Well I've crossed that plane...........

[Viva Las Espuelas]

No, I'm still hetero. I got me a new MacBook Pro. No I'm not "done" with windows. I still have my PC. I was in need of an updated computer, wanted a laptop, and I wanted to get a mac. So, this was a nice compromise. Wallet didn't thnk so :wow
I just want to know "the ropes" of a mac. I'm a tweaker so any tweaks will be appreciated. Any tips, links, advice, maintainence advice, etc would be great.

[ElNono]

If you value your data, get a cheap ass external USB drive and set up Time Machine. Even if you plug it in once a day, it does incremental backups and you can restore the entire machine from it should anything ever happen to the internal HD.

Other than that, there's not much more that I can think of... maybe get familiar with Exposé, Spaces and that sort of stuff as they're good time savers.

[TDMVPDPOY]

sell it to me

[DJ Mbenga]

congratulations on being rich

[Viva Las Espuelas]

If you value your data, get a cheap ass external USB drive and set up Time Machine. Even if you plug it in once a day, it does incremental backups and you can restore the entire machine from it should anything ever happen to the internal HD.

Other than that, there's not much more that I can think of... maybe get familiar with Exposé, Spaces and that sort of stuff as they're good time savers.
i got the backup thing going already, but thanks. Any other programs I should get familiar with?

[Viva Las Espuelas]

koriwhat? i recall that your mr apple around here. or captain apple.

[ElNono]

i got the backup thing going already, but thanks. Any other programs I should get familiar with?

Get Flip4Mac and Perian... they're free and basically include all the video codecs you'll ever need to view avi's and everything else from your web browser or quicktime player...

[Viva Las Espuelas]

Get Flip4Mac and Perian... they're free and basically include all the video codecs you'll ever need to view avi's and everything else from your web browser or quicktime player...

Well I got that flip4mac deal. Isn't VLC player the same thing? I pretty much use that for any and all media files.

[koriwhat]

koriwhat? i recall that your mr apple around here. or captain apple.

hahaha i'm none of the above but i do stand by quality products so i guess you can claim i'm somewhat the above.

what exactly are you looking for out of your mac?

[Viva Las Espuelas]

hahaha i'm none of the above but i do stand by quality products so i guess you can claim i'm somewhat the above.

what exactly are you looking for out of your mac?

Well I'm not wanting it to solve the meaning of life. I just like knowing the fundamentals of the ins and outs of things. I'm pretty solid with pc stuff, trouble shooting and all that. I want to get to that point with a
mac. I don't know how often macs give users problems.

[koriwhat]

I don't know how often macs give users problems.

in the year that i've owned a mac i've run into 1 problem and that was the first week i had it... locked myself out and got back in within 10 minutes.

there's nothing to fuck with compared to a winOS machine where everyday is a hassle just to get the simplest of tasks completed.

[MannyIsGod]

Seriously, can anyone here explain the appeal to me of a Macbook or MB Pro over a comparable windows laptop? The pricing difference is fucking insane to me and I've not been able to figure out why yet.

I'm not trying to start a fanboy war, I'm honestly interested.

[Cry Havoc]

in the year that i've owned a mac i've run into 1 problem and that was the first week i had it... locked myself out and got back in within 10 minutes.

there's nothing to fuck with compared to a winOS machine where everyday is a hassle just to get the simplest of tasks completed.

I have had maybe 2 or 3 problems with my desktop that weren't gaming related (because no matter how powerful of a rig you have, Punkbuster is still a bitch of a program). Same goes for my laptop, and 9/10 times, it's PEBKAC. I mean, it's my computer's fault that it can't communicate with my Ps3 because I forgot to enable media sharing, right? :lol

On the other hand, the girl I'm dating now had a Mac and had all kinds of problems with it.

Yes, there's something to be said for Apple computers. But at the end of the day, they are overpriced, underpowered status symbols that offer little advantages when compared to a PC, especially now that Windows 7 is flexing it's muscle.

It always baffles me when Apple fanboys even try to compare their machines to PCs that cost half the price with the same or better specs. No one compares a $20,000 Mustang to a $40,000 BMW and expects there to have a real competition -- yet in this case the cheaper car soundly beats the more expensive one in several areas. :lol

[eyeh8u]

I have had maybe 2 or 3 problems with my desktop that weren't gaming related (because no matter how powerful of a rig you have, Punkbuster is still a bitch of a program). Same goes for my laptop, and 9/10 times, it's PEBKAC. I mean, it's my computer's fault that it can't communicate with my Ps3 because I forgot to enable media sharing, right? :lol

On the other hand, the girl I'm dating now had a Mac and had all kinds of problems with it.

Yes, there's something to be said for Apple computers. But at the end of the day, they are overpriced, underpowered status symbols that offer little advantages when compared to a PC, especially now that Windows 7 is flexing it's muscle.

It always baffles me when Apple fanboys even try to compare their machines to PCs that cost half the price with the same or better specs. No one compares a $20,000 Mustang to a $40,000 BMW and expects there to have a real competition -- yet in this case the cheaper car soundly beats the more expensive one in several areas. :lol

28k mustang gt eats a 50k 335 without a vishnu.

[Cry Havoc]

28k mustang gt eats a 50k 335 without a vishnu.

And you don't see any Apple fanboys claiming the performance crown around here either, so perhaps it's a more apt analogy than I originally indicated.

[koriwhat]

status symbols

you couldn't be farther from the truth man... i didn't buy my imac because i thought it'd make me cool or hip, i bought it because winOS is a total and utter piece of shit! i needed a new computer that wouldn't be a pos so i bought a mac. simple as that and i have yet to run into any problems with this machine.


It always baffles me when Apple fanboys even try to compare their machines to PCs that cost half the price with the same or better specs. No one compares a $20,000 Mustang to a $40,000 BMW and expects there to have a real competition -- yet in this case the cheaper car soundly beats the more expensive one in several areas. :lol

what "apple fanboys" have you seen here claiming "my rig is more powerful than yours!" because i've yet to see that from any of the apple users here and only ever see this nonsense spouted from you. i could care less if your computer could fly to the moon man, what i care about is a solid OS that isn't a piece of shit like winOS.

oh and i'd rather have a bmw any day over some pos mustang.

[leemajors]

most casual computer users would likely say Apple's customer support is the biggest difference.

[clambake]

i have both. the mac rules.

[koriwhat]

i find it funny how cry havoc keeps calling the apple users here fanboys but if he looked that up in a dictionary(fictional cause it's probably not in there) his face would be right next to the definition.

"my winOS system rig is way better than yours! it has 8 billion gigs of ram, 450 gigahertz processor, 5 nvidia 800 gigahertz video cards and it's being contracted out to launch the next shuttle to the moon!"

all i ever say about my mac is that it has been reliable. that's all you can ask for in any system and that's one thing winOS isn't known for. shit, like i said in the past... i'd gladly build a badass computer and put linuxOS on it if i could run all my graphic/web apps natively but i can't and thus the reason i bought a mac.

[MannyIsGod]

So then the biggest reason is reliability?

I guess I've never understood the OMG Windows is crap line of thinking. I've never had many problems with Windows though and maybe that is why. And when I do have problems, I can typically fix them myself quickly.

Especially if we're talking about virus problems. I think you have to be a complete asshole to get a virus on your computer that you can't deal with properly.

[koriwhat]

So then the biggest reason is reliability?

I guess I've never understood the OMG Windows is crap line of thinking. I've never had many problems with Windows though and maybe that is why. And when I do have problems, I can typically fix them myself quickly.

Especially if we're talking about virus problems. I think you have to be a complete asshole to get a virus on your computer that you can't deal with properly.

viruses were the least of my concerns with winOS. the OS is just total shit.

[MannyIsGod]

OK but what about it was shit that macOS has better? I'm not trolling, I'm really wondering because all windows does for me is run my programs and organize my files.

[Spurminator]

I'm really not a computer expert. I have a MacBook Pro mainly because I've used Mac for 10 years and I'm just comfortable with it.

As far as I can tell, it is more lightweight than most PC laptops. But I'm sure there are exceptions. Also, I don't know if any PC laptop makes a touchpad like the MacBook's but it's a total gamechanger for me. It's big, it clicks and there are several two-finger/three-finger tricks for scrolling, changing windows, clearing windows, etc. Just so easy to use... when I have to use my work PC's (Dell ThinkPad) ridiculous trackball/touchpad combo it makes me insane.

Again, this may be available on PCs too, I just hadn't seen anything like it at the time I bought it.

[Dex]

OK but what about it was shit that macOS has better? I'm not trolling, I'm really wondering because all windows does for me is run my programs and organize my files.

I think a lot of it is a usability sort of thing. I grew up on Windows, but switched to Mac when I started doing design for Photoshop, Flash, etc...which tend to run much smoother and more reliably on the Mac. In my experience, Mac's tend to be more stable than the various Windows machines I've used, from Windows 95 up through Windows Vista. I still have an HP portable which runs WinXP perfectly fine...and I hardly ever use it.

I know how to make Windows run reliably, but that generally takes a fair amount of technical knowledge, as well as a lot of personal effort digging through system configuration options and profiles, making sure antivirus and spyware and firewall software are all running and up to date, and occasionally scanning for viruses and performing other maintenance like disk cleanup and defrags. You really don't have to do ANY of this for a Mac, which is more of a blessing for the casual computer user (who doesn't know any better) than for a power user.

Over the course of the past 3 years, I spend 8 hours a day working intensively on an intel iMac with a minimum of 9 programs running, and rarely have any system issues or have to force a restart. My iMac at home runs a myriad of design and music production apps, and the only problem I've had with it was a failed HD (which was easily remedied by Time Machine).

Secondly, and my favorite part, is the ability to multitask. Windows generally worked fine for me until I started getting a full taskbar, at which point all hell broke loose. With my Macs, I can run as many apps as my memory handle without it bogging down the system. Things seem to open faster and be more responsive, and this doesn't diminish as much over time like it does with Windows systems. Due to this, as well as the "floating window" GUI, I feel like I can complete most basic tasks much faster on my Mac than I can on my PC. I much prefer using Mac OS X to Windows.

Also, Apple's support generally blows any other company's support out of the water, and have been rated tops by Consumer Reports for the past 10 years.

While Macs are limited on their third party software diversity and cost an arm and a leg, I've had plenty of experience with both platforms and would choose a Mac any day. Most people who have used both seem to say the same, for whatever reason.

[leemajors]

There is a marked difference in iTunes integration and performance within MacOS X and Windows, naturally. With the popularity of iPods and iPhones being what it is, it probably just seems simpler to use. Add the support, perceived reliability and that's a powerful appeal. I like MacOS X a lot, and if I had the money I would have a Mac at home to use, likely a MacBook Pro. It can also be very difficult to people not technically inclined to find the proper avenue of support for PCs. You gotta go to different companies and likely get bounced between them if you can't discern a hardware failure from a software one. Apple makes their own devices as well as the OS, while there is a lot of variance in Windows machines.

[sabar]

99% of complaints against windows are hold overs from the unfortunate people that had to actually use Windows 95 and Windows 98.

Probably two of the most unstable, insecure, worthless operating systems ever produced. It took M$ forever to weed out everything. Thankfully they switched to their NT platform (which actually ran games better than 98 despite being business and server oriented). I actually ran NT/2000 Server over 95/98 because of the instability.

Anyways, Windows is fine these days. Just more overpriced proprietary software. At least it isn't as overpriced and as proprietary as Apple. Steve Jobs is allergic to anything that doesn't originate from his own corporation.

[Cry Havoc]

i find it funny how cry havoc keeps calling the apple users here fanboys but if he looked that up in a dictionary(fictional cause it's probably not in there) his face would be right next to the definition.

This coming from the guy with spurs tattooed on his calves? Really?

[dirk4mvp]

This coming from the guy with spurs tattooed on his calves? Really?

:rollin

[koriwhat]

This coming from the guy with spurs tattooed on his calves? Really?

so you've joined the all fag team by jumping in on that unclever little jab at me like all the others have over the past couple days... wow how original.

you can't back your shit up so here you are trying to be one of them. may your fag forces combine!

[ElNono]

99% of complaints against windows are hold overs from the unfortunate people that had to actually use Windows 95 and Windows 98.

Not true. XP had it's share of major issues and Vista was a dud on arrival.

[ElNono]

OK but what about it was shit that macOS has better? I'm not trolling, I'm really wondering because all windows does for me is run my programs and organize my files.

MacOS is no different. It just doesn't keep on nagging you to install an anti-virus, you don't have to remove 1000 of adware shit pre-installed and running on your new machine, you don't need to 'uninstall' anything (simply drag to the trash), you don't normally need to install any printer driver, what you plug just works, you don't need to wait for the computer to fully load all the startup programs until it's 100% responsive, that kind of usability stuff.

I hear Win7 has made good strides on some if not all of that stuff. So at this point, YMMV.

Honestly, when XP was released it was just as superior to the MacOS 9 that Macs were running at the time.

[Cry Havoc]

so you've joined the all fag team by jumping in on that unclever little jab at me like all the others have over the past couple days... wow how original.

you can't back your shit up so here you are trying to be one of them. may your fag forces combine!

So wait, you can call me a fanboy for preferring PC to Mac, but the fact that you tattooed your favorite team on your legs is evidence that you're impartial about brand affiliation?

[koriwhat]

So wait, you can call me a fanboy for preferring PC to Mac, but the fact that you tattooed your favorite team on your legs is evidence that you're impartial about brand affiliation?

not that at all... i am a fan of the spurs through and through but what's this thread about really?

you always find a way to roll around the subject at hand... every fuckin' time. spin it on me, that's fine but the fact of the matter is this isn't about what team i like or cheer for but is about you always calling people out for supporting apple but you yourself couldn't be closer to bill gates balls and yet you point fingers laughing at apple users as if you're any better with your affiliation/support to microsoft.

keep calling the kettle black man.

[Cry Havoc]

not that at all... i am a fan of the spurs through and through but what's this thread about really?

you always find a way to roll around the subject at hand... every fuckin' time. spin it on me, that's fine but the fact of the matter is this isn't about what team i like or cheer for but is about you always calling people out for supporting apple but you yourself couldn't be closer to bill gates balls and yet you point fingers laughing at apple users as if you're any better with your affiliation/support to microsoft.

keep calling the kettle black man.

My Ps3 is laughing at you.

As is my iPhone.

And my netbook running Linux.

Haw haw, you sure got me!

[MannyIsGod]

MacOS is no different. It just doesn't keep on nagging you to install an anti-virus, you don't have to remove 1000 of adware shit pre-installed and running on your new machine, you don't need to 'uninstall' anything (simply drag to the trash), you don't normally need to install any printer driver, what you plug just works, you don't need to wait for the computer to fully load all the startup programs until it's 100% responsive, that kind of usability stuff.

I hear Win7 has made good strides on some if not all of that stuff. So at this point, YMMV.

Honestly, when XP was released it was just as superior to the MacOS 9 that Macs were running at the time.

If thats what people pay nearly twice as much for more power to them I guess. I don't have any of those issues and I still use XP. /shrug

[koriwhat]

My Ps3 is laughing at you.

As is my iPhone.

And my netbook running Linux.

Haw haw, you sure got me!


yeah, well i'm laughing at you... hardy har har

[ElNono]

If thats what people pay nearly twice as much for more power to them I guess. I don't have any of those issues and I still use XP. /shrug

Well, I didn't pay 'nearly twice as much' for my Mac Mini when I bought it, and if you are using XP, then you're definitely either experienced and/or still experience some of those issues.

At any rate, I've switched back and forth or owned both for the past 18 years. I'm certainly not going to try to convince anybody of anything. At this point, I alway recommend to stick with whatever works for you.

Personally, the reason I went back to the mac a couple years ago was because Vista was a dud, and the XP box I had regularly managed to take me away from doing the work I was hoping to get done when I started it up.
So recouping the price difference in productive time ended up being an quick and easy task. Eventually, when we started to do iPhone dev, it became twice as useful.

I haven't had the need to switch back, but I have heard good stuff about Win7. I'm sure that if I feel the Mac lacking at some point, I'll put together another PC rig and take it for another spin. And right there is the crux of the matter. If you don't focus on the brand and instead focus on what you want to get done, then it's normally a lot easier to find the right tool for the job, and a lot easier to understand and justify the price differences.

[Jekka]

Well, I didn't pay 'nearly twice as much' for my Mac Mini when I bought it, and if you are using XP, then you're definitely either experienced and/or still experience some of those issues.

At any rate, I've switched back and forth or owned both for the past 18 years. I'm certainly not going to try to convince anybody of anything. At this point, I alway recommend to stick with whatever works for you.

Personally, the reason I went back to the mac a couple years ago was because Vista was a dud, and the XP box I had regularly managed to take me away from doing the work I was hoping to get done when I started it up.
So recouping the price difference in productive time ended up being an quick and easy task. Eventually, when we started to do iPhone dev, it became twice as useful.

I haven't had the need to switch back, but I have heard good stuff about Win7. I'm sure that if I feel the Mac lacking at some point, I'll put together another PC rig and take it for another spin. And right there is the crux of the matter. If you don't focus on the brand and instead focus on what you want to get done, then it's normally a lot easier to find the right tool for the job, and a lot easier to understand and justify the price differences.

Cool. That explanation makes a lot of sense. I think for me a PC platform makes a lot more sense for the price but I can see your points.

[Viva Las Espuelas]

well this macbook pro is quite the machine i didn't think would be knocking out the programs i throw at it. yes, i admit it takes a lot to "screw up" a windows machine. i usually would troubleshoot it and correct it whenever it gave me grief. so far i haven't had to do this with my MBP. i really don't have to be the "geeksquad" with it. just bust it out and you're on your way. the MB, MBP, and every other Mac product isn't for you if youre simply tending to emails, surfing, raising the bar and what not. then i would see it as "overpriced". theyre not for every one. just depends on your situation. so far i'm very happy with my purchase. no qualms.