Mac newbie (almost) requests advice

G

garyread

Registered
this is my first post to this forum. I am about to buy my first Mac having used PCs for years. Naturally it is a big change for me and I am looking for help and maybe some resources to help me along. I have never used a Mac so I would guess that things will be unfamiliar to start with. I am keeping my PC to act as a server at home and going to buy a Macbook and a new iPod video (as soon as my salary is in!). I am very excited about this new phase in my computing life.

One specific question I have is what peripherals should I buy? I will be using the Mac at home for the bulk of the time so it would be nice to have a keyboard and mouse, a carry case and whatever else you can think of. I have a budget of £1500 so by the time I buy the Macbook and the iPod I should have around £300 (approx $500) left.

Many thanks,

Gary
 
Well i would say it depends on what you do?

I have two power adoptors and find that great.
I have a wireless router (handy for at home, laptop in any room).
I have a backpack wit ha laptop section. Handy to take more than just my laptop out.
What software would you use? M$ office Mac? Photoshop? MYOB? they all cost.
I also use an external HDD (firewire 800) to back up my laptops on all the time. But you have a server too, (I back up my server on th FWHDD's also).
A second display to dual displays is handy.
iPod gear? car kit, audio kit, external speakers (for both?)


I guess it depends on what you will do mostly?
Work, Play, Games?


Good luck, you will never regret it, and never go back.

(Dump windows and install linux on your old box!)
 
Ram, Macs come with only basic ram. Spend on extras what you can afford.
Hint:..Mac software can cost a lot more than the hardware..but,Don't let that put you off.

An external drive, firewire if you can afford it, usb2 would be fine for Back up or cloning you hard drive.

Do you have broadband?, if you have fine, you may have to replace the modem ( drivers issue), If you don't get broadband, buy a wireless router, Draytek are fantastic, rock solid...

Above all don't worry, we are here to help..

Trooper
 
Gary,

I agree with the other posters. I would say:

1. Get at least 1 gig of memory

2. Extrernal hard drive. This way you don't loose all that music, although if you have a server you could probably just backup files there. I have been happy with Lacie HDs.

3. An Airport Express with iTunes. I bought one and its sweet- you can play music on your home stereo wirelessly. It can also be a router i think but with basic functionality.

Good luck.
 
On the RAM, its often cheaper to get the minimum from Apple then buy some from someone like crucial and get it fitted. You'll certainbyl want more than the minimum anyway.

I really favor Crumpler bags (widely availabe these days, and my 5 year old one looks brand new despite daily use).

Most of your PC peripherals should also work, though some need different software. I recommend USB overdrive for getting input devices to work. Most HDs will eb fine, as will hubs etc, routers etc.

I like Apple keyboards a lot (and you want a keyboard made for a Mac with the apple key etc), but I'd skip their mice if you are used to PC style multi-button goodness. I like logitech optical and laser mice, and I prefer corded ones most of the time though its cos runnign out of power irritates me so much.

Airport comes built in and if you have a wired/wireless router/adsl modem it will work (but USB modems often don't). If you only have a wired router and plan on playing back music from you mac (which i do, i've almost dumped CD) then an airport express is fun as you can plug your stereo and printer into and and send to them wirelessly as well as using it as a wireless access to your adsl.

I also have an external DVD burner as I think the internal slot loading burners have a shorter life-span than externals, and my external writer is a lot faster, but this isn't necessary.

If you want other specific items I'm sure we'd all be happy to give suggestions, as Rough Trooper said, we're here to help.

Good luck!
 
Everything that everyone said it great. The external drive is a great investment. I have a PB 15, and there is not way I would get all my music on my internal HD.
After you initially purchase the software you need, you will be smooth sailing.
 
Wow - thank you for your answers! I feel at home already.

I'm keeping my PC to act as a server, it is hooked up to a Wireless Router (I have cable). I have three 200GB hard disks installed there and a 200GB external drive so that should be more than enough.

Unfortunately, I don't have an Apple Store within 100 miles so I'll be buying the machine from an Electrical retailer here in South Wales and I'll order all my peripherals online. I take the point about the Apple keyboard but quite liked the look the new mouse from Apple, does anyone have any thoughts on that?

My software requirements are MS Office (I really need to read/write Word/Excel/Access/Powerpoint files for my job). I use Photoshop CS2 on the PC but that would be a big investment for me. I saw a preview of Aperture online and it looks fantastic (I take lots of images and have a Canon D20). I would really like that unless anyone thinks otherwise? How about Photoshop Elements?

My only worry is the RAM - I'm quite proficient and can take a PC apart. Is installing a new stick of RAM fairly straightforward?

I wish I knew someone with a Mac or there was a store nearby; I'm just a bit concerned that I won't get on with the interface and so on.

Anyway, enough rambling - thanks again averyone.

Gary
 
Damn, that is easy :)

On the interface, no worries, you can always ask us folks. You should check buying online from http://www.apple.com/ukstore/ as the prices tend to be very similar and you can customize the macbook a bit (HD, ram adapters, applecare extended service etc).

From the sound of it you can just use your wireless network no problems. Depending on what format they are in, you can mount your external drives on your mac over the network on way or another.

Sounds like you need a bag, apple keyboard, if you want the apple mouse i think you can get that and the keyboard as a single item. From the price it looks liek you are getting the black macbnook? If so it has plenty of hd etc. I woudl wait a little while though as there is a story here that they are updatign the macbooks a little, and you will want the new ione which may have soem of the small early bugs fixed. Also, its a reason to buy online or over the phone from apple, as your local retailer will likely still be selling the old ones for a while. WHen apple update they even update people's in progress orders for free a fair bit of the time.

If you have an old monitor spare you might want to connect it to the macbook in which case you need the vga or dvi adapter depending on your monitor (its only 15 quid).

Software wise, you'll need to buy a copy of office i guess, if you are a student there are discounts though (and for the macbook). Photowise, iphoto is ok for basic cataloguing, and removing redeye. For real photo stuff you will want a bit more though to go with your nice 20D. I have CS2 so, but haven't used elements, will leave that for others to comment on. That said, the mac software that came with my Nikon D50 wasn't and, so see what you got free with your camera. There is always teh free option though, the gimp or gimp.app which is the same but a lot easier to install. Its a port of a free linux photoshop equivalent. I haven't sued it myself but it seems very popular. For gimp.app you seem just have to install an extra called X11 when you install OSX then download the application. Given its free you may as well try it at least.

Beyond that, i think you're set. With laptops i tend to use the original battery till its capacity is shot a few years down the line, then buy a second and use the old one when plugged in at home, the other when unplugged.
 
actually, although it has almost become apple dogma to boycott apple's own ram, their current prices seem to be very realistic for some reason. it's well worth actually buying their ram at the moment, and also, you'll never have to go through the heartache of discarding the old ram ('but it must be useful for something!')

if you do go for third party, always go either Crucial or Kensington.
 
I just got a MacBook Pro and believe it or not :D the thing is pretty darn hot, especially if I use it on my lap. To combat the heat, I just picked up an iLap. Now, I didn't get the iLap for commuting or travel or anything of the like. I got it for use at home and I must say that it is really a great product. It totally keeps the heat away from your body, is extremely comfortable, and positions the keyboard for comfortable use. I know a lot of other guys like to get those USB slabs with built in fans, etc, but I detest fan noise so I didn't go that route.

FYI MS Office for the Mac comes sans Access. I don't really know of a good Access replacement since I don't use it. But MS won't be supplying it.

As far as getting on with the interface, just ask us lots of questions... My biggest advice is to completely forget how to use your PC when you get on the Mac. If you try to use your Mac like a PC, you'll be in a world of frustration. Don't be afriad to try things and explore drag and drop!
 
i dont think macbook will get as hot as macbook pro, cus the aluminium gets hoter than plastic. Welcome to mac, what u really need is a good case in my opinion, i hate when my lap top gets scratchs!!!
The cs2 suite i call it a must in my opinion, and ms office there is a student edtion that is pretty cheap and has the same things.

Bout Ram...well in my opinion 512 is enough for basic things, its not like windows that is slow on 512, mac takes less resources, but 1 gb is recomended for more heavy work.If ur acustom to use touch pad and keyboard i dont see any use for keyboard and mouse, and if u dont use them as much by a cheaper one, mac's new keyboard sucks cus the plastic that covered between the buttons was removed and that makes it get blooody dirty. Do the investment, mac computers last WAAAAAAY longer than pc's, in my case, i have a old powerbook, 5 years, no problem, running smoother than my ex 2 year old hp.
 
As you are in the UK have a look at the Apple Store and also my favourite store: www.ghc.co.uk, but not cheap on the "extras", but good info and service.

Crucial have been cheap for memory (and it all worked!!)

Also www.misco.co.uk are cheap for some accessories - but they seem to struggle if the website says "stock" and they don't actually have it. Their auto replies get crossed up with "people" replies!! Computer takes order, someone e-mails and says "sorry". Computer says "delivery tomorrow". Then you hear nothing!!
 
You inquired about the Mighty Mouse. I use that with my PB while at home. I do like it. I been a long time Mac users, and it took some time to adapt to the two buttons. You are coming over from the PC, so the learning curve should be short. As far as a keyboard, I love my PBs keyboard. The keys are comfortable and quiet.
 
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