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Switching From PC to Mac

J

John93

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 31, 2011
2
0
10 years, 6 PCs. Now my current pc is getting BSODs. I'm sick of PCs so I'm pretty sure I'm going to switch to a Mac.

Before I switch, I have a few questions and concerns I'd like to ask.
Note: I'm thinking about buying a 21.5 inch 2.5 Ghz iMac

1. All of the documents on my PC are written using MS Word 2007. Can I still use read them on a Mac?

2. I still need to be able to use MS Word 2007 because that's the software my school uses. Can/how can I do this on a Mac?

3. I'm a gamer, one of my favorite games does not support the Mac OS. Is there any way I can use it on a Mac? (this is a deal breaker)

4. I'm going from a 2.80 Ghz i7 with 8GB ram to a 2.5 Ghz with 4GB of ram. Will I notice a performance difference in games like Crisis? Especially if I have to run some games with a windows OS on a Mac.

5. What's bootcamp?

6. On Windows I can restore my computer to a certain date if it stops working. (trust me I used that program a lot) Is there a Mac equivalent that can restore your computer to specific dates?

7. Do Macs really not get viruses and malware?

Thanks for your answers to my many questions!
 
1. Yes, you can install office for mac and pages can read office word docs.
2. refer to 1.
3. bootcamp...
4. I have no idea I am not a gamer, no time for games...
5. bootcamp is running windows on a mac on another partition on the boot drive
6. time machine, far way better than system restore
7. absolutely
 
1. Yes
2. Do you need to use 2007 or save them in 2007 format? If its just the formatting, you can use office 11 for mac and just save them in the desired format.
3. Bootcamp
4. I'd buy 3rd party ram up to 8GB
5. Allows you to run Windows.
6. Time Machine.
7. Read the link posted.
 
1. Yes, you can either purchase Microsoft Office for Mac 2011 for $119 at a local electronics store or you can purchase Pages for $19.99 on the Mac App Store. While Pages can read most Word documents, I have experienced a few inconsistencies and prefer to have Pages for personal use and Office 2011 for professional/school use.

2. Office for Mac 2011 does include Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Excel. Apple's iWork includes Pages (Word), Keynote (PowerPoint) and Numbers (Excel). Again, iWork applications have been known to have a few minor issues converting between Microsoft Office files so if you want true 100% compatibility, I would go with Microsoft Office for Mac 2011.

3. You can play the game only if you have a full version of Windows to use in Boot Camp. Boot Camp allows your mac to boot up into a full-functioning Widows desktop, with all system resources being dedicated to running Windows and the game, but again, you must have a full version of Windows. A copy of Windows 7 Home Premium will cost you $199 if you need it. Windows XP is no longer available.

4. The graphics card in the iMac 2.5 GHz is pretty powerful and more than likely can handle most games. When gaming, the processor is important, but the graphics card is what is doing a lot of the work. Memory, while important, is not as critical as most people think. If you are still worried about memory, you can buy an 8GB upgrade set for around $90 from many places online.

5. Boot Camp allows your mac to boot up into a full-functioning Widows desktop, with all system resources being dedicated to running Windows, but it does require a full version of Windows which is $199. If you are daring, you can get an OEM version of Windows 7 online for nearly half the price, though it does not come with any technical support or any help from Microsft at all and is intended for people who build their own systems.

6. Time Machine comes in Mac OS X and is by far the best backup system out today. It does require an external hard drive, but it also allows you to access previous versions of a folder or of individual files whenever you like, as long as they were on your machine at the time of any Time Machine backup, whether it was an hour ago or a year ago.

7. Macs can get malware. This has been proven. A virus is a type of malware that is self-executing and self-replicating. While Mac computers are nowhere near as susceptible to viruses as Windows machines are, in order for a Mac to have any kind of damaging malware, the user has to enter their system password to allow the malware access to essential system files and functions. If you are careful as to where you enter your system password, you should be fine.

Hope this helps,

SEV3N
 
plaxico44 said:
1. Yes
2. Do you need to use 2007 or save them in 2007 format? If its just the formatting, you can use office 11 for mac and just save them in the desired format.
3. Bootcamp
4. I'd buy 3rd party ram up to 8GB
5. Allows you to run Windows.
6. Time Machine.
7. Read the link posted.
Click to expand...

I just need to save in 2007 format.
 
Last edited:
John93 said:
I just need to save in 2007 format.
Click to expand...

If you need to save in 2007 and it is critical that format stays absolutely intact I definitely recommend Microsoft Office for Mac 2011. Again, that is $119 and if that is a little steep, Pages will do great in a pinch and can save as a word doc. The format for Office 2003 and earlier is .doc, 2007 and later is .docx. Pages outputs to .doc, though office 2007 and 2010 can still read .doc's just fine.

SEV3N
 
John93 said:
7. Do Macs really not get viruses and malware?
Click to expand...
Like any OS, Mac OS X is not immune to malware. However, the only kind of Mac OS X malware that exists in the wild is in the form of trojans, which you can easily avoid, without the need for antivirus software. No viruses have ever been introduced in the wild that can affect Mac OS X. Read the Mac Virus/Malware link that simsaladimbamba posted.
 
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