- Joined
- Nov 23, 2006
- Messages
- 15
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- Location
- Florence, SC
Hello! Just wanted to check in as a new user in the Mac world.
I gave up the tethers of a Win XP desktop for a Black Friday wireless laptop a couple of years ago, and have really enjoyed the freedom that comes with it - even just lounging around the house. However, I'd been getting tired of the constant updating, security issues, etc. that seem to plague the Win platform.
Last Summer, I dual-booted the aforementioned 15" Toshiba with SLED 10 Linux and had a mess around with that. There were a lot of things that I liked about it, but the learning curve looked to be quite steep for a newbie - not that it wouldn't be worth it over the long haul, mind you. But, as I could never find a way to sync my Treo 650, I turned towards the Apple arena.
Anyway, with the BF sales upon us, and as my ex-wife's laptop recently (and conveniently) gave up the ghost (same Toshiba model as mine), I took this opportunity to let her have mine for a song so that I could put the cash towards something from Cupertino.
I read all of the reviews, and did a lot of research here (congrats on an excellent site and membership, BTW) then drove the 2+ hours to the Apple Store in Charlotte, NC last Friday. I spent about 3 hours inside asking questions and getting short tutorials from the helpers, and generally playing around on the white MacBook and 17" iMac. If my budget would've extended to the MB Pro, I'd have been out of there sooner, but alas, 'twas not to be.
One thing that I want to say here, is that nothing prepares you for just how gorgeous these Macs actually look in the flesh (especially the white ones): functional home-interior sculpture, is how I would put it.
While I truly loved the tricked-out 17" iMac with it's large screen, I just couldn't pull the trigger and consign myself to more time behind a desk - 40 hours a week is enough! So, I plumped for the mid-range MacBook. I was going to get the base model and afterwards upgrade the RAM to 2GB, but I thought that the faster CPU, bigger HD, and DVD burner were worth the extra cash. Also, there was $101 off all Macs that day so it wasn't too bad, and I got to take my purchases straight home with me - although I gave 75% of the savings back in NC sales tax
So, here I am at home writing to you on my new MacBook from the comfort of my comfy, soft sofa. Niiiiiiiiiiice! Like others here have said before me, this notebook was an absolute breeze to set up, and I was wirelessly online within 15 minutes of powering on. Oh, and as my ex- took our colour laser printer with her, I also bought the 'matching' HP C3180 all-in-one at the Apple Store for $99.95 w/$100 MIR, so I got a free printer too!
Right now, I'm not experiencing any switcher-shock at all. The Mac seems to be really easy and intuitive to use, and I haven't run into anything that couldn't be done. I think that this is going to be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Thanks for listening,
Nigel
I gave up the tethers of a Win XP desktop for a Black Friday wireless laptop a couple of years ago, and have really enjoyed the freedom that comes with it - even just lounging around the house. However, I'd been getting tired of the constant updating, security issues, etc. that seem to plague the Win platform.
Last Summer, I dual-booted the aforementioned 15" Toshiba with SLED 10 Linux and had a mess around with that. There were a lot of things that I liked about it, but the learning curve looked to be quite steep for a newbie - not that it wouldn't be worth it over the long haul, mind you. But, as I could never find a way to sync my Treo 650, I turned towards the Apple arena.
Anyway, with the BF sales upon us, and as my ex-wife's laptop recently (and conveniently) gave up the ghost (same Toshiba model as mine), I took this opportunity to let her have mine for a song so that I could put the cash towards something from Cupertino.
I read all of the reviews, and did a lot of research here (congrats on an excellent site and membership, BTW) then drove the 2+ hours to the Apple Store in Charlotte, NC last Friday. I spent about 3 hours inside asking questions and getting short tutorials from the helpers, and generally playing around on the white MacBook and 17" iMac. If my budget would've extended to the MB Pro, I'd have been out of there sooner, but alas, 'twas not to be.
One thing that I want to say here, is that nothing prepares you for just how gorgeous these Macs actually look in the flesh (especially the white ones): functional home-interior sculpture, is how I would put it.
While I truly loved the tricked-out 17" iMac with it's large screen, I just couldn't pull the trigger and consign myself to more time behind a desk - 40 hours a week is enough! So, I plumped for the mid-range MacBook. I was going to get the base model and afterwards upgrade the RAM to 2GB, but I thought that the faster CPU, bigger HD, and DVD burner were worth the extra cash. Also, there was $101 off all Macs that day so it wasn't too bad, and I got to take my purchases straight home with me - although I gave 75% of the savings back in NC sales tax
So, here I am at home writing to you on my new MacBook from the comfort of my comfy, soft sofa. Niiiiiiiiiiice! Like others here have said before me, this notebook was an absolute breeze to set up, and I was wirelessly online within 15 minutes of powering on. Oh, and as my ex- took our colour laser printer with her, I also bought the 'matching' HP C3180 all-in-one at the Apple Store for $99.95 w/$100 MIR, so I got a free printer too!
Right now, I'm not experiencing any switcher-shock at all. The Mac seems to be really easy and intuitive to use, and I haven't run into anything that couldn't be done. I think that this is going to be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Thanks for listening,
Nigel
