ibooks for new user...

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Minarets

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hey everyone!!
i am a new to the boards and have been searching for a place to get some real qulaity info--this seemed to be the place

anyway, i have been a PC user for life and am thinking of switching to macs...i am in college and am thinking of getting a laptop when i get out (next month). the ibooks have all my attention as of right now. the powerbooks look and sound real nice but i dont think they are practical for what i need it for...pretty much all i will be using it for is: music, word, web--the basics...i am hoping to make this my home computer too...i want somthing nice and small to not take up much room unlike my desktop now--but i am gonna plug some speakers up to it.

i was just wondering what you guys suggest. i want a good quality laptop with good speed and HD space

ibooks just look so nice and sound like they have everything i need/want. i have recently played around on OS X jag and it was nice--but any help/comments would be appreciated it

thanks guys
 
The iBook is ideal. It is light, smart and well built. And using an iBook feels good. They don't have the 3D gaming power of their bigger siblings (the 16mb video card is adaquete for the occassional gameplayer but would never satisfy a hard gamer) and they don't have the raw photoshop-smoking-video-crunching processor power of the G4s, but in Web, Word, Music, mail, messaging and so on it is delightfully nimble.

I'd suggest getting an extra 256mb of RAM if you can afford it. It really makes all the difference. I'd highly recommend getting the combo-drive model - it's worth every cent.

The 12" model is the better one - the 14" iBook has the same resolution but weighs more and doesn't look and feel quite as snug and handy. The 12" will happily slip in amongst your textbooks as you head off to a lecture.

As for hard drive space ... get the extra large hard drive if you can afford it. Expanding is expensive and inconvenient, and no matter what size you get there's a good chance you'll outgrow it in one or two years.
Oh, and the AV-out adapter is a must-have extra. :)

The only things the iBooks lack are in Infra red port (can be handy, but who really uses them?) and built-in bluetooth (though plugging in a Bluetooth adapter is easy).

When you first switch to Mac you'll find it all a bit strange ... the whole philosophy is completely different. It is vitally important that you come to forums like this and ask questions when you're starting out, especially before you run out and buy anything, or if you can't work out how to do something.

Be prepared to find that some of your gadgets, especially cheap-brand digital cameras, won't be supported. If in doubt, ask.

Oh, yeah, and you should probably be able to get a student discount price both on your Mac and on any software. For MS Office, this is a must, as the student discount is huge (or should I say, the regular price is feloniously huge, the student price is merely extortionate).

Umm, let us know what you're thinking ...
 
Well, in terms of basics, it sounds like an iBook would be just fine for what you're going to be doing.

iTunes is a wonderful music juke box, which will handle MP3, AAC (mp4), AIFF, and a whole lot of other things you may throw at it. It's compatible with most mainstream MP3 players, including the iPod.

Word- Necessary evil for the student. Works much like it's Windows counter-part, but is prettier on a Mac. Definitely go for the student discount.

Web- Plenty of web browsers for Mac, including Internet Explorer, Netscape, Mozilla, Camino, Apple's Safari, OmniWeb, and iCab. Which one you use is a matter of features you want, speed, and person preference/taste.

And, hopefully, being a Mac-user, you'll go beyond the "basics," and maybe become a movie director with Apple's free iMovie, or Final Cut.... or buy Photoshop or Illustrator and become an artist.... or buy a copy of Peak and record your guitar and singing/song-writing.... or.....

Well, you get the idea. Check out the categories of software at http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/ to see all the other neato things you can do with your Mac.
 
A Powerbook would definitely be quicker and snappier than an iBook, since it has a G4 processor vs. the G3 in the iBook, but you really won't notice the difference for basic applications like what you want to do.

Remember, adambyte, Microsoft will be dropping Internet Explorer as a standalone product, so browser options may become limited to the rest of what you listed (except maybe Netscape, for similar reasons).
 
The iBook's more than enough for the basics. In fact, I can only recommend the PowerBooks to people who actually need to do one (or more) of the following:

- DVD-R/DVD-RW
- Video processing
- 3D animation
- Games

If you can cross out the list, get an iBook. Not only, because they're cheaper, but also because they're more useable, meaning they don't get that hot and get you a bit more battery life. The 12" combo is certainly the best among the iBooks, both because of its features and its size. Not to forget the price, of course. The 14" makes sense only if your eyes are very, very bad and you can't draw the iBook nearer (but then you probably need a 17" iMac tuned to a very low resolution). :p
 
symphonix: the iBook has 32MB of VRAM, not 16 :)
If you are looking for long battery life, then go with the 14" iBook, it has just about the best battery life of anything on the market (3+ hours for me quite often.)
Make sure you get Airport for it though, that was the best purchase I ever made :)
 
sweet deal guys! thanks a lot for the help!

the only thing is i have been talking toi some mac users and they keep telling me that the G3 in a ibook will soon be obsolete. that the PB is the way to go even though it is sooo expensive. they say that even though the PB are expected to be updated here in the near future that the ibooks arn't, that the G4 is neccessary.

but again, this is why i am asking you guys--i really have no clue

this is a quote from a friend via a mesage board...let me know what ya think

"think about it, the G3 is such an old chip, what at least 5 years? i dont know. but it is very old, with the G4 almost becoming the 2nd rate processor at apple, you know the software, and the OS wont be built to handle the G3's anymore. especially the OS, it will all be built around the PPC 970's (hopefully). the only reason i brought up powerbooks with him is because if he is, or anyone, is buying a computer that they want to last, i personally dont think the iBooks will be able to keep up 2 or 3 years down the road. But, i have had mine for about 8 months, and i love it, it hasnt slowed down at all. the only problem i have with it is HD space. but that isnt a processor issue, so maybe i am wrong, i just think if something big happens on the 23rd, (WWDC) than the G3 might not be able to hold up. wow, sorry for that."
 
The g3 is fine for now....but it's like RAM, and hard drive space...figure out what you need, and then buy TWICE that. The G3 is perfectly serviceable for now, but how about in a year? how about in two? how about in 6 months, when you become interested in video editing, and all but require a g4? Buy yourself a 12 inch PB, it costs more, but it'll last you much longer than the ibook, and that pays for itself many times over.
 
The PowerBook is indeed more "future proof" than the iBook. It's more expensive, but you also get a lot: AltiVec, which is usefull for all kinds of stuff (like the GUI), standard more RAM and bigger HD, AirportExtreme & BlueTooth, the possibility to use an external monitor without mirroring (or hacking), etc.
I had an iBook and when deciding to get a new portable I was very long in doubt what to take: a fully loaded iBook or a minimum PowerBook? Then the 12" Powerbooks came out: as if they had made them for me! :) What a sweet thought! :D It's the perfect computer for me! A worthy desktop replacement (powerful) and also very good on the road (small & light).
 
I'm quite surprised Apple has kept the iBook at a G3 even until now. The G4 is obviously faster and better, and they are rather inexpensive right now, but Motorola still manufactures G3 chips for the iBook. Hopefully, if Apple indeed debuts the PPC 970, they will update the iBook with a G4 sometime in the near future.

If you think you might ever have the slightest possibility of going into one of the areas fryke listed, then you should invest in a Powerbook. If you never, ever are going to need a lot from your computer, the iBook is the way to go.
 
Originally posted by Minarets
hey everyone!!
i am a new to the boards and have been searching for a place to get some real qulaity info--this seemed to be the place

anyway, i have been a PC user for life and am thinking of switching to macs...i am in college and am thinking of getting a laptop when i get out (next month). the ibooks have all my attention as of right now. the powerbooks look and sound real nice but i dont think they are practical for what i need it for...pretty much all i will be using it for is: music, word, web--the basics...i am hoping to make this my home computer too...i want somthing nice and small to not take up much room unlike my desktop now--but i am gonna plug some speakers up to it.

i was just wondering what you guys suggest. i want a good quality laptop with good speed and HD space

ibooks just look so nice and sound like they have everything i need/want. i have recently played around on OS X jag and it was nice--but any help/comments would be appreciated it

thanks guys
Click to expand...

...let me say this:

WELCOME here and hopefully at the Mac Side of the Force too! :D ;)

Anyways, if money is not the problem you should go even for the "low end" 12" PowerBook...

BUT if money is THE problem you should go with the iBook... :rolleyes:

Of course the iBook is more than enough for the things you mention and to be more specific I would choose the 12" iBook :D

Enjoy! ;)

:)
 
Originally posted by hulkaros
...let me say this:

WELCOME here and hopefully at the Mac Side of the Force too! :D ;)

Anyways, if money is not the problem you should go even for the "low end" 12" PowerBook...

BUT if money is THE problem you should go with the iBook... :rolleyes:

Of course the iBook is more than enough for the things you mention and to be more specific I would choose the 12" iBook :D

Enjoy! ;)

:)
Click to expand...

thanks!

kinda anxious to get somthing soon, however right now money is an issue so it will be a couple months before i can afford either
 
To clear up some _major_ misconceptions about the G3 and the G4...

1) Ever since Jaguar, AltiVec doesn't speed up the GUI that much. Your graphics card does. (If you compare an iBook and a PowerBook side by side, you'll notice that the difference in GUI-speed is marginal at the maximum.)

2) The G3 'old', the G4 'new'? Both stem from the same core, the PowerPC 750, initially. Both have evolved. While the G4 has an AltiVec unit (or two), the G3 has not - but both have been developed over time. (And if Apple calls the PPC 970, 64bit computing, a new computer era, then the G4 will be as obsolete as the G3 quite soon. However: What does obsolete mean here? Panther will support G3 processors as well as G4 processors.)

3) AltiVec vs. Real Life... In real life, you (and the things you 'usually' do as described in your initial post) don't need an AltiVec engine. Because you don't use it. It speeds up certain enhanced code elements in certain applications, but for everything word processing, everything E-Mail and web-browsing etc.: You won't see a big difference between the chips. (Unless you count 'heat' as a big difference, which I do.)
 
Someone suggested adding 256MB of RAM. I'd say skip that and max the machine out by adding 512MB of RAM. These modules cost less than $100 US and are well worth it.
 
Yes, chabig. Max it out!
fryke: I actually saw a set of benchmarks which showed that in non Altivec enhanced applications, the G3 was actually slightly faster than the G4.
Future-proof? Blah... if we get 64 bit processors at WWDC, then both the G3 and the G4 are going to be obsolete before you can say "Apple".
 
fryke is right. you know they will just cut out the iMac g3, iBook Clamshell g3 and maybe a couple towers.
I use painter 7 and photoshop 7, it runs fine. I just need a better video card.
 
hello, to start off, I just want to say that I am also thinking about switching to the mac and since I am going back to my studies in a few months, I am thinking about getting the iBook but I needed some advice before getting it. Aside from the usual tasks that I'll be doing such as reports and using the net as well as the other stuffs that Minarets said, I would also need to do some programming and database systems. And eventually some web development too. So I guess what I wanted to know is if there is a way for me to do those stuff on a mac. And if the iBook will be powerful enough for such a task. I am thinking about getting the 14" iBook mostly because of the screen and it just cost a couple of hundred more than the 12". I guess it will be possible for me to use VirtualPC since I am using MS programming but will it runs smoothly on an iBook or PowerBook. Anddo any of you guys know whether the iBook is getting a G4 anytime soon? Maybe I could just get a iBook G4, if its cheaper.
 
Originally posted by Dee
hello, to start off, I just want to say that I am also thinking about switching to the mac and since I am going back to my studies in a few months, I am thinking about getting the iBook but I needed some advice before getting it. Aside from the usual tasks that I'll be doing such as reports and using the net as well as the other stuffs that Minarets said, I would also need to do some programming and database systems. And eventually some web development too. So I guess what I wanted to know is if there is a way for me to do those stuff on a mac. And if the iBook will be powerful enough for such a task. I am thinking about getting the 14" iBook mostly because of the screen and it just cost a couple of hundred more than the 12". I guess it will be possible for me to use VirtualPC since I am using MS programming but will it runs smoothly on an iBook or PowerBook. Anddo any of you guys know whether the iBook is getting a G4 anytime soon? Maybe I could just get a iBook G4, if its cheaper.
Click to expand...

i dont think they even have an G4 ibook--i think youll have to go with a powerbook for a G4, and from what i have gathered, to do what you want to do you may what to consider the powerbook. they have dropped 200 bucks right now --so now is the time to buy, unless you want to wait for a anticipated G5 powerbook, but not even sure if they have announced them as official yet
 
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