One trick is that if you buy one of those new "dual core" computers, if they come with Vista, check to see if there are any Win XP drivers available by doing a Google search. Case in point- I recently won on eBay a
Dell Inspiron 518 dual core computer specifically because you can find
hardware drivers for Win XP still, even if not advertised at the Dell site.
Of course, if you really look hard, you can get fantastic deals, s.a. the one I got today, which was a
Core Duo laptop (1.6 GHz) with 2GB ram and with Win XP Professional already installed, for $295 (free shipping). I can't do better than that... well, I did get my
Asus NetBook for $250 (2gb ram, 1.6GHz processor) the other day, which was a pretty good deal too!
Right now I plan on having a Netbook or laptop in every exam room sending all printouts to a central printer. I literally print out the prescriptions and patient instruction sheets while the patient is still talking. Saves a good 5 minutes per patient. I don't have to worry about battery life, I don't have to carry them around from room to room... life is good.
Cheers,
Al
