PC-Guy questions...

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
I'm going to purchase a 15" PowerBook within the next week, and I guess I could consider myself in the whole "switch" phase... So yeah, I've got some questions:



- What browser do you typically use? (that handles plugins the most efficiently?)



- Are there programs that I need to mod my desktop the way i want to? ex: a PC user like me could opt for WindowBlinds, Y'z software, etc...



- Battery life on 15" PowerBook?



- Anybody use widgets...? Are they easy to make? If not, are they easy to learn? (I'm pretty fluent in Java & C++)



- What kinda mouse do you all use? :P I'm currently on a Logitech MX700



That's it for now, i suppose... aiyaa, may have more questions later... kinda anxious to get my own mac & answer these questions on my own...!
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 27
    ipodandimacipodandimac Posts: 3,273member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by deunan

    I'm going to purchase a 15" PowerBook within the next week, and I guess I could consider myself in the whole "switch" phase... So yeah, I've got some questions:



    - What browser do you typically use? (that handles plugins the most efficiently?)



    - Are there programs that I need to mod my desktop the way i want to? ex: a PC user like me could opt for WindowBlinds, Y'z software, etc...



    - Battery life on 15" PowerBook?



    - Anybody use widgets...? Are they easy to make? If not, are they easy to learn? (I'm pretty fluent in Java & C++)



    - What kinda mouse do you all use? :P I'm currently on a Logitech MX700



    That's it for now, i suppose... aiyaa, may have more questions later... kinda anxious to get my own mac & answer these questions on my own...!




    Safari is the best browser



    I think shapeshifter is required to do themes. Find it at VersionTracker.com



    Dunno about battery life, check the Apple site.



    I hate widgets. they just clutter the screen and all the info you gain from them can be acquired in easier ways.



    I use my one button apple mouse. I personally like having only one button. Your logitech will be fine though, and no driver installs are needed Since you're getting a pbook, you may want to consider a bluetooth mouse. Logitech and Apple both offer these. Apple also offers a BT keyboard.
  • Reply 2 of 27
    -Safari. It's a great browser, and as it's only at v1.2, it's apt to keep getting better. There are, of course, other worthy options, Mozilla, Camino, Firefox being a few (all of them based on the Mozilla project). [rant] Just please, whatever you do, do not ever use M$ IE. Please please please don't use IE. There is no excuse for anyone to be using IE anymore. There are so many other options on all platforms. IE needs to die and never come back. Its "standards compliance" isn't. ugh. [/rant] Sorry, I had to get that out of my system. I HATE that browser. Anyway...



    -There are programs to theme OS X and add hacks like the window shade effect, but my suggestion to you is to try and take OS X for what it is. It is a great OS and extremely functional and useable. Try to get used to OS X's way of doing things: put documents in the documents folder, applications in the applications folder, keep your desktop clean and use the functions that are there (exposé, minimize-to-dock, etc.) If you absolutely can't stand it, then rearrange your files and throw in some hacks and themes, but don't try to turn OS X into XP. Panther is a superior OS in many many ways, take it for what it is.



    -I don't know about new PBs, but my 3 year old 15" TiBook gets about 90 minutes (I think) from a full charge with full backlight and moderate demands being made of it. I can probably double that if I'm just typing a paper and have the backlight turned way down. Honestly though, I almost never run off battery and when I do, I'm not paying to much attention to the length of time, so take these numbers with a grain of salt, and improvements have been made over time, since I got my PB.



    -Can't speak on widgets, having never used them



    -I use Apple's one button USB mouse. I've never had a real need for a multiple button mouse (control-click = right-click), but to each his own. As stated above, the mouse you have now should work with no trouble at all.
  • Reply 3 of 27
    Quote:

    Originally posted by deunan

    - What browser do you typically use? (that handles plugins the most efficiently?)



    I use Safari exclusively, but I'm leaning towards OmniWeb 5 (it's currently in beta development). I occasionally use Camino or Firefox to check web pages for compatibility, but neither is my primary browser.



    Internet Explorer is literally the worst browser to choose from. It has the worst standards support and worst threading (for multitasking) of any of the browsers available for Mac OS X.



    Quote:

    - Are there programs that I need to mod my desktop the way i want to? ex: a PC user like me could opt for WindowBlinds, Y'z software, etc...



    Like SledgeHammer, I strongly advise new users to get used to how Mac OS X works *by itself* for a period of time before adding on hacks and interface replacements and such. You're never going to appreciate Mac OS X or really know how well it can work on its own if you don't give it a chance first. This has been a big problem with Classic Mac OS users who think they need all of the tools they had on their old system.



    That said, you could use ShapeShifter to change your system's appearance. A very important note, though: this software uses the APE framework and hooks into apps at launch time. Some people experience no problems with this, but others have reported a variety of weird behaviors in certain applications. Your mileage may vary, but do consider yourself warned.



    Quote:

    - Anybody use widgets...? Are they easy to make? If not, are they easy to learn? (I'm pretty fluent in Java & C++)



    Konfabulator is a JavaScript runtime engine that many people use to make desktop widgets. Like the above guys, I don't use or like these widgets. I tried some of them when they were first released, but I found them to be just too much clutter and that they used too much CPU for my taste.



    Quote:

    - What kinda mouse do you all use? :P I'm currently on a Logitech MX700



    That mouse will work fine. I use a Microsoft IntelliMouse Explorer 3 and Mac OS X automatically picks up and uses all five buttons and the scroll wheel, no questions asked.
  • Reply 4 of 27
    cakecake Posts: 1,010member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by ipodandimac

    Safari is the best browser



    Agreed, but don't forget about Pith Helmet



    deunan, If you do decide to use Safari, be sure to download Pith Helmet. Here's what it does:

    Quote:

    PithHelmet blocks image, javascript, Flash ads and GIF animations. It can also collapse blocked content so that it is hidden from view. Fully customizable by editing blocking rules and other settings in a custom addition to the Safari Preferenences pane.



    It's a nice (and free, but donate if you can!) add-on to Safari.
  • Reply 5 of 27
    Quote:

    Originally posted by SledgeHammer

    -Safari. It's a great browser, and as it's only at v1.2, it's apt to keep getting better. There are, of course, other worthy options, Mozilla, Camino, Firefox being a few (all of them based on the Mozilla project). [rant] Just please, whatever you do, do not ever use M$ IE. Please please please don't use IE. There is no excuse for anyone to be using IE anymore. There are so many other options on all platforms. IE needs to die and never come back. Its "standards compliance" isn't. ugh. [/rant] Sorry, I had to get that out of my system. I HATE that browser. Anyway...





    Netscape sucks like no other, Mozilla deserves to die a more miserable death than all MS software. IE is the best bet in my opinion. As for Safari not working with certain websites...shame on you apple, SHAME ON YOU!
  • Reply 6 of 27
    lucaluca Posts: 3,833member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Performa636CD

    Netscape sucks like no other, Mozilla deserves to die a more miserable death than all MS software. IE is the best bet in my opinion. As for Safari not working with certain websites...shame on you apple, SHAME ON YOU!



    Yes, Netscape sucks. Why does Mozilla deserve to die? Why is IE the best bet?



    IE is the slowest.

    IE is not under any development whatsoever.

    IE is based on old technology.

    IE is made by Microsoft.

    IE has none of the features of the new browsers, like tabs, ad blocking, or even popup blocking.



    Maybe Mozilla isn't that great, but Firefox is a lean, fast browser. Significantly faster than Safari, I'd say. Not as clean and polished as Safari, but close. Once 1.0 hits I might switch to that as my main browser. OmniWeb is also very good - you didn't mention that.



    Did I mention? IE sucks.



    Oh yeah, one more thing. The reason the occasional website doesn't work with Safari is because a lot of web guys write their websites to comply with IE's bastardized "standards" instead of actual web standards. If it doesn't work with Safari, it's the web designer's fault, not Apple's fault. I haven't encountered many websites that don't work with Safari, but when I do, it's usually a website that works ONLY with IE. Continuing to use Internet Explorer just gives idiots like that a reason to program their sites to work like that.
  • Reply 7 of 27
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Luca

    IE is the slowest.

    IE is not under any development whatsoever.

    IE is based on old technology.

    IE is made by Microsoft.

    IE has none of the features of the new browsers, like tabs, ad blocking, or even popup blocking.




    Add to that:



    IE is among the least standards-compliant browsers.

    IE causes the most headaches for people who write valid code.

    IE has a very fractured code base. The engine in Mac IE is completely different from the Windows version, offering a whole new slew of bugs.



    edit: Curses! I didn't see your "one more thing".
  • Reply 8 of 27
    dmband0026dmband0026 Posts: 2,345member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Performa636CD

    Netscape sucks like no other, Mozilla deserves to die a more miserable death than all MS software. IE is the best bet in my opinion. As for Safari not working with certain websites...shame on you apple, SHAME ON YOU!



    IE the best?

    I don't know whether to laugh or cry about that!

    IE is the worst browser out there right now. Safari (IMO) is the best, in spite of it coming up second in speed to FireFox. I still love it, it's the best put together, it's very compatible with almost everything. In fact, I can't think of a site that doesn't work with it.
  • Reply 9 of 27
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Luca

    Yes, Netscape sucks. Why does Mozilla deserve to die? Why is IE the best bet?



    IE is the slowest.

    IE is not under any development whatsoever.

    IE is based on old technology.

    IE is made by Microsoft.

    IE has none of the features of the new browsers, like tabs, ad blocking, or even popup blocking.



    Maybe Mozilla isn't that great, but Firefox is a lean, fast browser. Significantly faster than Safari, I'd say. Not as clean and polished as Safari, but close. Once 1.0 hits I might switch to that as my main browser. OmniWeb is also very good - you didn't mention that.



    Did I mention? IE sucks.



    Oh yeah, one more thing. The reason the occasional website doesn't work with Safari is because a lot of web guys write their websites to comply with IE's bastardized "standards" instead of actual web standards. If it doesn't work with Safari, it's the web designer's fault, not Apple's fault. I haven't encountered many websites that don't work with Safari, but when I do, it's usually a website that works ONLY with IE. Continuing to use Internet Explorer just gives idiots like that a reason to program their sites to work like that.






    mozilla deserves to die b/c of all it's problems dealing with pdf files and randomly getting it's profiles screwed up which is such a pain.

    pop ups? i WANT pop ups because sometimes they are required.



    mozilla and netscape are some of the slowest programs i use. IE opens and takes me to my homepage almost instantly. as for firefox...so the average computer user doesn't even know the difference b/w Ghz and GB

    i rest my case.



    as for the IE standards - yes, i agree with you that it's a dumb standard, but it's a standard regardless. not all standards are the best
  • Reply 10 of 27
    amorphamorph Posts: 7,112member
    The punchline is that IE for Mac is about as bad at following IE/Win "standards" as it is at following real standards. It's a different engine, a completely different codebase, a completely different team of programmers in a different state.



    It's dead. None of its maddening bugs - such as the 1MB per page memory leak in its cacheing algorithm, its mangling of CSS or its horrendous lack of threading - will ever be fixed.



    Both Safari and OmniWeb are capable of blocking unwanted popups without blocking wanted ones (OW excels at this, in particular). It hasn't been an issue for me.



    As far as Firefox goes, I've set it as the default browser on various PCs whose owners didn't know GHz from GBs - but they certainly did notice the vastly better browsing experience.



    Safari, Firefox and OmniWeb 5 (even in beta) are all great OS X browsers. Mozilla should zip along just fine on contemporary hardware. And IE for Mac is dead.
  • Reply 11 of 27
    zapchudzapchud Posts: 844member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Performa636CD

    mozilla deserves to die b/c of all it's problems dealing with pdf files and randomly getting it's profiles screwed up which is such a pain.

    pop ups? i WANT pop ups because sometimes they are required.





    Popup-blocking usually have this option to allow popups that are requested by the user. In any regular occasion, popup-blocking is much more of a relief than a pain.



    Edit: Argh, beat to it by Amorph.
  • Reply 12 of 27
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Performa636CD

    pop ups? i WANT pop ups because sometimes they are required.



    You want pop ups? There's an option to allow specific web sites to use pop ups. Check the preferences next time.

    Quote:

    as for firefox...so the average computer user doesn't even know the difference b/w Ghz and GB i rest my case.



    Red herring.

    Quote:

    as for the IE standards - yes, i agree with you that it's a dumb standard, but it's a standard regardless



    You don't get it. IE's "standard" is not a standard at all; it is simply entrenched. W3 sets the standards for HTML, CSS, etc. but Microsoft conveniently ignores most of them and forces web developers to use the repeated trial-and-error method to get code working the wrong way. Unless you yourself are a web developer, you can have no idea how very bad this is not just for developers, but for the growth of technology on the internet itself.
  • Reply 13 of 27
    i guess are defintions of standards are different. to me, standards can be unwritten "codes" that people follow such as remembering their anniversery or internet protocols such as HTTP



    IE has created an unofficial standard that unfortunely many must follow, hence the reason why i will always own 2 computers
  • Reply 14 of 27
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Performa636CD

    to me, standards can be unwritten "codes" that people follow such as ... internet protocols such as HTTP



    ...except that HTTP and similar protocols are real "written" standards (specification here). If they weren't, we'd be lucky if half the internet worked at all.



    Really, HTML is the only language that has leniency like this and it's because of the horrible old browsers like Internet Explorer and the ancient Netscape (4.x and earlier).



    Can you imagine the hell we'd have if modern software was "lenient" or nonstandard about doing things like compiling C++ code?
  • Reply 15 of 27
    yeah, but not everything can follow perfect and ideal standards, so sometimes u gotta deal with it
  • Reply 16 of 27
    torifiletorifile Posts: 4,024member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Performa636CD

    yeah, but not everything can follow perfect and ideal standards, so sometimes u gotta deal with it



    Dude, you're on crack. IE on the Mac sucks big hairy donkey balls for all the above reasons. There are many great browsers available for the Mac, but IE isn't one of them. It's not even close.



    That said, we've gone way way off topic. I think all the OP's questions were answered, but the Mx700 will work flawlessly. I've got one and it's great. You need to download the Logitech Control Center to configure all the buttons, but after that, you won't ever have to worry about it. Good luck and enjoy your machine. And delete IE pronto.



    edit: Performa636, you know that you can block popups and still use many websites. Popups work if you click on a link to open them. But maybe you actually like having 15 windows popup when you go to pronstars.com. I don't.
  • Reply 17 of 27
    amorphamorph Posts: 7,112member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Performa636CD

    yeah, but not everything can follow perfect and ideal standards, so sometimes u gotta deal with it



    That's not the issue. The issue is whether you support the efforts of certain companies to subvert common standards to control the medium.



    Everyone who codes to IE's proprietary - and deliberately introduced - quirks, or who encourages use of IE for "compatibility" with a platform-agnostic medium believes that it's perfectly OK for IE to wrest control of the Web from the W3C and turn it into their private playground.



    I don't.
  • Reply 18 of 27
    giaguaragiaguara Posts: 2,724member
    I use Safari and Firebird. (a version before firefox)



    I use no external programs to modify the look of desktops. I've replaced most dock icons, and change desktops often, that's about it.



    I refure to use konfub .. whatever. Whatever application of which I am too dylsexic to read or write or pronounce the name of.



    And touchpad + tablet here, no mice.
  • Reply 19 of 27
    Quote:

    Originally posted by torifile

    Dude, you're on crack. IE on the Mac sucks big hairy donkey balls for all the above reasons. There are many great browsers available for the Mac, but IE isn't one of them. It's not even close.



    That said, we've gone way way off topic. I think all the OP's questions were answered, but the Mx700 will work flawlessly. I've got one and it's great. You need to download the Logitech Control Center to configure all the buttons, but after that, you won't ever have to worry about it. Good luck and enjoy your machine. And delete IE pronto.



    edit: Performa636, you know that you can block popups and still use many websites. Popups work if you click on a link to open them. But maybe you actually like having 15 windows popup when you go to pronstars.com. I don't.




    wait, is IE on Mac alot worse than IE on PC?
  • Reply 20 of 27
    Is it worse, he asks?



    How shall we answer that, folks?
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