A few questions

[Doju]

1. What are some good apps I should get for my Mac?

2. DDR2 or 3 RAM?

3. What does 8x slot-loading super drive mean? (I know that it's an optical drive, but what does 8x mean?)

4. How many megapixels is the iSight?

5. What does frontside bus mean? 3mb l2 cache? overclocking?

6. Average boot time for 2.4 macbook?

7. what does ethernet do?

8. what does RPM on a hdd do?

thanks

 

[mkrishnan]

1) Perhaps it would help if we know what you want to do with it.

2) What kind of Mac? If this is about the 2.4 MacBook, it's DDR3, 1066MHz.

3) 8x is the maximum speed expressed in multiples of the speed of a standard video DVD player.

4) I believe the camera is 1280x960 (about 1.3 MP) on all new Macs.

5) I'll let you google those or ask someone else.

6) Same as 5.

7) It's a wired network connection.

8) It's how fast the hard drive spins -- it's essentially a measure of the hard drive's speed, although RPM is not the only thing that determines speed.

 

[Tallest Skil]

1. Search.
2. Depends on the computer. You can't get DDR3 unless it's a new MacBook or MacBook Pro, and then you have to.
3. 8x DVD write speed
4. 1.3
5. Ignore overclocking. We don't really do that.
6. Depends.
7. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethernet
8. Faster the RPM, faster the HDD.

 

[Doju]

Apps are for an average, recreational + school user.

So I NEED DDR3 (I have 2.4ghz macbook aluminium)? How much would 4gb go for?

And wow. It burns 8x faster?

And would you recommend time capsule as a router (why is it better than a normal router) and an external hdd? Overpriced or not?

 

[Tallest Skil]

RAM: http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/Apple_MacBook_MacBook_Pro/Upgrade/DDR3

 

[mkrishnan]

So I NEED DDR3 (I have 2.4ghz macbook aluminium)? How much would 4gb go for?

Yes. And look on dealram.com

And wow. It burns 8x faster?

Yes, although this is a theoretical maximum. So, as I understand it, 8x means that a single layer DVD should burn in as little as about 15 minutes, but the computer will meter speed to try to get a safe burn, and you probably will not frequently get burns that fast. This is all pro forma -- it's pretty much the same as a drive in someone else's computer. Burn speeds vary with ... the structural rigidity of the drive assembly and the dynamic stability (flatness and centricity) of the disc.

And would you recommend time capsule as a router (why is it better than a normal router) and an external hdd? Overpriced or not?

Depends almost completely on whether you want wireless backup using Time Machine. If you do, get it. If you don't, don't get it. You could also get a basic router and an external backup drive that you can use with a USB cable, and then buy a TC later if you want.