Mac users! Educate me!

[MacTech]

[QUOTE=Sunspace]
So, Mac people, I have some questions. [ul][li]Can I dual-boot Mac OX X and Windows XP on the current Intel Macs? (I remember reading about a dual-boot utility, but I see no mention of it on Apple’s Canadian site.)[]Can I dual-boot Mac OS X and Windows XP on a MacBook?[]Will Autocad run on Windows XP dual-booted on a Mac?[]Is Mac OS X Unicode-based? I type in at least three languages.)[]Can I hook my existing LCD display (DVI connector) up to a MacBook and use both screens?Does the MacBook have a 10BASE-T Ethernet port for my cable modem? (I’d rather not use wireless as my default netowek connection at home.)[/ul][/li][/QUOTE]

1; yes, there are two options, Apple’s “Boot Camp” is a PC emulator program (essentially it translates the Mac’s EFI (Extensible Firmware Interface) into BIOS that Windows understands, Boot Camp is an Either/Or solution, you can boot into Either the Mac OS, Or Windows, BC has the advantage of giving the best performance for real-time apps like games and desktop video/music/etc, the downside is you have to reboot to switch OS’s

the other option is a program called Parallels, it’s a software-based EFI to BIOS translator, and it treats Windows as an application, creating a Virtual Machine, with Parallels, you can run Mac OS AND Windows at the same time and shift on the fly between them, no rebooting neccecary, Parralells also supports earlier versions of Windows (3.1 all the way to Vista) other Unixes, OS/2, Solaris, etc…

the downside to Parallels is that it’s not really designed for gaming or any real-time applications

most Windows apps should run just fine under either one of these, Boot Camp is more compatible and faster, and it’s free (BC functionality is going to be part of the next version of the Mac OS, 10.5 Leopard, due out early this year), Parallels is a commercial application

Not sure on the Unicode thing, but the default OS X install has many language packs preinstalled, for example, one of my freinds is a first-generation American, her parents emigrated from Germany, Daniela is bilingual, on a whim, i switched my PowerBook G4 over to the German interface and handed it to her, her immediate response was “This is so cool, the German interface is perfect!”

the MacBook has a Mini-DVI port, to use it, you need a Mini-DVI to DVI adapter, an extra cost accesory, the MacBook can use the monitor in both Extended Desktop (treats the internal display and external as ONE huge monitor) and Mirror (external displays the same image as the internal)

the MacBook has a 10/100/1000-base-T (Gigabit Ethernet) interface

one other thing to bear in mind about the MacBook, it uses an Intel Integrated video chipset and shares it’s video ram with the main RAM, simply put, the vidcard has no dedicated RAM, it leeches off the main ram, for most consumer apps it’s not an issue, but high-end graphics apps and some games don’t like Integrated chipsets, the MacBook Pro has a dedicated vidcard and vidram

[Sunspace]

@MacTech

one other thing to bear in mind about the MacBook, it uses an Intel Integrated video chipset and shares it’s video ram with the main RAM, simply put, the vidcard has no dedicated RAM, it leeches off the main ram, for most consumer apps it’s not an issue, but high-end graphics apps and some games don’t like Integrated chipsets, the MacBook Pro has a dedicated vidcard and vidram

Wow, thanks, MacTech. That’s just the sort of detail I need to know, as I’m definitely talking Photoshop and Illustrator to start. The least expensive MacBook Pro is kinda pricey ($2200 Canadian) but I might be able to squeak to it if we get that bonus at work…

[Stranger_On_A_Train]

@wasson

Unfortunately, there isn’t a tablet style Mac. There’s only the MacBook and MacBook Pro.

Hey, there was the Newton. Remember that thing? Oh, yeah:
The Newton? They don’t even make that anymore. That thing sucked.Stranger

[MrSquishy]

I’m a lifelong PC guy (well, Apple II, then C64, then PC I guess) who just purchased a sweet 24" iMac. There are definitely some weird/different things to get used to (not much in terms of right-click options, you’ll want to learn about a billion arcane keyboard shortcuts, and come on, the way Home, End, Page Up and Page Down work are just WRONG), but I’m really enjoying it so far. I recommend it.

I would second (third, fourth?) the recommendation for more RAM, especially if you’re going to run Parallels. 3GB will cost you a fortune from the Apple store, but 2 GB is pretty reasonable. Also, I upgraded the video card for like $75 or something and I’m glad I did.

One thing I didn’t notice anybody mention so far is that you can install Windows on a BootCamp partition, and then run that same Windows installation under Parallels too if you want. You need the latest RC (beta) version of Parallels to do this, I think. It’s working great for me. I run 90% of my Windows stuff under Parallels, but then if I need to boot to Windows for games, I can. The latest beta version of Parallels also has this awesome feature called Coherence, where you don’t even see a Windows desktop, you can just click the Parallels dock (taskbar) icon to get the Windows Start menu. When you start an application this way, you just see the Windows application’s window, but no desktop (it’s not within another window). I don’t know if that explanation makes any sense, but it’s basically like running Windows apps on Mac, seamlessly.

[pulykamell]

I’ve mentioned this in another thread, but seriously consider buying from Apple authorized resellers. They can be much cheaper than going through the Apple Store. There’s a list of them on Apple’s website, and I personally go through MacConnection, where I’ve seen deals with up to $500 savings over the same product from the Apple Store. They’re great and I’ve never had any problems with them.

Quite simply, I never buy anything from the Apple Store. Everything I’ve seen through the resellers is cheaper, even taking into account possible student discounts through the Apple Store.

[Tuckerfan]

I think that the next version of Parallels is going to be configured so that you can choose to run just one Windows application, without having to run Windows in it’s entirety. (Which is pretty cool.) Also, I don’t know if you can do this with a laptop, but I’ve heard of folks hooking a second monitor up to their Mac, and have one monitor showing OSX, while the other monitor shows XP running under Parallels.

Also, I recommend that once you get your Mac, you immediately install iTunes, and subscribe (for free) to all of Leo Laporte’s Mac related podcasts. Lots of handy info in those.

[Sunspace]

@pulykamell

Quite simply, I never buy anything from the Apple Store. Everything I’ve seen through the resellers is cheaper, even taking into account possible student discounts through the Apple Store.

Does that include the Macs themselves?

[gotpasswords]

@Sunspace

Does that include the Macs themselves?

You’re probably not going to find the computer itself for more than a nickel or two cheaper anywhere else, but retailers will be apt to offer up things like free or reduced prices on RAM or other accessories, or a rebate that’s not available from Apple. There may be other advantages, such as no sales tax or free shipping.

When I bought my iMac, the price was exactly the same from the Apple store two blocks from my office, or from Amazon. The roughly $150 in sales tax was the “Gotta have it NOW!” penalty charge. Instead, I went with Amazon, and applied the $150 towards the purchase of more RAM.

[pulykamell]

@Sunspace

Does that include the Macs themselves?

Yes.

Like I said before, I’ve found deals up to $500 cheaper at MacConnection. I don’t want to sound like I’m a shill for them, but they have been fantastic. A friend of mine was going to buy a MacBook for $1499 from the Apple Store. MacConnection had the same exact model for $999. I’m not kidding. When I bought my MacBook Pro, it was $1999 through these guys (without rebate). The cheapest I could find through the Apple store with my girlfriend’s student status was about $200 more expensive.

So, I repeat, shop around!

[wasson]

@pulykamell

Yes.

Like I said before, I’ve found deals up to $500 cheaper at MacConnection. I don’t want to sound like I’m a shill for them, but they have been fantastic. A friend of mine was going to buy a MacBook for $1499 from the Apple Store. MacConnection had the same exact model for $999. I’m not kidding. When I bought my MacBook Pro, it was $1999 through these guys (without rebate). The cheapest I could find through the Apple store with my girlfriend’s student status was about $200 more expensive.

So, I repeat, shop around!

I was under the assumption that Apple VERY closely monitored prices their resellers were selling at and could “cut off” resellers that undercut their prices too much. This is why you’ll never find an iPod for more than a dollar difference from Apple store’s price.

I suspect if your friend got $500 or $200 discounts, he was buying refurbs or out of date computers. Like he bought a Core Duo MacBook when the Core 2 Duo MacBook was out. Or they sold him a lower-end MacBook with a “free” memory or HD upgrade, which is one way resellers get around the Apple’s price-fixing.

[pulykamell]

@wasson

I was under the assumption that Apple VERY closely monitored prices their resellers were selling at and could “cut off” resellers that undercut their prices too much. This is why you’ll never find an iPod for more than a dollar difference from Apple store’s price.

I suspect if your friend got $500 or $200 discounts, he was buying refurbs or out of date computers. Like he bought a Core Duo MacBook when the Core 2 Duo MacBook was out. Or they sold him a lower-end MacBook with a “free” memory or HD upgrade, which is one way resellers get around the Apple’s price-fixing.

I don’t know what to tell you. I looked back at my emails, and here are the details: on December 26, MacConnection was selling white MacBooks, 13", 2.0 GHz with 2.0 GB of memory for $999. The Apple Store was selling the exact same model for $1474. The base model, a 1 GB version, was still $1299. They were not refurbs. Brand new.

It was part of some post-Christmas blowout, it looks like. Also, the exact same MacBook Pro I have (which I paid about $2400 for), was selling at $1499, with a better processor (2.0 GHz v 1.83 that I have) at the same time.

They don’t seem to have the same insane deals right this second, but they do pop up on the website from time to time. At any rate, like I said, when I bought my MacBook Pro, it was pretty much right when it came out (about March of last year) and I paid less through MacConnection than I would have through Apple with a student discount, with no free memory upgrades or anything.

I also thought Apple polices its prices religiously, but apparently there must be some loopholes, because I have found bargains on that website.

[Mangetout]

@MrSquishy

…the way Home, End, Page Up and Page Down work are just WRONG)…

I’m intrigued. Please could you describe their actions?

[TimeWinder]

@Mangetout

I’m intrigued. Please could you describe their actions?

On the Mac: Home=Top of document, End=Bottom of Document, Page Up/Down moves up or down by a page. For all of these, ONLY THE VIEW moves, the cursor stays where it was unless you click in the new location. Useful for looking at something elsewhere without changing where you’re typing (when you type, the view switches back to the cursor). You can move the cursor to the beginning/end of line with command-left arrow/command-right arrow.

On Windows: Home=cursor to beginning of line, end=cursor to end of line, page up/down moves the cursor up and down by a page. I don’t think there’s a standard for beginning/end of document, but many apps use ctrl-home and ctrl-end for this. The main difference is that the cursor moves with the view here.

Many Mac apps let you redefine the keys to the Windows way of doing it. The Windows way is arguably better: the Mac supports a “look but don’t go” that Windows doesn’t, but it tends to confuse a lot of folks for a feature that’s relatively rarely useful.

[Sunspace]

@pulykamell

Yes.

Like I said before, I’ve found deals up to $500 cheaper at MacConnection. I don’t want to sound like I’m a shill for them, but they have been fantastic. A friend of mine was going to buy a MacBook for $1499 from the Apple Store. MacConnection had the same exact model for $999. I’m not kidding. When I bought my MacBook Pro, it was $1999 through these guys (without rebate). The cheapest I could find through the Apple store with my girlfriend’s student status was about $200 more expensive.

So, I repeat, shop around!

Does MacConnection sell in Canada?

Everyone I’ve talked to about this says, “Get the memory elsewhere!” and after looking at proces, I agree. I was thinking of getting mine at CPUsed, which sells both used and new Mac gear (plus PCs). I got my big LCD monitor and my scanner there. Another possibility is Carbon Computing. The prices for the computers themselves seem to be identical to Apple’s.

[AHunter3]

@TimeWinder

On the Mac: Home=Top of document, End=Bottom of Document, Page Up/Down moves up or down by a page. For all of these, ONLY THE VIEW moves, the cursor stays where it was unless you click in the new location. Useful for looking at something elsewhere without changing where you’re typing (when you type, the view switches back to the cursor). You can move the cursor to the beginning/end of line with command-left arrow/command-right arrow.

On Windows: Home=cursor to beginning of line, end=cursor to end of line, page up/down moves the cursor up and down by a page. I don’t think there’s a standard for beginning/end of document, but many apps use ctrl-home and ctrl-end for this. The main difference is that the cursor moves with the view here.

Mac: ⌘-UpArrow takes you and your cursor to top of document. ⌘-DownArrow moves screen and cursor both to the end of the document. ⌘-RightArrow to the end of the line; ⌘-LeftArrow to the start of the line.

It’s useful to have those commands as separate commands from “take me to the top of the document but leave my cursor where it is; I need to see something there but I don’t want to lose my place, where I’m typing”. We have both.

As long as I’m at it: Option-RightArrow moves you rightward word by word; Option-LeftArrow moves you leftward word by word. Add the shift key to any of these combos to select as well as move. Shift-RightArrow or Shift-LeftArrow adds to selection one space at a time. (Well, once you’ve started off with Shift-RightArrow, Shift-LeftArrow deselects one space at a time from the right end and vice versa).

Less universal:

Triple-click a word to select the entire line containing the word (in some apps, the entire paragraph instead)

Quadruple-click a word to select the entire paragraph containing the word (mostly in apps where triple-clicking gets the paragraph).

After selecting any textblock, drag to reposition, including into another document, into the window of another document, or out onto the Desktop as a text clipping.

[Sunspace]

Well, I have my Mac. And it is good. I worked on something while I was on the bus to work this morning. Thanks, everyone! (This was a good thread to go back to.)