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- t3hX, on 10/12/2007, -3/+17Ummm, some of these are kind-of off in my experience.
Here's my experience:
The USB keyboard is perfectly fine. Still, use your own if you must.
The mouse is OK, but keep your existing mouse if you are used to it.
Safari is perfectly fine - if you experience it beachballing all over the place like that, your preferences are probably corrupted, or your cache files are. Use Safari -> Reset Safari.
iChat is perfectly fine. If you want to chat on something other than AIM or Jabber, use Jabber transports. Works fine for me. Yeah, I use Adium too, but that doesn't mean that iChat should be ditched.
As for Apple Mail, the "global inbox" is untrue. Hit the little triangle besides the "global inbox" and voila, seperate inboxes!
As for compiling stuff, I have NEVER had that mentioned problem. Not once, in compiling ANYTHING from source. Any program that has an included file the same name as a system library is poorly written anyway.
As for the DHCP hostname problem - that's not a problem, it's what's meant to happen. Your hostname changes to the real hostname of your machine. The fix is there.
As for the Adobe Suite, yeah, if you use that, buy a G5, or a G4.
Oh, and as far as I can tell, the wireless doesn't suck. People say it must with aluminium encasing the computer, but it's perfectly fine. It's actually better than a lot of PC laptops, and certainly beats the hell out of the PCMCIA cards.
And as for his suggestion of buying the Orangeware drivers, forget it. Just get the right PCMCIA card if you are going to use one. Any orinoco / broadcom wifi card will be recognised by the system.
As for the brushed metal, get over it. It's not really that bad. I personally couldn't care less about the fact that there are two types of window.
Still, some people will complain about things that aren't really problems. - ponzudigital, on 10/12/2007, -2/+14I never see Apple users claiming that either :P
The whole "mac zealot" thing is overblown. I see way more anti-zealot-zealots than actual zealots. - snugsoho, on 10/12/2007, -1/+12That blog post is a bit hit and miss really... some of the points the poster made are pretty accurate and many others are simply subjective and are neither correct or incorrect as it depends on an individuals needs and tastes. The posters remarks about Apple's Keyboards, Mice (although i use the Bluetooth version so maybe the wired version is different), Safari and iChat for example IMO is a load of ***** really with the alternative products and software suggested having just as many flaws as the products and software they are supposed to replace.
- strcmp, on 10/12/2007, -2/+13OK, most of this stuff is true. However, in my experience, Safari is actually a lot more responsive than Firefox. I used to use Firefox, but Safari eventually grew on me to the point that I only use Firefox (actually Camino) for pages that don't work in Safari. Also, I don't understand the fascination with Adium. Its only advantages over iChat seem to be theme customization and more protocols, both of which do not matter for most users. It also has quite a few issues, most notably broken file transfer in the AIM protocol.
But I must agree with "Don't expect to compile anything yourself." The only thing that I ever successfully compiled under OS X was perl, which I really just did for the hell of it since OS X comes with perl, python and others preinstalled. - modusop, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11As a Mac user, I feel like these people are just trying to ride the popularity wave by saying "I'm so smart, here's how you REALLY use one." and then go on to bash a lot of the included software and hardware. Honestly, one of the most compelling reasons to switch is that you can count on the Apple branded stuff (Safari, iChat) to work really well and not bombard you with a lot of ads or messy UI elements.
And seriously, the zealot thing really is overblown - get off it and talk about the machines, not the people who like/dislike them. - stuartjmoore, on 10/12/2007, -5/+15besides the keyboard, all true
- HobbesDoo, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9I use the bluetooth keyboard, not USB, so I can't comment on the keyboad, but agree with all the rest. Very nice tips.
- ponzudigital, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7This is a pretty silly article for the most part. Most of the "warnings" he gives us have to do with using the default software or peripherals, which is an issue no matter which OS or hardware manufacturer you use. The default browser and mail client for Windows sucks also, so what. The apple mice do suck so go get a $15 mouse. I use Windows primarily but use an Apple keyboard because I love the response of the keys. It's s personal preference but so is every keyboard that any manufacturer ships with a computer.
The fact that he mentions "raving zealot fanboy" several times puts him on the same level as those he is attacking. Most of us computer people are level headed and realize everything has its strengths and weaknesses. We also know you don't have to use default software and peripherals. No digg - editopen, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10it's all *****. Safari is faster than Firefox at loading HTML by miles and, as a web-developer, the graphics rendering is sooooo poor in FF compared to Safari, it cannot uses Apple's CoreGraphics, as for Camino, it's just FF in an aqua skin, same speed, same poor graphics control..... - this guy is the sort of Mac-bash fanboy that I hate. "Macs are good, but if they were more like PCs, not that i like PCs, but i'm no fanboy, but macs.... u know, and PCs....." Give me a break.....
- sogracefully, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6purely anecdotal evidence from ONE PERSON does not equal "honest tips".
- starmanjones, on 10/12/2007, -0/+51. Get a new keyboard.
i have no idea. i like apple keyboards. i recently got juice spilled on the one i use
and after it dried out it was broken. i put it in the dishwasher and it works fine now.
if you don't like the keyboard plug one in you like. they all work fine. when was the last
time you got a keyboard with a computer that wasn't cheap. you'll never confuse a mac
keyboard for being a cheap keyboard.
2. Get an old mouse. again.
he must be a PC guy... you can plug any mouse in and it
will be fine. i mean if its a modern mouse... USB. i guess i happen to like the one
button mouse. its not because i only use macs. i use windows and linux daily.
3. Ditch Safari.
again. must be a PC guy. safari is very nice. it feels good. works good. firefox
is ok. but to a mac person it has that clunky feel of a windows program. i keep firefox
because of the extensions... for mass downloading or something like that. i also use
shiira which is a safari clone with more features. it uses webkit.
4. Ditch iChat, too.
iChat is great if you're just using one service... and jabber. there are plugins to
do tabs... other stuff. the thing he's missing is that iChat does hands down the best
audio and video bar none. thats its primary advantage. and to my mom who is not so
much on typing its the only thing she uses because of the audio and video.
having said that i use all the IM services so i do use Adium. Adium great. it kills
all others including anything available for Windows.
5. And Apple Mail?
i have no idea about this. mail.app has a great interface and works great. its problem
is that it uses too much CPU. i've seen it hog 60%. for that reason i switched to thunderbird.
but now that i've been using thunderbird... i'm switching back. again, thunderbird is ok
but it feels clunky like a windows application.
6. Don't expect to be able to compile anything yourself.
silly. wrong. you always have to mess with paths and stuff. the same with linux between
distros. you have to fix paths. thats just hard core unixing.
7.Install Xcode and X11.
absolutely. lots of good stuff there even if you're not a developer. when you think about it
if since x11 runs native and uses the full UI this sort of makes the claim that windows has
more applications available... in accurate at best.
8. DHCP server that thinks it knows better.
its working correctly. if you have a machine set to one domain... and your dhcp is served
from another domain... it might work ok on the surface but it can cause email to fail among
other things.
9. If you're a graphic designer, wait.
I don't think graphic designers were rushing to buy the intel macs. my guess since i am one
is that they probably don't feel any need. running XP and intel and all that is something
that excites windows people more than mac people.
10. Get a wireless card If you get a PowerBook or a MacBook Pro
haven't got a clue what he's talking about here. my brother walks in the house and opens
his laptop and connects... every time.
11. Apple's schizoid UI Is it a normal window?
schizoid? get some sleep dude.
12.To my knowledge, there's no simple way to get around this one. You will not play games.
this is one that is repeated out of habit. pretty much most major games are available. and
i always have to put the caveat in... that i hate playing games sitting at a desk... punching
away at the keyboard while pushing the mouse over that piece of lunch you dropped. get modern-
get a console.
13.You'll have to adjust to the idea that you're joining a userbase of raving zealots[8],
who believe that Steve Jobs is the Second Coming.
i guarantee not a single mac user thinks jobs is the second coming. we are all very satisfied
customers. thats what we are. and... you don't just become an apologist eventually... you
become a satisfied customer. - frem001, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5No way mail is really good, I barley need to anything to separate junk mail, once it's been trained and it's just easy to use. Apple Keyboards are also great but, difficult to keep clean and although some keys are slightly off you get used to them fairly quickly. I prefer Camino but even that still needs work to get all the features safari has
- starmanjones, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5i've never seen a mac overheat and a fair number don't even have fans. PC people are blind to the remarkable industrial design put into most macs- in addition to asthetics.
- zezak, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5@rebrad: Try a Mac for yourself. Don't trust this random guy's ranting.
- Angostura, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6Yes, odd one that, I bought a USB Apple keyboard when the PC one at worked suffered a 'sugary coffee incident'. Not only do I like the feel, I like the compact style.
I don't understand the monolithic inbox problem he has with Mail.app either - all my accounts show up as separately accessible inboxes, though they all appear as sub-boxes of a global in-box, which I find rather handy. - airhead, on 10/12/2007, -7/+11"You will not play games."
Just something to add to that, the iMacs overheat easily while running games, and it's something Apple can't or won't fix...I hope I'm not sounding too bitter here... - tarkam, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I definitely would recommend a Mac to a new user or to a typical PC user, I would definitely not recommend it to some power users. Even though windows has tons of flaws you can get more options on software, freeware and several utilities (let the bashing start). Typical (not Alienware, some Dells and others) PCs are ugly as hell and the mac GUI is really sweet, but I bet that a lot of PC power users are going to disable all of the new Vista eye candy features because eventually they consume system resources. I have made bets to several mac users that if they can do EVERYTHING I do on a PC that I would switch, but no one has come even close (take in consideration price also). Several of the apps that you can use on the PC to accomplish some tasks are not available on the mac.
As a friend of mine would say: "To each his own".
Don´t bash, use whatever you want and don´t become an annoying PC/Mac Evangelist. - demondog, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6I use my g5 iMac for gaming all the time, and I have never experienced any heat issues.
- thevanillaspy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4i'm not sure this article is the most accurate / has all the information. i switched to a mac and the only problem i've really had has been learning new keyboard shortcuts.
keyboard comment: get a keyboard from a 3rd party apple accessorizer like the macally who make really nice keyboards with all the buttons in the right places (including volume, etc) and even well-powered USB ports (unlike the mac keyboard whose ports ususally aren't able to support a USB drive). i think i spent $20 on mine (the macally iKey slim) and it's really great.
mouse comment: the mighty mouse is cool and it matches your iMac, but if you're not getting an iMac (and even if you are), you can get a mouse that is just as good if not better for cheaper than the $50 price tag on the mighty mouse.
you need to ditch safari? really? and for camino? i mean, camino's great, and safari might be slow when you have a bunch of pages open, but camino's just slower than it needs to be in general. i haven't tried it myself but i hear opera's pretty great.
schizoid UI? as other people have mentioned there are in fact simple easy-to-install apps that will fix this - uno is the one i use.
he's sorta whiny and not entirely accurate.. and something else about the way he writes (pontificates?) bothers me. no digg. - fowleryo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I completely agree with the keyboard comment. The new ones, the ones come with G5s suck. I went through three. After two or three months, they start getting stiff, keys feel like they're sticking and it totally makes it impossible for me to type.
Powerbook keyboards on the other hand. Those are God's gift to man. - Courthold, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I've used an Apple USB keyboard for abour a year now, and every time I go to use any other keyboard it just seems like an effort to use. Don't see where the problems the writer was having come from at all.
Also, like many have said, Firefox is *slow* even with optimised builds compared to safari. Personally I use Camino, and it kicks both their arses. - starmanjones, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4>The point here is that the "Apple Apologists" won't seem to respect any opinion
>that's different than theirs (and not positive.)
its not that we won't accept any opinion thats different... its that Mac people use Windows too. they simply have a more educated opinion and there is a huge amount of FUD. when a windows aplogist is saying things and saying they've used Macs and its obvious they haven't... and FUD,Fud... that is rediculous you tell them so. - cyclotron, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Ignorant
- pornel, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Generally OK, but it's overreacting in a few places. I find Apple's keyboard quite good, I don't have big trouble with compiling software. Never heard of DHCP hostname problem.
- t3hX, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Oh, and about the compiling thing, I've in the last week compiled (myself, without fink or darwinports):
nmap 4.03
gpsd svn build
frikqcc (that was even the linux version btw, works fine)
I've also installed a ton of stuff with fink and darwinports, and it's actually very rare that these modify the source - just put arguments onto ./configure usually. - angelp, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4VLC is a must....totally agree.
- uppedbyhiggins, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I agree, Safari was mediocre in its 1.0 release, but Safari 2 has shown amazing improvements. I love this browser.
Firefox is the go-to-guy when for some reason something doesn't work in safari (which is rare). I also keep it around for web development, but other than that I don't know how someone could dislike safari... - DrGonzo1184, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4The bluetooth keyboard rocks! My bluetooth keyboard has been the best keyboard I have ever owned. I was apprehensive getting a wireless one, but except for the lack of a cable, you would never guess it is a wireless keyboard from its performance (I have briefly used other wireless keyboards of friends, and they allways seem to have a slightly laggy feel, nothing that big, but when you are a fast typist, you feel these things). The keys could have a bit more throw, and maybe a little more 'springy/clicky' feel, but having got used to it, it is now my favorite keyboard to type on.
Oh yea, and the battery life is AWESOME. I have had mine for nearly six months, and only got the low battery warning and changed batteries 4 days ago. Over 5.5 months of DAILY use, constantly switched on. I never expected that kind of power efficency! - rebrad, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5OK, it looks like everything I saw were negatives. Now what are the positives besides that it looks pretty and it's not microsoft? I want a notebook but I will not use an external card for wireless. I don't want a lot of heat or noise and I do want to use graphics programs and some games. What gives?
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Plenty of sweeping generalizations about Mice and Browsers, but little by way of constructive criticism. This is yet another blog diatribe and not a very accurate one at that.
- stinkstank, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3The smart mailboxes in mail are the greatest . . . I have not looked at my 'inbox' for months.
- sofong, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I use 4 operating systems, but really like my Mac iBook and use it almost exclusively. It is the best user interface that I've every used. My old desk machine dual boots XP and Linux (Fedora). It has had both Windows and a Unix variant on it for 20 years and at work I use Sun's Solaris. Each one does some things very well.
It is kind of like having a truck, a sedan, a sports car, and a motorcycle - each one is really good at certain tasks. If I could only run one system it would be OS X on a laptop. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6"You'll have to adjust to the idea that you're joining a userbase of raving zealots[8] => Unless you're switching from Linux, in which case you're already used to it."
I find this statement to be totally untrue. I know many Mac users (some the most technically savvy people on the planet, some untechnical) that have a respect for Steve Jobs, they are far from "zealots" who think he is the "second coming".
And now Linux users are zealots too?
I think when people can't come up with a decent, intelligent response to why their OS/Browser/Product should be used anymore for whatever reason, they just start calling people zealots.
Tech1: Linux crashes far less and will save our business money, we should use it
Tech2: You zealot fanboy - don't push your linux koolaid crap on me
Tech1: Hey, if we use Macs as our desktops they crash less, are easier to use, are less prone to malware and virus, we'll need less people in our support staff (and can give them better jobs), it's not based on the dumb ass idea of a registry, and you don't give up unix under the hood!
Tech2: You zealot fanboy - don't push your Mac koolaid crap on me - jasqwerty, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"The antenna is housed in Aluminum. You might as well build a Faraday cage around your laptop for all the signal you're going to get. That's not to say that it won't work -- it will. Just not well."
Does anyone actually have any comments on this? By that I mean people that have opened the thing up, because something either is or isn't a Faraday cage. And if it is, you won't be getting any signal at all, ever, if it's completely foil wrapped. The completely is important, because given the slightest break in the cage, depending on what EM you're looking at, it drastically falls off in effectiveness.
Also, "but then I remembered that it's still the same version![10] Hah! In the time Windows XP has been out, OS X has gone from 10.0 to 10.5." That's just seriously disingenuous. Okay, so he can't comprehend what SP means, but we're basically at XP.2 and 10.5 isn't exactly out yet. Now, pretending like these revisions are good is a horrible way to look at it. If you put out a piece of buggy, slow crap, and then improve on it, that really shouldn't be seen as respectable progress, but a rushed product cycle, and anyone that says OSX was worth buying before 10.2 is kidding themselves. - benwaterworth, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3i completely disagree with the comment that the built in airport cards are useless!
my powerbook picks up signal far better than anyone i know's laptops
i have had many problems in my house with wireless signal but the powerbook always works. - baskervillain, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Firefox gives me more beachballs than Safari lately. If I'm wanting to have lots of tabs open at once or just want a speedier experience, Safari it is.
A lot of the points he makes are entirely arbitrary and attempting to get a rise out of the 'mac zealots' he seems to love mentioning. - jasqwerty, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Yah, it's kind of funny when people somehow don't grasp, or sometimes even when told still can't grasp, that a Faraday cage is a symmetric device. Yes, external signals can't get in, but at the same time, signals generated inside the cage don't somehow get nullified, they just can't be observed externally, but are very much present inside the cage if that's where they originated. So the inside of Faraday cage isn't necessarily free of all EM, but unless you're making it inside the cage, it can be if properly built. This can be jokingly easy, as for the case of AM radio & chicken wire, to kind of hard when you get into the high Thz range using copper alloy sheets, to almost impossible when you get into the cosmic ray range.
- zezak, on 10/12/2007, -4/+7@jewsdidwtc: Your username is offensive.
- t3hX, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Oh, and as for my jabber transports comment - I use iChat to talk to all my MSN friends using them. Works perfectly fine.
- kuribo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2For anyone who doesn't like having Aqua, brushed metal, and the normal theme, try downloading UNO (http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/27932) Great little app that lets you change all of each kind of window, letting you keep them as they are or switch them to the normal gray-gradient theme (the best by far in my opinion). There's even a firefox theme that you can use with it to give firefox the unified Camino look.
- wyrdness, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Apple keyboards are only ***** if you live in the UK - where they have a different layout to every other UK keyboard. As unbelieveable as it sounds, Apple don't even supply a keyboard map so that you can use a standard UK (PC) keyboard on a Mac mini. I love my Macs, but I wish that they'd use the same keyboard layout as every other computer in the country. Having ~ @ | " etc. all in non-standard places is a real pain.
- theoallardyce, on 10/12/2007, -7/+9Blasphemy!! this is an insult to our father. You cant just switch to Apple like switching your brand of detergent. Instead you must think of it as a journey, something that you can only take when you are ready.
- PhantomC, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Adium is great for those who have friends that only use something like MSN
its not very easy to get an entire list of friends to start using a different protocol.
Adium is very customisable and can work with whatever stupid protocol your friends use. - tizz66, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Well, everyone else has covered the big problems with this article (I disagree with every single point except the mouse and iChat).
If you don' like the mixture of brushed metal and platinum, check out Iridium: http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/27637 - you simply install it, and it changes everything to platinum (Safari, Finder, iChat etc.) and that's it. Since a lot of people want iTunes to be brushed metal even if other apps aren't, iTunes is handled separately: http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/27785. Very simple. I use it on my G5 and powerbook. - captaindan, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2These kinds of comments remind me of the guy on Slashdot who tried to argue that cell phones are safe on planes because planes are big aluminum tubes, so the phone's signal can't possibly interfere with anything. Someone then pointed out that if this were true, the phone wouldn't work. OH SNAP
Seriously though, I think there should be a moratorium on the use of the term "Faraday cage" by anyone who doesn't actually know anything about radio. Obviously, AirPort cards work. I'm using one right now. The whole thing reeks of know-it-all nerds who place a higher value on their half-assed, untested assumptions than on plainly evident real-world behavior. - felchdonkey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Great article - so true about the keyboard. I bought two of the Unicomp keyboards - they've made me a Unicomp zealot, now, too!
One thing about the eject button - F12 works as an eject button on the Mac, if you aren't using the Apple keyboard with a dedicated eject. You just have to hold it for a second or so. - mikeazorin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2"Don't expect to be able to compile anything yourself."
If there's something I don't find in fink, a ./configure will always tell me what I need to download and install, and once I install the dependencies, the programs nearly always work. - titlesaysitall, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I use FF/Camino and Safari because they are all great but have their own pros and cons. I started to agree with some of the stuff but the guy started to souhnd like "I use a Mac because I have to because some one told me too."
most of wasn't really usefull. Also about the AirPort, my AirPort extrem is right next to a radio and a Refridgerator and the signal goes through 4 plaster walls and I can still get coverage all over my house. and as for the so called "Schizoid Metal GUI" problem of his, ever notice that little sideways bean up at the topr right corner? click that and your toolbar is gone leaving you with no brushed metal. As a Mac User I am not going to bitch about an article that says something bad about Macs but I expected better not just some guy's personal problems that he can't figure out, there should be more content and stuff tto prepare before getting a Mac like transfering settings and email.
P.S. Learn CTRL Click and use Shapeshifter for your "GUI problem" - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I didn't agree with this article in the least bit, as a switcher, who's also speaking for my recently-switched parents & girlfriend.
Safari is a fantastic browser (which passes the Acid2 test) that doesn't drag for me at all. For functionality, I installed Saft and InquisitorX. Firefox doesn't feel right on a Mac, for whatever reason.
I like the keyboard for PowerBooks and the iMac. It's great for everything but games, in my opinion. The keys are quiet so I don't disturb others in a quiet environment.
Obviously this guy is too much of a geek to realize what people do & don't like. Just a guy who wants more hits on his blog. - ToadX, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I love the Apple keyboard. After I used it for about a month, then I tried a normal PC keyboard, and it felt and looked so antiquated. The Apple mice are ridiculous though. I'd hate a 1 button mouse, and Apple's mice are overpriced.
Safari is kind of slow. However, I still prefer Safari over Firefox. Mainly because it simply integrates with Mac OS better (e.g. it supports the ctrl+command+d for dictionary lookup and has the auto spell check enabled in text fields).
iChat is great. I wish it had some more features (especially the ones that the Windows AIM has that iChat is missing), but I can live without them.
X11 can be downloaded from the Apple website on http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/apple/x11formacosx.html . -
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