Iv'e finally taken the plunge

Well, after reading article after article, forum after forum, talking to person after person in any technological environment, i've finally picked up a MacBook Pro. I called almost every best buy within an hours radius from where I lived for a couple of days to find the one I wanted "open box," if you add the "on hold" time, I racked up about 6 hours on the phone. Finally! A Best Buy had the one I was almost looking for "open box" and it was for 1699.00+ tax originally 1999.99+ tax. It is a 15.4" 2.2GhZ i7 Quadcore, 16GB, 256GB SSD (which is unfortunately short of what I wanted but, with the money I saved I will just invest in a 1TB drive.) I also used a 150$ student discount they had going on which brought the total price after taxes to around 1670.00$ Woohoo!

I have never used a Mac before, whatsoever.. I have been using PC's since I was 12 years old (24 now) and honestly I am a little shocked by this thing but, I love the design, the sturdiness, it is quick and reacts very quickly but, it is definitely going to take some time to get used to. What I mean by used to is deeper than using the apps and easy functions, finding where everything is underneath the hood is what is going to take some time. On a PC I was able to find my way through anything with a blindfold. Every time I pull it out, I do find myself smiling at it for some strange reason, it is honestly just a beautiful machine but, I still have my skepticism. The price tag is a little high for my taste, I could afford it but, I have a hard time letting go of decently serious cash, I am guessing it is just my cheap side from when I was growing up. I am just afraid that this isn't going to be what everyone has talked about and I would have gotten better from a similar priced PC (if I could even find one discounted enough) but, I have 15 days with it for sure so, I am going to make the best out of it.

Any who, other than my endless rant, does anyone have any good literature or videos on how to dig deeper into a Mac? I have an iPhone so, I understand the apps and how everything on the dock works but, as far as a more in depth guide, do you all have anything?

Thanks!

P.S. I also love how the keyboard feels and the screen honestly just blows me away, I also love the autocorrect on spelling errors (spelling isn't my strong side.)

Have a read of this:
http://droppdf.com/v/i665z

It should tell you everything you ned to know.

Welcome to your new Mac. You will learn a lot as you use the machine, just like when you first started using Windows OS. The hard part is knowing not to compare it to Windows OS. People always say, it was easier on Windows, because they've used it for so long and are used to it. I have learned a lot by using this forum and other forums, even just reading articles thought the internet. Be patient, it'll come to you. Make sure you start a backup system for your important data and files.

Welcome to the Mac world. Sweet machine, I have almost the same one. I think you'll be very pleased with it.

As part of the migration from Windows, read the sticky thread you'll find here for switchers. Try to avoid the temptation to find out how to make it work like Windows and embrace the change. Don't bother with antivirus, there are no viruses for OS X free and no known vectors by which one can be created, so the AV software has nothing to scan for and no symptoms to look at. About all AV software can scan for right now is any Windows viruses that may be in your email. There is some malware, particularly hijackers of your browser, so Ghostery will block almost all, malwarebytes will remove any that get through. You also don't need a lot of maintenance software. About all we recommend is Onyx (get the right version for YOUR OS X). You leave the settings as the developer set them, run it once a quarter at the most.

You'll find that OS X "just works" and needs little effort from the user. For that reason, while intellectual curiosity may drive you to, "finding where everything is underneath the hood," you probably won't need that to just get things done. You get to DO things and not have to wrestle with the tools.

Finally, try to avoid the sites that host, or aggregate, software for OS X. Either get your software from the Mac App Store or from the developer site directly. The so-called "aggregators" tend to add crapware that you don't need or want to their downloads and then piggyback on your installation authority to install the crapware.

Other than that, it's all good.

As for manuals, look for the "Missing Manual" series for OS X (Your version). They are pretty good.

Welcome to the real world. You are in for a treat. If there's a file on your PC that you want, just drag it to your Mac in Finder. Your iPhone rings. Answer the call on your Mac. Ditto for text messages. Want to make a change to a Pages document? Do it on your phone, wherever you are and the change will be waiting for you when you get back to your Mac.

Just scratching the surface here. The MBP is awesome, especially at that price.

MacInWin said:

Welcome to the Mac world. Sweet machine, I have almost the same one. I think you'll be very pleased with it.

As part of the migration from Windows, read the sticky thread you'll find here for switchers. Try to avoid the temptation to find out how to make it work like Windows and embrace the change. Don't bother with antivirus, there are no viruses for OS X free and no known vectors by which one can be created, so the AV software has nothing to scan for and no symptoms to look at. About all AV software can scan for right now is any Windows viruses that may be in your email. There is some malware, particularly hijackers of your browser, so Ghostery will block almost all, malwarebytes will remove any that get through. You also don't need a lot of maintenance software. About all we recommend is Onyx (get the right version for YOUR OS X). You leave the settings as the developer set them, run it once a quarter at the most.

You'll find that OS X "just works" and needs little effort from the user. For that reason, while intellectual curiosity may drive you to, "finding where everything is underneath the hood," you probably won't need that to just get things done. You get to DO things and not have to wrestle with the tools.

Finally, try to avoid the sites that host, or aggregate, software for OS X. Either get your software from the Mac App Store or from the developer site directly. The so-called "aggregators" tend to add crapware that you don't need or want to their downloads and then piggyback on your installation authority to install the crapware.

Other than that, it's all good.

As for manuals, look for the "Missing Manual" series for OS X (Your version). They are pretty good.

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Thanks for all of the information fellas, as far as finding stuff underneath of the hood, I sort of need to learn. I am using this Mac and bought it primarily because I go to school for Computer Engineering and I plan on double majoring in Computer Science. I have already installed Windows on my Mac but, only because I will be using it often for class and some of the software is only on Windows. With that being said, I do not intend on only using the windows portion. I want to force myself to learn as much about the OS X side that I can, also I plan on playing league of legends occasionally and I have been told that it will run better on the windows side. All in all I have been finding it much easier to use and it is a lot cleaner than windows, I really enjoy the UI.

On another note, what mouse would you guys recommend? I know it may be a silly question but, is the Magic Mouse worth the cost compared to a cheaper one?

I wouldn't touch a mouse after using a trackpad. IMO the trackpad is definitely worth the cost. I intend buying a Mac Mini and will spec a trackpad.

KevinJS said:

Just scratching the surface here. The MBP is awesome, especially at that price.

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Yes, the price seemed.. too unreal? I wish it would have had a bigger flash drive but, I can always use the money I saved to upgrade. I was looking at https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/owc/macbook-pro-retina-display/2013-2014-2015 and was curious on opinions.. Do you guys think 1TB would be a bit of an overkill? I do not nor have I ever come close to filling a 1TB Drive.. I was thinking I would just grab the 480GB drive and if I do need extra space just grab an external drive. Opinions?

KevinJS said:

I wouldn't touch a mouse after using a trackpad. IMO the trackpad is definitely worth the cost. I intend buying a Mac Mini and will spec a trackpad.

Click to expand...

Hmm, I will have to look into one of those when I grab a monitor to set up a work station but, while mobile and with wanting to dabble on some games I should probably snag a mouse before a pad. I'll definitely be checking out some mac gear today! I need a case/cover for this guy before I even think about taking him around campus.

I like the freedom from wires of a Magic Mouse, but it's really a personal choice. Just get one that you know works well with OS X (most of them do). I use the trackpad, too, and find it handy, particularly when I travel. I don't take the mouse with me, just use the pad.

I liked using the Magic Mouse when I was using it with my iMac, but I also enjoy using a trackpad. I haven't tried the Apple Trackpad yet. I just purchase a bluetooth lighted mini keyboard so I could start using my monitor with my MBP again.

Kaleb, I think you would be fine with the 480GB drive. I guess it really depends on how much space you are going to need for your Boot Camp partition, when you're ready for the upgrade.

Also, did you get Apple Care with your MBP? It may be worth the investment to you.