a few questions!

[mike19]

So im thinking of buying an apple and i have a few questions, since i would switching from a PC

I wont install windows until the new windows vista comes out. So i was wondering if i could still use files from my microsoft office programs on windows in the microsoft office on mac os x?

Also, is there a quickbooks out for mac os x and if there is would i be able to transfer files as well?

Finally, how does one get boot camp and rosetta, does one buy them or download them, and do they cost money?

thanks guys.

 

[~Shard~]

I wont install windows until the new windows vista comes out. So i was wondering if i could still use files from my microsoft office programs on windows in the microsoft office on mac os x?

Yes. Office 2004 for Mac will handle all your Excel, Word and PowerPoint files just fine. In fact, it is slicker and more stable than Office 2003 for Windows IMO.

Also, is there a quickbooks out for mac os x and if there is would i be able to transfer files as well?

Yes and yes. Although I haven't heard many good things about QuickBooks in general...

Finally, how does one get boot camp and rosetta, does one buy them or download them, and do they cost money?

Boot Camp will be included with the new OS when it is released in Spring '07. For now it can be downloaded for free from Apple's website. Rosetta is built in and free as well.

Any other questions, feel free to post them!

 

[pianoman]

to clarify the Rosetta question, i wanted to add that it is a behind-the-scenes program, not something you'll run.

before the Intel Macs were released, Apple used PowerPC (PPC) chips. when they made the switch to Intel chips, they didn't want to leave users or developers in the dust - they needed a way for programs designed to run on the old chips to work on the new chips. enter Rosetta, which runs in the background on applications not yet "Universal" - Universal means the program works on both PPC machines and Intel machines. for more information, go here (Wikipedia).

the bottom is this: you don't need to buy it, it's just there, and you won't ever need to worry about it.

 

[NightLord]

It should be noted that rosetta programs do run a little slower, so you'll need to take note if you want to use older resource heavy apps.

But with apps such as Office 2004, you don't even notice it, aside from the icon bouncing a bit more than on a PPC mac.