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Making a complete jump from Windows To Mac

L

Lament

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 8, 2008
3
0
Hello everyone. I've used a Windows Computer all my life. I've built a few of them for personal use. I consider my self a casual gamer, and I love listening and making music. I currently use 2 machines (Win XP, Nvidia 8800GTS, 2gigs) and a laptop that I only use at when I'm at school. (I commute)

I want to take the plunge into Mac since I am no longer happy with using Windows. Using XP for over 6 years and being very disappointed with Vista (A 300 dollar disappointment) I've lost faith in Windows. I look now and see that the only thing holding me back from switching is change.

I want to replace my desktop with a iMac. Also would most likely get a new ipod, time capsule, apple tv. The iMac will be the biggest purchase I've made and I've never bought a computer that was shipped built. I'm tired of all the wires and complications when a problem occurs. I just want something nice and simple so I can use the little time I do have right.

What I'm asking for in this thread is any advice or literature that would be good for a first time mac user, but a heavy/power user of a pc. I'm going to go to best buy tomorrow and mess with the 24'' display imacs, and will most likely make a appointment with a Apple Store following. I plan on financing my purchase (New Job, Live at Home still, Student). I've been lurking the forums for a while and hope to dive into the Mac Community Soon!
 
You've already made the best first move--lurking MR!

After over thirty years with Apple, best advice I can give is just to dive in with both feet. Chances are, you're younger & smarter than I am, and if I can accomodate several OS's (Win/Mac/Unix/Linux/Novell), I'm positive you can!

Look at it as an adventure, but with a happy ending. ;)
 
All I can recommend is viewing the tons of information on Apple's site. You will not be disappointed in the iMac. After just two weeks with it, you will never want to touch a Windows machine again. :)
 
Lament said:
What I'm asking for in this thread is any advice or literature that would be good for a first time mac user, but a heavy/power user of a pc. I'm going to go to best buy tomorrow and mess with the 24'' display imacs, and will most likely make a appointment with a Apple Store following. I plan on financing my purchase (New Job, Live at Home still, Student). I've been lurking the forums for a while and hope to dive into the Mac Community Soon!
Click to expand...

Look at the Apple website - they have a lot of information about crossing over from PC to Mac
There are several books legitimately and less legitimately available on the net.
there are plenty of other forums and site if you google for them, and i'd imagine there is a lot on this site too, including suggestions from everyone here :)
 
If you're interested in a book...

I haven't read it myself, but I've seen a LOT of recommendations for the author David Pogue. His Mac guides are said to be good.

Switching to the Mac on amazon.
 
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scienide09 said:
If you're interested in a book...

I haven't read it myself, but I've seen a LOT of recommendations for the author David Pogue. His Mac guides are said to be good.

Switching to the Mac on amazon.
Click to expand...

That guy and this guy's blog. Start at the beginning:
www.davidalison.com/
 
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This looks like information overload.:eek: Nature of the beast I guess, but that is what you asked for.:)

I just wanted to say, I've been in the "business" with Microsoft OS's all my life. I just switched about 4 months ago and never looked back. I didn't read any literature, I just jumped in with both feet.

This forum has been a huge resource for me. But you will pick it up quickly, and the transition should not be a difficult one at all. On the contrary, I think you will find it enjoyable and exhilarating. Enjoy your new adventure.;)
 
Just wanted to thank everyone for the meaniful replies. I am going to schedule a tour with the folks at my local apple store.

Do they offer the same credit card for financing as the online store?
 
since you referred to yourself as a heavy/power user I would recommend reading up on unix commands to use in the terminal. They are very powerful and can be very useful depending on what you want to do. They can also be very dangerous if you are not careful.

This page has a good list of some of the most commonly used ones.
http://www.petefreitag.com/item/426.cfm

grep and regular expressions can be extremely handy, everyone should brush up on this one.
 
cromwell64 said:
since you referred to yourself as a heavy/power user I would recommend reading up on unix commands to use in the terminal. They are very powerful and can be very useful depending on what you want to do. They can also be very dangerous if you are not careful.

This page has a good list of some of the most commonly used ones.
http://www.petefreitag.com/item/426.cfm

grep and regular expressions can be extremely handy, everyone should brush up on this one.
Click to expand...
Thank you! I'm going to jump right into that one.:)
 
Congrats on seeing the light, Lament. Like you, I was a longtime power Windows user that just got fed up with M$ and the associated headaches. I purchased a MacBook for use at school (I commute as well), and other than a few small 'nuances' between the two platforms, it has been headache free and my only regret is not doing it sooner. As a matter of fact, as I type this, I am also texting my wife, discussing our next Mac purchase as our only remaining PC (self built) is having all sorts of issues and I'm sick of fixing problems that are caused solely because of the OS the computer is running.

I second David Pogue. Good writer, gives things straight and succinctly.
 
Been doing some more lurking today. After deciding about my financing options, I found that MacMall has the best option for me (6 months no interest).

I think I'm going to go with the 3.06ghz 24'' iMac. I don't think I could handle the ATI graphics on the lower ends, as I do plan on doing some gaming. I thought about getting a lower spec iMac, and using my other computer for gaming... But the computer is like a space heater.

What kind of heat will top line iMac put out in a room with 2 fans and A/C?

Figured out this is what I want.

24'' iMac 3.06ghz, 4gb Ram (Buying 2x2gb sticks from Kingston), Nvidia 8800GS, 500gb HD
AppleCare Plan
500GB Time Capsule (Need a new Router,External HD and Backup? How Convenient)
Refurb 80gb Ipod Classic.

As soon as I find out how much heat the iMac is going to put out, I will make the order. Thanks for the advice again!
 
Ever since i purchased my iPhone ive been looking more and more at iMacs! Id love to make the switch, but im just worried that a Mac would have too many missing features for me to get used it. My main concern would be games really. I dont own a games console, so I use my PC as a games machine too, but I dont see many people "gaming" on their macs. Can someone give me a lowdown on how the gaming industry views macs and if most games are compatible?
 
I myself took the plunge about 8 months ago. Unbelievably happy since. I do enjoy gaming as a couple of you mentioned. I have the 2.4g 24" iMac w/ 4gigs ram. I currently play;

Wow, bf2142 and Xplane flight sim all on OS X versions.

I also use bootcamp to load up windoze and play;
Rome Total War, bf vietnam, MS flight sim and Age of Conan.

Everything works like a champ. Great graphics. Only thing Is I may have to have a second mouse for the total war games due to the rapid amount of left/right clicking needed. I've lost a few armies turning there backs on the enemy because I tried to right click to fast.

All in all though, everything works/plays fantastic. Even the Crysis demo looked and played great.
 
iMacs are constructed largely using notebook parts. I'm not sure how much heat they give out, but it will be a lot less than a regular desktop. The maximum power draw for a 24" iMac is 280W, and since it has all of the notebook power regulation chippery, the average draw will be a fair amount less than that.
 
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