haisl_B_86 wrote:
Hi

I have to go buy a laptop for work. I will need to do walk throughs and prentation work on it. I don't really know what I am looking for. Basically my boss wants something he can "sell" our building to clients on. Any thoughts? I was thinking big screen, and good graphics card and lots of ram. Should I go quad-core? I budget for it is about AU$3000 ish.

Any help would be great.

Thanks

Well 17" is about as big as your going to get on a laptop (and any of the top of line should do well see JP Designs recent posts) and while it is workable to show projects to clients on laptops, it's not ideal. Everybody is crowded around behind you, looking over your shoulder, and can't always see real well. It depends on project type and number of people viewing, I guess, but it's not good for over 1 or 2.

For in-office presentations use a video projector or LCD TV. On the road I use a portable INFocus projector or use the clients built in ones. For residential work others I know carry an adaptor and long cord for a digital TV as most people have one.

The key IMHO to successful computer presentations is the ability for the presenter to see and carry on conversations with the clients (and gauge reactions) while both can see the images. I have been doing these types presentations on commercial projects for about 5 years now continuously through the whole project (including construction meetings) and wouldn't do it any other way.

Dave

PS: I have also found that the fancy renderings and fly thru stuff is not nearly as effective as being able to slice,dice, and zoom around the model and drawings in real time in front of the clients and contractors.
This can be a problem for principals because they often don't know or want to know how to use the software. But a two person team can also be effective. One running the machine the other presenting and leading the discussion.