-in-the-wall shop in the next town over from me,

that builds machines in this fashion on an ongoing basis,

and sells them from his shop and on eBay, for like $100..300.

Maybe your town has such a place.

I'm not talking about a gaming machine,

or even one that can play streaming video or even audio --

just something that can run Windoze or Linux,

and OpenOffice (www.OpenOffice.org)

for papers and spreadsheets and presentations,

with Firefox for surfing the web and Thunderbird for email

(www.mozilla.com). This is all *free* software.

as in zero-cost, as well as open-source.

Feel free to contact me (if this system allows it) for more info.

Is there a way to get a Free Computer for College?

You may want to ask your financial aid office if there's any way for to have your %26quot;Financial Need%26quot; to be increased to include the computer expense. Some colleges will do this; others will not. I know the University of Georgia, for examples, will offer and additional loan to help a student purchase their personal computer. The University of Florida, on the other hand, already factors in computer expenses in your overall budget, so they don't award additional grant or loan funds.

It can't hurt to ask though.