switch tons of software questions

[dropframe]

I am working on week three with my new 12" pb. I have almost all my questions solved but a few. I really am glad I took the chance to switch. OS 7 thru 9 where (IMHO) big piles of junk but OSX is so slick and smooth. I guarantee that over the next 2 years I will have 5-10 of the computers where I work switched over...the whole experience is so nice!

Anyway my questions: Answer what you guys can and I'll look else where for what noone knows. I am was a bit shocked at how little the mac users I know, know about macs! I have to look online to get some answers

1) Firewall: Does it block all my apps from going out without my permission? I loved zonealarm on my pc b/c not even internet explorer could get out without my permission. If not where can I get an all inclusive firewall to keep Steve Jobs out of my computer?

2) DRM: I heard I tunes will periodically erase your entire music library if multiple Ipods touch your mac. Is that true? Can it get prevented? Also I use a program called cdex on my pc to rip..no DRM that way. Can this be done on a mac? If I rip with Itunes can I copy the mp3's over to my pc? I want to maintain control of my music...I dont want Itunes to think it can erase/alter anything without my consent.

3) Games: are there any great laptop games for my pb? When I am in a meeting and its boring I would like to play a few games now and again. I cant really seem to find anything.

4) On my pc I play around with 2 media engines: One is www.clickteam.com called multimedia fusion and the other is www.3drad.com called 3d rad. Is there anything like this for mac? I really love multimedia fusion. Is there a multimedia program like that for mac that works on mac and pc?

5) Networking: I can go into print utlities and browse any network and find a networked printer and connect to it. WHen I open up network in chooser it shows me all the subgroups (work, mshome, etc) but when I click on them it says "please insert mshome and click on it when it appears on the desktop". However when I hit cmd K and type something like smb://server it mounts the server right away. This is working fine for home and work b/c I know all the computer names, but how do I browse the network in mac?

Thanks guys, any help would be great! I really love this computer and if I didnt just blow 8k on my editing computer I would have made it a mac also. Oh well thats what next years budget is for!

 

[Macman]

I am working on week three with my new 12" pb. I have almost all my questions solved but a few. I really am glad I took the chance to switch. OS 7 thru 9 where (IMHO) big piles of junk but OSX is so slick and smooth. I guarantee that over the next 2 years I will have 5-10 of the computers where I work switched over...the whole experience is so nice!

Anyway my questions: Answer what you guys can and I'll look else where for what noone knows. I am was a bit shocked at how little the mac users I know, know about macs! I have to look online to get some answers

1) Firewall: Does it block all my apps from going out without my permission? I loved zonealarm on my pc b/c not even internet explorer could get out without my permission. If not where can I get an all inclusive firewall to keep Steve Jobs out of my computer?

2) DRM: I heard I tunes will periodically erase your entire music library if multiple Ipods touch your mac. Is that true? Can it get prevented? Also I use a program called cdex on my pc to rip..no DRM that way. Can this be done on a mac? If I rip with Itunes can I copy the mp3's over to my pc? I want to maintain control of my music...I dont want Itunes to think it can erase/alter anything without my consent.

3) Games: are there any great laptop games for my pb? When I am in a meeting and its boring I would like to play a few games now and again. I cant really seem to find anything.

4) On my pc I play around with 2 media engines: One is www.clickteam.com called multimedia fusion and the other is www.3drad.com called 3d rad. Is there anything like this for mac? I really love multimedia fusion. Is there a multimedia program like that for mac that works on mac and pc?

5) Networking: I can go into print utlities and browse any network and find a networked printer and connect to it. WHen I open up network in chooser it shows me all the subgroups (work, mshome, etc) but when I click on them it says "please insert mshome and click on it when it appears on the desktop". However when I hit cmd K and type something like smb://server it mounts the server right away. This is working fine for home and work b/c I know all the computer names, but how do I browse the network in mac?

Thanks guys, any help would be great! I really love this computer and if I didnt just blow 8k on my editing computer I would have made it a mac also. Oh well thats what next years budget is for!

In answer to question 1, no it doesnt block all apps from getting out, you could try firewalk x, its great.

question 2, this happens sometimes, not always, but enough not to wanna chance it, avoid this by using manual update mode on the ipod, where you drag and drop the songs you want on the ipod, and can remove songs from your itunes lib/mac if you want. if you rip with itunes, use itunes for windows to manage music onto your pc, or rip using toast or jam.
question 3: there are tons of great games, some free, some not, try aspyr or freeverse.com
question 4, Im not sure, Ive never used those apps, what sort of media do they fuse?
question 5, not too sure what oure looking 4 here, but if you add a server to your favorite servers list, you dont need to remember the addresses.

I just realized you might be in classic, os earlier than 10.x.x when you mentioned chooser, what os are you on?

 

[m1k]

3) Games: are there any great laptop games for my pb? When I am in a meeting and its boring I would like to play a few games now and again. I cant really seem to find anything.

Battlefield 1942, Call of Duty and Unreal Tournament 2k4 are all excellent games. They run VERY smoothly on my PowerBook 12", but you need at least 512MB RAM.


Sorry, I can't really help you with the other questions as I don't know a lot about them.

 

[dropframe]

Thanks, I'll go look for a cd ripping system and a new firewall. I want to know what my programs are doing

Multimedia Fusion and 3drad are game engines for non-programmers. You just add the elements in and the computer does the programming for you . Ok its not that simple but thats the ideal. I use Multimedia Fusion as a Macromedia Director replacement. Its a TON easier. I do to much multimedia stuff to take the time to learn Director.

The network question might have been worded weird. In windows there is something called Network Neighbor hood. I can browse a network and see all the computers. With MAC it only gives me the workgroups on the network, not the actual computers on the network. I need to figure out what the computer names on the network is so I can add them to my computer.

 

[Macman]

so what OS are you running? if its os x, in the finder, click go and then connect to server,
hit browse, then in the window that appears, select network from the sidebar, if its not there, navigate to it, though it should open right up in the network folder, double click servers, unless the server you want is already in that window, and thats it. by double clicking on servbers, you should get a window with servers connected over the network.
as far as remembering the address, refer to the second half of the screenshot.:mac:

 

[witeshark]

The Mac firewall proves to be just great as tested on Sheilds up So I see no need to use space for another

 

[Macman]

true, no need for unneccessary apps taking up space or cluttering your system.

 

[Aptmunich]

"2) DRM: I heard I tunes will periodically erase your entire music library if multiple Ipods touch your mac. Is that true? Can it get prevented? Also I use a program called cdex on my pc to rip..no DRM that way. Can this be done on a mac? If I rip with Itunes can I copy the mp3's over to my pc? I want to maintain control of my music...I dont want Itunes to think it can erase/alter anything without my consent.
"

Well iTunes actually ignores most copy protection systems when it rips CD's, it's only the Music Store stuff that has drm.

As for erasing your library: It won't do that, ever.
But if you have it configured to update a connected iPod automatically with your library contents, it will erase the songs on an iPod and replace them with YOUR library. But it asks you first, so just click no and nothing happens...

iTunes is a great ripper, never has problems with copy protection that other apps have and can encode to mp3 aac apple lossless etc...

Give it a whirl!

Careful though: By default I believe it is setup to organise your music in its own folder, i.e. it copies tracks you add to the library into a library folder and organises them there by folder based on your id3 tags. (folder 'beatles'->folder 'abbey road' -> abbey road mp3s....)

If you don't want it to do that, change the settings in preferences...

 

[Macman]

"2)
Well iTunes actually ignores most copy protection systems when it rips CD's, it's only the Music Store stuff that has drm.

theres actually software that breaks itms protection and frees your music, I think the project has een shut down by apple, but some of us luckily got the software before it was pulled.

 

[hype.it]

theres actually software that breaks itms protection and frees your music, I think the project has een shut down by apple, but some of us luckily got the software before it was pulled.

Here's one... http://www.ipodaccess.com/ipodaccess/index.html

 

[Macman]

Here's one... http://www.ipodaccess.com/ipodaccess/index.html

that software is ok I guess, though there are many apps for taking songs from ipod to mac, the software Im referring to releases the protection apple puts on its tracks that only allow so many burnings, only on so many ipods, so many computers, etc.

 

[dropframe]

Well I'll give itunes ripping a try. I just want to know that in 5 years if I go to any other platform, I wont be losing my music b/c it somehow became macified! I wont buy from apple music b/c I want a physical disc. I hate it when you buy software online that you have to register with them to run the software. That is why I left XP. Its not a question of piracy its a question of I want to own what I buy. I think there is nothing worse then giving your money to someone and only getting data back that you cant use however you want.

Networking is still wrong by your examples. If you click browse it opens the network section in chooser. It then shows all the workgroups but not the computers. If you select a workgroup like mshome to browse into it to see the computer it says this: "Please insert volume MSHOME and wait for it to appear on the desktop"

That doesnt seem to work for me Any other choices for network browsing?

 

[Macman]

that software is ok I guess, though there are many apps for taking songs from ipod to mac, the software Im referring to releases the protection apple puts on its tracks that only allow so many burnings, only on so many ipods, so many computers, etc.

as far as owning your music, you can use the software I mention in this earlier post that frees your ITMS purchased music so you can burn it as many times as you want, convert it, put on any ipods you want, as many computers as you want, etc, and not e restricted by the limits apple builds into its tracks.
as for the networking, try a few of these:
smb browse
volume mounter
from what I can think of, you may be able to access servers on a network without remounting them and logging in or anything and have direct access as if they were a folder or something if you make the server have no password. like for mshome, set it not to require a password