Problems? See this thread at archive.org.
A Special Introduction for the NotebookReview.com forums.
I owe you guys more for my laptop purchase than anyone else, i've asked a slew of questions here or there, and I've done a ton of lurking. In effort to say thanks I'm striving to contribute to the board as much as possible. Part of this includes my swtichers guide, seeing as I did purchase a Mac. This is a first, and rough draft to the first chapter in it. I'd like to know what you guys think.
I'll be updating it as often as possible, trying to offer a switchers guide from a switcher thats still fresh to Mac.
Background on the Author: Knowing nothing more than Windows for his entire life, he works on Windows PC's both in his spare time and for a living. He bought his first Mac on June 5th, 2007. He's a switcher, like the target audience for this article.
Chapter 1 : Months of preparation, with a hint of anticipation...
I highly doubt most switchers wake-up one morning and suddenly decide that todays the day, to buy a Mac. In fact, i'd bet, most are much like myself. They've planned a new computer purchase for months now, even it it meant as little as the passing thought that there was getting too old and they needed a new one. In this course, taking certain steps have made the actual switching process much easier :
1. Find your reasons. They can vary, but don't blindly switch without a good personal cause. Maybe you want to try something new, deal with less virus, or there's a particular piece of software you'd love to use but is Mac only. Whatever your cause is, find it and stick by it. This helps keep you from second thoughts both before and after purchasing. For example, my reasons was learning to handle a second operating system efficiently, and challenge myself to do so.
2. Look at what you need your computer to do, and what is involved. This task can vary greatly, but mostly pertains to looking at what software and peripherals you rely on and seeing if there are Mac equivalents (in case of software) and drivers for them (in case of hardware). If you find something crucial that you must have, but for some odd reason just won't work on a Mac, look into such options as Parallels Desktop for Mac or BootCamp options. These allow you to run a legit, full version of Windows on your Mac, removing those restraints. I will detail more on these later in the software and applications section.
3. Prepare a way to move your data. Its given that here will be some things, like pictures, movies, documents etc etc, that you will want on your new computer from your old. Finding a way to do this isn't a daunting task at all, even Apple offers a few suggestion on there site.
4. Pick your hardware. Apple doesn't have a massive range of models available, so narrowing down what you need is pretty simple. The core to there product line is two options, Professional and Consumer. In the desktop side you find two consumer options, the Mac Mini (a monitorless, compact, basic computer) and the iMac (a more powerful machine, integrated into the monitor). For the professionals desktop, the Mac Pro is available as a powerhouse customizable to your wildest dreams. In Laptops, the Macbook (consumer) and MacBook Pro are available. Delve around Apple.com's hardware section, and find out which suits your need.
5. Get hands on. Find your closest Mac retailer (CompUSA comes to mind), or even an Apple retail location and take the time to look around. This is by far the way to get used to OS X without spending a dime. One tactic I used was getting behind a Macintosh at my local CompUSA, and trying to make it my own. Investigate System Preferences, open things on the Dock, etc etc.
6. Ask questions. Lots and lots of questions. There are dozens of websites featuring message boards that talk about Apple products, most of which have a section dedicated to new users and general help. To recommend a few would be the great people at MacNN, Mac-Forum & NotebookReview.com's Apple & Mac OS X forum.
7. Read switch guides. A quick Google search of "Switch to Mac" reveals over 75 million results. There are alot of guides available on how-to switch, and the more you learn before hand will do nothing but make your life easier when the time comes. Apple even offers there own.
8. Expect a challenge sometimes. Despite all these recommendations for preparing to switch, at some point your going to run into a challenge on your Mac. This can be small or large, from not having a program to do what you like to not knowing how to rename a file. The key here is to know this will happen eventually, and not to let it frustrate you. I've yet to here of a problem arising that couldn't be solved.
Doing even just a few of those suggestions can make a huge difference in your switch, as they have mine. Knowing is half the battle i've found, being prepared to learn something new, make a few (or alot) of mistakes, and not let anything or anyone get you down.
Chapter 2: Judgment Day
So you think your all set? Here's a quick recap of what you need to have by now in order to make this a smooth day for you:
Mac computer of choice selected, and no hard floating rumors of it upgrading soon. In my case, a Macbook Pro.
Have your data organized, and ready to be transferred to your new machine.
A general idea of what software's available, and what you need in order to switch without interrupting your normal computing activities.
Some understanding of OS X.
If your rushing the switch and haven't thought this far ahead, fear not, I'll cover my own methods and some alternate ones as we go along.
What first? Well as you boot into you'll be prompted through a simple set of general information needed for OSX. The user account and password setup during this process is the first user for the operating system, and is an Administrator account. It is wise to name this account “Admin” or something to signify it so. Creating a second account for general use can be done afterward. Which can save you a lot of trouble in the long run, as dealing with a new OS you don't want to risk messing up majorly with your administrative powers. Now, onto the desktop, it should look similar to this :
![[IMG]](images/storyImages/genericdesktop.jpg)
Hopefully you've taken my advice and this isn't your first time looking at OS X, but to be sure lets break down the basics.
The Menu Bar : Right on top of your desktop lies the Menu Bar, a housing for a number of things. Starting left to right :
The Blue Apple : Access to basic information about the system, its preferences, and shut down options.
Application Commands : A unified location for the usual application commands normally found in individual windows. These should look familiar showing your active application followed by, File, Edit, View, etc etc. This is the only one of these you'll ever see, as it changes according to what application your currently in.
Bluetooth/Airport Wireless : Simple spot for bluetooth and wireless controls on the spot.
Volume : Control the noise!
Battery Meter (Laptops Only) : Meter showing how long your battery has left, and how long it will take to charge when plugged up.
Day & Time : Convent display of the current day of the week, and time.
Spotlight : Symboled by the blue circle with a magnifying glass in it, is Spotlight. Its a handy tool for searching through your Mac for files, folders, documents, and even applications.
The Menu Bar's concept of “one stop shop” for your applications basic commands will at first take some getting accustomed to, but in time you'll find it quite convenient. Some applications will even make good use of the menu bar by adding there own icons, but more on that in another chapter.
The Dock : Possibly the most recognized feature of OS X is the playful little dock for applications. Now the dock can host any application you want, but specifically has 4 main ones I'd like to talk about.
Finder : OS X's application for viewing and sorting through content on your Mac, represented by a face and the first icon in your dock.. Its the Mac alternative to Windows' Explorer. On the left hand side bar you'll see a list of common spots throughout your Mac for quick access. I'll detail these spots and add there Windows counterparts for quicker explanation :
Network (Network Neighborhood)
Macintosh HD (C: Drive)
Desktop (self-explanatory)
User Name” (My Documents)
Applications (Program Files)
Documents (A “my music” for documents)
Movies (My Videos)
Music (My Music)
Pictures (My Pictures)
At times things within the finder can change, such as “mounted items” or attached items not always present (CD's, External Drives etc etc) will be shown below the Macintosh HD. They'll be accompanied by an eject symbol. It's important to eject things in this manner, as to prevent data loss from external hard drives and flash drives. Also located in the finder above the side bar and viewing window is 3 different ways to view the Finder's information, and also a control key for managing files. Click around, and get a feel for Finder.
Dashboard : Apple's introduction of Dashboard is to manage nifty small apps that usually serve a single purpose and provide some sort of information , called widgets. You can view the dashboard by clicking on the odometer icon in the Dock, right next to Finder. There's over 3000 widgets as there called, available for the Dashboard. More on those later.
System Preferences : Meet your new Control Panel. Located at the far end of the dock here you can control a host of options to fine tweak the system to your liking. This will be detailed much farther in another chapter.
Trash : On the other side of the Dock's divider lies the Trash, equivalent to Windows' Recycle Bin. Where all good files go to die.
Removing and adding applications to the Dock couldn't be simpler, just drag off and let go to remove (with a satisfying poof), and drag on to add from your Applications folder.
Desktop Space & Windows : Obviously the largest and most important part of the interface is the actual Desktop itself! All your windows for open applications go here, and of course can layer and stack on top of each other just like they did in Windows. Each window has 3 buttons located in there top left, the classic red, yellow, green of a stoplight. The Red becomes an “X” when hovered over, showing you that it closes applications (but does not quit! more on that soon..). The Yellow shows a nice “-” sign, and minimizes applications to you Dock. They'll go in that special sectioned off portion with the Trash. And last, the Green is a “+” and maximizes applications.
This sums up the basics of OS X's interface. Now onto managing your data, and getting it on your new Mac....
Coming Soon : Judgement Day Part 2: Data Migration? That sounds painful!
-
Ok, interesting guide that will help many people.
I started a multimedia course a few month's ago, we use macs there... Anyway I had never used macs before I started that course... It's extremely easy to learn!, seriously.. Buying an MBP soon
-
-
"Men is what we are..."
great guide man, good job. definitely a good link for a lot of questions that will come up. thanks for the time spent. -
1. Find your reasons. They can vary, but don't blindly switch without a good personal cause. Maybe you want to try something new, deal with less virus, or there's a particular piece of software you'd love to use but is Mac only. Whatever your cause is, find it and stick by it. This helps keep you from second thoughts both before and after purchasing. For example, my reasons was learning to handle a second operating system efficiently, and challenge myself to do so.
^^^^the best part about this guide without question, I have seen countless people make the switch based entirely on someone else's opinion, etc. and then complain about things before they really knew what was going on.
one of the best things I can say about OS X and basically an major OS, is that, "It can probably do exactly what you want it to do, but it is up to you to learn." There is so much good info out there, just on Apple's site itself, not to mention forums like these and Apple Discussions, that very few people should be complaining about lack of info.
good luck to all the switchers out there, and fear not, a wealth of knowledge is available at your disposal.
eh ehmmm, 1000th post! how exciting
-
Or better yet, if more consumer laptops in general came with manuals that are actually useful and not just thick because of having half a dozen different languages in them of the same 6 pages. Four of which are the safety precautions.
-
you guys are exactly right, there are so few companies that include a decent user manual it really is frustrating.
about what Nicholie brought up, it would be brilliant for Apple to include a nice basic user guide specifically for OS X, basic enough for new users to understand, as well as comprehensive enough to give more advanced users something to learn.
obviously anyone on this site has discovered wonderful alternatives to this problem, ahh the beauty of the internet, but a huge majority of computer users don't think like this at all, and usually just go on wondering, until someone shows them first hand.
Apple is doing a good job of this in a way that help is so easily available at an Apple Retail store, and their support site is very easy to use, but why not simplify it even more and include a really useful user manual? it may cost slightly more in the end, but it couldn't be that significant I would think. Or at least include some information listing all these places which they can get more and more help.
I am sure the owners of this site wouldn't disagree Let's get notebook manufacturers to start including a nice little NBR pamphlet in the box, and all of their customer support needs would be covered
-
Hi,
I am Ice-Tea and I spam all Apple threads with this nice albeit somewhat dated video
Ice-Tea -
Works fine here. Rightclick download if not.
No, I am the MXM Guru Ice-Tea
-
I know I'm looking forward to it. Even for the people that aren't thinking of "Switching", it's still very informative and a good read!
-
you've gone crazy sir, great job, this should help a lot of interested people out there.
see if you can get a job writing user manuals
-
great guide
and great writing too
im sure itll help a lot a lot of people out
cheers
and thanks again -
This is My Switch.
Discussion in 'Apple and Mac OS X' started by Nicholie, Jun 10, 2007.
