How to start when switching from PC to Mac?

ghostboaghostboa
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Hello all. Obviously I am the new guy Anyway I have looked around this forum and found some very useful information but was hoping to get some more advice from you all. I have only been using PC for as long as I can remember and I am not planning to change over as much as I would like to add Apple for my computer uses.

Ok so what I am looking for is advice on what to grab first to get a feel for the Apple computers. I am only looking for a notebook and would like to know which should I buy first to 'try' Mac. This computer would mostly be used for web design (Dreamweaver, Flash, Photoshop etc.) and the common email, web surf stuff. I of course would have to install a few games to mess around with Now, I am not looking for a Mac to compete with my 2 new Vaio notebooks( VGN-A & T ). I am just worried about purchasing one that will handle the software I mentioned without much trouble. I of course looked at the $999.00 iBook but was worried about its ability to handle the software. If I get this 'starter' notebook and love it, I will of course have to go for that beautiful 17" version, but help me get started for the least $$ needed for now.



--I know once I get a mac, and realize it doesnt crash with every other mouse-click, I will be hooked. But for now just a little mac to get me started



Thanks a ton everyone.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 27
    kickahakickaha Posts: 8,760member
    The only app out of your list I'd be concerned about with an iBook is PhotoShop, but if you throw enough RAM in it, it'll probably be just fine.



    Since I'm not a PS user though, I'm sure others can speak more to it than I can.
  • Reply 2 of 27
    ghostboaghostboa Posts: 21member
    Thanks, I know, Photoshop can drag CPU/Mem down. Most of my confusion here comes from the CPU and memory between the two different computers. The CPU speeds with PC and Mac dont seem to mean the same thing I guess. And the memory, I know what it takes for a PC to run something like Photoshop, but with a Mac I have no idea. Would it be about the same? Thanks again for your response.
  • Reply 3 of 27
    majormattmajormatt Posts: 1,077member
    Photoshop will run on most apps, it just depends if you are working with one or one gigabyte files.
  • Reply 4 of 27
    gongon Posts: 2,437member
    You mention you'd like to install a few games. A word of warning is in order: don't expect anything new to run on an iBook. Macs just aren't very good for gaming. Blizzard realtime strategy (Starcraft, Warcraft) are among the few good "big name" games that will run OK. Then you get indie games like Gish , Tumiki Fighters, and the ever-fashionable emulators like SNES9x that let you run old console ROMs.
  • Reply 5 of 27
    ghostboaghostboa Posts: 21member
    Thanks Gon. I was no planning on installing any games that require too much, just a few for entertainment.



    Anyway, thats the kind of responses I am looking for. I knew Macs were not that great with games, but I did not realize they were that bad. You mentioned Starcraft, Warcraft.. my god those are some old games that I had installed on my Pentium 1 computer years ago! And Gish looks right off a N64 console! heh.



    So, is getting an iBook maybe not a good idea for me? Should I grab a Powerbook? Is it much of a difference?
  • Reply 6 of 27
    mimacmimac Posts: 872member
    It's not that Macs are "not great with games" but there are fewer new games available for the platform. Plenty of Ram and a good graphics card help.

    If you have the extra cash, buy a Powerbook and save in the long run. You most likely WILL be hooked and toss those other notebooks
  • Reply 7 of 27
    gongon Posts: 2,437member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by ghostboa

    Thanks Gon. I was no planning on installing any games that require too much, just a few for entertainment.



    Anyway, thats the kind of responses I am looking for. I knew Macs were not that great with games, but I did not realize they were that bad. You mentioned Starcraft, Warcraft.. my god those are some old games that I had installed on my Pentium 1 computer years ago! And Gish looks right off a N64 console! heh.



    So, is getting an iBook maybe not a good idea for me? Should I grab a Powerbook? Is it much of a difference?



    People are reporting bad performance from Powerbooks too. It depends. Obviously Powerbooks are faster than iBooks, but for instance World of Warcraft seems to be processor limited when run on the G4 based machines, and the processor speed difference between iBook and Powerbook is not so great as the graphics chips'. I play it on previous generation iBook, but recommend others not to. Powerbooks run WoW okay but you have to turn down some graphics settings. Doom3 is a borderline case even for the Powerbook. Barefeats benchmarks show you have to play 800x600 without dynamic shadows, or 640x480 with shadows...



    When I said Warcraft I meant Warcraft 3 (+Frozen Throne), I'm sure you haven't ran that on a vanilla Pentium It was too much for my Duron 800 back in Windows times.



    Anyway, for a friend of indie/old/emulated/weird/Blizzard games like meself, things are not too bad.
  • Reply 8 of 27
    gongon Posts: 2,437member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by MiMac

    It's not that Macs are "not great with games" but there are fewer new games available for the platform. Plenty of Ram and a good graphics card help.

    If you have the extra cash, buy a Powerbook and save in the long run. You most likely WILL be hooked and toss those other notebooks



    That's not the whole truth. In addition to most games not being available, some that are available are poor ports that won't get near the same performance than same game on a much weaker PC. The G4 processors used in the laptops, while good and efficient laptop processors, and decently powerful when the software is properly optimized, are very weak compared to Intel/AMD processors if you just throw generic code at them. And that's just what a bad port does. The G5 processors in the desktops tolerate poor code a lot better.



    Another usual issue with poor ports is incompatibility with Windows version in network gaming. Not sure how often this has happened lately.



    The reason I mention Blizzard a lot and why they have a good rep is that they are almost the only major company that consistently releases their games at the same time for Windows and OS X, and also sells both versions on the same CD/DVD (considerably lowering the price, and increasing availability, for Mac users).
  • Reply 9 of 27
    guarthoguartho Posts: 1,208member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by ghostboa

    Thanks, I know, Photoshop can drag CPU/Mem down. Most of my confusion here comes from the CPU and memory between the two different computers. The CPU speeds with PC and Mac dont seem to mean the same thing I guess. And the memory, I know what it takes for a PC to run something like Photoshop, but with a Mac I have no idea. Would it be about the same? Thanks again for your response.



    I currently run Photoshop on a PowerMac slower than anything in Apple's current line. I have yet to break the Gigahert barrier! I barely have more RAM ( 768 ) than the current base RAM. You'll be fine with an iBook. I think the somewhat limited screen real-estate will bother you more than the processor speed.
  • Reply 10 of 27
    ghostboaghostboa Posts: 21member
    Thanks again all for responses.

    Guarto... Yeah that is a concern with the smaller screen, but sometimes that smaller package is nice. When i am going to do any major work with Photoshop I would prob just fire up the Sony or work at my desktop. This way I could have this little mac for the more daily use.



    MiMac... It really isnt about having the cash or not, its just simply about what 'should' I spend to get a feel for these computers. If a PowerMac is the better option, I will just grab one of those. But if an iBook will do that job, then its an iBook I will get.



    Gon... Yeah, you dont have to explain ported games. They never seem to be that good, no matter what they are ported from. I played WoW pretty heavily and if a Powerbook can handle it, thats pretty good. I guess your saying if I was planning to play WoW on an iBook forget it huh?
  • Reply 11 of 27
    ghostboaghostboa Posts: 21member
    Something else I have noticed surfing around.

    People seem to feel Apple has left the Mac's behind and marketing and improving this Ipod crap more then anything. I know some of you love Ipod, which is cool. I personally will never buy one and am really getting tired of seeing Ipod ads everywhere. This is crazy I know, but I think all the ads you see every 5 secs has cause me to dislike the product. Please lets not turn this into an Ipod post, I just wanted to mention that.

    Anyway, do you guys feel this way? I would hate to go grab a Mac and find out Apple starts treating the Mac as a secondary product. I have seen some pretty intense posts where people are just pissed off about this. Maybe I am reading into it all too much, buts that why I have you guys



    Thanks!
  • Reply 12 of 27
    gongon Posts: 2,437member
    It's good they have the iPod, that gives them the research and development money to pour into the computers.



    Many people on this forum think Apple should advertise their software more. Not advertise iPod less.
  • Reply 13 of 27
    tidelwavtidelwav Posts: 118member
    I have an iBook with 512 RAM and i've had no problem with Photoshop. I regularly open 100-200 pics a day on it, each at least 2-3 megs, and don't have any issues with slowness. Sure, my iMac is much faster, but i don't have anything to complain about.
  • Reply 14 of 27
    ghostboaghostboa Posts: 21member
    Thanks Tidelwav, thats the kind of info I am looking for. Are you on the 12 or 14? I imagine you are using the 14 if you use photoshop that much.
  • Reply 15 of 27
    mynameheremynamehere Posts: 560member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by ghostboa

    Thanks Tidelwav, thats the kind of info I am looking for. Are you on the 12 or 14? I imagine you are using the 14 if you use photoshop that much.



    Be careful with the 14. The resolution is 1024x768, same as the 12. it gives you more space but not more resolution.
  • Reply 16 of 27
    ghostboaghostboa Posts: 21member
    Hmm, and the Powerbooks at 12 are still limited to 1024 and the 15 only gets you to 1280. Well atleast you are not stuck with 800x600 :P



    Thanks Myname
  • Reply 17 of 27
    mynameheremynamehere Posts: 560member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by ghostboa

    Hmm, and the Powerbooks at 12 are still limited to 1024 and the 15 only gets you to 1280. Well atleast you are not stuck with 800x600 :P



    Thanks Myname



    How about hooking up an external screen when at home? You can also span screens on the iBook with a hack (native on PB)
  • Reply 18 of 27
    ghostboaghostboa Posts: 21member
    Yeah I could do that, but when at a home I will just use another system. My big thing here is wanting to get a feel for this Mac OS that I hear all the time is so stable. I am SO sick of Windows XP and how UNstable it has become. When XP first came out, it was solid. I actually gave Microsoft credit for FINALLY making a stable OS. Well I spoke to soon. Once software starting coming out made specifically for XP, everything went to sh!t.

    So I think I am looking to far into this now. The 1024res I can live with. If it can handle Photoshop, Dreamweaver etc. that is all I should need to get started with Mac's OS.
  • Reply 19 of 27
    ghostboaghostboa Posts: 21member
    Well just got my powerbook. This thing is really nice. I think I am gonna like Macs lol. I just wanted to stop by and thank you guys for the advice etc.



    Ghost
  • Reply 20 of 27
    soopadrivesoopadrive Posts: 182member
    Awesome. Which model did you get?



    Don't forget to play around with the widgets in Dashboard! Do a search on this forum for "widgets" for more info. Or go to Apple's website and download some of em. I have a screenshot of my widgets on the "post a pic of your desktop" thread in General Discussion.



    How does PS work and other multimedia/production apps?

    I think you bought at a good time, by the way.
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