I just ordered an iMac, but a question.

[Keeval]

Hi,

Hehe.. this all sounds soo familiar to me. I'm a software developer and MCSE/MCTS in Windows and SQL Server. So I use MS stuff day in day out at work.

My conversion to Apple started off a few years ago with my iPod Mini. Loved it and when the time came to get a new laptop I decided I'd try a Mac, as I still had the desktop PC with Windows on as my comfort blanket and backup if everything went south. So I got myself I 12" PowerBook G4, running Tiger. Over time I realised that unless I really really needed Windows for something critical (e.g. an app that didn't run on OSX) I was using the Powerbook more and more.

I realised over time that it wasn't just that it was because it was a laptop that I was using it more - it was that I had less hassle and stress whilst using it. It just let me do what I wanted instead of fighting me.

About 8 months ago I decided it was time to replace the desktop I was deciding on another WinPC or go Mac, and co-incidentally an incident occured that made the decision easy.

Dad popped around with his new digital camera and CD. Asking me to get the pics off for him. So dutifully installed the software and driver into the PC, rebooted etc. and attempted to retrieve the photos... not happening. After multiple attempts we decided to give up. Downstairs I decided - what the hell.. I plugged the camera into the PowerBook - no software installed.. 2 minutes later photos transferred over and burnt onto a CD. It just worked!

That made my decision for me... I now own a 3GHz 24" iMac and am considering upgrading my 3+ year old PowerBook, which still works beautifully (and no rebuilds/reinstalls needed) with a unibody MacBook Pro.

I still need to run the odd WinApp so I run Windows XP in Virtual Machine (using VMWare Fusion) which allows me to work from home etc, and I've never looked back... just a pity I have to work on Windows at work really.. but it does make me glad that I have my Macs at home, as I always have a reminder why I switched

I really hope you have as much fun and pleasure out of your iMac as I have had with mine. And this place is great.. learnt everything I need to know about my Mac from here

 

[GoKyu]

Sorry I'm late to this thread, so here's my switch story:

I was a PC user since the dark (er, DOS) days. I tended to dismiss Macs because of the lack of fun software (I was still a kid at the time) - much the same as the gamers today dismiss the Mac. I went through every version of Windows, starting with 3.0, and finally was actually happy with 2 versions of windows (2000, then later XP Pro). Thought Vista looked cool, so I tried it out, and after 4 months of *dealing* with it, decided to make the switch.

You'll notice I got a Mac Pro, which is complete overkill for what I do - however it has future-proofed me for the next several years, and the reason I got it is because I'm used to being able to mess around inside the case (I built all my PCs from 1995 until January 2008, when I got my Mac.)

So I've had my Mac for about a year now - it took about 3 days to really get used to the interface. One thing I miss about what I did on Windows is that I knew all kinds of optimization tricks to add to the registry. In OS X there are these "default.write" commands you can enter in the terminal (Love my tcsh - I've been using Linux since the early 90's as well), and I just don't know any of these cool tricks. I'm using programs like MacPilot (GET IT!), MainMenu and a few others to optimize an already quick system (similar to TweakUI.)

I love the Mac experience - you don't have to deal with keeping your system running well. Thanks to FreeBSD, it does most of this on its own (with daily, weekly and monthly scripts that it runs.) You don't have to worry that the webpage you're about to go to will attack your web browser with a virus, trojan or spyware of some sort.

Also thanks to the UNIX underpinnings, OS X is remarkably stable and manages memory very efficiently (try saying either of those things about Vista...)

I'm not sure how much memory your particular machine can max out to (I would guess 4 gigs), but max away - RAM is cheap right now from places like OWC (www.macsales.com) and others.

Finally, here are some good websites that helped me out when I was getting started:

My First Mac
Essential Mac OS X applications
OS X Help
Switching To Mac

And get David Pogue's Switching to the Mac book - it's an excellent read, and will get you up to speed quickly!

Hope this helps, and enjoy your new Mac!

-Bryan

 

[Gordyb]

I switched Love Mac

My Switcher story is similar to the others. I was a tried and true PC Man for years. Put it this way..I would re-format my drive a minimum of 3 times a year. Just to clear off the crap and get it to run again. Both the Laptop and desktop machines. I just swore against Mac with never even seeing one.
One evening an inlaw stayed the night and brought his Mac. He didn't say anything about it just set it on the coffee table and as soon as I complained about one of the hassles my PC had given me that morning he showed me the Mac.
I asked him questions for hours. And to every question I asked the answer was the one I wanted to hear. After I saw the light and the fact there was no registry with Mac I was nearly sold. The next morning the questions continued and by noon I was ordering a Macbook for my wife and Mac Book Pro for myself.
Never happier with anything. I am still stuck with a PC for the desktop as I use if for business and just can't afford to switch it. It's a top of the line PC coming up on one and a half years old.
I've been saving up for an iMac and have enough to buy but am waiting for the macworld to see if a new model is introduced.
The same month I bought my MBP out came the new one so I'm going to wait this one out.
My Sister came over for Christmas this year and brought her Dell laptop that was sick for me to fix. Would not even boot, so I had to reformat it. What a pain in the rear. All I kept telling her all night was "get a Mac".
She complained about how long she had spent trying to get the laptop to work and how expensive a Mac laptop was and I just asked her how much is the time she lost was worth. Needless to say she took the reformatted Dell Laptop home and says it runs good enough, but it won't last. Never does.
Macs just run fast and right.

I think PC users that put down MAC are just ignorant to the benefits of the Mac OS. Like I was.
Everyday I work on my desktop I swear at it and wish it was a Mac. It WILL be an iMac as soon as Apple decides when the new version is.

This is my first post I'm sure I'll be back with questions

Gordy