First time Mac owner

GnomeWizarddGnomeWizardd Member 4 LifeAkron, PA Icrontian
edited July 2009 in Hardware
So alas I am buying a macbook ( just the cheaper one ) that I can mess with, I am looking forward to certain thngs like Iphoto and doing some movies and stuff, My wife is super excited because she wants one to travel with. What are things that I should keep an Eye out for to use on it?

also with boot camp I wonder can I play any games with a 9400m? ( just wondering, Dont really care )

Comments

  • Nate_LapTNate_LapT Ferndale MI. Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    oh.. im sorry,
  • GnomeWizarddGnomeWizardd Member 4 Life Akron, PA Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    lol Not replacing my desktop in any way shape or form, Wife is really starting to like photography and wants it to be portable
  • Nate_LapTNate_LapT Ferndale MI. Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    and a pc cant do this?
    Whats your reasoning to getting a mac?
  • SnarkasmSnarkasm Madison, WI Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    Because everybody knows photography requires a Mac.
  • GnomeWizarddGnomeWizardd Member 4 Life Akron, PA Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    my wife like some of the programs they offer, I can get it refurbished pretty cheap too, Any pc laptop will be the same price for what they offer right now, Iphot is pretty swank and so is Apature ( <<<< that one is for my photo hobby ) ALSO I would like to get to know the OS so I can help some people I know
  • GnomeWizarddGnomeWizardd Member 4 Life Akron, PA Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    Snarkasm wrote:
    Because everybody knows photography requires a Mac.

    nope just what the wife wants
  • UPSLynxUPSLynx :KAPPA: Redwood City, CA Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    Look, it's fine. He's not switching, and learning to OS is an OK thing to do.

    Be weary of hardware failures. power adapter, battery, whatever. Hardware is expensive on macs (for no good reason, either).

    Get dropbox to sync files easily between your PC and your mac. And look into Evernote for productivity.

    You probably won't be able to game anything very new on it. I have a MacBook, and I can't play TF2 on it. I can play Call of Duty 2 on it, but just barely. Honestly, the way MacBooks deal with video is absolute bollocks. Something about how the shared video memory is achieved, it's poorly done and won't give you good results at all. The lack of a video card in the macbooks cripple their video performance.
  • GnomeWizarddGnomeWizardd Member 4 Life Akron, PA Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    the newer one is a 9400m with 256 memory shared which sucks
  • GnomeWizarddGnomeWizardd Member 4 Life Akron, PA Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    Oh any why would i switch? Good computers should come preinstalled with Windows 7 and TF2
  • gibbonslgibbonsl Grand Forks AFB
    edited July 2009
    i currently have a mac book pro with the 8400 and can run fallout 3 via boot camp just fine COD4 work fine also. as for problems with my mac...non that was not self induced. lol i time left the thing running for 3 weeks with out a restart.

    But my desk top is a vista pc though

    as for what to look for, look for software that you would want to use, hardest thing for me was the HD format set up, windows dose not see MAC formated drives at all, while MAC can see and view, just not modify the files on NTFS formated drives. If you want to use 1 drive for both MAC and Windows you are stuck using FAT32 format.
  • SidekicksolSidekicksol Kansas City, Kansas
    edited July 2009
    FFS, Chill out!

    I play PC games on my PC, and Mac games on a Mac. They both have their qualities. STFU with this stupid hatred of some other OS. Jesus.

    OP: Good choice. Don't go expensive if you don't think its going to be your main thing. I love my macbook :)

    Regardless of how much more efficient it is to have a PC desktop, I strongly think that Mac laptops are of the utmost quality and are always a good buy :)
  • BuddyJBuddyJ Dept. of Propaganda OKC Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    Gnome, get the cheapest refurb macbook you can and then max out the RAM. Apple charges waaaay too much to upgrade it for you, but you can do it yourself with a small phillips screwdriver in about 5 min.

    The power adapter on the MB is great. Every system should have a power cord that attaches magnetically. It seems like breaking the power cord socket is the #1 killer of laptops. Dunno why more don't use that system.

    As long as the battery is good, you shouldn't have any problems with it. OS X is a great OS. Have fun!
  • GnomeWizarddGnomeWizardd Member 4 Life Akron, PA Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    I am picking up a refurb macbook for 749
    2.0 core 2 duo
    2gb ram
    9400m 256


    i wont ever upgrade ram from apple
    I plan on shoving as much in it as I can tho
  • ardichokeardichoke Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    GnomeWizardd wrote:
    I plan on shoving as much in it as I can tho

    Wizardd.... giving us constant examples of why context is important.

    Good luck with the Mac-quest. If I might make a suggestion based on my limited use of OSX.... don't try and copy large amounts of data using a windows share. The samba stack in OSX, last time I used it anyway, had some nasty bugs that would cause the Mac-mini's that the campus newspaper was using to kernel panic whenever they tried pushing large amounts of data to their home directories stored on our windows servers.
  • gibbonslgibbonsl Grand Forks AFB
    edited July 2009
    ardichoke wrote:
    Wizardd.... giving us constant examples of why context is important.

    Good luck with the Mac-quest. If I might make a suggestion based on my limited use of OSX.... don't try and copy large amounts of data using a windows share. The samba stack in OSX, last time I used it anyway, had some nasty bugs that would cause the Mac-mini's that the campus newspaper was using to kernel panic whenever they tried pushing large amounts of data to their home directories stored on our windows servers.


    I think they fix that I have pushed up to 1tb + to my desktop using my Macbook Pro

    desktop is a Vista or XP system
  • miragemirage
    edited July 2009
    Expensive hardware upgrade options is valid for Dell, HP, and every other manufacturer. Mac OS X is a very nice OS, MacBook is an exceptionally well designed notebook, just try to enjoy and explore that new system when you buy it. My wife also has a white Macbook and she loves it. I also enjoy maintaining and playing with it too. The only weakness I see with that notebook is the plastic case which can be damaged and stained easily. I would recommend the newer aluminum body, if you can.
  • shwaipshwaip bluffin' with my muffin Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    The upgrade options for PCs from any of those manufacturers are only expensive if you buy them from one of those manufacturers. If you get an upgrade from newegg, that ceases to be the case.

    Do you consider the fact that new unibody MBPs are overheating 'well designed'? Or how about the plastic case MBs cracking in the same place?

    Don't get me wrong, I'm not a mac hater. I don't think they're not a good deal though. We used them for our research project, and they were nice to use, I'd just never buy one on my own.
  • GnomeWizarddGnomeWizardd Member 4 Life Akron, PA Icrontian
    edited July 2009
    Mirage IA ma getting the shell and wrist covered at www.clear-coat.com they are based out of phili, Only 49 for a complete cover, Got my ipod touch done man its durable
  • miragemirage
    edited July 2009
    I have upgraded the Macbook harddisk and memory by buying parts from Newegg.

    You are right about the cracking problem of plastic Macbook, that is why I recommended aluminum body. Apple store replaces the cracked covers for free beyond the warranty period while you wait in about an hour. I had done it once.

    About overheating, my Dell notebooks (Vostro 1500, Latitude D630, Inspiron 500m) overheat too. I have reinstalled their heatsinks with better thermal paste and use fan controller software. I also undervolt them with RMclock. I do the same for Macbook, reinstalled heatsink, there is Coolbook for undervolting which resolved the overheating problems together with SMCFancontrol program. Hope this helps.

    I still like Macbook.
  • miragemirage
    edited July 2009
    GnomeWizardd wrote:
    Mirage IA ma getting the shell and wrist covered at www.clear-coat.com they are based out of phili, Only 49 for a complete cover, Got my ipod touch done man its durable

    That is a good idea. But do not worry too much, you can find the parts at Ebay and replace yourself too. The problem is I think the hard plastic bumpers on the LCD frame. When they hit on the thin plastic hand rests every time lid closes, they eventually cause cracking. I thought about placing soft foam strips at the contact point but my wife did not like idea :) I might try your suggestion.
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