I see why the Mac users are hooked
 

Just got a new MacBook, the smaller one with the 160gb drive in black. I thought about a RAM upgrade ($175 for 2 gigs total) but so far it doesn't look like I'll need it.

I have to say that it beats the pants off my wife's miniMac, which is a disappointment. My daughter's old iMac (in pink, no less, that I bought off of ebay for $200) is superb, but aging.

The thing is awesome and I'm sure I'll get some converts around the office eventually. Got the groan from IT, who I never have to use anyway.

I should also say that the Apple/PC debates DID help me make the plunge for the thinkpad replacement.

Why did I do it, really? We have a couple new folks starting next week and, rather than subject them to a Vista box, I'll hand-down my bulletproof T43. I'm so selfless, you see.

Jack

Welcome.

Do the RAM upgrade anyway. You can never have enough.

If you need any IT or hints ask here. Plenty who can help.

I really love that little machine. The only thing small about it is the size, performance wise it's right up there with the 15' and 17's

It's easy to get hooked to a platform which almost completely devoid of spyware, virii, etc.

But my Mac is still a pig! Back when we had OS9, the interface was fast, now with OSX it is slow as dirt. Even the first Mac ever created (that tan box with the little monochrome screen) is still faster at word processing and stuff.

Amen! just yesterday I was yearning for System 6 and Word 4.0.

One thing I did I haven't done when opening a computer...ever..was to RTFM. I never really took the time to find all the useful things in the interface with the other macs we have.

I keep finding cool things--it's kind of like discovering computers all over again.

What's the most useful thing you all have found, which may not be apparent or widely known?

And since you've offered, what's the best way to run windows? I have one app I need to run once a week (msmoney)...thanks Jack

Now all you need to do is switch to Linux and you will be all set.

Best way to run Windows is via VMware under Linux!

Also still tempted to try running the new Intel based MacOSX on Linux through VMware.

That a user doesn't have to run a plethora of external anti-virus and spyware programs.
Best way, IMO, is to download a beta copy of Boot Camp from Apple, and format part of your hard drive to use Windows. You can format the PC side as FAT and share files with the Mac side. Just don't allocate more than about 30 gigs for the PC side, or you won't be able to format the PC side as FAT.

+1 I use vbox

BEst way to run Windows is Parallels. http://www.parallels.com/

No reboot required. I've run 3ds Max in it. Even supports 3d games in the latest rev.

The Coherence view is cool. You'll be running windows but you don't see it.

Download a free trial, you'll be hooked.

+1 on Parallels.

Don't like Parallels. One reason - $$ of the program on top of the cost of XP.

Boot Camp is free.

Boot Camp is faster. Dedicated hard drive space will always be faster than emulation software.

File>Save>Close>reboot takes me less than twenty seconds on my MacBook with either Mac OSX or XP. That includes graphics programs.

Remember the vcr wars in the 80's? The best machine lost because it was proprietary.

Mac = beta-max

PC = VHS

Wasn't it because the best VCR couldn't record 6 continuous hours of porn? ..... or so I read.:)

Neither Mac nor PC have that limitation. That's progress.

Sherwood

I believe this analogy is in the dictionary next to the definition for "inside-the-box thinking" :p

Inside the box/proprietary thinking will eventually kill Dell. Buy a Dell printer - no other ink cartridges will work with it. Buy Dell wireless, many wireless PCs as well as the Mac, will not work with the wireless base station.

I'm feeling done with Dell.

One thing I found cool - instead of using the remote control to control Front Row to watch movies/listen to music, press APPLE-ESC to activate Front Row. ;)

Excellent! Thanks...keep 'em coming. j

More tips? Instead of using CTRL-C, CTRL-V, CTRL-X to copy, cut and paste as you do in Windows, you can do the same with APPLE-C, APPLE-V and APPLE-X.

Also, to "right-click", hold down the CTRL key and press the mouse button - priceless.

Yeah Parallels costs but so does time.

If you are doing cross platform development you'd be nuts to 1) alter your code, 2) shut everything down 3) boot into windows and evaluate your result 4) reboot back into OS X and launch all your apps again to get back to work. The reboot thing forces you to lose your history/undo states. It's a really inneficient way to work.

I have my machines set up for Boot Camp and Parallels.

Parallels is set up to boot from my Boot Camp partion so it's using the same dedicated filespace.

Parallels is not emulation, it's a Virtual Machine. There is a big difference.

Hmmm. All that's really good to know. Thing is, it doesn't apply whatsoever to what I do between the OSX and XP.

Emulation vs. virtual machine = big difference? They're both copying how a program works.

What I do know is my Mac with Boot Camp and XP boots much faster than my dedicated Thinkpad or Dell. I can't find speeds like that through Parallels, Virtual PC, VM or whatever...

That's why the options are so great. There is a solution for every work habit, need and budget.

The diff between Emulation and Virtualiztion is significant.

Virtual PC is emulation, it is an environment that runs an OS on non naticve hardware so all the API, hardware calls have to be "translated" from one "language" to another.

Parallels and VM Ware are true Virtual spaces. An OS running in memoery space on it's native hardware. All the calls are passed directly to the hardware, not translated.

VM's are a developers tool. They are allow you to try different hardware environments without the expense of the physical hardware.

Good quick read. http://blog.1530technologies.com/2006/08/virtual_machine.html

God, I just reread that. Disclaimer. I am not responsible for spelling as I've been up 40 of the last 48 hours and am seeing the light at the end of this project so I also had some wine. Actually a lot of wine.

I didn't learn this one until a few days after getting my MacBook Pro - moving two fingers simultaneously on the track-pad will get you scrolling. Huge help, IMO.

You can even program more track-pad actions in Preferences, but after trying double-tap actions, went back to only two finger scrolling.

Best,

Kurt

Thanks, SM - good stuff to know.
:)

Speaking of the touchpad, for those with small screens but waning eyesight - try this - press CTRL while you have two fingers on the touchpad. Then with CTRL still down, slide your two fingers forward on the touchpad (or forward on the mouse wheel if you have a mouse).

Sweet, huh? :D

Very sweet, thanks for that one. Works better than the PC version of it--way better, in fact.

I got the dual-fingered scrolling off the manual; amazing what reading one of those buggers can do for you.

Also played some movie trailers last night for the family using frontrow-god but the screen is incredible.

I'm hooked fully; functional and beautiful. Decided against the memory for now--if you buy the notebook online it's only a 175.00 upgrade. If you buy the notebook from the store you'll have to pay 350.00 for the online upgrade.

Here's something I learned: instead of minimizing windows using apple + M, hide them using apple+h. This way you can apple+tab to the desired hidden application and it is 'normalized' on the screen. If you try this with a window minimized it stays in the dock. Or did I get that wrong?

Any other neat efficiency tricks?

Wel lif you are like my wife and have a bzillion windows and apps open at the same time then go AppleMenu/System Preferences/Dashboard &Expose, set a hot corner (I like lower right).