Windows user wanting to cross over

[Sabenth]

Hi guys I am looking for a few answers to a few questions that i have regarding macs I currently use a pc and windows xp and a linux box that is great but i reacently found that i need acces to a mac for work now i am not very famliar with the apple mac range ive seen the fancy white thing and as much as i know that it looks nice i also looked at apple australia to see what else is out there in mac world and to my suprise theres a load of products most of which i am not very familiar with at all so my questions are

1 whats the main diffrance between mac and pc
2 Can pc and mac use the same software ie one program be used on either windows or mac
3 Whats an i pod and do i need one ...
4 is mac osx like windows xp and please dont say yea but its better because i am not out to get things that are better i just need it to do web work and cad designs and the odd music making marathon
5 Can macs be up graded as easily as pcs
6 whats would be better to use a i mac / a g4 / Note book sorry i am really not familiar with all the names yet
7 Can anyone recomed a good place to really start looking into all the mac realated products just informaiton regarding what dose what how much and if its any good sort of thing

Thats all the questions i have at the moment

in advance thanks

Sabenth

 

[edesignuk]

1) Well, PC's use x86, Mac's use PPC CPU's. Mac runs a UNIX based OS, PC's (with 2000/XP) run an NT eek: ) based OS.
2) Nope. An exe file from Windows will not run on your Mac. At least not without Virtual PC, but that's slow as %$!? anyway.
3) An iPod is a hard drive based MP3 player.
4) Well.....kinda. It uses a GUI like Windows, but it's a much nicer and better thought out GUI. It's UNIX based, so it has great stabality.
5) Yes. You can upgrade your video card, HDD, and memory just as easily as a PC.
6) For CAD work (as you mentioned) a PowerMac G4 would best suit you, they are the most powerful and expandable.
7) www.apple.com

Also you might want to look here for any other questions you have www.apple.com/switch

 

[robbieduncan]

Re: Windows user wanting to cross over

1) See previous answer.
2) No, but many programs have Mac versions.
3) See previous answer. Note that you can use the iPod as an external Hard Drive as well.
4) Depends what you mean. Both are operating systems that allow you to run programs, connect to networks and so on. But that's where the similarity stops. OSX is either way more advanced (Cocoa) or way, way older (Unix vs NT) than XP. OSX does not have any form of product activiation But OSX only runs on Apple Hardware, XP will run on almost any old PC. OSX is Unix underneath, just like the machines that run most of the Net, are used at Nasa and are used to do real computing!
5) Yes and No. Laptops are pretty much unupgradable (no surprises here). iMacs and eMacs are also pretty much unupgradable (beyond RAM). Only PowerMac towers are upgradable in the same was as a standard PC tower.
6) See previous answer
7) See previous answer.

 

[patrick0brien]

-Sabenth

As a fellow who owns 3 pc's and one Mac and has them networked together, I feel i need to clarifiy an answer to your:

"2 Can pc and mac use the same software ie one program be used on either windows or mac"

...question.

Two part answer: First: no. The Applications are not compatible, just as edesignuk says. You could copy them but they'll just take up disk space. Second: BUT you can open files for those Applications that versions exist on both platforms.

According to pretty much any license, you really should have a distinct version of any app on every machine you own, so having a version of MS Office for XP and a different version for Mac, isn't really unreasonable - though those who pirate, will usually complain about this, and try to use it as a reason not to switch.

Some Applications that have versions on both platforms are:

MS Office (of course) Word, PowerPoint, Excel, NOT Access
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe In-Design
Quicktime
MS Media Player
MySQL
Palm Desktop
FileMaker
Oracle 9i
And far to many too bore you with...

I build PowerPoints on the Mac, slam them to one of my PC's then slap it back, and on and on. It's seamless. Even the VB in Excel works

Oh, one further thing, the Mac will take pretty much any type of media formatting, unlike Windows which MUST have a DOS-Formatted media.

In this regard Macs are actually MORE compatible than Windows, they have to be.

And for those wondering why I have 3 PC's to my one Mac. It takes three to keep up with the Mac

 

[benixau]

"4 is mac osx like windows xp and please dont say yea but its better because i am not out to get things that are better i just need it to do web work and cad designs and the odd music making marathon"

Yes. They are alike with their little differences.

the most prominent example that long time windows users bring up is - hit the enter/return key. in windows this opens a program. in mac os this send you into doing a rename, like pressing F2 in windows. to open from the keyboard one must press cmd-o (cmd is the key with the apple logo on it ).

thing like this you will get used to.

------------

"6 whats would be better to use a i mac / a g4 / Note book sorry i am really not familiar with all the names yet"

If you want to do some heavy work (photoshop etc) you are going to need a pro G4. if you need it to be portable you need a PowerBook G4. otherwise you will want a PowerMac G4.

remeber that the powermac g4 has dual processors as standard.

good luck.

 

[janey]

Originally posted by patrick0brien

I build PowerPoints on the Mac, slam them to one of my PC's then slap it back, and on and on. It's seamless. Even the VB in Excel works

Shame on you! Keynote is so much better .

Sabenth, look if you're a die hard Windows user or the programs and crud that you have don't work in OS X (or don't have a Mac equivalent) just use Virtual PC. Of course Windows runs like **** on *ANY* computer but nevertheless, you have Windows on your Mac.

You don't need an iPod . But it's a great external firewire hard drive.

You're a linux user? Great! You'll love OS X.

A Power Mac G4 would be best...
Although apple.com would be a good place to start, maybe you should check out one of the Apple Stores (apple.com/retail) so the people there can answer any questions you might have.

 

[Choppaface]

1) the marketing
2) as it has been said before, windows executables will not run on a mac, though for essentially every app that will run in windows, there is almost always a mac equivalent.
3) you only really need an ipod if you want an mp3 player. it's a hand external hard drive though, but you can get bigger firewire drives too
4) essentially yes, though there are a few differences here and there. XP generally has more features, including a far more robust in-application file browser (for opening/closing files), though they both have basically the same feature sets.
5) though many users here have said yes to this question, you cannot easily change the motherboard/processor combo, though you can get processor upgrade cards (not like replacing your processor/mobo). though it is easy to change most of the other components...
6) for what you want to do, it doesn't seem an imac would be a great machine for you
7) online places like these are handy for cutting through some of the marketing and getting more info about apple products. if you post a "how would I do this" question in the help forum you will probably get a good answer.

 

[Sabenth]

Well thanks guys for all the info ive been looking into the mac world all weekend and went and looked at a few systems in my part of the world have to say what ive seen impresses me although i am still a bit confused over the dual processor systems i am taking it that this means that theres 2 PROCESSORS in one box which measn there faster than a standard pc system scuse me because dual procesors are somthing of a new thing to me i know my way round pcs but dual systems arnt somthing i come into contact offten at all..

There is one thing that the mac seems to have that pcs dont and thats all the extra bits of plug in and firewire stuff so thats got my attention already because i am going to be working with video a lot as well as the keycad stuff speaking of software what are the options for softare with a mac i know photoshop and macromedia are on a mac but what else can you use

well stupied questions to ask but ill ask anyways

and thanks again for all the feed back

sabenth

 

[FredAkbar]

Originally posted by Sabenth
i am still a bit confused over the dual processor systems i am taking it that this means that theres 2 PROCESSORS in one box

...

i know photoshop and macromedia are on a mac but what else can you use

well stupied questions to ask but ill ask anyways

and thanks again for all the feed back

sabenth

Firstly, those aren't stupid questions at all. If you've never used a Mac before, then it's always good to get to know what software and hardware there is, and it's not your fault that you don't know much at first about this stuff for Macs.

Secondly, about the processors: I've never used a dual processor Mac, so I don't know first-hand how much faster this makes the computer. However, I'm fairly sure that the fastest dual-processor Mac (which, as of now, is 1.25 GHz) is about as fast (though perhaps not quite as fast) as the fastest PCs available. You don't really need to worry about how many processors your computer has. The bottom line is that while Macs may be a little bit behind in the speed department, they make up for this with their superb user interface, ease of use, and system stability.

Thirdly, I don't know much about fancy programs for Macs, but you could always look at www.adobe.com . Along with Photoshop, they make programs such as Illustrator and InDesign that might be helpful for some people. I hope that helps a bit.

And finally, thanks for deciding to switch over to Macs. You'll soon see how much better of a working (and playing ) environment that you can get with a Mac.

 

[rainman::|:|]

Well, if you're into video, definitely go Mac. they're considered the standard for image/video work, because they're much more suited for multimedia work. For instance, a Mac can almost effortlessly: import your video from a DV camcorder, edit it in realtime, add effects like transitions, and more powerful functions, add a soundtrack from your MP3 library, create a fully-interactive movie-based DVD menu system, and then burn it all onto a DVD. For photo and video work, Apple has just released a suite of products called iLife, which does everything i said here (and much more) incredibly easily. if you've ever tried to create a DVD menusystem, you will be utterly amazed at the simplicity and professional quality that it produces.

http://www.apple.com/ilife/

To check out the preinstalled themes on iDVD, and remember that this is what your finished work will look like, in no time at all:

http://www.apple.com/idvd/theater/themes.html

Using OS X will be a dramatic change for you, as it would be learning any new system-- but it's meant to be harnessed by the most casual user, and does not take much time to learn. The best pointer I can give you is this: It's very hard (you have to deliberately try) to mess up your system, so just play around. X won't let you accidentally delete it's startup files, for instance.

You will undoubtedly be able to do everything you do now on OS X, and much, much more. You won't have to worry about the computer, it's there to be *used*, not hassled with. Crashing is virtually a thing of the past... It's just so easy and intuitive, your work goes much faster. And it's much nicer to look at, day-in and day-out.

Buy a PowerMac. If you're worried about cost, you can get a cheaper LCD display elsewhere-- i think it's all compatable. You can hook up two displays to your computer and have double the workspace.

As for dual-processors, yes, there are *two* chips in them, and OS X automatically assigns them tasks-- so one processor can be crunching video, while the other is left for mundane tasks like opening windows, surfing the web, ripping CD's... if you can afford it, it's a nice thing to have. Especially for video-intensive work.

Definitely look around Apple's site, they do a nice job of visually explaining things. And always ask questions if you don't understand something Helping switchers is one thing we love to do.


pnw

 

[Sabenth]

Thanks fred I am a bit off from getting a mac at the moment like 2 weeks pay but iam deffently seening the benfits of owning 1 more or less everything i use on my pc is used on a mac which is fantastic just wish i could swap software from one to the other woud make life a little bit easier ..


thanks again sabenth

 

[FredAkbar]

Originally posted by Sabenth
just wish i could swap software from one to the other woud make life a little bit easier ..


thanks again sabenth

Has anyone tried that Move2Mac program that was on Apple's main page for a while (and is still found at http://www.apple.com/switch/howto/move2mac/ )? It's $60, which seems like a fairly good price, though I'm not sure. It can move your email, music, documents, and can duplicate your folder structure that you had on your PC, so you won't have to suddenly adjust to something totally different. You might want to take a look at that.

 

[Choppaface]

Originally posted by FredAkbar

However, I'm fairly sure that the fastest dual-processor Mac (which, as of now, is 1.25 GHz) is about as fast (though perhaps not quite as fast) as the fastest PCs available.

it depends on the task, but there are quite a few operations where the dual G4 really gets burned by 3ghz pentium.....

 

[Fukui]

Thousands of UNIX/Linux apps also available

In addition to "Traditional" apps like Photoshop, Office, Oracle 9i, etc, there are many many X11 (taditional Unix) and commandline apps ported or being ported to OS X (like matlab), most with a recompile away...

As for CAD apps, apple's Richard Kerris said that with the release of apples new X11 window manager that more "industrial" unix CAD apps would likely be ported...

Its a good Idea to go to apple.com and click the "made4mac" button near the top to really get a good idea of how many apps there are...

 

[benixau]

i have a dual 1G MDD.

i have used a pbook 15" 1G.

here is a fact: "apple notebook suffer an 8% degredation in speed over their desktop counterparts. as tested by APC (aus), PC World (aus). <EDIT> pc notebooks suffer a 25% degredation on the wall adapter and 50-70% off the wall adapter. pbooks do not have speed step cause they are so low power already.

i found that in normal stuff like word etc, the pbook was about 1sec behind my mac. (8secs/9secs)

BUT, when i went to do an imovie on the pbook. well ....... never again. export to MPEG4, the pbook died. 70mins on my mac, 150mins on the pbook. this was a one hour movie.

see what that little increase in processing can do. btw the MDD had a GF4MX:32MB-DDR at that point.

my tests showed the pbook to be good for most things but those heavy tasks. go get urself a pmac. you wont regret it ..... until you want to take it with you.

(pmacs weigh a ton(not really but they are rather heavy(heatsink i guess)))

 

[Sabenth]

In the last few days of posting this subject i have found out so much about the diffrances between pc and mac the main diffrance been that pcs are in genral fine for mundaine taks like word and excel but its become aperant that with the aid of people from all over the globe that the mac is the way to go I only wished that id had more information regarding pc and mac when i first bought my pc in 2001 because theres no way i would have bought it .

Ive now looked at a few mac specs in the local shops in melbourne australia and have to state that the mac so far hasnt shown one sign of faliure if anything its made its self more usefull for me as i do a lot of creative work when not at work the main infulace has to be the vidieo and audio side of things as i come from the uk and everyone i know lives in the uk and they like video of me and my family its a long way to just send an e mail so with a mac i can make those dvds ive always wanted too and know that the mac isnt going to die on me ... Like this pc has on a few times

I do have one very important question left and i need help with answring it should i go for a mac laptop or should i go for a i mac as i want to start of small first and wokr my way up i dont think i am that ready for a g4 just yet and its a little bit out of the price range at the moment after re thinking about a few things

any comments


Thanks sabenth

 

[benixau]

save your $$$$.

 

[benixau]

here is another interesting thing, my pc in VPC which i sadly run alot (my school computing course requires access), runs more stably than my pc ever did.

funny eh??

 

[Fukui]

1999 (U.S) Gets you either a 17...

$1999 (U.S) Gets you a 17 inch iMac w/superdrive (DVD writing) or a 15 inch iMac with Superdrive is only 1699. You can get a superdrive PowerBook for 1999 but it is only 12-inch...

All use G4 Chips, so they should be plenty fast...

I like the 1699 Superdrive...but 17 inch is so nice to...

 

[Dont Hurt Me]

some great posts, my 2 cents that is you are playing with video well then that answers that-- mac is the only way. you want to make dvds again mac is your answer and with their new ilife suite coming out it will be your ticket! talk about ease of use ! i agree with a lot of post about the powermacs but if they are out of your range wait a week or 2 and the new imacs should be showing and should be able to handle your needs with style. Remember to with all that video a lot of ram will be helpful so figure all this stuff into what you can afford. Remember this if nothing else working with music/digital photography/video/dvd/cd will all be almost simple and easy on any new mac with the new ilife suite that will be in all the new units next week! hey who knows even the emac might be bumped up which is the cheapest g4 though i like the imac.

 

[Sabenth]

Somthing that i cant find informatoin on is sound whats the sound card on a i mac any model

ive run down the list of things that i am going to be doing with my new toy

Video dvd creation for friends and family
Audio creation for personal use only as in music creation with reason
Development of websites
a fair chucnk of key cad work with designing shop lighting systems
and publishing brochers to go with anything and everything

The main thing that has me stumped is the audio or i am i not looking in the right places for the information i need



ive also found out so much from you guys already so thanks

sabenth

ps

with an i pod is it corect that it can take more than audio as in files and stuff because if it can i am gona get a lot more work done

 

[patrick0brien]

Originally posted by Sabenth
Somthing that i cant find informatoin on is sound whats the sound card on a i mac any model

Well, Sabenth, you've stumbled upon an interesting item about Macs. They don't have a distict "Sound Card". It's built into the MOBO wether that be an iMac or a PowerMac.

The sound input capabilities of a Mac is 16bit/44Khz in through a standard 1/8" stereo plug if the model has one (only the Quicksilvers didn't).

Another option is USB input like Tascam's US-428 or US-224. I own the 224 and it's A/D converters are excellent (major driver issues tho', should be cleared up in a month).

A third option is FireWire input, one such unit is Presonus' Firestation. If I would have done my research better, I probably would have bought that - no latency.

And finally, a fourth option is to add sound cards if you buy a Powermac (read: PCI slots) MOTU's 828 and a slew of others are available to you.

All this said though, the Mac is capable of processing 24bit/96khz right now, all you need in the input method to allow this, and an app like Logic or Pro-Tools to process, but due to the dearth of real-world demand of 24bit/96Khz recordings, this may be overkill.

I hope this helps somewhat.

 

[Sabenth]

thanks patrick it dawned on me the other day about the sound card sound is a big part of my life especialy with mixing audio with movies not that you can do that with ms movie maker well you can but it aint that clever at all



Just how easy is it to upgrade the sound card is it like plug and play sort of stuff just slot a card in and hey presto exscluding the fact of out side boxes and stuff for external cables and such like



the more i find out about all of the mac stuff the more it makes me think were have i been going wrong with the pc answer its not the pc thats at 100% of my problems its the fact that everything seems to be for it self and not desginged for anything to do with other parts of the pc... windows compatbile ha ha ha i laugh at that when my latest copy of joe blogs fancy supper software crashes for the upteenth time ...........

 

[patrick0brien]

Originally posted by Sabenth
Just how easy is it to upgrade the sound card is it like plug and play sort of stuff just slot a card in and hey presto exscluding the fact of out side boxes and stuff for external cables and such like

-Sabenth

Well, you can only pop in a card with a PowerMac remember. As for that, one opens the case with a single finger, the MOBO is on the door itself - heck, you can open the modern PowerMac while it's still on! (though I wouldn't recommend this)

Yeah, it's about that simple. Turn it off, unplug it, ground yourself, open the box, pop the card in, screw in that little screw, close, plug back in, turn back on, grab the CD, install the Driver (if necessary, the Mac'll let you know), and you're done.