Thoughts of a recent Mac-convert....

[Evangelion]

I have used Linux mostly, but I have been using Mac more and more recently. One of the primary reasons was that the Mini is such agreat piece of hardware, and using it is a joy, as opposed to my full-tower PC. And my wife likes OS X, so....

Anyway, I'm not going to go through the usual "first reactions"-thing (although I have used a MAc for about 6 months now), nor will I list the pros and cons of Macs and other systems. What I will do is to talk about the one thing that annoys me with Macs: Everything costs money. Everything.

I don't know, maybe Linux has spoiled me. In Linux I have a world of software ahead of me, and it's all free. And I'm not talking about some crappy software, I'm talking about kick-ass software like KDE, Amarok and the like. How do things work in Mac? The selection of free software is very, very limited. I noticed that QT can't play back WMV-files. Luckily a thread on this forum pointed me to a place where I can download a codec for it. But it costs 9 bucks! There seems to be lots and lots of these nifty little utilities. But most of them are not free! Even down to the tiniest of utilities, I would have to take out my credit-card!

And before you say "You have to pay for quality software!".... not necessarily. Like I said, in Linux I have humungous amounts of kick-ass software available for free.

I still like using Mac. OS X is very robust and serene, and I absolutely love my Mac Mini. But I do feel annoyed that everything costs money.

 

[fayans]

.......What I will do is to talk about the one thing that annoys me with Macs: Everything costs money. Everything........I still like using Mac. OS X is very robust and serene, and I absolutely love my Mac Mini. But I do feel annoyed that everything costs money.

Most people are put off with Mac because of a misconception that software made for Mac is hard to come by or even FREE. That was what happened to me at least. But when I took the plunge, I was surprised by the wide choices of FREE software available. Beside Office 2004, I haven't paid for any software yet.

BTW, VLC Media Player is one of the FREE software you can use for various audio or media format.

 

[chucknorris]

I have used Linux mostly, but I have been using Mac more and more recently. One of the primary reasons was that the Mini is such agreat piece of hardware, and using it is a joy, as opposed to my full-tower PC. And my wife likes OS X, so....

Anyway, I'm not going to go through the usual "first reactions"-thing (although I have used a MAc for about 6 months now), nor will I list the pros and cons of Macs and other systems. What I will do is to talk about the one thing that annoys me with Macs: Everything costs money. Everything.

I don't know, maybe Linux has spoiled me. In Linux I have a world of software ahead of me, and it's all free. And I'm not talking about some crappy software, I'm talking about kick-ass software like KDE, Amarok and the like. How do things work in Mac? The selection of free software is very, very limited. I noticed that QT can't play back WMV-files. Luckily a thread on this forum pointed me to a place where I can download a codec for it. But it costs 9 bucks! There seems to be lots and lots of these nifty little utilities. But most of them are not free! Even down to the tiniest of utilities, I would have to take out my credit-card!

And before you say "You have to pay for quality software!".... not necessarily. Like I said, in Linux I have humungous amounts of kick-ass software available for free.

I still like using Mac. OS X is very robust and serene, and I absolutely love my Mac Mini. But I do feel annoyed that everything costs money.

I do feel your pain. Luckily for both of us at least, Windoze is even worse.

As far as good free aps go, macupdate.com and versiontracker.com will become your friends very quickly.

 

[Blue Velvet]

There's plenty of free stuff out there — but sometimes they can just be a little harder to find which is yet another reason why this forum is great.

Handbrake and Mac The Ripper are my current two faves... Lacie's Silverkeeper and Linotype's FontExplorer coming in just behind.

I also like Doug's Scripts for iTunes.

 

[fayans]

....As far as good free aps go, macupdate.com and versiontracker.com will become your friends very quickly.

Hey, that's where I got great FREE apps. Anything sucks goes straight to the trash.

 

[Mord]

fink before you post.

 

[Evangelion]

fink before you post.

Fink-apps are Unix/Linux-apps, not OS X apps.

related to my origina message: is there a fre WMV-codec for OS X?

 

[mcadam]

What I will do is to talk about the one thing that annoys me with Macs: Everything costs money. Everything.

I don't know, maybe Linux has spoiled me. In Linux I have a world of software ahead of me, and it's all free. And I'm not talking about some crappy software, I'm talking about kick-ass software like KDE, Amarok and the like. How do things work in Mac? The selection of free software is very, very limited. I noticed that QT can't play back WMV-files. Luckily a thread on this forum pointed me to a place where I can download a codec for it. But it costs 9 bucks! There seems to be lots and lots of these nifty little utilities. But most of them are not free! Even down to the tiniest of utilities, I would have to take out my credit-card!

Compared to Linux you're for sure right. But I have the feeling I keep filling up my app-folder with nice little free- and shareware things. I just did a clean install of tiger, so the list is somewhat shorter than usual:

1001 - upload utility for flickr
Adium - the very nice im-app
blender - another 3d and animation app (that I never used)
ffmpegx - video and audio encoder
mactheripper - dvd ripping
superduper - fast backup
vlc - the mediaplayer
Wings3d - fun, intuitive, 3d modelling. developed on linux.

This is a good thread on this forum: what cool little osx apps do you use.

A nice page cool OSX apps

And a nice top 10 list: ten free apps for X

A

 

[Palad1]

Fink! Fink! Fink!

Now if someone could get around to create native GTK / Cocoa bindings, we could do away with X...

 

[DavidLeblond]

Please give X11 apps a chance. Yes they may not have a pretty OS X interface but they open up a HUGE world of really great free software that would only be available with a huge porting job.

Also someone up there mentioned the 3D modeling app Blender... I just have to throw in my $.02 (and I've said this a lot) that that is probably the most amazing piece of free software I've ever used. To see where it was when it was commercial software and then to look at where the open source community has brought it... wow.

 

[micvog]

Fink-apps are Unix/Linux-apps, not OS X apps.

related to my origina message: is there a fre WMV-codec for OS X?

Here. Or, am I missing something?

 

[stcanard]

Fink-apps are Unix/Linux-apps, not OS X apps.

Yes, but ... you now have access to everything you were used to under Linux. So you're on a win/win -- you have lost nothing on Linux, but have the added advantages of OSX specific stuff if you want it.

Plus a number of the major programs (VLC, MPlayer, OpenOffice off the top of my head) have OSX frontends for them.

 

[floyde]

Have you tried Linux on your Mac mini? Maybe that's the right balance for you, Apple hardware + Linux. I'm not sure the current PPC distributions have good support for the Mini's hardware though.

 

[XNine]

Seriously man, macupdate and versiontracker are your best bets. Linux sucks anyway. You have SOOOOOO many free apps for OS X it's not even funny.

And then shareware apps we have are awesome.

Best iTunes plugin is vTunes
Best Audio/Video converter is ExportToQT
Best DVD ripper is Mac The Ripper
Decent software for burning those ripped DVD's is POPCORN
Best defense against apps calling out is LittleSnitch
Best server software (and client) is KDX (everything is encrypted and it has chat, news, file browser, customizable skins, and much more)
Best utility for .RAR files is UNRARX
Best Audio converter is SoundConverter
Best media players are QT and VLC
Best dock extension app (prefpane, actually) is DockExtender

There is SO much awesome software out there its not even funny. Take a look around and you find that OS X has more FREE apps that are worth while then Windows could hope to have.

 

[Evangelion]

Linux sucks anyway.

Seriously, that is not a very constructive comment. I can understand the animosity towards Microsoft from both Mac and Linux-communities, since MS has harmed both in so many ways over the years. But I don't see Linux harming Apple, or vice versa, so I don't see any need for animosity between those two communities.

 

[Evangelion]

Yes, but ... you now have access to everything you were used to under Linux. So you're on a win/win -- you have lost nothing on Linux, but have the added advantages of OSX specific stuff if you want it.

True. But take Amarok for example. That is my favourite music-player. I COULD use it on OS X (although I believe the version that is available for Mac is somewhat old). But it would still be an app that was designed for KDE, and not OS X. It would feel different from the rest of the system.

 

[Evangelion]

Here. Or, am I missing something?

I believe that is Windows Media Player, not the standalone codec . And the link I gave was the one given in a thread for new Mac-converts on these forums.

 

[stcanard]

True. But take Amarok for example. That is my favourite music-player. I COULD use it on OS X (although I believe the version that is available for Mac is somewhat old). But it would still be an app that was designed for KDE, and not OS X. It would feel different from the rest of the system.

Yup, but at least they're available! It gives you a chance for a smooth transition as you find free replacements for OSX (they are out there; for instance I would recommend iTunes instead of AmaroK, there's even an ogg plugin )

The only X11 apps I still use are GnuCash and Gimp -- but there's a project to wrap Gimp in Cocoa so that it runs natively.

 

[Thomas Veil]

Here. Or, am I missing something?

Even Windows' own media player isn't really satisfactory. I have WiMP9, and I can't tell you how many times I've come across a WiMP9 file on the internet, tried to play it, only to get a message telling me I need to download WiMP9. Enough to make you pull your hair out.

VLC and Mplayer won't play some WiMP files either. And what does play in 9, plays choppy for those of us without the latest, greatest graphic cards. Media Player is just a mess.

 

[XNine]

Seriously, that is not a very constructive comment. I can understand the animosity towards Microsoft from both Mac and Linux-communities, since MS has harmed both in so many ways over the years. But I don't see Linux harming Apple, or vice versa, so I don't see any need for animosity between those two communities.

Linux is not a viable desktop solution for the common, every day man, and no matter what Linux junkies say about it, it's not superior in any way, shape, form or fashion. Sure, it makes a great server, but it should for being a blatent rip-off of Unix anyway.

I'm just stating, OS X is superior to any distro of Linux, any day of the week.
I have many Linux using friends, and the only excuse they have is "MAcs are expensive" and my shot right back is "but it's better. There isn't anything better on Linux then there is OS X." And they really can't fire back because its true.

So, relax, grab a beer and join in the fun with your badass new Operating System and community.

 

[Evangelion]

Linux is not a viable desktop solution for the common, every day man, and no matter what Linux junkies say about it, it's not superior in any way, shape, form or fashion. Sure, it makes a great server, but it should for being a blatent rip-off of Unix anyway.

Again, you comments are not constructive in any shape or form. There are lots and lots of people who prefer Linux over the alternatives, yes, even few Joe Sixpacks. OS X is very good, no doubt. But saying that "Linux sucks in every possible way, except on servers", is ignorant, disparaging and arrogant.

No, Linux is not a "UNIX rip-off". It's an OS that adheres to the POSIX-standard, like UNIX does. And since they both adhere to the same standard, they are bound to be similar.

So, relax, grab a beer and join in the fun with your badass new Operating System and community.

People like you make me want to drop OS X, and move back to Linux. Seriously. Why the hostility and disparaging comments? Did Linus Torvalds trash your computer with a baseball-bat or something? Only possible explanation I can think of is fear that Linux might somehow eclipse Apple on desktop. But seriously: there is NO reason to disparage Linux. Even if Linux got 10% market-share tomorrow, it's not a bad thing for Apple, quite the contrary.

Instead of disparaging Linux, you should hope them the best. Success of Linux does not diminish the success of Apple, or vice versa. Apple has benefitted quite a lot from Linux and GNU, so take a chill-pill.

 

[Evangelion]

Yup, but at least they're available! It gives you a chance for a smooth transition as you find free replacements for OSX (they are out there; for instance I would recommend iTunes instead of AmaroK, there's even an ogg plugin )

Naturally, I know of iTunes . But deep down I still prefer Amarok.

 

[stcanard]

Naturally, I know of iTunes . But deep down I still prefer Amarok.

I assumed that I was less sure if you knew it could play ogg

 

[XNine]

People like you make me want to drop OS X, and move back to Linux. Seriously. Why the hostility and disparaging comments? Did Linus Torvalds trash your computer with a baseball-bat or something? Only possible explanation I can think of is fear that Linux might somehow eclipse Apple on desktop. But seriously: there is NO reason to disparage Linux. Even if Linux got 10% market-share tomorrow, it's not a bad thing for Apple, quite the contrary.

Instead of disparaging Linux, you should hope them the best. Success of Linux does not diminish the success of Apple, or vice versa. Apple has benefitted quite a lot from Linux and GNU, so take a chill-pill.

Then maybe you should drop it.

I don't hate Linux, I have nothing against it. I just hate Linux users that make Linux out to be God when there isn't any major development on it. What kind of graphics editing does it offer? GIMP? Give me a break. Sure, it's nice that all of these open source guys got together and made something that advanced, for FREE. That's nice. But it does me no good when it's functions are limited compared to Macromedia or Adobe products.

I have met and worked with one of the creator's of YellowDog Linux. Intelligent person, and he agreed that Linux is not for the common person, and never will be. That's my point. Linux has nothing to offer me or anyone else that need high end products to facilitate their working needs.

Besides, the Mac community around the world are very knowledgable, and I can say that you'll get more help from them then you will in the Linux community.

 

[Evangelion]

I don't hate Linux, I have nothing against it. I just hate Linux users that make Linux out to be God when there isn't any major development on it.

And that's different from elitist Mac-users who march around telling how Macs kick ass, and how they are the best thing since sliced bread for just about everything, disparage any other system that crosses their paths etc. etc.?

Seriously, I did not start this thread as a "Linux r00lz, Macs suck!". But somehow you then went out of your way to tell how Linux sucks and everything. What's the problem here? Do you hav e a problem with the fact that someone might actually like Linux?

What kind of graphics editing does it offer? GIMP? Give me a break. Sure, it's nice that all of these open source guys got together and made something that advanced, for FREE. That's nice. But it does me no good when it's functions are limited compared to Macromedia or Adobe products.

Let's see.... One the one corner we have a product developed by a handful of volunteers who distribute their work for free to anyone who might want to use it. On the other corner we have two huge companies with lots and lots of developers and money being pumped in their products, and who ask for lots of money for their products. Their products have been under developement for a long time. And you then start proclaiming that "Gimp sucks! Photoshop rules!". Well, no **** Sherlock! I don't think anyone tries to claim that Gimp can rival Photoshop. What can you expect from a relatively young volunteer-project that has only tiny fraction of Adobe's resources at their disposal?

I have met and worked with one of the creator's of YellowDog Linux. Intelligent person, and he agreed that Linux is not for the common person, and never will be. That's my point. Linux has nothing to offer me or anyone else that need high end products to facilitate their working needs.

You claim that "Linux has nothing to offer for anyone who needs hi-end products to faciliate their working needs". I'm sorry, but that's a very ignorant and arrogant thing to say. Or do you speak for EVERYONE? What kind of "working needs" are you talking about? 3D-modeling? CGI in Lord of The Rings was modeled and rendered using Linux (you can actually see KDE-desktop in one of the extras in the LOTS-DVD), I assume that's not a "working need"? No, nobody is claiming that Linux is the perfect choice for everything. Macs aren't perfect choice for everything either. But there are LOTS and LOTS of people who use Linux EVERY DAY to do their jobs.

Besides, the Mac community around the world are very knowledgable, and I can say that you'll get more help from them then you will in the Linux community.

Yes, since Linux-users don't know anything about software or computers. Only thing they know about is to wave the mouse around and click on the pretty icons . Seriously: Your comments are arrogant and ignorant beyond belief, and it's obvious to me that you simply have no idea what you are talking about. But hey, thanks for ruining the thread!

I do like Macs and OS X. Just about the ONLY problem I have with using them, is the few rotten apples (no pun intended) in the community. Of course Linux has it's share of difficult community-members, but the sense of elitism seems to be A LOT more prevalent in the Mac-community.