Recent PC to Mac switchers, help me out

S

Stefan T.

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Hi all,

I really want to make the switch from PC to Mac, as my Windows ME (yes I know its crap) has failed me one too many times. Yet I am hesitant because I do not know what to expect in the change.

I'd apreciate if recent switchers from PC to Mac could tell me what where their impressions of it. If they could tell me:

-why the made the switch?
-what Mac they got and what PC they had
-what do they use the Mac for?
-Problems ajusting to OS
-first impressions
-Are you happy with the switch?


Also please add anything else that you have learned/experienced in switching from one and to the next.

Thank you all very much for your help,

Stefan
 
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12" iBook G4
1. had enough i windows all the problems, crashing, etc... i never liked windows, i found out about apples range of computers did a lot of research into the plus's of changing and there were a few :)

2.i have a g4 12"ibook, did have a 2.4ghz pc

3. i use my ibook, for work, surfing web, music, photoshopping, not to intensive though...

4. i wouldn't say i had any problems, it is just getting use to how u do simple things, of changing things, within a few days u will know what to do...

5. as soon as i turned it on it took about 15 seconds to load and i just filled in my details, connected to net, it registered me and my ibook with apple...everything is very simple and clean to use, it is all organized for u, so u have music, photo folders etc... everything makes sense..

6. am i happy? very thanks :)

all i learnt is i should had swapped a long time ago :)
 
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iPad 32 GB 3G
Hmm...well, I got into Macs recently after a many year haitus (mostly didn't have the $$$ before now). I was setting up a couple of old iMacs for a member of my extended family that had been picked up cheap, liked OSX for its features (UNIX, included software, easy of use, and good looks) not to mention not having a need to worry about virus and spyware protection and cleaning. I bought a G3 iMac 400 with OSX off eBay for $100 just to play with and have liked it alot-- so much that I've decided to go with a new Mini so as to have a new and better toy to play with.

Now, I still have a P4 3.4 ghz desktop with PCI-E, SATA, etc., and a 3 ghz laptop with a 17" screen and whatnot, and really have no plans to get rid of them.

That said, I like the Macs expecially for family members because seeing as I am always the one that gets stuck fixing computers when anything goes wrong I want everyone to get a Mac now so that I don't have to clean of viruses and spyware every few weeks (this is especially a problem with teenages). As things go on I'm trying to talk people into Macs as they are replacing old hardware, etc.
 
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T

TKEik683

Guest
I made the switch because i am quite knowledgable with windows based OS's and BSD/linux OS's. So i decided that it was time to try something new and my current laptop of the time was lacking.

I bought a g4 12" ibook with 768mb, i think it is the best money VS. performance laptop they make. I still have a couple PC's, my most used one is a 3400+ 64, 1gb corsair memory, BFG 6800GT oc. I still use my PC most of the time, but i sometimes find myself on my mac infront of my PC(as i am right now).

i use my ibook, for work, surfing web, music, photoshopping, not to intensive though...

i really had not used osX before buying my ibook, but i must say that i havent had many isses getting adjusted to it. It feels quite natural actually, maybe that is my expierence with linux though.

first impressions, wow its beautiful, **** battery doesnt line up though. Umm i like everything about it, thought it does **** ME OFF that quicktime, and imovie cant accept .wmv files. i really wanna try out iMovie but most of my files are in .wmv and i havent had the time to convert them to MPEG.

i wouldnt really call it a switch for me, but rather another toy that i am so happy with. I must say that i couldnt live with only owning a mac, BUT this thing impresses me everday and now i cant see living without a mac!!

hope this helps somewhat
dave
 
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J

Jason

Guest
Stefan T. said:
Hi all,

I really want to make the switch from PC to Mac, as my Windows ME (yes I know its crap) has failed me one too many times. Yet I am hesitant because I do not know what to expect in the change.

I'd apreciate if recent switchers from PC to Mac could tell me what where their impressions of it. If they could tell me:

-why the made the switch?
-what Mac they got and what PC they had
-what do they use the Mac for?
-Problems ajusting to OS
-first impressions
-Are you happy with the switch?


Also please add anything else that you have learned/experienced in switching from one and to the next.

Thank you all very much for your help,

Stefan
I haven't switched yet, but I'm buying a PowerBook in a couple days, so I'll answer what I can :D
1 - I'm wanting to try something new, plus I'm just bored with M$ products, tired of all the patches and holes (I'm a M$ technician).
2 - I'm getting a 12" PowerBook with SuperDrive
3 - I'll be using it for light video editing (home movies) and digital photography and some web design
4 - N/A
5 - First impressions after playing with a PowerBook at the store is that OSX is very sleek, seems to operate very smoothly and is very intuitive. I love the new touchpad!
6 - N/A but I'm quite sure I'll be very happy with it!
 
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M

meltbanana314

Guest
I'll bite.

1. On Windows (and Linux) I had to work on fixing/tweaking the computer more than actually getting to do work with it.

2. I had a crappy Compaq Presario 710US running Windows XP Home (and later Ubuntu Linux) - but now I have a brand new 12-inch PowerBook G4.

3. I use my PowerBook for basic computing/student tasks... researching things on the Internet, e-mail, IM conversations, writing reports, sync'ing with my iPod and I'm learning how to program in Ruby (I'm the master at "Hello, world!" :teen: )

4. I've had no problems adjusting to OS X except for the fact that it's too ****ed easy. On Windows I expect things to take a long time and to crash, and on Linux I expect a lot of stuff to be an ugly kludge that takes tweaking to work. On OS X, it's exactly the opposite. Now I have a lot more free time to spend learning new stuff instead of making stuff work.

5. I used OS X long before I got my PowerBook, so I can't really remember my "first" impression - but my impression of OS X automagically connecting to my 802.11g network at home on bootup was one of extreme overjoyment :mac:

6. Happy with the switch? Definitely. I wouldn't go back for any amount of money.
 
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Your Mac's Specs
MacBook | 1.83ghz | 2gb ram
-why the made the switch?
I'm studying graphic design so I got a mac.

-what Mac they got and what PC they had
I got an iMac G5, I previously had an eMachine PC running Windows XP.

-what do they use the Mac for?
Email, surfing the web, chatting to friends, listening to music and most importantly graphic work in photoshop and illustrator.

-Problems ajusting to OS
Absolutely none.

-first impressions
I really couldn't believe how much better and faster OS X and the iMac is to my PC. Just every single aspect, there's no use in pointing out specific things because it's everything.

-Are you happy with the switch?
Absolutely, I'll never buy a PC again (unless they somehow become good).
 
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I

i2oadi2unnei2

Guest
-why the made the switch?

I wanted to try something new. I've been wanting a Mac for nearly a year now and couldn't justify to buy one because I thought it was it was too expensive for just wanting to "play" with one, but boy was I wrong!

-what Mac they got and what PC they had

I bought a PowerBook G4 15" 1.33Ghz combo drive. Of course now there's a 1.5Ghz out and I'm tempted to go out and buy that one after just purchasing this PB a month ago <grin>. I currently own and "occasionally" use my Shuttle PC that's a 3Ghz, 1GB memory, 128MB video, 120GB HDD. I mostly use my PC to rip/burn DVDs and play games once in great while.

-what do they use the Mac for?

EVERYTHING... oh okay maybe not everything but I mostly use it for work and school. When I'm at home, I'm always in my living room using it on the sofa and my fiancee just loves the Mac because I'm rarely at the loft which I use to spend 80% of my time when I'm at home <grin>.

-Problems ajusting to OS

It took some time to adjust. But of course if you love working with computers, you'll learn OS X in no time <grin>.

-first impressions

Mac's are impressing me hour by hour of what it can do. The only problem I have is that I can't stop drooling over my PB lol.

-Are you happy with the switch?

Most definitely. This is the best move I've done in my life. I can't compare how I felt when I got my PB to when I first got my first PC.
 
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S

Stefan T.

Guest
Thank you all for sharing your experiences.

Please feel free, and i urge you to, add any other experiences that you've had, be it bad or good.

Thank you very much, hopefully I'll be able to experience it very soon as well.

Stefan
 
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Your Mac's Specs
Black Colorware PowerBook 1.67 GHz G4, 2 GB DDR2, 100GB 7200 RPM
I just switched over Christmas. I had a custom-built 1.6 GHz Athlon XP that always ran excellently for me. I never had a blue screen as long as it was my computer (It's had one since transfer of ownership to my mother). It always ran relatively fast, and had very few bugs in it. However, I just got tired of the way the system worked. The OS is not elegant in the way it operates at all. The processor is not tailored to handle certain complicated processes like graphics editing nearly as well as Macs do it. Each program on Windows XP had a different apperance and different GUI. It was like learning an entirely new system every time you got a new program. Additionally, you had to be one smart cookie and fight for your life against spyware and viruses if you wanted to keep it clean. I served my PC as much as it served me. Then, this December I got an iBook G4 14". Being a computer person in general, I dove right into OS X, head first. I do not regret it even one little bit. The biggest pain I have dealt with thus far is my CS:S obsessed friend who has insulted Macs and made fun of me for switching, and that's about it. Everything runs smoothly and beautifully in OS X that I have seen thus far. When you're worrying about problems with PC programs, the all-encompassing problem always seems to be "program/OS conflicts." It's like the techonological equivalent of 'the consumption.' In OS X you just don't have that. Most programs, with the exception of a select few badly done ports, run beautifully with the OS, and you can get Cocoa (proprietary, Mac-original) programs for most functions anyway. I just really enjoy using this computer. It's like driving around a car that's not only nice, gorgeous and fast, but the car does not break down, and fixes ITSELF.
 
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J

jessica

Guest
I have not switched yet either, but my powerbook will be here the day my check clears.
Anyway here:
-why the made the switch? I wanted a slim notebook that did a lot and had decent battery life.
-what Mac they got and what PC they had powerbook g4 15"
-what do they use the Mac for? internet, word, excel, powerpoint, (access if it lets me) photoshop, digital photography, film photography, digital painting (wacom).
-Problems ajusting to OS when i used one in 2001 for school the only thing i started to miss was a right mouse click. i got used to it later on.
-first impressions It is nice knowing that all that needs to run while it is on is the OS. My xp machine needs firewalls, anti-virus progs, and spyware finders.
-Are you happy with the switch? i will be once it's here.
 
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G4 1Ghz OS X 10.4.7
I will make this short and to the point. Mac OS X (and System X.x) share with Unix BSD and Linux a great thing! No asinine wintel registry! Norton is my *~Doonesbury~* window (haha) to the idiocy of that as an internet OS. Only the rare Linux kernel escalation to root issue puts Linux behind Mac OS X
 
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Your Mac's Specs
dual g4 1ghz
-tired of pc's ****ting the bed and not working properly
-dual 1ghz g4 powermac...had a fancy pc my cousin built me
-video editing, graphic design, and internet
-none, only thing thats weird right now is the mouse, i could use the one i had with my pc, but the apple mouse is so much better looking
-amazingly fast, everything fits together so perfectly
-heck yes, i wish i did it sooner
 
Joined
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Your Mac's Specs
20" G5 iMac; 14.1" G4 iBook; 60Gig iPod Video
1: I was sick of security/spyware issues; Love the 20" Cenima Screen; Love the general asthetics of all Mac products

2: 20" G5 iMac with AirPort, BT, Wireless Keyboard and Mouse, 160GB HDD, SuperDrive, and a Gig of RAM; had an Athlon XP 3200 system with a 120GB HDD, DVD-ROM, CD-RW, a Gig of RAM, and a 17" LCD Display

3: I primarily use my Mac for web browsing, but I also use it for word processing, music storeage, light video editing, and photo storeage/editing

4: No problems, but it did take me a while to get used the one button mouse and the theory of 'mounting' drives though I was somewhat familiar with that since I have dabled in linux. The hardest part was finding what to do with all the extra time not running updates, defragging, and searching for spyware ;)

5: I LOVE this thing. I've only had my Mac for about two weeks and I ain't looking back. I really wish I would have switched years ago. All of the processes I listed above are much faster on the G5 than my old Athlon of nearly twice the clock speed.

6: Again, I love this thing and really couldn't be happier. Assuming Apple doesn't really let itself go I will be a lifelong Apple user.

-Chris
 
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Your Mac's Specs
Aluminium Macbook 2.4 Ghz 4GB RAM, SSD 24" Samsung Display, iPhone 4, iPad 2
-why the made the switch?

I made the switch because my PC was getting long in the tooth and was approaching its usual 6 month format c:/ deadline that I couldn't be bothered with anymore

-what Mac they got and what PC they had
I got the 12" iBook as I wanted portability. I had a 866Mhz Pentium 3

-what do they use the Mac for?
Video editing, storing all my music/photos (cd's are now in the basement), web surfing, student stuff.

-Problems ajusting to OS
Initially I remember thinking: 'There must be more to it than this'. No start menu is weird to start with as under windows you're used to NOT accessing stuff through the file system - with OS X you're supposed to and everything is where you think it will be. I was almost underwhelmed by the simplicity at first - you think the good old days of endlessly tinkering with your system to get it the way you want are over.

Then I realized that I can now actually DO things with my computer, rather than just spend my time hacking/changing it. (although you can do that as well :))

-first impressions
Everything is so well thought through and nicely executed - perfect.

-Are you happy with the switch?
Definitely.
 
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D

dirtydog

Guest
Stefan T. said:
Hi all,

I really want to make the switch from PC to Mac, as my Windows ME (yes I know its crap) has failed me one too many times.

Do yourself a favour and try Windows XP first.. it is a million times better than Windows ME. If after trying it for a month you're still unhappy, then consider a Mac if you want.
 
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PowerMac G5 Dual 2GHz (June 2004), 2.5GB, Airport, black 5G iPod 30GB, white MacBook 2.0 2GB
dirtydog said:
Do yourself a favour and try Windows XP first.. it is a million times better than Windows ME. If after trying it for a month you're still unhappy, then consider a Mac if you want.

My advice:
Go to a shop where they sell both, Macs and PCs, and ply around a little with XP on the PC and OS X on the Mac...it's the best way to see the difference. If after 10 minutes you don't like OS X, get XP and forget about Mac.
Until now, everyone I know that ever played around with OS X is either getting a Mac soon, or at least considering it as next computer buy, once their PC gets outdated again.
 
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D

dirtydog

Guest
Avalon said:
My advice:
Go to a shop where they sell both, Macs and PCs, and ply around a little with XP on the PC and OS X on the Mac...it's the best way to see the difference. If after 10 minutes you don't like OS X, get XP and forget about Mac.
Until now, everyone I know that ever played around with OS X is either getting a Mac soon, or at least considering it as next computer buy, once their PC gets outdated again.

The trouble with that is that XP resembles ME in most ways (not necessarily a bad thing in itself imo, but..) and a 10 minute play on it would not demonstrate XP's infinitely better stability and performance compared to ME which is about as stable as a wobbly jelly.

Also getting XP would be cheaper than getting a whole Mac + OS X, albeit it's probably a moot point as if he's running ME he probably has a pretty old PC anyway which wouldn't run XP at its best. (XP has been out since 2001 of course.)
 
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S

Stefan T.

Guest
you guesseed right that my PC is old, I've tried XP, and I can't say it worked wellm thought it was on a PentiumIII 550mhz, 320MB pc100 RAm and a 32MB TNT2 graphics card. I'm mad at it because I've had to reformat C:/ 5 times in the last month or so, each time without warning so I've lost everything on it.

I think that trying out OS X before jumping to conclusions is a good idea, but like it was mentioned, trying it in a store will not demonstrate its stability, as it's not enough time and because I'd get kicked out of the store for messing things up.

Thank you all for your help on the issue, by all means please add your experience if you haven't done so already.

Stefan.
 
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D

dirtydog

Guest
Stefan T. said:
you guesseed right that my PC is old, I've tried XP, and I can't say it worked wellm thought it was on a PentiumIII 550mhz, 320MB pc100 RAm and a 32MB TNT2 graphics card. I'm mad at it because I've had to reformat C:/ 5 times in the last month or so, each time without warning so I've lost everything on it.

Maybe you should consider having the OS on its own partition, and your valuable data on another partition, so that reinstalling the OS doesn't mean you lose data. Also backup your data regularly if it's important. That goes for Windows as well as OS X or any other OS; hard drives can and do fail without any warning.

Windows XP - on a good hardware platform, with no faulty or unreliable components - and using all signed device drivers (WHQL approved) is as solid as a rock imho.
 

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