new to macbook..need some advice

[ksabek]

hey all I bought the black macbook at the end of august (knowing that new ones are coming out mid oct but I need it for uni) and I am new to the Mac world, and so far so good, loving it and happy with it. Used to have Vista, and it is CRAP!
Anyways I am wondering what advices would u give me about how to use it efficiently and what programs or applications to download. Also which should I get iWorks or Office?

[GfulDedFan]

As far as working with your new MacBook efficiently, you might check out the following:

Portables Fast Start: The New User's Guide to Apple Notebooks (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2788?viewlocale=en_US)

Switch 101 (http://www.apple.com/support/switch101/)

Mac 101 (http://www.apple.com/support/mac101/)

I use iWork '08 and love it but it's more of a personal preference. -GDF

[soberbrain]

Congrats on the new Mac :)

You can also check out http://www.apple.com/findouthow/mac/ and NeoOffice (http://www.neooffice.org/), as a free alternative to MS Office.

[Skeletal-dæmon]

iWork '08 is speedy, concise and easy to use, and all three apps have options to export the file to its Microsoft competitor's format (for example you can export a Pages '08 doc into a MS Word doc).

MS Office:Mac 2008 is, frankly, sticky, obtuse, has some bizarre and obscure commands and controls that don't seem to do very much, and even with the patches I simply could not get it to work stably at all.

Plus, iWork '08 is less than half the price of even the student/teacher version of Office:Mac

You could also check out NeoOffice and Open Office as freeware alternatives.

As for using the MacBook efficiently, you may want to download a cooling fan regulator app, as well as a widget such as iStat to keep an eye on your system functions, RAM and disk usage. If you are going to be using it away from a power terminal as a portable machine for a majority of its life, buy a second battery like I have.

Congratulations on your BlackBook and I hope you enjoy it for as long as it lives.

[r0flmonster]

As for using the MacBook efficiently, you may want to download a cooling fan regulator app,
I was just wondering, why do you need this? and also do you recommend a certain one? If not, where could I find a good app? Thanks!

[hogfaninga]

I was just wondering, why do you need this? and also do you recommend a certain one? If not, where could I find a good app? Thanks!

smcFanControl is the best IMO. You can download at apple.com.

[Skeletal-dæmon]

I was just wondering, why do you need this? and also do you recommend a certain one? If not, where could I find a good app? Thanks!

Well technically this isn't so much efficiency as just trying in vain not to set fire to my legs with the MacBook because if you're doing something graphically intensive they heat up to anywhere up to 180ºF which is rather singey on the legs. I use smcFanControl (http://homepage.mac.com/holtmann/eidac/software/smcfancontrol2/index.html) which sits in your Menu Bar and tells you how hot you're running and how fast the main cooling fan is spinning.

[M4CBOOK]

:apple: iWork :apple: