New to MacBook Pro!

[xemilyx]

Ummm, first things first..

Hello everyone..

Can't say that I have ever done this before, but having just spent £999.00 yesterday on a MacBook Pro I feel that in order to get the most out of it I had better start somewhere.. After searching Google I came across this forum. I am hoping that I will be able to start my journey here and learn everything I need to know along the way.

If anyone wants to know what MacBook Pro I have I can let you know all the specs.. All i know is that it has a 13.3 inch screen, 4GB Ram, 500GB Hard Drive and it was released in July 2012..

Why have i bought Mac? I'm up for the challenge so I have thrown myself into the deep end, I've only ever used Windows but I'm really into my Apple products and technology as a whole - So why not? I want to be able to use my Mac for business.. And for other things, like gaming perhaps.. I want to be able to use website builder apps, logo designs and learn about how to be more creative whilst still having the fun element.

I think that will give you a brief description and hopefully someone can point me in the right direction as to where I can start.. Perhaps with a nice thick book to read

Emily

 

[twietee]

Ummm, first things first..

Hello everyone..

(...)


and hopefully someone can point me in the right direction as to where I can start..

Hello, too. Congrats, you seem pleased with what you got. I'm pointing you into the other direction, though; as this is the desktop section (MacPro) and you will find definitely more hints and useful comments within the laptop section (MacBookPro).

 

[xemilyx]

Hello, too. Congrats, you seem pleased with what you got. I'm pointing you into the other direction, though; as this is the desktop section (MacPro) and you will find definitely more hints and useful comments within the laptop section (MacBookPro).

I knew that I would do something wrong.. My apologies.. I have also started reading the area here for new MacBook Pro users.

Can a thread be moved or can I delete it and perhaps repost in the correct place?

I am very pleased with my purchase. ALthough I'm not gonna lie, I don't know where the blooming eco to start yet - Its lovely to type on though

 

[simsaladimbamba]

Can a thread be moved or can I delete it and perhaps repost in the correct place?

Use the

button to report it and ask a mod to move it.

To learn more about Mac OS X: Helpful Information for Any Mac User by GGJstudios​

 

[xemilyx]

Done.

Thanks

 

[jbolden1517]

now that you are moved

There are some general interest book: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005XE5AFS/
version for Mountain lion (the latest OS) is coming out very soon: http://www.amazon.com/OS-Mountain-Lion-Missing-Manual/dp/1449330274

When I switched over from Windows (though I was an experienced Unix guy as well) John Ray's Unleashed series was my favorite. He's not writing those anymore. He seems to have a book which is aimed for new users though:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0789749890
I'd take a look at reviews when it comes out.

What do you intend to use your mac for? Often the best way to learn Mac is to do something specific on it.

 

[espiritujo]

Hey xemilyx, welcome aboard to the wonderful world of Mac laptops! I remember whenever I joined the group and got my first macbook (late 2009): I was so confused on using OSX!

I can assure you though that it's not as bad as it seems. There are plenty of tutorials on Apple's website and the people here can help you out for the most part. They are all very friendly, well for the most part ..

Whenever I got my mac, I made sure to learn a bunch of the keyboard shortcuts. I like typing alot, and these shortcuts allowed me, for example, to open an app by just typing it in to Spotlight, without actually having to click Spotlight on my trackpad (cmd+spacebar). Also, Google and YouTube are also great resources to learn how to use your OS. I never actually had to buy a solid copy of a book, I just used these to learn the features of my laptop.

With that being said, remember to just enjoy your laptop! Do what you want with it. The ideas are endless in terms of creativity in using a Macbook Pro. Don't get frustrated when you cannot figure out how to do something. Remember we're always here to help!

 

[jimray]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Your story sounds a lot like mine, was loving my iPhone, always heard good things about Macs so Oct 2011 I took the plunge and got the 13 inch as well. I love it. Sometimes I use it like a notebook, other times I hook it up to my 40 inch LCD and watch downloaded HD movies and do other things.

As for pointing you to the right place, well I'd say you already found it. There is ALL the info you need right here, search for your questions, they have likely been asked and answered, if not people are very helpful here and seem to enjoy answering questions.

Have fun mate!

 

[inhalexhale1]

Ummm, first things first..

Hello everyone..

Can't say that I have ever done this before, but having just spent £999.00 yesterday on a MacBook Pro I feel that in order to get the most out of it I had better start somewhere.. After searching Google I came across this forum. I am hoping that I will be able to start my journey here and learn everything I need to know along the way.

If anyone wants to know what MacBook Pro I have I can let you know all the specs.. All i know is that it has a 13.3 inch screen, 4GB Ram, 500GB Hard Drive and it was released in July 2012..

Why have i bought Mac? I'm up for the challenge so I have thrown myself into the deep end, I've only ever used Windows but I'm really into my Apple products and technology as a whole - So why not? I want to be able to use my Mac for business.. And for other things, like gaming perhaps.. I want to be able to use website builder apps, logo designs and learn about how to be more creative whilst still having the fun element.

I think that will give you a brief description and hopefully someone can point me in the right direction as to where I can start.. Perhaps with a nice thick book to read

Emily

Hey Emily,

Check out this link. There are great videos that show the many things you can do with your Mac! There are also videos for iMovie, iPhoto, and Garageband. Best of luck and congrats.

http://www.apple.com/findouthow/mac/

 

[gokart mozart]

In case your MBP didn't come out of the box with Mountain Lion (the latest OS X version) pre-installed, you'll want to look in to this:

http://www.apple.com/osx/uptodate/

If you bought your Mac after June of this year, you're entitled to a free update through that page.

My best advice is to not expect your MBP to act the same way a Windows machine would. This is especially true for manipulating files. Finder is a different animal than the Windows explorer.exe. There are some useful free guides that you can find that break down these differences for Mac novices. Just google them. No need to buy a book. I've never looked in to it, but there may also be youtube tutorials. That wouldn't surprise me at all. Also, you may have figure this out already but it took my parents months, simply exing out of a program does not end the program. You need to quit it. Really basic thing, but I've seen people have tons of apps running without even realizing it. You can quit a program with command+Q or by clicking on that app's name (top bar next to the Apple) and clicking on "Quit <app's name>" at the bottom of the drop down box.

Also, Apple has some manuals if you go to the support section of the site. It'll clear up some basic navigation questions. This may be helpful:
http://www.apple.com/support/switch101/switcher/

Also, what type of business? I hope you don't need to run anything more complex that the basic home editions of Quickbooks or Quicken, because the more advanced versions don't exist for Mac. Office on the other hand, works just fine on Mac. I recommend sticking to it over iWork (Pages, Keynote, Numbers), since you're already familiar with the Office jargon (and some, myself included, consider iWork to have fallen behind the curve).

Also, be sure to take the time and set up iCloud. You mentioned you have other iDevices, so this is a step you'll want to take. It'll sync up you iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch with your Macbook. This will extend to apps like Mail, Cal, Notes, Messages, iTunes, iPhoto, etc. So for example, if you update an appointment on your Calendar app one one device, the changes will reflect on all your other devices.

Also, don't be afraid to ask questions. A lot of us have been there before.

 

[shmonkus]

I made the very same plunge back in December 2011, and I haven't looked back. It felt very daunting moving from Windows at first, but you'll be amazed at how quickly you pick it up. As someone previously mentioned, Finder is a different animal to Explorer, and it works (in my opinion) way better than Explorer!

I was lucky enough to have access to Microsoft's Home Use Program through Work and acquired MS Office 2011 for £8.95, and I found it really weird that Office for Mac is actually heaps better than any version released for the PC! Documents created on the PC are compatible with Mac and vice versa, so if you have a means of acquiring Office, you should definitely do so!

Mountain Lion was released a couple of weeks ago, and is £13.99 to upgrade through the Mac App Store. See the apple site here for further info.

You may find that Gaming is a "different" experience on a Mac compared to a Windows PC, and depending on your background, you may find certain games may not work as well on the Mac compared to a PC, however many titles are available, and for the rest, Boot Camp or Parallels will allow you to Install Windows so that you can run everything else there.

Have fun with it, and enjoy the experience, things will start looking up from here

 

[Dangerous Theory]

Can I just ask if you are a student? Because if so you're entitled to a discount between about 6% and 15% depending on if you're in standard or higher education. I realise you already bought it, but it's quite a bit of money you'd save and may be worth returning.

 

[FastEddiebags]

Can I just ask if you are a student? Because if so you're entitled to a discount between about 6% and 15% depending on if you're in standard or higher education. I realise you already bought it, but it's quite a bit of money you'd save and may be worth returning.

I do not believe he is since he said he might use it for business.

 

[Dangerous Theory]

I do not believe he is since he said he might use it for business.

Really? Someone with username xemilyx and you suggest they're male?

 

[FastEddiebags]

Really? Someone with username xemilyx and you suggest they're male?

I did not mean to suggest anything. In all honesty I don't really look at usernames since they are not important to me. To the thread poster, I apologize, I am sure you are a beautiful female. And to Dangerous, I am sorry for making you feel like it was important to bring that up.

 

[xemilyx]

I honestly wasn't expecting that kind of response!

Thank you everyone