Author Topic: First month after converting to Mac (Read 45114 times)

melastmohican · « **on:** January 07, 2010, 01:28 »

At first I thought I am joining a cult :-) Now I know it hangs and crashes like Windows or Linux. Overall I am still positive. I am messing it up, installing hundreds of apps which I probably do not need. I was able to get some of my favorite Linux and Windows apps on Mac.

Noodles · « **Reply #1 on:** January 07, 2010, 03:26 »

Quote from: melastmohican on January 07, 2010, 01:28

At first I thought I am joining a cult :-) Now I know it hangs and crashes like Windows or Linux.

LOL Once upon a time it was true but these days there ain't nothing between them.

leaf · « **Reply #2 on:** January 07, 2010, 05:30 »

my biggest annoyance (I use a mac laptop, but have a PC desktop) is not being able to click a button to 'maximize window' I know there is the little + button but that doesn't always make it full screen. Am I missing something?

Fran · « **Reply #3 on:** January 07, 2010, 05:48 »

Quote from: leaf on January 07, 2010, 05:30

my biggest annoyance (I use a mac laptop, but have a PC desktop) is not being able to click a button to 'maximize window' I know there is the little + button but that doesn't always make it full screen. Am I missing something?

I was annoyed the same when I started using a Mac, but actually the button is pretty clever since it maximise the window up to the size where the full content of it is displayed. I started to switch my mindset from "always working in fullscreen" to "work with a proper desktop" and I find it pretty intuitive now. It takes a while to adapt though.

epantha · « **Reply #4 on:** January 07, 2010, 06:39 »

I messed up my new Mac Pro Quad-Core when I tried to copy over 7 years of crap from my old machine. Found out it is best to start with a clean slate and only install the applications I use regularly. Works like a charm now and its blazing fast.

cathyslife · « **Reply #5 on:** January 07, 2010, 07:17 »

Quote

Now I know it hangs and crashes like Windows or Linux. Overall I am still positive. I am messing it up, installing hundreds of apps which I probably do not need.

I have been using Macs since the late 80s, and in my experience hangs and crashes are rare, NOTHING like Windows or a PC (I have worked on those, too). The key is exactly what you stated above. You need to limit the third party software you install. If you shut your computer off at night, it may not be running the maintenance scripts that it needs to. Download Cocktail or a similar program (there is even a free one) or leave your computer on all the time and it will do it automatically.

See this link:
http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/maintscripts.html

P.S. Welcome to the bright side!

travelstock · « **Reply #6 on:** January 07, 2010, 11:27 »

Quote from: leaf on January 07, 2010, 05:30

my biggest annoyance (I use a mac laptop, but have a PC desktop) is not being able to click a button to 'maximize window' I know there is the little + button but that doesn't always make it full screen. Am I missing something?

If you're missing something, I've also been missing it for years. The problem is when you aim for the edge of a window that is almost maximised and end up getting something underneath.

melastmohican · « **Reply #7 on:** January 07, 2010, 14:40 »

I was pleased that most paid software I use got Mac version on installation disks. Lightroom2 migration for example was mostly copying files then syncing with directories on my external disk.

I am documenting this process in a blog: http://migratepc2mac.blogspot.com/

Kngkyle · « **Reply #8 on:** January 07, 2010, 14:45 »

Eyedesign · « **Reply #9 on:** January 07, 2010, 19:06 »

Yeah!!

FD · « **Reply #10 on:** January 07, 2010, 20:27 »

A Mac is twice the price of a PC because they have to spend that much on brand-building, brainwash their believers, and make anybody that wants bang for bucks look like a fool. Well, i am a fool. My second hand Samsung cellphone does just the same as an iPhone: texting and calling, at 20$. Even more: it never was robbed nor snatched. Macs and iStuffs are made in China anyways, like all the rest.

disorderly · « **Reply #11 on:** January 07, 2010, 20:40 »

Oh, brother. A Mac costs a little more than a comparably equipped PC, assuming you can find one. And for that you get well integrated hardware and software, as well as a set of applications that run circles around the Windows competition. You also get the benefit of a Unix/Linux workalike under the hood, which I love.

As for the iPhone, it's rather more than a phone. In fact, most of the time I spend on it isn't for calls; it's for web surfing, tweeting, tracking location, getting weather reports, identifying overheard songs, finding restaurants and a hundred other functions. Not so much a phone as a practical handheld computer, and one, like my Macs, that's worth what it cost me.

eric.zx · « **Reply #12 on:** January 07, 2010, 23:33 »

This is quickly becoming yet another mac vs. PC debate.

We all have our own likes and dislikes, and it all simply boils down to what we're used to and what we feel comfortable maintaining. For microstock, the OS doesn't matter as long as the photos come out looking good at the end of post-processing

I have to use both platforms for work (unrelated to microstock), and truly Mac OS X freezes and crashes just like the rest of them. As for a little awkward user interface, eventually you get accustomed to it. It's simply a little different from a PC.

Wish you best of luck in the New Year, whether a Mac or a PC!

P.S.: I am a PC-user for microstock and can't see any advantages to using a Mac so far

gostwyck · « **Reply #13 on:** January 08, 2010, 00:08 »

Quote from: disorderly on January 07, 2010, 20:40

Oh, brother. A Mac costs a little more than a comparably equipped PC, assuming you can find one.

More like twice the price where I come from and effectively 'fixed' prices due to the extremely limited number of retailers actually allowed to sell them (like PC World *shudder*). Personally I can't see how paying absurd money for a Mac is going to translate into extra sales/revenue for little old me.

Xalanx · « **Reply #14 on:** January 08, 2010, 01:08 »

as for iPhone, I have a HTC with Windows Mobile 6.1 on it and it really does everything from finding restaurants to surfing the web or installing the coolest applications for smartphones.

My PCs are quad core with 4 GB RAM and plenty of HDD space (which I upgrade when I want to without hassle) and yea, to one of them I recently upgraded the video card, to support the latest 3D shooter and racing games

Regarding Macs, I like best those Cinema displays. They're really great.

FD · « **Reply #15 on:** January 08, 2010, 12:10 »

Quote from: Xalanx on January 08, 2010, 01:08

as for iPhone, I have a HTC with Windows Mobile 6.1 on it and it really does everything from finding restaurants to surfing the web or installing the coolest applications for smartphones.

That's great. I find restaurants by asking friends and when I'm wandering around, I don't feel the urge to surf the web. The only idle periods are when on travel or in planes (I had like 20 int'l flights last year and it is boring like hell). In a plane you can't surf and during long waits in airports you need a special $SIM$ to access all these cool services. So I just walk around looking for stock.

The only Apples worth noticing are the one of Newton and the label of The Beatles.

cmcderm1 · « **Reply #16 on:** January 08, 2010, 13:41 »

The BEST computer???

The one which does what you want it to do, when you want to do, at the speed you are comfortable with, and does not cause undue heartache.

melastmohican · « **Reply #17 on:** January 08, 2010, 15:24 »

Quote from: cmcderm1 on January 08, 2010, 13:41

The BEST computer???

The one which does what you want it to do, when you want to do, at the speed you are comfortable with, and does not cause undue heartache.

I agree, in 99% of cases user is a problem not a computer :-)

eric.zx · « **Reply #18 on:** January 09, 2010, 00:54 »

Quote from: melastmohican on January 08, 2010, 15:24

in 99% of cases user is a problem not a computer :-)

Well said

Peiling · « **Reply #19 on:** January 10, 2010, 08:24 »

i had my annoyances with Mac and the initial coversion was very difficult and i wanted to throw the Mac away bcos of how frustrated i am...but now i am so impressed with Mac...and i have become almost a convert....although i am still feeling frustrated at some point...

PenelopeB · « **Reply #20 on:** January 10, 2010, 09:06 »

Quote from: leaf on January 07, 2010, 05:30

my biggest annoyance (I use a mac laptop, but have a PC desktop) is not being able to click a button to 'maximize window' I know there is the little + button but that doesn't always make it full screen. Am I missing something?

"command and zero" (0) - top row

PowerDroid · « **Reply #21 on:** January 10, 2010, 09:28 »

Just bought a MacBook Pro a few months ago, and was surprised at how unstable it is with Photoshop. If I'm in a big file with a number of layers and quickly doing action after action, it tends to crash. Was pretty shocked by this, as Macs are not supposed to crash, but I realize this is probably my fault... overtaxing the computer's specs. So I recently doubled the memory and it hasn't happened since, but I'm still doing frequent saves just in case.

cathyslife · « **Reply #22 on:** January 10, 2010, 10:00 »

Quote

but I realize this is probably my fault... overtaxing the computer's specs. So I recently doubled the memory and it hasn't happened since,

I am surprised you would have that issue, too. I have not found that to be true. But your solution was a good one...PS is a memory hog and you really need tons of RAM for this kind of work. I think that would true of any computer, Mac or PC.

PowerDroid · « **Reply #23 on:** January 10, 2010, 10:21 »

Quote from: cclapper on January 10, 2010, 10:00

Quote
but I realize this is probably my fault... overtaxing the computer's specs. So I recently doubled the memory and it hasn't happened since,

I am surprised you would have that issue, too. I have not found that to be true. But your solution was a good one...PS is a memory hog and you really need tons of RAM for this kind of work. I think that would true of any computer, Mac or PC.

Yeah, I think a lot if it is also due to my sloppy work habits. I tend to leave many programs running at once, and it tends to come back to bite me. Note: in my "day job" I work on a PC, using many of the same programs. As much as I prefer Mac to PC, I have to admit Windows has come a long way. It simply does not crash the way it used to. In fact, I'd say my Mac at home has crashed far more often than my PC at work, and the PC is actually underpowered in comparison... and at work I'm running Photoshop, InDesign, etc at once.

bittersweet · « **Reply #24 on:** January 10, 2010, 11:39 »

Quote from: PowerDroid on January 10, 2010, 10:21

Quote from: cclapper on January 10, 2010, 10:00
Quote
but I realize this is probably my fault... overtaxing the computer's specs. So I recently doubled the memory and it hasn't happened since,

I am surprised you would have that issue, too. I have not found that to be true. But your solution was a good one...PS is a memory hog and you really need tons of RAM for this kind of work. I think that would true of any computer, Mac or PC.

Yeah, I think a lot if it is also due to my sloppy work habits. I tend to leave many programs running at once, and it tends to come back to bite me. Note: in my "day job" I work on a PC, using many of the same programs. As much as I prefer Mac to PC, I have to admit Windows has come a long way. It simply does not crash the way it used to. In fact, I'd say my Mac at home has crashed far more often than my PC at work, and the PC is actually underpowered in comparison... and at work I'm running Photoshop, InDesign, etc at once.

It definitely sounds like a result of insufficient RAM. How much RAM do you have on your Mac? I'm running OS X 10.4.11 on my MacBook Pro and my G5, and the new Mac mini I just bought runs 10.6.2 and seems to use a lot more RAM for the OS. If you are on Leopard or Snow Leopard, I'm guessing that is part of it. I have 4GB of RAM on this computer and couldn't imagine trying to work with less, as I also need to be able to have InDesign, Photoshop, and usually Illustrator open simultaneously in order to work efficiently.

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Author Topic: First month after converting to Mac (Read 45114 times)

melastmohican

Noodles

leaf

Fran

epantha

cathyslife

travelstock

melastmohican

Kngkyle

Eyedesign

FD

disorderly

eric.zx

gostwyck

Xalanx

FD

cmcderm1

melastmohican

eric.zx

Peiling

PenelopeB

PowerDroid

cathyslife

PowerDroid

bittersweet

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