just got a pb and have questions?

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okay so i got the 15 inch pb for college and like it a lot now after initially having buyers remorse due to the price (I had just returned a dell 8600 that was about 1850 whereas I paid 2450 for the pb).

So here are some questions I have.

1. I transferred my files from the pc using the ipod. Why don't .wmv files work well. Like they can only be the smallest size but if you enlarge them they get awful quality. On the pc they worked fine at full screen mode (a little grainy but not much). Also on the mac the .mpg and .mov files are fine enlarged.

2. What are the F7-F10 buttons? I thought they were for expose but they dont work they make this appear that looks like a sun with rays and it shows none full. I customized f11 and f12 to expose. Also F7 has like two boxes on it but it does nothing.

3. Which mouse is the best to use? I had a microsoft intellimouse explorer for the pc but it broke. Should I get one for mac and does it have software. Also wired or wireless or bluetooth??

4. It seems that the pb gets very hot at times usually when plugged in because of maximum performance i guess. Is that the reason? I downloaded that heat sensor software and it said 148 degrees farenheit at times. That seems a little too hot! i did buy a well rated stand called ilap that should help.

5. I have a wireless network in my house and it works wondefully and was extremely easy to get connected at first. However everytime I restart up the computer a window pops up saying it sees the network and gives the name we called it but it is not trusted or something. if you want to recognize it and allow it to start automatically click the checkmark and click yes. I do this but each time it still prompts me when booting.

I think thats about all for now that I can think of. Thanks in advance!
 
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pedXing

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What kind of router/network do you have? Are all the computers on the network macs or windows?
 
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if you hit function and f9 f10 or f11 it will do the expose stuff. Just hitting those keys by themselves do the keyboard illumination brightness. The Keyboard only lights up when it's dark though.

I'd suggest getting a wired mouse with 2-3 buttons. I can't stand not being able to right-click. I've never used bluetooth mice, but I've heard stories of them accidentally turning on in the bag and losing battery power.
 
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1. I transferred my files from the pc using the ipod. Why don't .wmv files work well. Like they can only be the smallest size but if you enlarge them they get awful quality. On the pc they worked fine at full screen mode (a little grainy but not much). Also on the mac the .mpg and .mov files are fine enlarged

what was your resolution on your pc....because on my mac had a bigger resolution thab my pc that can be one reason why it is so grainy

4. It seems that the pb gets very hot at times usually when plugged in because of maximum performance i guess. Is that the reason? I downloaded that heat sensor software and it said 148 degrees farenheit at times. That seems a little too hot! i did buy a well rated stand called ilap that should help.

if you use your pb at home i would say just use it without battery ....i do it like that and it doesnt get so hot.


sorry for my english ..its not so good but i hope it helps
 
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Cloudane

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I use a Microsoft Wheel Mouse Optical.... got an OEM version of it for about £10 (around $16?) and it works great. Regardless of what they may do in software, Microsoft make some excellent hardware in my opinion.
 
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tariq

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Logitech makes some great mice and their software is 100% Mac compatible. The one exception to that rule is their MX900 BlueTooth mouse which works, but some buttons can not be used.
 
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its just a wireless router smc i think is the brand. And there are two macs and one windows pc wireless connected. It doesn't do this on my mom's 8 month old imac. thanks for your info on the buttons but i wish the expose buttons were able to be used without holding down the function. I guess they didn't do it like that because if you were to accidentally hit it, the expose would be annoying. But I still can't figure out what f7 does because i will click it and nothing happens. F11 and 12 are customizable ones I presume?

Oh another question: when I may be typing I am guessing that i must accidentally touch the trackpad and thus the cursor moves. Did this happen to anyone else when getting adjusted to their pb?

Lastly any reccomendations on good books about mac osx. Like guidebooks explaining things?

Thanks alot for your answers thus far.
 
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F7 is for if you connect an external monitor to the laptop. it switches it to extended mode, mirror mode, or disable 2nd display.
 
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Icarus

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heh - silly me...always going into system settings...display...advanced...(or something similar)
 
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adam80

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1. I transferred my files from the pc using the ipod. Why don't .wmv files work well. Like they can only be the smallest size but if you enlarge them they get awful quality. On the pc they worked fine at full screen mode (a little grainy but not much). Also on the mac the .mpg and .mov files are fine enlarged.

Yeah, like someone said previously this is a resolution issue. With the resolution being higher on the Mac than on the PC.

3. Which mouse is the best to use? I had a microsoft intellimouse explorer for the pc but it broke. Should I get one for mac and does it have software. Also wired or wireless or bluetooth??

If the whole one button thing doesn't bother you, I'm a huge fan of the Apple bluetooth mouse. No cables and no unit to plug into the computer as in other wireless mouses out there. Just pull it out, slide the optical door on the bottom open, click a couple times with the mouse button to get the Mac to recognize it and away you go. Plus its sexy as all ****.

4. It seems that the pb gets very hot at times usually when plugged in because of maximum performance i guess. Is that the reason? I downloaded that heat sensor software and it said 148 degrees farenheit at times. That seems a little too hot! i did buy a well rated stand called ilap that should help.

This is completely normal. It is meant to do this. Apple made the Powerbooks out of Aluminum for a reason. Aluminum is a good conductor of heat and helps dissopate the heat through the case and out into the open (unlike most other laptops which are plastic and tend to hold the heat in, which can end up causing damage to the laptop).

5. I have a wireless network in my house and it works wondefully and was extremely easy to get connected at first. However everytime I restart up the computer a window pops up saying it sees the network and gives the name we called it but it is not trusted or something. if you want to recognize it and allow it to start automatically click the checkmark and click yes. I do this but each time it still prompts me when booting.

Hmmm...that's odd, I frequent alot of hotspots and when I encounter a new one it asks me if I should trust it but it usually dosen't ask me that again. The only thing I can think of is that the network settings changes slightly every so often so your Powerbook interprets this as a new network asking if you trust it.

Oh another question: when I may be typing I am guessing that i must accidentally touch the trackpad and thus the cursor moves. Did this happen to anyone else when getting adjusted to their pb?

Yeah I think thats something every laptop user has to get used to. I heard that the Sidetrack software works but simply getting used to the trackpad while typing shouldn't take you that long.

Lastly any reccomendations on good books about mac osx. Like guidebooks explaining things?

The best book hands down. (I assume you have Panther, but they have versions of the same book for previous os releases)

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...v=glance&s=books&n=507846?tag=macforums0e4-20
 
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thanks adam! great answers. Yeah I just bought a MS intellimouse explorer wireless. it works well. The scroll wheel is so smooth. I am laying in my bed right now and using the mouse, although for this situation I find that it's better to use the trackpad however, at a desk (like the pb will be in at college) the mouse is good. I also bought the iLap stand. Its nice and should help make the keyboard more like an angled one of a desktop. Thanks again!
 
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adam80

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terpfan said:
thanks adam! great answers. Yeah I just bought a MS intellimouse explorer wireless. it works well. The scroll wheel is so smooth. I am laying in my bed right now and using the mouse, although for this situation I find that it's better to use the trackpad however, at a desk (like the pb will be in at college) the mouse is good. I also bought the iLap stand. Its nice and should help make the keyboard more like an angled one of a desktop. Thanks again!

How do you like the iLap? I bought the iCurve for use at a desk. Another product I highly recommend. I was wanting to get some type of lap desk to use while sitting in bed or in a recliner to take help keep the PB cool.
 
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Joeytpg

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the problem with icurve is you have to use the pbook with an external keyboard...........otherwise it's gonna be REALLY difficul to type on the pbook keyboard
 
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its great. I bought it from ecost.com for 49. But I gotta return it and get a new one because this one was opened!!! They sent me one that was already opened must have been returned and I cared because it smelled bad, like had a fishy smell. Hopefully it was due to being open. But the new one is on the way and I will be returning the old one. It is nice though and can be used on the desk as well so that you can use it as the keyboard instead of a separate one. It's nice too.

I am going to return the MS mouse i think as it causes some programs to crash when I hit the scroll wheel (due to the horizontal scrolling). I read that this is because plenty of programs don't support horizontal scrolling, but if this is the case I don't want to deal with that. It's a shame because it feels so **** good. I think I am going to get a plan intelliexplorer non wireless. As it feels good. Any other suggestions? There aren't any two button bluetooth mice are there? I don't think I want a wireless one unless its BT. But then again what's the point of wireless if its just for at a desk? Aside from cord free, I don't think its that big of a deal. But I wouldn't want to waste my bluetooth.
 
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adam80

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Joeytpg said:
the problem with icurve is you have to use the pbook with an external keyboard...........otherwise it's gonna be REALLY difficul to type on the pbook keyboard

Is that not the point of the iCurve, to use it with a keyboard.
 
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yeah it is the point. But I like the keyboard on the pb so I think the ilap is sufficient, you can use it for both lap and desk use. It got the best ratings on some mac site were this guy reviewed stands for it. do a google search and you should find it. But yeah I guess you do need one for the lap. They sell different sized ones so you'd get the 12 inch widescreen one. It's nice, but I dunno if its worth spending that much for just being able to use it for the lap. Maybe you could sell the icurve and use ilap for both (you can use it with a keyboard).
 
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terpfan said:
1. I transferred my files from the pc using the ipod. Why don't .wmv files work well. Like they can only be the smallest size but if you enlarge them they get awful quality. On the pc they worked fine at full screen mode (a little grainy but not much). Also on the mac the .mpg and .mov files are fine enlarged.

Are you using WMP for Mac? Could be difference in the codec programming, but I haven't noticed a quality difference. Now I'll have to go check. Thanks a lot! ;)

2. What are the F7-F10 buttons? I thought they were for expose but they dont work they make this appear that looks like a sun with rays and it shows none full. I customized f11 and f12 to expose. Also F7 has like two boxes on it but it does nothing.

Have you turned on Expose in System Prefs? F7 might be for external monitor switching, I can't say. My PB's not in front of me.

3. Which mouse is the best to use? I had a microsoft intellimouse explorer for the pc but it broke. Should I get one for mac and does it have software. Also wired or wireless or bluetooth??

I haven't gone the Bluetooth mouse route yet, but a friend at work has one for his PB and he loves it. I need to get my hands on one.

4. It seems that the pb gets very hot at times usually when plugged in because of maximum performance i guess. Is that the reason? I downloaded that heat sensor software and it said 148 degrees farenheit at times. That seems a little too hot! i did buy a well rated stand called ilap that should help.

They do get hot. Processor temp + battery charging will make your legs sweat (read: burn) after a few minutes. I have a client that uses the stand that gives airflow beneath the PB, makes sense. He has a 17" model and it gets REAL hot.

5. I have a wireless network in my house and it works wondefully and was extremely easy to get connected at first. However everytime I restart up the computer a window pops up saying it sees the network and gives the name we called it but it is not trusted or something. if you want to recognize it and allow it to start automatically click the checkmark and click yes. I do this but each time it still prompts me when booting.

Are your Airport drivers up do date? Get the latest OS 10.3.5 update? I use WEP enabled wireless, and haven't seen this yet. Only when I join another network away from home, then turn my PB on at the house and it will come up (sometimes).

Enjoy your PB!
 

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