Buying my 1st Mac and need lots of advice :)

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Hello everyone!

I am buying my first Mac and have many questions. I will appreciate your help!

First of all, I am buying: MacBook 13", 2.4 GHz, 4 GB.
Decided to wait with SSD...

1. Will I be able to upgrade my Mac to SSD later? Are HDD and SSD easily switched?

2. Does Apple Care help with upgrades? Btw, when they say that Apple Care "repairs", do they mean that they cover the full cost of repairing?

3. I am going to run Windows XP on my Mac using Boot Camp. I don't need parallel working with two OSs at the same time. My plan is to primarily work with Mac's OS. But I have one important software that wouldn't run on Mac...

- Am I right not wanting to use Parallel software?

...and this software may need an occasional access to the Internet.

- Would I need an antivirus for Windows?

I have cable internet at home, which means that I am online 24/7.

- Would I need an antivirus for Mac OS?

4. Is there any difference between Microsoft Office for Mac and Windows? Would you advice one over the other?

I will be happy to get any answers, covering all or single questions.
Thank you many times!
 
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I'm gonna answer what of these I can.
1. From everything I've heard, Mac will NOT open your computer up at a later date and switch your harddrive for you. To do that, you'd have to go to a third-party person... a local computer tech or something, and have them do it. Just so you know... SSD has its share of 'complications,' as well. Before buying my MacBook, I spoke to the guy at the mac store and asked if he recommended one type of harddrive above the other, and he explained the flaws that come with SSD as well, and said they come out about even as of now.

2. I kinda covered the first part of this question in my previous answer. But yes, apple will repair your machine for free. As long as the damage isn't physical... ie: if you step on your computer, apple doesn't owe you a new screen. But if you're using your computer one day and your logic board fails, they repair it for free. Or give you a new machine, depending.

3. I know nothing about parallel software. As for your antivirus questions... when you run windows through boot camp... From what I know, you will truly be running windows. This means that when you're booted up in windows, you're more or less using a PC. Therefore, your system is open to the same attacks as a regular Dell or any other PC. So yes, you'd probably want some antivirus software on your windows partition. As for your mac OS, that's up to you. When I got my iBook 4 years ago, it came with a free antivirus program. A year after I got it, they cut the antivirus program out and it no longer worked on my machine, because Mac said "our system is stable we don't need it." I haven't had one since, and no mac users I know have antivirus ware for their Mac OS. But that's a judgement call on your part.
 

cwa107


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Hello everyone!

I am buying my first Mac and have many questions. I will appreciate your help!

First of all, I am buying: MacBook 13", 2.4 GHz, 4 GB.
Decided to wait with SSD...

1. Will I be able to upgrade my Mac to SSD later? Are HDD and SSD easily switched?

Yes. The hard drive is user-upgradeable on the MacBook and MacBook Pro models. It should be an easy swap as the hard drive is located under the same panel the battery is installed within. SSDs are the same physical formfactor as notebook hard drives and use the same connection. It shouldn't be a big deal.

2. Does Apple Care help with upgrades? Btw, when they say that Apple Care "repairs", do they mean that they cover the full cost of repairing?

They do not. Apple Care is an extended warranty for manufacturer's defects. They also provide tech support for the operating system and Apple software.

3. I am going to run Windows XP on my Mac using Boot Camp. I don't need parallel working with two OSs at the same time. My plan is to primarily work with Mac's OS. But I have one important software that wouldn't run on Mac...

- Am I right not wanting to use Parallel software?

If it's just one application and you might need regular access to it, it would be quite a pain constantly rebooting into Windows for it. Parallels or VMWare Fusion (I recommend the latter) allow you to run Windows whenever you want, without having to reboot. There are several other advantages to doing it this way, which is covered in this FAQ.

...and this software may need an occasional access to the Internet.

Not a problem either way.

- Would I need an antivirus for Windows?

Windows is still susceptible to viruses regardless of how you run it. But it certainly is more contained and easier to recover from a virus with virtualization technology like Parallels/Fusion. Also, both of those products come with AV suites.

I have cable internet at home, which means that I am online 24/7.

- Would I need an antivirus for Mac OS?

No. As long as you are judicious about where you download your files from and when you enter your admin password, you really shouldn't have a problem.

4. Is there any difference between Microsoft Office for Mac and Windows? Would you advice one over the other?

Yes, there are significant differences in terms of user interface and capabilities. For example, the Mac version lacks Outlook and Access. Either way, every Mac comes with a demo of MS Office and Apple's own iWork. Additionally, you can try the free OpenOffice.org or NeoOffice (both different variations on the same software).

I will be happy to get any answers, covering all or single questions.
Thank you many times!

Do yourself a favor and set up a "personal shopper" appointment at an Apple Store. They'll spend an hour with you answering any questions you might have an showing you around the different Apple models that interest you. It's free / no obligation and well worth the time.
 
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HDD is under the same cover as the battery so its as easy to swap the hdd as it is the battery.

You wont need and anti virus for mac but will for windows

Yeah for best speed go with bootcamp

Apple care covers all repairs but not accidental damage... they wont help you with upgrades tho
 
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I had heard, though, that if you open your computer to do things such as take out a harddrive or replace ram on your own, it voids the warranty. is this true? So then (s)he (the person who started this thread) would have to either stick with the original HDD or pay apple to change it. But maybe I heard wrong?
 
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Phenom X3 720, Radeon 4870 1GB, 6GB DDR2-800, 32" LCD TV
I had heard, though, that if you open your computer to do things such as take out a harddrive or replace ram on your own, it voids the warranty. is this true? So then (s)he (the person who started this thread) would have to either stick with the original HDD or pay apple to change it. But maybe I heard wrong?

You heard wrong. It varies depending on which Mac you're talking about, but on the MacBook, both the RAM and the hard drive can be replaced without voiding the warranty.

The only thing is that if your new hard drive dies, it's not covered under Apple's warranty. You'd have to contact the original manufacturer of the hard drive. And if you break something during the installation, they won't cover it either. But if you install a new hard drive or RAM and then something unrelated breaks, you can still use your warranty.
 
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Thank you everyone for taking time to reply!
I am out of the country while my husband is trying to buy me a computer. Being not into computers, he runs to the store every day asking them questions, but always gets bad answers. One of two: either he asks wrong questions, or guys in the store do not know much. I'll need the computer for work immediately upon my return, otherwise I would prefer to go to the store myself.
Making the long story short, thank you for your help!!!
 
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anti virus

You wont need and anti virus for mac

I've wondered this myself. I've been a Mac user for years and had Norton only for about a year.

I know that there are far more risks with the Windows side but what about someone attempting to 'hack' into my Mac? Is that possible? (please pardon my ignorance on this issue) I knew a guy who was home on his computer one night very late he was able to detect a someone out on the street parked in a van that had a laptop trying to get into his computer. He went out and approached him and chased him away. Is that not possible on the Mac? If so, would not having anti virus leave you open to this intrusion?
 

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