Advanced Windows User - New iMac

Hello,
I am an advanced windows user for a long time and finally bought my first iMac 24" 3.0Ghz 1TB. I am mainly going to be using the mac for photos editing in PS, movie editing, and DVD creations. Some of the questions i have:

1. I have a dedicated Windows FileServer (FS) with (4TB in Raid 10, 2TB readable) that holds all the data that i own ie. music, movies, pictures. I'd prefer to keep the files there since the server is already setup. Is there anyway can you add a permanent share on the mac? I still want the pics, movies to show up normally on the iLife software from the FS. Is this possible?

2. I have a couple of AppleTv's that stream music (wired) from the FS to couple of rooms in the house. Would I gain anything to use the itunes on the mac instead of the FS? I'd still prefer to keep the music on the FS if possible unless there are some significant advantages to be had by using the mac.

3. Dual Boot Software - What do you recommend for dual boot software, Parallels, Vmware Fusion, or is there anything else that is better? What should I be cautious about when using these types of software?

4. What other tips/tricks should i know to get use to the mac, i've read some posts regarding how to setup the mouse for right-click etc. Looking for tips like that.

Thank You in advance for your input.

Regards,

Shash703 said:

Hello,
I am an advanced windows user for a long time

Click to expand...

That and $.50 cents will get you a cup of bad coffee!

Welcome!

- Nick

Regarding virtual machine software, I've been using an iMac for just a few months and at the beginning I bought VMFusion to be able to run Windows for photo software (Photoshop, Essential HDR, etc.). That has worked perfectly - I keep Windows in a separate 'space' and just flick from one to the other as I need to - in fact, I think the programs run faster than they did on the Windows machine! I see posts about people install VMFusion or Parallels under Boot Camp and then have problems - don't bother: VMFusion installs happily without using Boot Camp.

Shash703 said:

Hello,
I am an advanced windows user for a long time and finally bought my first iMac 24" 3.0Ghz 1TB. I am mainly going to be using the mac for photos editing in PS, movie editing, and DVD creations. Some of the questions i have:

1. I have a dedicated Windows FileServer (FS) with (4TB in Raid 10, 2TB readable) that holds all the data that i own ie. music, movies, pictures. I'd prefer to keep the files there since the server is already setup. Is there anyway can you add a permanent share on the mac? I still want the pics, movies to show up normally on the iLife software from the FS. Is this possible?

Click to expand...

Yes. The easiest thing to do is to connect to the drive, then right-click on the drive and click "Make Alias". Add the Alias to your Login Items and it will reconnect each time you reboot your machine.

2. I have a couple of AppleTv's that stream music (wired) from the FS to couple of rooms in the house. Would I gain anything to use the itunes on the mac instead of the FS? I'd still prefer to keep the music on the FS if possible unless there are some significant advantages to be had by using the mac.

Click to expand...

In my opinion, no.

3. Dual Boot Software - What do you recommend for dual boot software, Parallels, Vmware Fusion, or is there anything else that is better? What should I be cautious about when using these types of software?

Click to expand...

Parallels and Fusion allow you to run Windows side-by-side with Mac OS X. Boot Camp (a feature in Leopard) preps your Mac to run Windows natively. In this way, you can dual-boot between OS X and Windows. More info here.

4. What other tips/tricks should i know to get use to the mac, i've read some posts regarding how to setup the mouse for right-click etc. Looking for tips like that.

Thank You in advance for your input.

Regards,

Click to expand...

Check out the Switcher's FAQ in the Switchers Forum (stickied at the top). Also, I'd recommend checking into Mac OS X Leopard: The Missing Manual.

3. Dual Boot Software - What do you recommend for dual boot software, Parallels, Vmware Fusion, or is there anything else that is better? What should I be cautious about when using these types of software?

Click to expand...

Buying extra software to run windows will depend on whether you need/want to run OSX and Windows at the same time.
Boot camp is free, but you will have to run either Win Or OSX.

Thanks

Thank You for your responses.

For the dual boot software, i am going to use the tool to run in conjunction with the macos.

More questions

So I am finally up and running and so far absolutely love the new iMac.

I am able to connect to my shares through the finder and was able to make an alias. But is there a way to add the share to the apps for example, iPhoto. I'd like to keep all the images in the share but just wanted to add the location in iPhoto and use everything as usual in the app (Kind of Add a folder in iTunes). Is that possible? Or do i have to import everything on the mac to use the apps properly.

Thanks