New computer

[bux]

Hi all,

I have finally ordered my first Mac ever (on Sep. 1 actually)!
I ordered a Power Mac G5 2x2GHz rev. b (with bluetooth and a radeon 9600 xt), yeah... I will upgrade the RAM later, when I have more money

So, it seams like I will get it soon because I got an email that said that it's being shipped.

That's great, but now... I have one question:
Is it a good idea to reformat the hdd and reinstall the OS when I get it? (I remember that I was doing that kind of stuff with my PC when I was a windows user).
Or is it a "clean" install of the OS from the beginning?

Thanks for your help.

 

[7on]

Some people may recommend it, but I find it unnessesary. It's basically a clean OS install with everything installed. When you get it, you can also delete what apps you don't need from the Applications folder. If the apps have never been run before there shouldn't be any preferences or Application data lying around. Like for instance, if you won't be needing to run OS9 apps you can delete the Classic Operating System from your root of the harddrive. If you ever need one of those 3rd-party apps that you delete there should be hidden disk images on your Software Restore Disk.

 

[wordmunger]

I don't know. I guess it makes sense to delete OS 9 if you don't use it, but sometimes the need creeps up unexpectedly. Some installers--even for Panther apps--still run in classic mode. Personally I wouldn't delete OS 9 even if I didn't have any Classic apps.

 

[bux]

Okay, then I know.
It sounds like everything you need is installed but at the same time it's not too bloated.

 

[emw]

I can't think of any reason to reformat the HD when you get it - it's not like you've purchased a used system from somebody off of eBay.

Just get it in, start it up, and start enjoying. As you get used to the Apps, you may find a few that you have no use for - go ahead and delete them if you'd like. Generally speaking, you'll probably have enough extra disk space so that you won't have to worry about that too much.

 

[varmit]

welcome to the family

You don't get all the junk like you do when you buy a PC. There wont be all these programs that you don't want installed. That is if you don't want the iLife apps, but everyone wants those.

I would say there is nothing you need to do to it, just add an extra administrator user, incase something should ever go wrong and you can't log on. It is most likely that you will never need to use it.

www.versiontracker.com Find the latest apps for your new computer. If you want an app that will do something, just type in what you want (small description), and versiontracker will spit out any apps that have been made to do it.

example search: itunes alarm clock
http://www.versiontracker.com/php/s...m+clock&plt[]=macosx&mode=basic&action=search

Any other questions or you get stumped on something, search the forums here, and if you can't find your answer though a search, make a new post.

 

[bux]

That versiontracker site seams to be a very good resource, thanks for the info.
Now I have to wait for my computer and see if any more questions will come to my mind

Well, thanks for your help everyone.

 

[wPod]

welcome to the wonderful world of mac, im sure you will enjoy it. i would agree with everyone here that you do not need to re-format upon getting the machine. the nice thing about mac is that it will not come with lots of programs and shortcuts for advertisements like '6 months free AOL' i hate all that junk on a windows machine. apple strives to have a machine you can just plug in turn on and be using in a few minutes with no annoying anything in your way. simplisity and functionality.

 

[SilentPanda]

I usually do a clean install just to make sure that the CD's work. Not that they wouldn't but in the odd and strange event you even need the CD's for something later on it's nice to know that they once worked so you don't have to wonder if it's your computer or your CD's that are messed up.

 

[jsw]

I would not reinstall the OS. However, it might not be a horrible idea to buy a second hard drive (they're not that expensive), install it (trivial in a G5 PowerMac), and clone your main drive to it, then use it to store backups (as backup sets, not by overwriting the cloned image per se). That way, should anything truly major happen, you can just swap main and secondary drives.

 

[jsw]

Generally speaking, you'll probably have enough extra disk space so that you won't have to worry about that too much.

Totally agree - nothing included will mess up anything in the OS, and the disk space you'll save is a tiny fraction of what you'll have. Not worth it, IMHO.

 

[bux]

Speaking of backups... I'm currently a Linux user and I usually have the home directories on a separate harddrive (or sometimes, just a separate partition)... so that all user settings is left as they are when I'm reinstalling the OS.
That might be a good idea for OS X too I guess?

 

[emw]

Speaking of backups... I'm currently a Linux user and I usually have the home directories on a separate harddrive (or sometimes, just a separate partition)... so that all user settings is left as they are when I'm reinstalling the OS.
That might be a good idea for OS X too I guess?

I've never bothered to do this. But then again, I seldom do a complete re-install of an OS, generally finding that with OS X, an update install is sufficient.

But then again, I don't screw around too much with my system. I run fairly standard apps plus some nifty shareware or freeware that I pick up, so I haven't had any major issues.

 

[jsw]

Speaking of backups... I'm currently a Linux user and I usually have the home directories on a separate harddrive (or sometimes, just a separate partition)... so that all user settings is left as they are when I'm reinstalling the OS.
That might be a good idea for OS X too I guess?

I don't think this is in any way a bad idea, and likely it is a good one. I've seen others mention that they do the same or similar things, and I know that it's possible to have the home account(s) on separate partitions or drives, but I vaguely recall that there was a bit of a hack required to get it to work that way. I might be wrong, though. A search on this forum will likely find the specifics.

 

[bux]

I've never bothered to do this. But then again, I seldom do a complete re-install of an OS, generally finding that with OS X, an update install is sufficient.

Ok, I generally like to make a full reinstall when I'm installing a new OS. But maybe OS X will change that

I don't think this is in any way a bad idea, and likely it is a good one. I've seen others mention that they do the same or similar things, and I know that it's possible to have the home account(s) on separate partitions or drives, but I vaguely recall that there was a bit of a hack required to get it to work that way. I might be wrong, though. A search on this forum will likely find the specifics.

Ok, didn't find anything specific when I searched.
But I guess I have to manually edit /etc/fstab (if that's the filesystem tab on OS X) to make it work (and ofcourse add all necessery data to that partition or drive).
Anyway, maybe I should wait for the computer to arrive and then start thinking about if it's really necessary

 

[kgarner]

Speaking of backups... I'm currently a Linux user and I usually have the home directories on a separate harddrive (or sometimes, just a separate partition)... so that all user settings is left as they are when I'm reinstalling the OS.
That might be a good idea for OS X too I guess?

I run my Home directory off a firewire hard drive. I did this because I am borrowing my Dad's computer for a while and wanted to keep my stuff seperate, but now I can easily migrate all of my settings over when I buy my iMac G5 (sweet, sweet goodness...<wipes drool off of chin>).