Effective way to learn OSX

Hey guys. Kind of an odd-one out in this part of NBR since I don't really use Apple products (save an older iPod touch) or OSX, but I'm thinking about picking up an IT support job on campus and one of the "highly desirable" traits is that an applicant knows both Windows (got that covered) and OSX (which I don't), since there's a lot of MBP laptops on campus that they have to support.

Since I'm a student myself, I don't have the money to just simply go out and buy an Apple laptop, so short of that, I'm thinking of getting a copy of OSX and installing it on a virtual machine to learn at least the basics required to support the OS itself (including bundled programs), Office for Mac, and the usual programs a college student might have installed on a OSX machine. A stand-alone copy of OSX at ~$35 is cheap enough to obtain, and I can get most common programs (like Office) for free via the university, so I'm not asking how to obtain a pirated OSX VM or anything like that. But I do need tips on how to install and configure OSX on some Windows-based VM environment (like VMWare, VirtualBox, whatever works best for OSX on Windows) so that I can learn hands-on how to work the OS and applications.

Which virtual machine environment would be the easiest to install OSX on (preferably free; I'm already familiar with VMWare Player), or with a fairly-long trial period (will be learning over the summer break)? What instructions or guides are out there that work? And what how-to guides would you recommend (website or cheap book / ebook) to learn the very basics of OSX, just to get me on my feet?

I should probably note that we do have a bunch of iMacs on campus, but I'd really like the option of having a local install so that I can learn at home. Especially since I'm already pretty busy this semester with classes and I live several hours away from campus.

 

See here:
How to install OS X Mountain Lion in Virtualbox with Hackboot

 

Being a fairly recent graduate I'm going to tell you right now that about 60-70 percent of your issues are going to be setting up Wifi/Email, accessing those as well (Security Issues Included) followed by Hard Drive Errors, followed by reinstalling OSX.

 

I'd imagine so, in addition to installing university-required software as well. My only problem is that I don't know the specifics of OSX very well at all. I mean, I know how to get a browser open, where files are stored, etc, but ask me how to get to OSX's equivalent to the Control Panel and I wouldn't have a single idea where I'd find that. I need to learn the ins and outs of OSX in at least most of the way I know the ins and outs of Windows.

Anyway, I got a copy of Mountain Lion, and I'll check out those instructions that dmk2 linked to.

 

Good luck, tbh it isn't particularilly hard to perform the tasks you might think you have to do. A quick google will most likely point you to some advice anyways

After having gone back to windows, I would say mac is easier to get along with and config.

 

Alright, I got OSX working using the iAtkos method described in dmk2's link. Thanks for the help everyone!

 

You're also going to have students come up to you with their devices as well, such as iphones, androids, etc. etc. to do the same.. At least at the Major University I attended

 

Well, the campus IT department mainly deals with laptops, and I haven't seen anyone deal with phones/tablets/etc there. But I'm pretty comfortable with iOS and Windows Phone 7, though Android will be something I lack any experience in (even less then OSX).

EDIT: Lol, and one of the first things I do in OSX is to click on a link that redirects me to MacKeeper. Ha

 

Okay guys, quick question: Is it possible to change to default webpage for a new tab in Safari (the black-background Recent Windows page) to something else, like an about:blank in other browsers? When that opens up, it flickers a few times a second (which can be dangerous to someone with epilepsy), which is probably due to being in a VM environment(?).

Also, might be a very simple answer to this, but how do you change the default webpage for Safari, changing it from Apple's start page to something else?

 

its right in Safari Preferences on the General tab... options for "Safari opens with" and "New windows open with" and "New tabs open with" and setting a Homepage....

I always set all my stuff to open on an Empty Page

 

Thanks!

10char

 

Yay! Glad to see on the dark side

If you have any questions, I might be able to answer some; OS X is pretty much all I use now