Thinking about switching

S

sk.

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Hey guys, just signed up here and I need some advice. Right now I have a regular PC desktop and its alright but I need a laptop for college. So i was thinking about the ibook, nothing fancy just something to write papers, watch a movie sometimes or maybe play a game. So I customized my laptop at the apple.com website. For 1,174 dollars i can get this:

• 512MB DDR266 SDRAM (256MB built-in & 256MB SO-DIMM)
• 60GB Ultra ATA drive
• Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW)
• AirPort Extreme Card
• Keyboard & Mac OS X - U.S. English
• 12-inch TFT XGA display
• 1.2GHz PowerPC G4
• ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 w/ 32MB DDR video memory

Seems fine for college but now. Im worried about software for this laptop. Software that I use everyday like winamp, nero to burn cd's, aim, firewalls, antivirus's. ALso how long did it take you guys to get used to apple's OS X? Because honestly im a newb when it comes to Apple, i probably dont know how to navigate through the operating system.

Thank you for all the help.
 
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sk. said:
Hey guys, just signed up here and I need some advice. Right now I have a regular PC desktop and its alright but I need a laptop for college. So i was thinking about the ibook, nothing fancy just something to write papers, watch a movie sometimes or maybe play a game. So I customized my laptop at the apple.com website. For 1,174 dollars i can get this:

• 512MB DDR266 SDRAM (256MB built-in & 256MB SO-DIMM)
• 60GB Ultra ATA drive
• Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW)
• AirPort Extreme Card
• Keyboard & Mac OS X - U.S. English
• 12-inch TFT XGA display
• 1.2GHz PowerPC G4
• ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 w/ 32MB DDR video memory

Seems fine for college but now. Im worried about software for this laptop. Software that I use everyday like winamp, nero to burn cd's, aim, firewalls, antivirus's. ALso how long did it take you guys to get used to apple's OS X? Because honestly im a newb when it comes to Apple, i probably dont know how to navigate through the operating system.

Thank you for all the help.

Sounds like a nice little system to get you through school. I think you will like it a lot once you get to using it...OS X is very nice and easy to use, if you have used windows 98/me/2k/xp you will have no problems using OS X at all. In fact you will even find it easier to use once you use it a little.

Instead of Winamp check out iTunes, very nice for cataloging your music and for converting it and playing it and burning it to cds. Instead of Nero, check out Mac Burn, remindes me a lot of Nero, burns both cds and dvds, makes isos, easy to use, costs only $30. For your chats look at Fire, it's kind of like Trillian, does many formats. As far as virus and such you really don't need em unless you plan on being hooked to a bunch of ibm types, but there are some if you want them. For your word processing give NeoOffice a try, an OS X version of Open Office which will give you compatability with Ms Word and Excel, etc. For graphics, The Gimp has a mac version that works very well, the list goes on and on.

Welcome to Mac world, I am sure you will like it, and good luck at college, your gona need it....(G), but it's worth it in the long run...
 
OP
M

Mr. MAC

Guest
Since you are already familier with PC™ and since my brother is in collage and was having some trouble with working on the computers on campus and our MAC™ at home you might think about just getting another PC™.
don't get me wrong, I LOVE MAC™ but if i where you i would just get a Toshiba or Compaq. But in the end it's your choice.






P.S. I hope my advice helps somewhat in your decision.
 
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Your Mac's Specs
12" Apple PowerBook G4 (1.5GHz)
Nero: probably not needed, as OS X can burn CDs from the Finder. iTunes and iPhoto can also burn CDs. If you need it, there'sToast

Winamp: iTunes or Audion

AIM: Works fine. iChat is also included, and there are lots of others, like Adium X, Fire and Proteus.

A solid firewall is included, and there are no viruses that affect Mac OS X.
 
OP
?

)(*

Guest
Be sure you check the student discounts. In the apple store, on the right, click education under more stores. and just find your school
They cut the price on EVERYTHING. The ram, software you get, etc.
I got Office 2004 student edition, because me and my 2 brothers use it, and it comes with 3 software keys. For $150 thats great. If you like Office, but cant afford it. Find 2 buddies that have macs and want office aswell and just chip in.

chatting: i use ichat AV
music: i use itunes, but i do miss the video streaming winamp offered.
Oh, trust me, you will love the mac. Especially the 12 inch, its so neat.


good luck
 
OP
S

sk.

Guest
Thank you for all the information. It is a tough choice for me because im not familiar with a mac, I feel so helpless just talking about it. I build many PC's, im very familiar with almost every windows versions and even linux. This is why im a little "scared" to switch to mac because I dont know anything about OS X.
 
OP
M

Maxp0wer2004

Guest
This is something strange. sk. described the same exact iBook im getting.

and a computer like that is probably good for college, since its small and does tons of stuff.
 
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G4 1Ghz OS X 10.4.7
I had fun switching after years of windows. It didn't take long
 
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PowerMac G4 Cube 450mhz 832mb
there are no viruses or spy/adware on mac, built in firewall is more than you need, toast is better than nero, or you can burn in the finder, itunes for music, dvdplayer for watching dvds, among other great apps.
 

rman


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sk. said:
Thank you for all the information. It is a tough choice for me because im not familiar with a mac, I feel so helpless just talking about it. I build many PC's, im very familiar with almost every windows versions and even linux. This is why im a little "scared" to switch to mac because I dont know anything about OS X.


I find this very strange, in that the first time you started working on a pc, the first time you started working in windows, and the first time you started working in linux. Should be ablout the same as working with Apple and OS X. Just like the previous systems, you will get use to it and learn how to use it. I bet you did not have a problem when you learned how to drive. I will even bet that if you learned on a Ford, you would drive anything that you can get your hands on. lol :)
 
OP
S

serrot

Guest
sk. said:
Thank you for all the information. It is a tough choice for me because im not familiar with a mac, I feel so helpless just talking about it. I build many PC's, im very familiar with almost every windows versions and even linux. This is why im a little "scared" to switch to mac because I dont know anything about OS X.

you'll be just fine.
i officially switched about a week ago, i got the same ibook that you listed instead i didnt upgrade the RAM, i plan on doing my self later for more and cheaper.
i love my ibook very much and i think it was the right decision.
i'm able to get onto my schools network just fine, if you wereto have any problems it would probably be with getting the proxy url if you're school has a firewall, but that's it.
i build computers with my brother andused just about everything that you use, i'm doing just fine, i was scared about mac os x, but it's soooooooo easy,i love it.
i miss trillian, but i like ichat for different reasons.
if you need to know anything else, justask and i'll let you know how my mac adventure is going.
--caro
 
OP
Q

Qaxpla

Guest
Sounds like a good choice with the iBook. I switched around 20th December or so and I had picked OS X up without a guide in say 1 week. I am still amazed at how really easy it is to learn :/ It's almost... too easy :p

When it comes to software, like many others have mentioned... i'll give you some examples of what I use.

WordProcessing/Spreadsheets - Office 2004 Student
Music playing and some disc burning - iTunes (comes with your mac!)
Instant Messaging - iChat AV, it looks beautiful and is perfect as an AIM client.

aMSN - It's a simple messenger client that you connect to with your .net passport (hotmail/msn account) for chats with your MSN Buddies.

You can also use fire and adiumx. I'm using adiumx at the moment because aMSN is somewhat buggy on mac...

Internet Browsing - Safari or Camino. I've got firefox just incase, but i'm usually using Safari.

Mail - Mail, comes with mac. It's really simple to use too :S

I don't use a firewall or antivirus because there are so few viruses that can harm your mac you just don't need to install one!

I'm in love with my mac. I am still amazed at how nice and simple it is to use... I'm kicking myself right now for not getting one 1yr earlier when I had the chance :p

Plus, it takes... what, 30 seconds to boot up from a long cold night! I was usually waiting around 3-5 minutes on my Windows machine!
 
OP
S

sk.

Guest
**** you guys got me all excited about getting my first mac laptop. I simply cant wait and hope to have a great expierence. I just cant wait to get all the hate talk from my friends to going to apple lol.
 
OP
Q

Qaxpla

Guest
I got a fair bit of stick from one of my school teachers about going to mac. But hey, i'm not the one complaining at the crashing and latest virus infection ;)

At the end of the day, a mac is a really good buy for a student. Maybe not so great for gaming but still, you can get a cheap windows machine for gaming.

You'll love it when you get it!
 
OP
S

sk.

Guest
i hardly game, maybe once a week a game of warcraft. My comp is mainly used writing papers, listening to mp3s, watching car mpeg's and dvd's.
 

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