Mac Not As Easy

[Mojo1]

I remember buying a Win Dummy book way back when. Might have to do the same.

That's not a bad idea... I think that the best Mac guides are the "Missing Manual" series from David Pogue. Pogue uses and writes books for both Windows and Macs, so he is agnostic when it comes to the OS religious fervor. Get the Missing Manual for your specific OS or the edition for folks switching from Windows to Macs.

Kindle and analog versions available from Amazon.

Regarding the Mac clipboard... What bugs me is the fact that you can only have one thing copied to the clipboard at a time. Drives me crazy! There are a number of clipboard enhancing apps out there but Jumpcut does what I need at this point and it's free.

 

[brentsg]

Oh Yeah - something else.

When I bought MAC in the Apple Store I asked how to make a new folder in the tree like Sevengers Photos, Sevengers Movies . . . and it was hard to find someone there that new. They finally said go to your desktop, right click to make new folder, then drag to tree.
However, this leaves the new folder on the desktop too, and when I drag to Trash and Empty Trash, then it's gone from the Tree too and all the contents I put in there.
It's the little things like this I find annoying.

This stuff made no sense to me at all. There's no reason not to simply use Finder to locate the folder you want to next within, right-click, and make a new folder.

There's also no reason that dragging a folder from the desktop should ever leave anything behind. You must have accidentally created an alias in the new location, with the old location still having the original folder and contents. This would be just like creating a shortcut in Windows.

I also find it pretty tough to believe that an Apple store had issues finding someone that could create a folder.

The only thing with the file/folder manipulation that's any different from Windows is that there's no obvious cut/paste.

 

[beamer8912]

renaming a bunch of files at one time - can't be done without a separate app and still not a simple process with that

I don't understand what you're trying to accomplish. Wouldn't they all be NAME_# or something like that? If I wanted to associate a group of files as similar, I would put them in a folder.

 

[SevengerNC]

I'd like to know exactly what you are doing. Paste works fine in the To box in Mail for me (as does drag and drop).

If I copy an email address to paste in the To, it will not paste. But I can paste into the Subject or the Body but not the To or the CC. ? ?



Go to your Control Panel page, Settings&Options-->Edit Options, and set the way you want to get email notifications under "Default Thread Subscription Mode".

-

Worked - Thx !

 

[lambertjohn]

If you drove a car for 15 years and were suddenly asked to drive a space shuttle, would you be able to? probably not. Give it some time; you'll pick it up. Live long and prosper.

 

[terraphantm]

If you drove a car for 15 years and were suddenly asked to drive a space shuttle, would you be able to? probably not. Give it some time; you'll pick it up. Live long and prosper.

It's more like switching from an automatic transmission to a manual transmission (or the other way around depending on your perspective). The latter generally requires more complicated procedures to accomplish the same goal, is less efficient (these days), and slower (again, these days). But somehow, it still feels better.

 

[flipnap]

The shell can be very powerful, but it should not be required to do some relatively simple tasks

in regards to my post of mass file management, using the shell makes it a simple task.. as opposed to dragging and dropping and manually renaming,etc. if people would invest a few hours to learn .001 percent of what the shell can do their life in osx would be amzingly pleasant.. its one of the HUGE benefits over windows..

 

[AfzalivE]

Windows Vista sent me packing and I chose Linux. I had not clue one what I was doing but I was so tired of Windows and all the issues with Vista that I didn't care. Well, it was a real learning experience but I learned more about using my computer than I could ever imagine. This is my first experience with a Mac [have had it one week] but I am extremely impressed at this point. It does take some time to find your way around but once you do you'll love it

I think this is a linux user or a Windows-to-Linux-to-Mac switcher thing. I fell in love with OS X after a few days of customization. Been using Elementary OS for a year before that and Ubuntu on & off before, OS X felt right at home.

 

[stevelam]

in regards to my post of mass file management, using the shell makes it a simple task.. as opposed to dragging and dropping and manually renaming,etc. if people would invest a few hours to learn .001 percent of what the shell can do their life in osx would be amzingly pleasant.. its one of the HUGE benefits over windows..

dragging and dropping is much more intuitive than remembering 'code' (basically thats what it looks like to a non tech person) to type into this vague daunting box. suggesting someone learn this archaic 'nonsense' just to do file management is pretty much the complete opposite of why macs exist in the first place.

as for huge benefits over windows? the dos shell in windows is definitely pretty powerful for file management as well.

 

[Nermal]

Example: "system tray" completely threw me for a loop, wtf system tray. See all the help references assumed I knew what was the system tray. Maybe it was some startup volume options, or control panels? Maybe ICE CUBES? I was about ready for a cold SOMETHING when it occurred to me to buy a Windows manual onto my iPad. Yeah. Cooking w/ gas. Windows for a dummy!

"System tray" is a relatively common name but there's actually no such thing in any released version of Windows, so you wouldn't have been able to find a reference to it in any official documentation. Early builds of Win 95 had a "tray" that could store documents, which looked similar to this:

However, this was removed and replaced with what is now known as the Taskbar in the release version of 95. Some people still cling to "tray" though! The correct name for the area next to the clock is "notification area".

Image source and more information

 

[flipnap]

dragging and dropping is much more intuitive than remembering 'code' (basically thats what it looks like to a non tech person) to type into this vague daunting box. suggesting someone learn this archaic 'nonsense' just to do file management is pretty much the complete opposite of why macs exist in the first place.

as for huge benefits over windows? the dos shell in windows is definitely pretty powerful for file management as well.

you are either pulling my leg, or you have no clue what a shell is (especially if you think DOS is even remotely close to a unix shell).

I would hope if somone needed to sequentially rename 2500 files, you arent suggesting spending 4 hours in a window is "easier" than writing 6 words in a shell and pressing enter. you must be pulling my leg.. And contrary to your opinion, the ONLY reason OSX exists is because of this "archaic nonsense".. wow

 

[terraphantm]

you are either pulling my leg, or you have no clue what a shell is (especially if you think DOS is even remotely close to a unix shell).

I would hope if somone needed to sequentially rename 2500 files, you arent suggesting spending 4 hours in a window is "easier" than writing 6 words in a shell and pressing enter. you must be pulling my leg.. And contrary to your opinion, the ONLY reason OSX exists is because of this "archaic nonsense".. wow

I would argue that remembering and typing the right command is no easier than selecting all, hitting rename, and then typing the name.

The dos shell can do plenty. And the powershell found in newer versions of windows is much more unix like.

 

[SlCKB0Y]

iPhoto has nothing to do with Paint. You are looking for Seashore as a Paint replacement, or perhaps Photoshop.

This ^^ Seashore is an excellent basic image editor. It's opensource and uses the gimp backend:
http://seashore.sourceforge.net/The_Seashore_Project/About.html

The app called NameChanger is very good. It can be used for very basic stuff but can also be very powerful when used with regex.

 

[flipnap]

I would argue that remembering and typing the right command is no easier than selecting all, hitting rename, and then typing the name.

The dos shell can do plenty. And the powershell found in newer versions of windows is much more unix like.

the only GUI based method would be to use automater. if you had 1500 differently named files and you wanted to add a word to the middle of every file name, change the extension, and an extra digit to the sequence, youd spend half a day in a window doing that.

and i doubt you have any idea of what a windows "powershell" is if you have no idea what a unix shell can do.

 

[terraphantm]

the only GUI based method would be to use automater. if you had 1500 differently named files and you wanted to add a word to the middle of every file name, change the extension, and an extra digit to the sequence, youd spend half a day in a window doing that.

and i doubt you have any idea of what a windows "powershell" is if you have no idea what a unix shell can do.

I know what a unix shell can do. In fact, I use it pretty frequently because I know sometimes there's no efficient way to do some tasks outside of the shell. But that's not the point. To expect it to be used in general use is ridiculous. That's not the point of a GUI based OS, especially one that claims to be as easy to use as Mac OS. My mother would never be able to use bash or any other shells. But she can manage to work her way around a GUI

And I doubt you even used Windows' powershell. Hint: it's not the same as command prompt. It is specifically designed to allow administration similar to that of bash. It's available in Windows 7, and you can install newer versions of Windows Server so that there is no GUI and all administration is done through the "powershell".

And Windows *can* rename thousands of files with just a few clicks. It may not allow for quite as much customization as renaming via a shell (each file gets renamed as "Filename (1)" "Filename (2)", etc...), but at least it's doable.

 

[Dustman]

As a life long mac user i've always found windows more difficult as microsoft seems to need a wizard for absolutely everything. I love installing/uninstalling apps by dragging. No control panel necessary, much easier for housekeeping.

 

[stchman]

All in all after using OS X for ~3 weeks it is not the "magical" life changing experience that a lot of Apple weenies and everything just does not work like Justin Long in the Mac vs. PC commercials.

OS X while a nice OS does have its shortcomings and Finder really sucks.

From a build quality standpoint, I give the MBA an 'A', I give OS X a 'B'.

 

[Mojo1]

I snagged Better Finder rename for a song via a promo discount: http://www.publicspace.net/ABetterFinderRename/

I hardly ever need it but it comes in handy when I do...

PathFinder is a powerful Finder replacement with LOTS of features: http://cocoatech.com/pathfinder/

I HATE the Dock. I minimize it and hide it on the right side of the Desktop. I much prefer DragThing for creating my own docks: http://www.dragthing.com/english/about.html

 

[r0k]

When I first switched from Windows, I used a "band aid" to make Finder behave more like I expected it to. It was called Pathfinder. It was a separate but unequal finder that I never felt quite confident enough to make my main Finder.

More recently, I rely on Totalfinder. But not to make Finder behave more like Explorer. Oh no. I'm so delighted with quick view and other things about OS X, I would never want my Finder to behave anything remotely like Windows. Totalfinder gives me 2 things I rather enjoy. As I don't have one of those nice multitouch pads, I still stumble around getting to mission control so I appreciate a single Finder window with tabs for all the folders I have open. I also appreciate an easy to find cut option in addition to copy but this alone wouldn't be worth bothering with an add-on.

Another thing I had when I first came over was Quicksilver. No need for that now as Spotlight works exactly as I would like it to work. When I want to run a program, I don't bother with 300 icons in launcpad, I click Spotlight, type one or 2 characters and usually can hit enter as it's already guessed right about what program I want to launch. Further down the list are files and even emails I can pick from but most often I use Spotlight as a launcher. On Windows you can get Launchy to do something similar but it's not built in to the OS. In Win 7, you can search in the start button but it's S----L---O--W compared to Spotlight.

There are a handful of users who try OSX and go back after a while but the vast majority like it here and stay. I used Linux for years before coming to OSX and I only have a handful of Linux boxes left. I switched off our last Windows box almost 3 years ago. Of course I still have to put up with Windows at work but at home, 99% of what I need can be done on OSX and the rest happens on Linux. I use Linux mainly fur running Apache servers and the only reason I don't use OSX for that is I don't want any of my Macs sitting in a DMZ being hit by the raw internet. A locked down, headless Linux box is better suited for that kind of duty.

 

[Icy1007]

Re:


I'm totally with you on that one, SevengerNC. I'm planning to boot directly to Windows on the Mac hardware almost all the time and not use OS X unless I have a need to (like a development project). My biggest concerns at this point:

1. All my other software is Windows.

2. I'm super-fast with Windows and do a lot of things average users don't know how to do, but I'll will be crippled on OS X for months if not years.

3. Files are not necessarily portable back & forth between the two because of "forks" containing some of the content on Mac. This is an especially serious problem for me for .url's. (I have thousands of .url files and need them transparently working and easily synched on all platforms -- Win, OSX, iOS, and someday Android).

4. The keyboard layout is a little odd (by Windows standards & vice versa) which will take a long time to get used to, and I'll constantly be klutzed-up when switching back & forth between OS's unless I reprogram OS X to swap some key keys.

5. The MB keyboards are missing a couple of things (compared to the only kind of WinTel laptops I'd consider) that seem important to my efficiency:
- Mac seems to think that a backspace (delete prior character) suffices instead of a separate delete key (delete next character). Maybe there's a two-handed alternative way but I need a single-finger, single stroke to be efficient.
- Separate PgUp, PgDn, Home, End keys don't exist on MacBooks, and as far as I know the closest equivalent requires using both hands at the same time instead of just one hand. I rely on single-handed use of those keys thousands of times a day.

6. I'm ignorant about how long file names can be and don't want to risk it being worse that the limits Windows already has. Ideally I'd love to be able to have a 200 character filename under a 500 character folder path (e.g., a 100 char folder under a 100 char folder under a 100 char folder . . . and finally a 200 char filename). What's the limit? That's how I like to organize citations references heirarchically (with the title including a short reminder of the content).

Respectfully,

macimby

Buy an external USB keyboard. Problem solved.

 

[BergerFan]

I think it's a testament to the Mac and OS X, than switchers(like me), are happy to search for solutions to the things they were used to in Windows, rather than going back.
Speaking of which, has anyone known of(or read about) a Mac user choosing to switch to Windows for their personal machine?

Anyways, I recently switched to the Mac just two weeks ago, and I knew there would be(and still is) a process of un-learning old habits, ingrained since 1994.

I've managed to find variants of apps I loved in Windows - a lot of them are more elegant, but some(iMovie) do seem to be unnecessarily convoluted, compared to what I was used to in Windows(Pinnacle Studio).
I guess it's all part of the transition phase and any inconvenience is massively outweighed by the elegance of both the hardware and the software. It's up to me to adjust fully.

 

[talmy]

Speaking of which, has anyone known of(or read about) a Mac user choosing to switch to Windows for their personal machine?

It happens, but not as frequently as the other direction. I've read posts here from people that have switched back.

I've managed to find variants of apps I loved in Windows - a lot of them are more elegant, but some(iMovie) do seem to be unnecessarily convoluted, compared to what I was used to in Windows(Pinnacle Studio).

IMovie was redesigned from the ground up several years ago. It was designed basically ignoring "traditional" non-linear editor features, and upset many people who had used the earlier, traditional design iMovie. It's similar to what just happened with FinalCut. I started with the new iMovie and I edit 2-4 hours of lectures a week during the school year. It has worked great and I had no trouble learning it. But when I've tried other editors (an old copy of iMovie to see what it was like, and Adobe Premiere Elements) I've found them totally confusing! I'd suggest viewing the tutorials on the Apple site and trying the program out for a while.

 

[cefey]

I have been on mac for over 3 years and I still like windows a lot better

Its like Linux, Windows, MAC
- In linux there is way too much customizing.
- Mac - everything is "done" for you and easy. But once I want to change something, **** hits the fan. As simple thing as "disable mouse acceleration" or creating new word-document. There is many good programs that will make your life a lot easier, but not everyone have time to learn all those programs.
- Windows imo is perfect mix. Its nicely precostumised, but you can change and create everything the way you wont it!

Its seems for me that mac is ideal for either "slower users", people who use just few programs and dont explore a lot. Maybe older people.
Or for nerds, who will learn all those additional programs and will be able to use them.

Again, please, dont get offended. Thats just my opinion and how it seems to me. I know a lot of people will disagree with me and I do respect that. So please, respect my opinion too

----------

I think it's a testament to the Mac and OS X, than switchers(like me), are happy to search for solutions to the things they were used to in Windows, rather than going back.
Speaking of which, has anyone known of(or read about) a Mac user choosing to switch to Windows for their personal machine?

Anyways, I recently switched to the Mac just two weeks ago, and I knew there would be(and still is) a process of un-learning old habits, ingrained since 1994.

I've managed to find variants of apps I loved in Windows - a lot of them are more elegant, but some(iMovie) do seem to be unnecessarily convoluted, compared to what I was used to in Windows(Pinnacle Studio).
I guess it's all part of the transition phase and any inconvenience is massively outweighed by the elegance of both the hardware and the software. It's up to me to adjust fully.

Me! I wont to go back to windows.
Even though you can find programs on mac simular to those on windows, but "it just not the same".
What I liked about programs like winamp, paint, winzip, sopcast is that all of them is very simple, straight forward, but still, you can customize and adjust them the way you like. Its kind of perfect balance.
Before I listend to music only from my HD. I never do it on mac, cause of iTunes.
I did find programs simular to paint, but they are not as good.

And its like that with everything.

The only thing I do like on mac is iPhoto, really nice for organazing and smiley on skype (on windows the look retarded). But thats just me

Another thing - hardware comp.
There is a lot of products that dont work with mac. Simple stuff like Razor mouse or Polar sport-watch.
And there is no way around it, but using them on windows machine.

----------

As a life long mac user i've always found windows more difficult as microsoft seems to need a wizard for absolutely everything. I love installing/uninstalling apps by dragging. No control panel necessary, much easier for housekeeping.

Problem is, they dont get uninstalled completely.
I did "uninstall" firefox. Downloaded it, installed it. All my history, all my add-ons, passwords was still there.
Tried same thing with othe programs (vlc, chrome etc) - still there.
Tried to use finder, to delete all components - still there.

Long story short, you need to use some advanced search function, to be able to delete everything. On windows you just click "uninstall"...

 

[BergerFan]

You're probably right in some aspects. I consider myself a typical use-case:
I was a Windows user back in the mid-late 90's, when(let's face it,) Windows totally dominated, and was the only gaming choice too.
As a teenager back then, tinkering, upgrading & getting your hands dirty was all part of the fun.
Messing Autoexec.bat and Config.sys files, to fruitlessly searching for faster drivers for my gfx card, to give me 1fps more in my games, was the norm.
As I got a little older, other life priorities would take over, and the desire to tinker began to wane.
Today, I just want a powerful machine to 'work' and let me do what I need to do, without dramas.
Yes, I can do that in Windows(I have been doing that up to three weeks ago), but I want some elegance to go with it, so goodbye ugly Dell 2008 laptop and hello to the Retina MacBook Pro.

 

[colourfastt]

I have been on mac for over 3 years and I still like windows a lot better

Its like Linux, Windows, MAC
- In linux there is way too much customizing.
- Mac - everything is "done" for you and easy. But once I want to change something, **** hits the fan. As simple thing as "disable mouse acceleration" or creating new word-document. There is many good programs that will make your life a lot easier, but not everyone have time to learn all those programs.
- Windows imo is perfect mix. Its nicely precostumised, but you can change and create everything the way you wont it!

Its seems for me that mac is ideal for either "slower users", people who use just few programs and dont explore a lot. Maybe older people.
Or for nerds, who will learn all those additional programs and will be able to use them.

Again, please, dont get offended. Thats just my opinion and how it seems to me. I know a lot of people will disagree with me and I do respect that. So please, respect my opinion too

----------



Me! I wont to go back to windows.
Even though you can find programs on mac simular to those on windows, but "it just not the same".
What I liked about programs like winamp, paint, winzip, sopcast is that all of them is very simple, straight forward, but still, you can customize and adjust them the way you like. Its kind of perfect balance.
Before I listend to music only from my HD. I never do it on mac, cause of iTunes.
I did find programs simular to paint, but they are not as good.

And its like that with everything.

The only thing I do like on mac is iPhoto, really nice for organazing and smiley on skype (on windows the look retarded). But thats just me

Another thing - hardware comp.
There is a lot of products that dont work with mac. Simple stuff like Razor mouse or Polar sport-watch.
And there is no way around it, but using them on windows machine.

----------



Problem is, they dont get uninstalled completely.
I did "uninstall" firefox. Downloaded it, installed it. All my history, all my add-ons, passwords was still there.
Tried same thing with othe programs (vlc, chrome etc) - still there.
Tried to use finder, to delete all components - still there.

Long story short, you need to use some advanced search function, to be able to delete everything. On windows you just click "uninstall"...

For all the complaining about how Windows does or doesn't do "this, that, or the other" and vice versa ... I say we go back to how it was when I started working with computers and start using punch cards again!

Seriously, OS X is NOT Windows nor is Windows OS X. Each performs actions in its own way. Get used to it and quit whining that "A" doesn't do this the way "B" did.