Someone please educate me....

kevshore

kevshore

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Kevin
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I'm considering getting one of these: http://store.apple.com/uk/configure/MB604B/A?mco=MzA3MTEzMw

Now I've ALWAYS been a pc bloke and have no experience apple at all. I'm going to probably sound a prat now, but will I have to replace all of my present software with apple equivelents? Are the machines reliable? I need somone with some knowledge of them to educate me as to why its the right move. :shrug:


Thanks

Kev.

p.s what spec would you recommend? (mainly photo editing.)
 
reliability??

Well i think that other laptops (dell / tosh / hp etc etc) are just as reliable hardware wise. However..... the OS is a lot more stable on apples and does not crash (unlike the M$ OS's)
 
Afraid so mate, all of your software will be redundant and you will need to obtain Mac alternatives.
Im no expert on this but I wouldnt have thought the likes of Adobe would allow you to swap your license over to a Mac version of the software without any costs.

I have used both Mac and PC exstensively for many years now and the only thing I can say about a Mac is that it simply works.... The amount of time spent messing about with my PC to get things to work and update settings etc then restart is far too much for my liking, yet when I had a Mac it did what I wanted it to do and when I wanted to do it.
This is the main reason I have decided to sod work off and go back to Mac. I had to go back to PC so I could use certain software at home etc but what I am going to do is just keep a laptop here for when I need to do work stuff and the Mac will be my main computer for my photo editing etc.
 
as regards spec, if you have the budget max it out - otherwise the default is good.
 
also for that budget you could get a bloody decent spec desktop and a great screen which would be far better than the 17" on the notebook...Just worth a thought if your not tied to using a laptop
 
In my experience, reliability wise, the apple machines are actually more reliable, and that's just the hardware.
Spec wise, any current mac will happily do photo editing, the macbook pro will fly through it.
 
Thanks for the replies everyone. I must have been lucky over the years then, because I can't honestly say I've had 'loads' of problems with windows. (I'm still on XP)
I'll do a bit more research. Don't fancy having to replace all of my software really.

Thanks again

Kev.
 
What software do you need to replace?

There are some good open source programmes out there like:

MS Office: Open Office or Neo Office
Photoshop: The Gimp
IE7: Firefox 3 (works great on a MAC)

A computer IT friend told me that he can get MAC versions of just about anything but Outlook he said was the one prog he can't replace as nothing comes close....for him.

I am ditching my Windows machine in favour of a MAC. It's not that i have a bad computer, in fact it's been spot on! It's just that i want a MAC and have for years. I had a bad experience recently with a MAC Mini but since i sent it back i have found out the reasons why it wasn't working out for me so now I'm sorted on that front I'm going to get back in the saddle and buy another MAC.

Trouble is which one. It's either another Mac Mini but I'll upgrade the Ram to 4Gb and keep my 22" Samsung screen or go for an iMac. Decisions, decisions......:thinking:
 
I received my new 17" MacBook Pro about 2 weeks ago now. Love it. Fast, sexy screen, and doesn't make any noise.

As for applications ...

If you use this for home and personal use, then M$ Office 2008 is just under £80 from Amazon. Lightroom comes with both Mac and Windows license. Photoshop, I am sure Adobe will transfer your license and send you the replacement CDs (if you're on the latest version).

As for which model to get. Get the basic model from Apple. The speed difference between 2.66GHz vs. 2.9GHZ is not worth the extra £200.

You may want to get the matt-screen instead of the "standard" glossy screen. Personally, I opted for the glossy, but have ordered another one that's matt. Matt screens take longer to deliver.

Do not get the 8GB RAM and do not pay for the 256GB SSD. You can buy 3rd party RAM and SSD for a lot less.

Hope this helps.
 
About IE, I've not used it for a long time. Even when I was using Windows, I would use FireFox (FF) and have done the same with Mac. Now, with the new 17" MBP I am using Opera, which is supposed to be a lot faster :shrug:
 
You're right about the Photoshop licence thing. They should de register you PC version and post you the Mac version.

There is a new versin of Safari that looks like iTunes, Worth a look on the Apple site as it looks very cool!
 
Chillimonster said:
However..... the OS is a lot more stable on apples and does not crash (unlike the M$ OS's)
Click to expand...

oh my god.

spinning beachball of death anyone? try supporting a whole floor full of macs and see how accurate that statement is lol.

and to top this mini rant off to quote our design studio manager (avid mac fan) "anyone who says macs dont crash is a liar". they can and do.
 
Ahh but a spinning beach ball is much nicer looking than the blue screen of death :LOL:
 
AndyWest said:
Ahh but a spinning beach ball is much nicer looking than the blue screen of death :LOL:
Click to expand...

cant remember the last time i saw a BSOD on XP/vista to be honest..

anyway my point was dont get sucked into the whole "oh macs never crash,theyre rock solid stable" fanboyism (for the want of a less offensive word).

dont get me wrong i like macs before someone calls me a windows fanboy, at the end of the day use what youre comfortable with just dont get sucked in by the hype.
 
Just to put another angle on the OP query..

I've seen some mac's running some form of windows, either in dual boot or in a VM program., couldn't you continue to use your windows software that way? I don't it doesn't take away from the whole mac experience, but you get the best of both worlds.
 
As far as I was aware, if you have legitimate licenses for your Windows applications such as Photoshop, Lightroom, MS Office... you are able to remove them from the PC and reinstall them on OSx as long as you have the OSx version of the software. If you don't, you could always contact the software vendors and ask them to provide you with the OSx equivalent...?
 
With VMWare, Bootcamp and/or Parallels you'll be able to run your Windows software, as long as you have the install discs.
 
KayJay said:
With VMWare, Bootcamp and/or Parallels you'll be able to run your Windows software, as long as you have the install discs.
Click to expand...


.... and you need the full Windows to install too!

Some people, often new to Macs, wonder if they can run Windows software on Macs, but neglect to realise that they need to have / buy the full legal copy of Windows. Something that can add a substantial price premium, as Windows machines come with Windows as part of the whole selling package.
 
Wail said:
.... and you need the full Windows to install too!

Some people, often new to Macs, wonder if they can run Windows software on Macs, but neglect to realise that they need to have / buy the full legal copy of Windows. Something that can add a substantial price premium, as Windows machines come with Windows as part of the whole selling package.
Click to expand...

Ah.. i see what you mean..

so the "pre-installed" versions of windows won't work. If I was to go down the MAC route I would need to buy a full copy of Windows, with discs etc.
 
madferrit said:
Ah.. i see what you mean..

so the "pre-installed" versions of windows won't work. If I was to go down the MAC route I would need to buy a full copy of Windows, with discs etc.
Click to expand...

from a legal stand point no. generally windows that comes with a prebuilt machine is OEM and not transferable (barring a few exceptions). however the actuall install should still work providing you have a valid key, activation may throw up some issues.
 
The OEM is machine specific - based on hardware - if you install it on parallels it won't due to the difference in hardware.
 
madferrit said:
Ah.. i see what you mean..

so the "pre-installed" versions of windows won't work. If I was to go down the MAC route I would need to buy a full copy of Windows, with discs etc.
Click to expand...

Exactly! Sorry if this puts a barier to your migration :|



neil_g said:
from a legal stand point no. generally windows that comes with a prebuilt machine is OEM and not transferable (barring a few exceptions). however the actuall install should still work providing you have a valid key, activation may throw up some issues.
Click to expand...


Exactly!

But what you've just given instructions to is illegal!

Tried and tested, may be great for the confines of home quarters; but to openly advocate it is :nono::nono::nono:
 
neil_g said:
for testing yes, never took it through activation and removed it after 2 days though.
Click to expand...

Well, glad to hear you removed it, I can say that I thought it's wasn't and shouldn't be possible.
 
how much is XP home these days?
 
I am sure we've all pushed the limits of the laws with various test, plays, games, etc. So long that it is done in the confines of home, and not being advocated ... I guess it's safe to say that's where it stays.



Kev,

You may be able to find someone who is happy to sell an unneeded full & legal version of Windows, if you so much need to use that.

When I migrated to Mac, I made it a rule that no one in my house-hold would be using Windows again. There were some grumpy looks, and a couple of discussions on the matter; but it's been a good 18 months now and everyone is so happy with not having to put-up with Windows.

It's just the migration process, and finding the suitable alternative to commonly used applications etc., that get to people. Once you get past that, all is fine and dandy :)
 
yeah, i think it's a pretty easy migration if you know what software to look for to help you along the way - unfortunately not for everyone.

Did you manage to find all alternative software to still use MS file formats?
 
Crazy, if you ask me.


Kev.,

If you are serious about wanting / needing Windows on your Mac, I can probably dig-out an original full and unused Windows XP from Saudi. I have a number of friends in the IT business over there, I am sure they may have one, or more, sitting idle hoping to sell or dump on to some poor soul!
 
Many thanks again guys. especially Wail. The jury is still out at the moment. Really cant decide. My present laptop is working fine. But saw a Mac laptop yesterday and thought 'wow'!
I'll have a think over the weekend....


Kev.
 
ah, you didn't mention volume licensing before - thought you just meant single user licence OEM
 
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