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About to pull the trigger, last minute advice.

M

mejalx

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 24, 2007
4
0
So, I've been haggling around all week trying to decide what kind of notebook I should buy. I currently have a Sager 9880 dubbed 'the beast' because the damn thing weighs like 14lbs including the AC adapter.

I'm a Computer Science student, part-time programmer, avid linux user and I'm in dire need of a light laptop, because the beast isn't working out for me. I just leave it planted on my desk at home, because that thing isn't getting hauled around.

First of all, I read great things about OS X, but how long will it really take me to adapt and become productive coming from a linux environment? I'm planning to put Fedora on there with bootcamp as well.

Secondly, I heard that OS X leopard is coming out, are there going to be new hardware features with that too? Waiting for the release isn't really an option for me, because I need something now, but that may sway my decision on getting a Mac.

Thirdly, is there anything else I should be wary of? This being my first apple system, and I've usually been quite Anti-Apple/Anti-Microsoft, I'm just a little scared to get my feet wet and possibly blow $1.4k on something I might hate. I highly doubt this will be the case though, so reassure me!

Thanks,
Alex
 
I think you'll be very happy. There are numerous people on these boards who use Linux as well as OS X, and it seems to be quite easy going from one to the other. *I* personally prefer the simple side of OS X, but there are a lot of ways to dig in deep and get your hands dirty, if you so choose.

As for Leopard, yeah, it might come out soon, it might not. No one knows. Spring of '07 is what we were told, so that could be anytime in the next few months. I don't think there's gonna be a major revision to the portable lines, but then again, there might be! Only Apple knows! Either way, though, you'll have a very powerful and capable machine, whether you go with a MacBook or a MacBook Pro. New stuff comes out all the time, but that doesn't make the old stuff any less awesome.

I say go for it. As you use it more and more, you'll learn to love OS X. That's how it happened to me, and now I can't imagine going back to Windows. Well, I can, but it's more of a nightmarish hellscape than an actual possibility. Anyways! Again - great machines, great prices (I'd look at the refurb section to save some money, if I were you), just pop in a lot of RAM and you'll be computin' like a madman in no time.

Enjoy your Mac!
 
One thing's for sure: It'll be such a relief to go from 14lbs to (at most) 6.8lbs + AC adapter. I went from a ~9lb Dell to a 5lb MacBook, and I can really feel the difference.
 
Wow, we are pretty similar. I am also a computer science student, and I have a Sager 9880! You won't be disappointed with a mac. You will be adjusted within a week, if not less. If you are an avid Linux user, you should know unix commands, which you can easily do in OS X in the terminal. Leopard should be coming out in the coming months, but you can upgrade just fine to it. The hardware will always be getting better, you would be really happy if you bought today. I highly doubt you would hate the system. Coming from Linux, the switch over won't be bad at all. The great thing is with bootcamp, you can run Windows if you really need to, so compatibility won't be an issue. OS X is extremely stable, I don't think you really have anything to worry about.
 
mejalx said:
So, I've been haggling around all week trying to decide what kind of notebook I should buy. I currently have a Sager 9880 dubbed 'the beast' because the damn thing weighs like 14lbs including the AC adapter.

I'm a Computer Science student, part-time programmer, avid linux user and I'm in dire need of a light laptop, because the beast isn't working out for me. I just leave it planted on my desk at home, because that thing isn't getting hauled around.

First of all, I read great things about OS X, but how long will it really take me to adapt and become productive coming from a linux environment? I'm planning to put Fedora on there with bootcamp as well.

Secondly, I heard that OS X leopard is coming out, are there going to be new hardware features with that too? Waiting for the release isn't really an option for me, because I need something now, but that may sway my decision on getting a Mac.

Thirdly, is there anything else I should be wary of? This being my first apple system, and I've usually been quite Anti-Apple/Anti-Microsoft, I'm just a little scared to get my feet wet and possibly blow $1.4k on something I might hate. I highly doubt this will be the case though, so reassure me!

Thanks,
Alex
Click to expand...

I am what you would call an avid linux user... Trust me it will take you from the time you install OSX to the time you open a terminal and install fink to be as productive as you are in linux.

I used Linux exclusively for 6 years with no other os (had to use windows at work sometimes), OSX beats it hands down.

Nuff said.
 
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