My Parents are Switching from Windows to Mac - and they would like an intro in Book Form please

[Droid13]

After almost 40 years of near-pure Windows computing - and following a recent bad experience with Windows 11 / Dell - my retired parents have decided to switch to the Mac; they have ordered an M4 Mac mini which could be delivered at any time in the next 10-12 weeks (the lead times are wild); they narrowly beat the most recent price increase.

They are not the most tech-savvy but are willing to learn, if nothing else out of a new-found spite and disdain for the PC. They currently do not have a functioning computer at home and are therefore keen on a book that they can read in the run up to the switch. Unfortunately resources like Pogue's "missing manual" and other similar guides are long gone...

Does anyone have any suggestions please?

In any case, I expect to be providing a fair amount of tech support myself... which is fine.

 

[Gregg2]

What version of the OS will be on it? Usually not long after the public release of the latest upgrade, there's a book "for dummies" available, such as macOS Tahoe for Dummies. I've purchased a book from them a couple of times. They tend to highlight the differences from the last version, but that means they're telling you how it works now.

 

[adrianlondon]

You could find an online resource and print it out! (Note: the example I found was one of the first google hits and isn't up to date with MacOS versions.)

https://sban2009.medium.com/moving-from-windows-to-mac-4de2647e4e83

 

[Droid13]

What version of the OS will be on it? Usually not long after the public release of the latest upgrade, there's a book "for dummies" available, such as macOS Tahoe for Dummies. I've purchased a book from them a couple of times. They tend to highlight the differences from the last version, but that means they're telling you how it works now.

I had not considered the "For Dummies" series; realistically it is going to arrive before the next version of MacOS goes live so it'll be Tahoe they need.

Thank you!

 

[Droid13]

You could find an online resource and print it out! (Note: the example I found was one of the first google hits and isn't up to date with MacOS versions.)

https://sban2009.medium.com/moving-from-windows-to-mac-4de2647e4e83

Thank you for this one; they were resistant to the idea - and also resistant to the idea of attending the Apple Store!

 

[Ben J.]

I know you're asking for printed matter, but I must insist that they check out Macmost.com on Youtube. Tons of clear, no-nonsense videos on everything mac related. Most any topic covered, including videos on windows-to-mac transition.

Btw, when I got my first job involving the use of macs in the late eighties, first thing I did was to get a 'macintosh for dummies' book and read it cover-to-cover before even touching a mac. Great way to get started.

macmostvideo

Subscribe to MacMost to watch daily video tutorials about how to get the most from your Mac, iPad and iPhone! This show focuses on the "how to." You'll learn how to use macOS and the apps that come with your Mac. MacMost also features news, commentary reviews geared toward the casual personal...

www.youtube.com

macmostvideo

Subscribe to MacMost to watch daily video tutorials about how to get the most from your Mac, iPad and iPhone! This show focuses on the "how to." You'll learn how to use macOS and the apps that come with your Mac. MacMost also features news, commentary reviews geared toward the casual personal...

www.youtube.com

 

[KaliYoni]

suggestions

The Take Control series of books are well respected and long established. Each book is clearly written and free of technical jargon. I highly recommend them.

Take Control Books – Expert Advice from Leading Tech Authors

Take Control Books - Expert Advice from Leading Tech Authors

www.takecontrolbooks.com

 

[Fishrrman]

Suggest that they plan on keeping BOTH the PC and the Mac running for, say, 1-2 months. This way, if they "get stuck" on something on the new Mac, they can revert back to the PC to get it done for now.

Why not look here:

Amazon.com: Moving From Pc To Mac: Books

Online shopping from a great selection at Books Store.

www.amazon.com

The best advice you can give them is "don't worry about it too much".
Areas they should concentrate on:
- installing applications (and show to them that all apps are in the "applications" folder)
- system settings (make sure this is in the dock)
- they might be more comfortable with the dock positioned on either the left or right side.
- REMOVE from dock stuff they won't use
- get Safari set up for them
- get Mail set up for them
- couple of "other" browsers (Brave, Firefox, Orion, DuckDuckGo, etc.), just to have around
- how to move data from PC to Mac (suggest one or two flash drives, exFat would be good for now)

That ought to get them going.

 

[wonderings]

Just put ChatGPT on their iPhone/Android and have it give them a basic walkthrough, then they can use the voice feature for any questions or how to's. Simple and works at their convenience.

 

[Gregg2]

I know you're asking for printed matter, but I must insist that they check out Macmost.com on Youtube. Tons of clear, no-nonsense videos on everything mac related. Most any topic covered, including videos on windows-to-mac transition.

Excellent suggestion! They could browse the videos for topics not covered in whatever book they have.

 

[Droid13]

Suggest that they plan on keeping BOTH the PC and the Mac running for, say, 1-2 months. This way, if they "get stuck" on something on the new Mac, they can revert back to the PC to get it done for now.

Why not look here:

Amazon.com: Moving From Pc To Mac: Books

Online shopping from a great selection at Books Store.

www.amazon.com

The best advice you can give them is "don't worry about it too much".
Areas they should concentrate on:
- installing applications (and show to them that all apps are in the "applications" folder)
- system settings (make sure this is in the dock)
- they might be more comfortable with the dock positioned on either the left or right side.
- REMOVE from dock stuff they won't use
- get Safari set up for them
- get Mail set up for them
- couple of "other" browsers (Brave, Firefox, Orion, DuckDuckGo, etc.), just to have around
- how to move data from PC to Mac (suggest one or two flash drives, exFat would be good for now)

That ought to get them going.

In a fit of rage, the PC has already been thrown out of the house; they ripped out the hard drive and tossed it.

I am going to be visiting them soon (the Mini is arriving in the next couple of days - a pleasant surprise) and will find out more about what triggered this. I'll have a day with them and will be working through the above list.

 

[Droid13]

I know you're asking for printed matter, but I must insist that they check out Macmost.com on Youtube. Tons of clear, no-nonsense videos on everything mac related. Most any topic covered, including videos on windows-to-mac transition.

Btw, when I got my first job involving the use of macs in the late eighties, first thing I did was to get a 'macintosh for dummies' book and read it cover-to-cover before even touching a mac. Great way to get started.

macmostvideo

Subscribe to MacMost to watch daily video tutorials about how to get the most from your Mac, iPad and iPhone! This show focuses on the "how to." You'll learn how to use macOS and the apps that come with your Mac. MacMost also features news, commentary reviews geared toward the casual personal...

www.youtube.com

macmostvideo

Subscribe to MacMost to watch daily video tutorials about how to get the most from your Mac, iPad and iPhone! This show focuses on the "how to." You'll learn how to use macOS and the apps that come with your Mac. MacMost also features news, commentary reviews geared toward the casual personal...

www.youtube.com

The Take Control series of books are well respected and long established. Each book is clearly written and free of technical jargon. I highly recommend them.

Take Control Books – Expert Advice from Leading Tech Authors

Take Control Books - Expert Advice from Leading Tech Authors

www.takecontrolbooks.com

Thank you both for your suggestions; I have bookmarked these for when I visit them; the mini will be with them in just a couple of days.

 

[iHorseHead]

Why don't they just install Linux? There are many distros that look like Windows and even function like one and most Linux distros have longer support. Some LTS releases are supported for 6 years.

 

[JamesMay82]

After almost 40 years of near-pure Windows computing - and following a recent bad experience with Windows 11 / Dell - my retired parents have decided to switch to the Mac; they have ordered an M4 Mac mini which could be delivered at any time in the next 10-12 weeks (the lead times are wild); they narrowly beat the most recent price increase.

They are not the most tech-savvy but are willing to learn, if nothing else out of a new-found spite and disdain for the PC. They currently do not have a functioning computer at home and are therefore keen on a book that they can read in the run up to the switch. Unfortunately resources like Pogue's "missing manual" and other similar guides are long gone...

Does anyone have any suggestions please?

In any case, I expect to be providing a fair amount of tech support myself... which is fine.

I had my parents switch years ago as i find screen sharing via iMessage easier with them..

Mine always forget what i show them though lol

 

[ChrisA]

Suggest that they plan on keeping BOTH the PC and the Mac running for, say, 1-2 months. This way, if they "get stuck" on something on the new Mac, they can revert back to the PC to get it done for now.

This rarely happens. People who are not so into computers tend to only use a web browser and perhaps email, and that’s it. Once the web browser is launched, there is no difference. The Amazon and YouTube websites work the same on any OS.

The OP said these people don't have a computer right now. So keeping the PC is a non-option. Notice that this means no need to transfer data. They likely did not have any data.

 

[Droid13]

This rarely happens. People who are not so into computers tend to only use a web browser and perhaps email, and that’s it. Once the web browser is launched, there is no difference. The Amazon and YouTube websites work the same on any OS.

The OP said these people don't have a computer right now. So keeping the PC is a non-option. Notice that this means no need to transfer data. They likely did not have any data.

Pretty much.

I had shown them how to take a hard drive out of a PC before and I left a drive caddy and other little bits and pieces in the house, but there isn’t going to be any data they need on it - nearly all of the important stuff is contained in email.

 

[Fallforward]

I know you're asking for printed matter, but I must insist that they check out Macmost.com on Youtube. Tons of clear, no-nonsense videos on everything mac related. Most any topic covered, including videos on windows-to-mac transition.

Btw, when I got my first job involving the use of macs in the late eighties, first thing I did was to get a 'macintosh for dummies' book and read it cover-to-cover before even touching a mac. Great way to get started.

macmostvideo

Subscribe to MacMost to watch daily video tutorials about how to get the most from your Mac, iPad and iPhone! This show focuses on the "how to." You'll learn how to use macOS and the apps that come with your Mac. MacMost also features news, commentary reviews geared toward the casual personal...

www.youtube.com

macmostvideo

Subscribe to MacMost to watch daily video tutorials about how to get the most from your Mac, iPad and iPhone! This show focuses on the "how to." You'll learn how to use macOS and the apps that come with your Mac. MacMost also features news, commentary reviews geared toward the casual personal...

www.youtube.com

Thank you both for your suggestions; I have bookmarked these for when I visit them; the mini will be with them in just a couple of days.

Perhaps they have a smart TV with the YouTube app?

 

[ifxf]

Step #1 is find old the programs your parents used on the PC and come up with their equivalents on the Mac. Don't force them to learn Safari, download the browser they are currently using and make it the default. If they don't use a browser to access email then this might be the biggest training issue.

 

[Pjrufus]

I get the tossed PC in a rage thing. Convinced my technophobe housemate (in his 60’s) to spend the money and get a Mac Mini a few years ago. With the PC, never went more than 2 or 3 days without hearing panic cursing coming from the other room with calls for help. Got the mini connected, and after only a week or 2 of answering ‘how do I do this” questions, haven’t heard a single grumble for over 2 years (except when his mouse died.) Emails, Safari, Youtube and facebook thru Safari, not apps, are all he uses, doesn’t even want his iPhone connected. Anyway, I think the key thing for him to pick it up so quickly, was to show the easiest paths to find what he needed, which, for him, are the dropdown menus at the top (forget shortcuts); and, if I’m not around to ask, how to find out himself how to do something. If he could transition from PC to Mac, it should be a breeze for OP’s parents.

 

[Ctrlos]

There are always the classes they run at your local Apple Store, if thats viable. They do all sorts of neat stuff for beginners.

 

[Gregg2]

There are always the classes they run at your local Apple Store, if thats viable. They do all sorts of neat stuff for beginners.

See Post #5

 

[Dex762]

In a fit of rage, the PC has already been thrown out of the house; they ripped out the hard drive and tossed it.

I know that feeling, I don't like windows much but good for gaming though, I never forget the worse nightmare is vista that was pain the butt sick of tired fixing things repeating from windows vista is the worse ever had, then when I was at friends place for bbq one night and saw their Mac I was sneaking and find it very interesting with Mac then couple months later my friend got me surprise for my birthday finally got iMac 2011 and I was in love with Mac so much and find it very handy until I sold iMac 2011 to my friend's son (sold just before covid) because he need schooling and music stuff after I sold I was sad not having Mac for a while and finally got neo now as Im very happy back to Mac again

 

[Droid13]

Step #1 is find old the programs your parents used on the PC and come up with their equivalents on the Mac. Don't force them to learn Safari, download the browser they are currently using and make it the default. If they don't use a browser to access email then this might be the biggest training issue.

The big one is going to be email; they had an older version of Outlook up and running and while it is available on Mac it looks and functions differently from what they are used to.

I think (hope) that general browsing etc proves straightforward. I will be with them in a couple of days; let's see how we go.

I have set them some homework though. Mac OS Tahoe for Dummies made it through their letterbox on Friday and they have the YouTube channel on their SmartTV.

 

[gilby101]

Step #1 is find old the programs your parents used on the PC and come up with their equivalents on the Mac. Don't force them to learn Safari, download the browser they are currently using and make it the default.

I really don't agree with that. They want to make the break. So Safari is a no brainer as well as arguably being the best all round browser on a Mac.

The big one is going to be email; they had an older version of Outlook up and running and while it is available on Mac it looks and functions differently from what they are used to.

I trust all their emails are stored with the mail service they use. I would get them started with Apple Mail. Outlook is a bit of a cumbersome beast on the Mac. If their mail service is from Microsoft be aware that the services type is Exchange in Apple Mail - you may already know this. Mail may be the single trickiest thing for you to do.

I think (hope) that general browsing etc proves straightforward.

That should be fine.

The Take Control series of books are well respected and long established.

The book to start with is https://www.takecontrolbooks.com/macbasics/

 

[Ruggy]

They've never actually come with a help manual ever. They are more complex nowadays but they are still remarkably simple and rarely need any kind of maintenance. You never have to defrag, clear out tmp files, you don't get driver issues, DLL issues or broken links.
I know that isn't answering the question but usually it's pretty obvious. You don't have to hunt for how to restart the machine for instance and holding the start button just switches off the machine it doesn't dump the whole OS into a temporary file for instance.
If you hold down Option and left click you get rt click and that may well be incredibly useful to you.
If you hold down option and + or - you can change the size of the web page (or option plus scroll mouse wheel if you insist)
It doesn't come with masses of free programs you need to uninstall, you don't have to search for a media player, setting up the internet and email just works by filling in the forms.
If you want to uninstall something you don't have to search for an uninstall program you just drag it to the bin and that's it.
If you can help them set it up and help them with a few things which are unfamiliar, you'll probably never be asked anything again. You tube is really good for explaining things too
I still spend more time on issues with our Windows machines in a month than in 17 years on the Macs and it really astonishing to me that after all these years they still have driver conflicts in Windows
I really recommend you get an apple account and get them to use icloud-Apple email is automatic no setting. Even the free iCloud, then all their passwords, wifi log- ins etc are stored for them and that makes life so much simpler for them. The Apple password manager included called Keychain is as good as anything you might want to pay for- but please try and stick to Safari at least until you are comfortable with the machine. If you use keychain and Safari you've got good security and nothing to remember.
Preview will open just about any file they want without having to install anything- including .pdf (and you can create.pdf in the print menu). Under the 'file' menu there's a 'revert to' function which saves previous versions etc etc etc.... so mess something up and roll it back.
It's actually harder to mess things up than get them right. You can't delete any of the OS either. Reboot and it all comes back again unlike Windows where if you are unfortunate enough to damage the OS tree, you have to reinstall.
It's odd right now and for sure there will be things they don't like at first. Everything isn't perfect but usually it doesn't take long to enjoy how simply and well it works.