How to become a Mac
Mon, 11/16/2009 - 6:02pm
So I am thinking of taking the plunge. My 10 year old Dell has served me well but the case is so warped it shorts out if I pick it up to put it in my lap.....! So I was going to go for a new Dell but I thought, maybe, just maybe I would try this fruit thing.... but I know that didn't work out so great for Adam and Eve... Hoping I fare better! Any recommendations on laptops? Anybody else taken the plunge and enjoyed/despised the choice? What do I need to be aware of? I do development work, but most of my open source apps have builds on Mac... I do use Adobe Elements on Windows, I have another machine setup for that, buuuuuut I always have Codex problems when working with some devices. Know how Mac handles Codex for video?
Mon, 11/16/2009 - 10:58pm
#2
Sweet...a possible new convert... :)
I made a good living working on PC's for about 12 years...but since switching (back) to Mac 6 months ago...I've not regretted it one bit.
I went with the 17" MacBook Pro. Sure, it's kinda big, but I work via wifi in a lot of spots and I really dig the screen real estate. I'm using Parallels for running Windows apps (which occurs less and less often thankfully).
If you make the plunge, go for at least 4GB of RAM, you'll be glad you did.
As far as software goes, most of my stuff is web & design oriented...but you mentioned using open source tools, so I don't think you'll have much trouble there since the underlying code is *nix based.
Jeff is right...don't go with the MacBook. You're experience will be much better on a MBPro....and I'd shocked if you didn't enjoy the switch to Mac.
Tue, 11/17/2009 - 10:45am
#3
Thanks for the feedback. I'm
Thanks for the feedback. I'm thinking right in the middle with a 15 inch. The 17 is nice but I don't know if I want to spend that much. Excuse the newb questions, but I can run WinXP OS through emulation on a Mac? I take it this is done just for those apps which can't be run natively on Tiger. So how slow do Windows apps run through emulation?
Tue, 11/17/2009 - 10:59am
#4
It's trivial to run XP in
It's trivial to run XP in emulation, and since Macs use Intel processors, the speed difference for most things is negligible - it feels solid, fast and smooth on a Mac, even if you're using Vista's crazy special effects. Many games and 3D apps even run well through emulation nowadays. Long gone are the days of the slow VirtualPC. Now it feels like your Mac is a PC. And a Mac :-)
Also, new Macs come with 10.6 'Snow Leopard' - Tiger was 10.4, an older version.
Tue, 11/17/2009 - 4:14pm
#5
I've never worked on hardware
I've never worked on hardware for a Mac. Is something like replacing a hard drive similar to a Windows based laptop? Also, on the MacBook Pro, what outputs are available for external monitors? I saw some review that said there was no S-video. I do hook up my Dell to the TV and a projector at times.
Tue, 11/17/2009 - 4:27pm
#6
Working on the *new* MacBooks
Working on the *new* MacBooks and MacBook Pros is a dream come true. 8 mini-phillips screws, and you get to see the whole thing - everything is accessible pretty easily (I changed out my laptop hard drive in about 10 minutes). Compare that to a few years ago, when it took me about 45 minutes to get to the hard drive in an old iBook, or in one of my Dad's IBM laptops.
Also, you can get adapters from the Mini DisplayPort to just about anything... natively, you can get Mini DisplayPort to DVI and VGA (with different flavors of DVI to boot), and you can adapt the VGA to S-Video using another adaptor. Most TVs nowadays have a VGA, DVI or HDMI in, though, so that would be the best solution.
Tue, 11/17/2009 - 7:10pm
#7
for clarification...
when you guys are referring to emulation...
Are you referring to running XP as a 'guest' OS while Mac OSX is the 'host'?
Or...
Are you referring to booting directly into XP ala Bootcamp?
In 'general'...booting directly into an OS directly like Bootcamp performs better than as a virtual/guest OS. Virtualization has come a LONG way though and both VMWare and Parallels offer cheap sw that work well.
I use Parallels and have been pretty happy with it...BUT...I wouldn't rely on running Photoshop or any CS4 suite product. Sure it'll run OK...but I need them to be snappy.
I've never used Bootcamp, but from what I've heard...it runs Windows faster than your typical Wintel machine with similar specs.
I guess if you heavily rely on compiling type apps, or something like AutoCAD....I wouldn't look forward to using them in a Windows virtual machine too much, but Bootcamp should be fine.
Wed, 11/18/2009 - 10:07am
#8
Thanks you guys, this is
Thanks you guys, this is great feedback! @catholicservant Since I'm not familiar with Macs, I'm interested in either a Bootcamp or a virtual OS so your comments are great!
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 4:43pm
#9
Another link to look at...
Matt...came across a link and thought of you...
http://sixrevisions.com/resources/helpful-tips-for-switching-to-the-mac-os/
Never heard of codex, but I would recommend the basic 13" MacBook Pro, plus a 20"+ external monitor. Make sure you get VMWare Fusion or Parallels so you can still run Windows XP/Vista/7 natively. Almost any app (yep, even Elements) runs almost swimmingly inside OSX with emulation (if you don't run the Mac version, that is!).
If you want a workhorse laptop that you won't be toting too much, get the 17" monster. If you want a blend between powerhouse and portability, get the 15". I wouldn't even consider the basic MacBook. Just not enough in terms of build quality for my liking.
Advancing the faith.