What computer setup would be best for me to go to college with?

I know this is more of a question for Tested, but on the last This Is Only A Test, Will and Norm answered a similar question. So I thought I would get a different point of view. Anywho, I'm going to college next fall and I'm trying to plan out what technology to bring with me. My major is graphic design/communication with a concentration in film studies. Obviously I'm going to need a computer that can handle heavy video editing (and of course gaming), but I'm not sure specifically what I should get. My dad is willing to spend about $2,000 for one to be custom built, and I will also have a summer job. Should I get a very high end desktop PC for the video editing and a dual core netbook for portability and note taking? Or would I be better off just pumping it all into a beefy laptop or mobile workstation? Also, can I get away with dual-booting windows 7 and Snow Leopard?

Dual boot? Isn't that easier if you get a Mac lappie? Because I haven't heard of any simple solution to dual boot Leopard with a Windows system. That right there narrows down your options. Someone correct me.

Windows 7 works awesome on the Mac. 
Now, I dont know what you would consider powerful enough for what you want to do, but go with the light laptop and desktop combo.  A laptop is a godsend in college and when you want to get together to work with friends on stuff you will appreciate it, because face it, you will have classes besides film and communication.  I dont see why you would need to spend 2000 bucks on a PC, so just go for half and half.  Get a iMac and Macbook pro if you want, but I would go with PC just because it is a lot of money saved for the same horsepower.  Unless you really want to use the iMovie or final cut or whatever. I dont know shit about video editing.  But also, check with your schools film program and find out what they use and if they give discounts on the software that they use. Also, lots of schools do give discounts on Windows if you choose to go the Mac route and put windows on the bootscamps.

I've heard good things about HP's Envy and Dell's XPS laptops. A MacBook Pro is a fine choice as well.

I've got a MacBook for University (not my choice). 
 
Not a single day goes by without me wanting to throw this piece of shit in the rubbish. Just get a Windows laptop, there is zero benefit from choosing Apple's overpriced crap.

go for the PC for heavy power/gaming, and pick up the laptop for note taking/projects. No point in dumping a bunch of money into a laptop that is most likely going to break before the PC and has a lower return on investment.

I would rather not buy a mac and dual boot with, i'd rather do the other way around. I am very anti-Apple when it comes to actual computers (I just bought an ipod touch, those are fine), so I don't want to use OSX unless I have to. My school isn't very picky on what I use, but I know they use avid. They also have an entire lab of Macs, which makes me wonder if dual-booting for final cut is worth it or not. I also want to go with windows because of the more bang for my buck, so I guess it looks like it's not worth having Snow Leopard.
 
@TheHBK said:

I dont see why you would need to spend 2000 bucks on a PC, so just go for half and half.

" go for the PC for heavy power/gaming, and pick up the laptop for note taking/projects. No point in dumping a bunch of money into a laptop that is most likely going to break before the PC and has a lower return on investment. "

" I've got a MacBook for University (not my choice).  Not a single day goes by without me wanting to throw this piece of shit in the rubbish. Just get a Windows laptop, there is zero benefit from choosing Apple's overpriced crap. "

MacBook Pro with Windows 7 Dualboot.

get something to dual boot with. you can do both programs on one. you could always use the university's computer web to do homework....
 
this is just me but i think that windows photoshop is better than macs ones.

As someone who is always pro-PC and anti-Mac, I say buy a PC. 
 
But as someone who actually knows a little bit about these things, I know that it's really hard to get Mac OS running on a PC, so if you have to buy a Mac, I won't hate you too much for doing so. 

" I know this is more of a question for Tested, but on the last This Is Only A Test, Will and Norm answered a similar question. So I thought I would get a different point of view. Anywho, I'm going to college next fall and I'm trying to plan out what technology to bring with me. My major is graphic design/communication with a concentration in film studies. Obviously I'm going to need a computer that can handle heavy video editing (and of course gaming), but I'm not sure specifically what I should get. My dad is willing to spend about $2,000 for one to be custom built, and I will also have a summer job. Should I get a very high end desktop PC for the video editing and a dual core netbook for portability and note taking? Or would I be better off just pumping it all into a beefy laptop or mobile workstation? Also, can I get away with dual-booting windows 7 and Snow Leopard? "

"

Dual boot? Isn't that easier if you get a Mac lappie? Because I haven't heard of any simple solution to dual boot Leopard with a Windows system. That right there narrows down your options. Someone correct me.

"

" I've got a MacBook for University (not my choice).  Not a single day goes by without me wanting to throw this piece of shit in the rubbish. Just get a Windows laptop, there is zero benefit from choosing Apple's overpriced crap. "

This year for uni I have my gaming PC and a netbook for taking to lectures. You can't do anything on it other than word processing, excel and such but that's all I need it for so it works great. Means I only have to carry a 10 inch notebook when others have 14-17 inch laptops that do everything my pc does but worse.

You'll be getting far worse performance-per-dollar investing into a high-powered laptop so definitely go the high-performance desktop + low powered notebook route. As far as I'm concerned portable computer devices like netbooks and laptops should serve as no more than glorified notepads as their value and reliability are abysmal, so you'll want to spend as little on them as possible. If you can you should just invest everything into the desktop.  
 
Oh, and if you're going into graphic design DEFINITELY get Nvidia GPUs as their CUDA API blows everything out of the water. There are comparable open-source solutions with AMD GPUs, but they never arrive in a timely manner and typically have erratic stability and compatibility. 
 
It's going to be very hard to keep a high end PC for years without upgrading it in between. Hardware prices drop about 40% per year (amounting to 1/2 reduction in value over 2 years) so even if you bought a $2,000 bleeding edge PC today, it wouldn't amount to more than a mid-end PC by the end of your program. The best way would be to spend ~$1,000 now on a solid high end PC (price point where you typically get the most performance per dollar), and have some money left over to upgrade it halfway through. 

I've got a ~$1200 desktop and an iPad with wireless keyboard for note taking. Works fine for me.

Mac Book Pro is the answer. You need to be mobile with reliable tech.

" I've got a MacBook for University (not my choice).  Not a single day goes by without me wanting to throw this piece of shit in the rubbish. Just get a Windows laptop, there is zero benefit from choosing Apple's overpriced crap. "

One thing to keep in mind is the desk space your dorm/apartment will give you. I know for me, using a desktop would have been a hassle given how the size of the room/its layout. But most school's don't have dorms as small as ours. 

" One thing to keep in mind is the desk space your dorm/apartment will give you. I know for me, using a desktop would have been a hassle given how the size of the room/its layout. But most school's don't have dorms as small as ours.  "

You might know more about running OS X on a PC than I do, but for serious video editing the industry standard is Final Cut Pro, which is exclusively on OS X. Adobe Premiere can run on windows but it probably won't be the same program your professors will be teaching.  Almost all graphic design, at least at my college and my brothers college, is done on Macs. 
 
Maybe a $1700 iMac and a $300 netbook? You can use Bootcamp and get Windows 7 on your iMac for games, but that kind of screws you when it comes to future upgrades (not to mention computational bang for your buck).

" You might know more about running OS X on a PC than I do, but for serious video editing the industry standard is Final Cut Pro, which is exclusively on OS X. Adobe Premiere can run on windows but it probably won't be the same program you professors will be teaching.  Almost all graphic design, at least at my college and my brothers college, is done on Macs.

Final Cut is the industry standard, and Adobe programs are designed for Mac first. Generally I'd say go for PC, but in the two industries you are getting into I would definitely go with a Mac. I Core i5 iMac is under $2000 and should get the job done just fine.