Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition is fine unless you plan at some point to network the laptop. Then it needs the XP Professional edition.
512 MB shared memory should be plenty for most anything you do. Shared just means that the system can allocate memory to other functions if needed.
A 40 GB hard drive should be fine unless you do a lot of image stuff. I've been doing a lot with photos and they just eat drive space.
The 8x CD/DVD drive should be fine. Even though you don't currently burn CDs, I've found them to be a really easy way to do data backups. The CD/DVD drive has pretty much taken the place of the old 3-1/4" floppy drives.
The basic graphics card should be all you need. The more powerful graphics cards are needed if you plan to play video games or do a lot of graphic intensive work.
Wireless means it comes ready to connect to a wireless network. But you still have to have a network to connect to. It's a separate function from the internet connection. If you use dial-up (or decide to upgrade to DSL/cable) those connect into the laptop directly. You'd have to add a wireless router for the wireless card to work for you.
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Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition is fine unless you plan at some point to network the laptop. Then it needs the XP Professional edition.
512 MB shared memory should be plenty for most anything you do. Shared just means that the system can allocate memory to other functions if needed.
A 40 GB hard drive should be fine unless you do a lot of image stuff. I've been doing a lot with photos and they just eat drive space.
The 8x CD/DVD drive should be fine. Even though you don't currently burn CDs, I've found them to be a really easy way to do data backups. The CD/DVD drive has pretty much taken the place of the old 3-1/4" floppy drives.
The basic graphics card should be all you need. The more powerful graphics cards are needed if you plan to play video games or do a lot of graphic intensive work.
Wireless means it comes ready to connect to a wireless network. But you still have to have a network to connect to. It's a separate function from the internet connection. If you use dial-up (or decide to upgrade to DSL/cable) those connect into the laptop directly. You'd have to add a wireless router for the wireless card to work for you.
Hope that helps.