new mac user...desperate for help

[DMzzzz]

heeeey every1, am a very new macbook user, just switching from windows, and all here sem to b experts, so i need some advice
first of all, all the programs i used to have on windows, are downloaded in the .exe extension which i cant run here..so i dont have any media converter, any players, xpt realplayer, and many other programs..secondly, i cant use the features of this macbook, the garageband, i life and all these.....and finally, am living hell to try to connect this macbook to an lg scarlet tv display...please help me witha ny advice u can give

 

[Tallest Skil]

You can't use .exe files on a Mac.

Download the Perian plugin for QuickTime and the application VLC. Those, in conjunction with iTunes, will play everything.

Is your MacBook made of aluminum? Then you need the Mini DisplayPort to DVI adapter, and then a DVI to HDMI cable to connect it to your TV.

 

[DMzzzz]

re thanx

first of all, really thanx for ur reply
i have a question for u, wut do u do to convert ur files, like changing the formats to suit ur ipod, or to put dem on cds, coz with my old pc, i hav all sort of programs, n i used to make vcd's and dvds and everything....and am practically stuck in here......and how do u get the most of the mac, or in fact,how exactly does it excel the ordinary pc???
and thanx again

 

[bradleyjx]

For changing video/audio formats, you'll get opinions from various people, but one program which I use both on a PC and Mac is called Handbrake. It can pretty much turn anything from one format to another with little hassle, and the user interface doesn't change much between the PC and Mac version. (plus, it's quite the speedy bugger on the multicore processors).

For pretty much anything, you can search Google for what you want. If you just add "OSX" or "Mac" to the search, it'll give you all the mac programs instead of the windows-only ones. I've never done CD burning on a mac, so I can't personally recommend anything.

and how do u get the most of the mac, or in fact,how exactly does it excel the ordinary pc???

The argument I give on this is pretty straightforward: Both OSX and XP/Vista/7 have their quirks; because most people who use computers are much more familiar with XP/Vista/7, the quirks there are part of the knowledge base of computers. When you move over to OSX (or Linux) as a primary machine, the quirks become the things that cause the most problems; the programs will be there if you just look in a Google search. When a program freezes up, you may look for the "DEL" key without knowing the key combination on a mac is something different. You may press F5 in Firefox to reload a page, CTRL+C to copy text, or try ALT+F4 to get out of something, and get frustrated because it isn't familiar, but it's just the learning curve of the small things. Once you start using CMD+R, CMD+C, and CMD+Q, you'll start to look at the overall experience between OSX and XP(etc.). Upon making that leap, you'll know the better OS.

...and it may not be OSX in your opinion. And that's perfectly fine

 

[Tallest Skil]

first of all, really thanx for ur reply
i have a question for u, wut do u do to convert ur files, like changing the formats to suit ur ipod, or to put dem on cds, coz with my old pc, i hav all sort of programs, n i used to make vcd's and dvds and everything....and am practically stuck in here......and how do u get the most of the mac, or in fact,how exactly does it excel the ordinary pc???
and thanx again

A great utility to convert anything to anything is HandBrake, but it can be confusing. HandBrake, in conjunction with VLC, can rip DVDs to movie files on your hard drive.

iSquint is good for conversions, and it's easy to understand. MPEG StreamClip is good, as well. You may want both of them.

Take a look at the guides on this website. They're very good resources for all things Mac, be you brand new to the operating system or if you have experience.

http://guides.macrumors.com/

Plenty of good stuff here. Oh, and if you don't understand something, or have a question, go here:

http://mroogle.*************/

And type in what you're looking for. It will pull up dozens of results from the forums on the topic of choice. And if this doesn't answer your question, feel free to start a new thread on the subject.

Bookmark those two websites (If you're using Safari, press Command+D) and use them well. Good luck! I hope that this helps!