This can be a thread for Apple/Mac users - tips, links, suggestions...

So if you Mac 'ers have some helpful sites and posts add then here.
thanks

Ok I'm a new MAC owner - but a former PC Windows software trainer and also used to train people on how to use the NeXT (a souped-up MAC for Schools/businesses in the 90s - didn't make it unfortunately...)

#1 best advice tp a new MAC owner is to pay $99 to get all the training you want at the Apple store!

Jean

I have a MACBook and I absolutely LOVE it.

I run Parallells - a dual platform with 4 Windows software programs on my MAC. Why? Because when my PC laptop crashed, I had just purchased two of these very expensive software programs for my landscape design business and neither one of them are MAC OS compatible. I also own WordPerfect 9 for Windows. I have never converted to Word.

It's a simple process to switch back and forth between Windows based software and Mac. They do run a little slower so when I am running one of my landscape programs, I tend not to be running anything else. In the beginning I was having problems with the landscape program crashing. Once I discovered it was due to having too many programs open at the same time, I just closed everything else and just run the landscape program. All is well now.

In addition, it took me a while to figure out where all my photos were hiding from me! For someone who has been dubbed "iPod stupid" that was quite a task. Now I can find things a bit easier. I just have to keep in mind that when running Parallels, it's a partitioned hard drive and I have to "open" the door and go look on the MAC hard drive for my photos and bring them back through the door onto the Windows hard drive in order to use them in the windows based program.

The biggest program is that the landscape program has no support for MAC users. Fortunately, there are a few of us who use the program on MACs and we've been able to answer each other's questions on their forum. Hopefully, with enough prodding, the company will eventually provide a MAC based program.

I chose parallels rather than bootcamp on advise of my computer guru. He has a MACBook exactly like mine and this is what he uses. If it's good enough for him, it's good enough for me. That way, if I have questions, he can answer them and he can show me what needs to be done.

Unfortunately, there is NO Apple Store in Boise so I don't have the luxury of walking into an Apple Store for assistance. Every chance I get, when I travel, I go to one for help. Those Apple Genius' are just that, Geniuses....talk advantage of all the free stuff they offer!!!

A Mac truly is a Wonderful thing!

I have so many friends who've switched, (and I've owned "both"), I will NEVER go back to the "other side".

Love my Macs!
Entire family runs on 'em!
(And, if you might be misinformed and think that they're expensive, think TCO (total cost of ownership) and, you get what you pay for, sometimes, sometimes less, and rarely more!)

Pete
ASB

our school runs off of iBook G4's, and i love the fact that there are not many virus that can affect them because most of them are designed to infect system23 on DOS (windows operating system) or in command propt. i do also love how user friendly they are to people who have minnimum experience on a computer unlike windows. but there batteries seem to die extremely fast in the G4's we use... idk if mac has fixed that in the newer models, but im assuming they did.

However, i am alot better at programming and writing commands on DOS than OS X. and i do like vista after they got all the bugs worked out. i guess since there are so many more PC's than Mac's in the world i guess its kinda an unfair advantage.

Agreed. When I worked in an office, we had IT support, and could always call the help desk. When working at home, however, there's no help desk - just me! That's when I'm glad I don't have a PC any more...Macs cause so many fewer problems!

Macs os's are so well designed they are transparent. So in a nut shell they just work. I have an iPad, iMac and when my plan runs out I am getting an iPhone.
They are the bomb.

Did that when we bought our iMac last year; we were also coming from Windows computers. For us, it was a waste of money. Buy the Missing Manual for Leopard for around $40; it'll give you all the info you'll ever need.

LJ

Same here.... Though, depending on what I do I cross over from MAC to PC. I have the mac, my mom and dad have the pc, my sister who lives in the same house has a windows based laptop. I bought my mac book last year.

I love it. It's the best thing I have ever bought! Even better than my hot tub.

PS. My niece loves the photo booth feature.

I have had my MacBook Pro for over 3 years. I had the extended service plan and it was wonderful, it paid for itself. After the warranty was over, the hard drive started making noises. As a preemptive strike, we put in a 500 gig hard drive and that is great. I have to say to people who are trying to decide whether to buy a Mac or not, that you will save so much time just in not updating and running all the security programs all the time, or dealing with the malfunctions. Sure, you can get Mac security programs (which isn't officially encouraged by Apple) but they are so fast. I absolutely hate PCs now.

I have had 3 IPods, one I gave to my husband, I still have a newer Shuffle, and my most expensive newer one with all the features I gave to my son. I am ambidextrous but use my left hand for most everything except for writing -- I used my left hand for writing when I was younger but my mom had a fit and made me use my right hand. All of this to say that holding the Ipod in my left hand did not work for me -- this was 3 years ago so not related to the new IPhone 4 problem. I could not get it to do anything. My son has no problem with it. I really like my newer Shuffle a lot.

I have the IPhone 3GS 32 gig, with the newest upgrade software. I don't understand why people are getting the IPhone 4 when you can get this one for $200.00 less. Very little difference in features, and it works. Best Buy is one of the few places that is still selling it new. I have also used a Droid. I have to say that the Droid is an IPhone-want-to-be. They still have a lot of bugs in them, at least the one I had. The Droid apps are flakey, expensive, and you don't know who you are giving your credit card number to; at least with the IPhone, the app charges are going through the ITunes store.