Switchers - first impressions

[defsquad]

Hi, I switched about 8 months ago (for the 2nd time... don't ask). Anyway, to re-iterate some of the installation concerns some of you have had, let me remind you that even though you had/have Add/Remove Programs in Windows, it will and usually does leave remnants of the application behind in your Application Data folder or worse in your registry. As far as uninstalling apps/games in OSX, some apps that you may download that are packaged as a .pkg file usually can be run again to initiate the uninstall procedure, OR you have several apps available (some free, some not) to take care of the uninstallation process for you, some like AppZapper, AppDelete, etc.

As far as the Finder concerns, the first thing I did was purchase Path Finder and have been SO happy with that move. Path Finder is what Finder shoulda been. They say it is not supposed to be a replacement, but an alternative to Finder, however I did everything I could to never have to see Finder ever again, and so far it's worked well for me. THere is also another relatively new Finder alternative called ForkLift, it's got WebDAV/S3 support, App Deleting, and double pane functionality built in. While it is good, it isn't as good as Path Finder, though it has some features that Path Finder doesn't initially have (like app deleting/uninstalling).

As far as the Home/End keys go, there are several ways around that as well, The Unofficial Apple Weblog (www.tuaw.com) has a couple manual ways to fix that, there is also an app called KeyFixer that takes care of it, AND there are a few others like DoubleCommand which lets you do LOTS of key remappings.

Anyway, I hope that helps you with some of the aggravations you've had after switching (they were my aggravations initially, too).

 

[martychang]

As for uninstalling, on Windows, I use add/remove programs and uninstall something. It deletes the app, the user settings, the related folders. Easy.

On Mac, they forgot the Uninstaller, so I have to buy AppZapper or get a freeware. Otherwise all the crufty settings folders and data bits are left behind.

You think all the crufty settings folders and data bits get deleted when you add/remove programs in Windows? It depends on the program/company, but many apps, even Microsoft apps will leave registry keys and files in your Windows and Windows/system32 directories even after being uninstalled. Less proffesional companies/parties will in addition to that, often leave the folders or shortcuts when uninstalling, especially if they were added by selecting non-default options in the installer.

You not only have stuff left over in Windows, you also have leftovers left in your core system files and folders, vital to the function of Windows. The more things you install the slower the machine is, no matter whether or not you uninstall them later. If you keep installing apps often, you WILL eventually have to reformat/resintall, or hand-sift through vital system areas and hope you don't break anything.

Apple's situation, while a tad sloppy(needing App Zapper to get rid of the prefs, etc.), is far better than Microsoft.

 

[defsquad]

You think all the crufty settings folders and data bits get deleted when you add/remove programs in Windows? It depends on the program/company, but many apps, even Microsoft apps will leave registry keys and files in your Windows and Windows/system32 directories even after being uninstalled. Less proffesional companies/parties will in addition to that, often leave the folders or shortcuts when uninstalling, especially if they were added by selecting non-default options in the installer.

You not only have stuff left over in Windows, you also have leftovers left in your core system files and folders, vital to the function of Windows. The more things you install the slower the machine is, no matter whether or not you uninstall them later. If you keep installing apps often, you WILL eventually have to reformat/resintall, or hand-sift through vital system areas and hope you don't break anything.

Apple's situation, while a tad sloppy(needing App Zapper to get rid of the prefs, etc.), is far better than Microsoft.

Marty, did I somehow read your mind or vice versa? Thanks for taking my post and going into more detail. I always assume that windows folks are power users since I was one as well.

Great minds think a like I guess

Cheers.

 

[martychang]

Marty, did I somehow read your mind or vice versa? Thanks for taking my post and going into more detail. I always assume that windows folks are power users since I was one as well.

Great minds think a like I guess

Cheers.

Oi, this was only a 1 page thread when I clicked "Quote" for that post.

yeah, I just find it sad that people feel unclean using a Mac or Linux because of the way they uninstall programs, when in reality Windows is far worse. Windows installations literally deteriorate over time, if you change what software is installed with any regularity.

I'm studying IT right now, and we've been taught special procedures for getting apps onto Windows machines "cleanly." Virtual machines using a fresh install of the OS with no software, install the app, take an Altiris RIP of the app off the virtual machine, shutdown the VM, don't write changes to virtual hard drive. Every RIP(Rapid Installation Package) of a program is constructed on a fresh machine, so past software installs can't affect/conflict with them.

It's a real eye-opener to how touchy the core system areas in Windows are.

 

[DaveF]

You think all the crufty settings folders and data bits get deleted when you add/remove programs in Windows? It depends on the program/company, but many apps, even Microsoft apps will leave registry keys and files in your Windows and Windows/system32 directories even after being uninstalled. Less proffesional companies/parties will in addition to that, often leave the folders or shortcuts when uninstalling, especially if they were added by selecting non-default options in the installer.

You not only have stuff left over in Windows, you also have leftovers left in your core system files and folders, vital to the function of Windows. The more things you install the slower the machine is, no matter whether or not you uninstall them later. If you keep installing apps often, you WILL eventually have to reformat/resintall, or hand-sift through vital system areas and hope you don't break anything.

Apple's situation, while a tad sloppy(needing App Zapper to get rid of the prefs, etc.), is far better than Microsoft.

I'm saying that the user-interface for installing and uninstalling applications on the Mac leaves something to be desired: it is very un-Apple in its inconsistency and clunkiness. Windows overall provides a consistent method to add and remove applications. And from a user level it's not apparent that Windows does any worse of a job of removing program detritus than does OS X.

I won't argue that Windows degrades over time, but that's a different matter.

As for stability, that remains to be seen. I lock up or have reason to reboot my Mac at least weekly; I had a kernel panic last week (read: Gray Screen of Death). I can't honestly say that OS X is more stable than XP. It's still a great system, and I enjoy the switch. But it's no computing Utopia.

 

[Diatribe]

As for stability, that remains to be seen. I lock up or have reason to reboot my Mac at least weekly; I had a kernel panic last week (read: Gray Screen of Death). I can't honestly say that OS X is more stable than XP. It's still a great system, and I enjoy the switch. But it's no computing Utopia.

This is something I don't understand. I had in my 4 years of using Macs 5 Kernel Panics and had it freeze maybe 10 times. I have no idea what you do that makes it freeze that often.
I did have a file though, if I played that in QT it would lock my mac every single time, so I don't know, there might be some other triggers out there.

 

[Not-a-cliche]

I don't miss the second button as much as I expected.

*sigh*

How could you be so.....

 

[DaveF]

This is something I don't understand. I had in my 4 years of using Macs 5 Kernel Panics and had it freeze maybe 10 times. I have no idea what you do that makes it freeze that often.
I did have a file though, if I played that in QT it would lock my mac every single time, so I don't know, there might be some other triggers out there.

Maybe it's just me; in 20+ years of computing, I've not know a truly stable computer. As for my Mac, recent issues include:

* Plugging in an external monitor, like a projector, sometimes freezes the computer

* Keynote, I speculate, caused the Kernel Panic and another need to reboot

* Wireless networking has issues with losing the network; sometimes a reboot is required to get back online

* The long-standing problem where losing connection to a network drive locks up the Finder for minutes; sometimes requiring a reboot

Don't get me wrong. There's much to like. Right now I've got MPEG StreamClip converting vacation video so I can import it into iMovie 08. And iMovie 08 is becoming very nice editor for my purposes. A while back I did serious hobby web dev; custom HTML and PHP coding in Homesite. Now, I'm content to dabble in iWeb as it's so easy to use. I've done a demo of Keynote and I'm impressed with it; if Numbers works as well as I hope I'll buy iWork and ditch Office for home use. Expose is a great user feature, and I think Fast User Switching is the Killer App for Mac use -- that alone could justify a Mac purchase for families.

 

[phillipjfry]

I was in awe from the time I first hit the power button until the machine reached the desktop in a smooth 15 seconds (used to my PC taking up to a full minute and then some to be in "usable condition").
The simplicity of everything is what got me. No reason to sit there and tweak settings and registry.
I guess all in all, it was the speed that got me