Need help on buying a new mac or saving an old one

Question

currently i have a mbp 15 inch 2.2GHz. i have carpal tunnel syndrome and my doctor said that i should get a slide out keyboard like a desktop computer. i was weighing in on my options.
save my mbp and just get some apple display or another display and a keyboard.the 30 inch display that apple puts out looks amazing but its HD so i wouldnt get the HD cause my video card is only the GeForce 8600M GT. but if i buy the 30 inch from apple i would be $1795.46 with the apple care and student discount. so that almost like getting a new imac.
i was also looking in to the new imac. the 2.93MHz 24 inch with the 512mb invidia video card everything else stock then of course the apple care and my student discount that would be $2089.71 with tax.
what do you think i should get ?

Answer 1

I have been following this discourse with some interest, and although your question is answered, I would still like to add my 2¢ worth if I may.
It seems to me that you have already received your diagnosis and recommendation from your doctor, so I don't think that we are in the business of diagnosing and prescribing anything. That has already been done by your doctor. My impression is that you were simply seeking additional insight from a computer savvy community to supplement what you were told by your doctor.
I do not have Carpal Tunnel Syndrome myself, but my mother-in-law did. She used a slide out keyboard with a wrist rest and a Logitech stationary mouse with a ball top, also with a wrist rest. This was in Win 98 days, so she was using a standard keyboard.
There are ergonomic keyboards on the market now, and it may be that one of these would be helpful to you. It looks like these reposition your hands and typing position slightly, and are supposed to be designed to relieve/prevent Carpal Tunnel pain when typing. They may also serve as a training mechanism to teach you a better typing position, but I don't really know. There are also a number of wrist rests available.
You can see a few of these on display at an office supply like Staples, and try out the display models to see if they seem to make a difference or not. There are of course many models available, and if you think one might be helpful to you, you could do some on line research, and possibly even post back with a question specifically on ergonomic keyboards and which ones seem to work the best as well as which ones will be Mac compatible. People with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome who use these things day in and day out would be best qualified to make recommendations. And anyone who has experienced Carpal Tunnel Syndrome personally is certainly well qualified to give you a certain amount of insight and advice.
Properly setting up the geometry of your workplace is in no way a contradiction of anything you have been told by your doctor. I think there may well be some trial and error involved in achieving what works best for you personally. But I suspect that in the end you can achieve quite a bit to alleviate your pain.
One thing you might try for free is to roll up a towel or something to use as a wrist rest and see if it provides any relief. If so, you might find it worth exploring some of the ergonomic options available to you.
Good luck, and Happy Computing!