On Tuesday, December 24, 2013 8:38:09 AM UTC-5, Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 12/24/2013 8:12 AM, Hank� wrote:

On 12/24/2013 7:44 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote:

A few weeks ago I purchased a 27" iMac for Mrs.E. as an early Christmas

gift. This was after months of "hints" being dropped after she saw my

daughter's iMac.



Mrs.E. isn't stupid. Three days ago she reciprocated and bought another

iMac for me ... this one a 21.5" but with the upgraded memory, cpu and

video driver. I know she figures that I'll dive into it, figure it all

out and then be able to support her in the use of hers.



I've come to realize that Mac computers are ideal for those who:



1. Have and regularly use an iPhone and or iPad or:

2. Have never used PCs and Windows and therefore have not been

indoctrinated in the Microsoft mindset.



I've been using PCs and Windows for so many years that making the

transition is not as easy as I thought it would be. I am making

progress but simple tasks that I can do in minutes on a PC like loading

third party software isn't quite the same on the iMac.



Examples that I am learning: (this probably sounds stupid to many)



Software for a PC is usually called a "program" and typically is

installed in the Programs folder.



Software for a Mac is called an "application". There is no "program"

folder. It took me over an hour last night to install some music

editing software and make it work on the iMac because I didn't know you

had to drag it and any plug-ins associated with it from the download

place to the "applications" page. Took me 15 minutes just to figure out

where *that* was.



And passwords. Holy Crap! Apple has passwords for everything ...

iTunes, iCloud, their Apple Store, and for the computer itself. I have

an account for iTunes that I used on the PCs. Think I could make it

work on the Mac? Seems like everything you do on the Mac results in a

request to enter your password. Problem is, I don't know *which* of the

several passwords it wants. I enter one and the stupid box starts

shaking, meaning I put the wrong one in.



I admit, once you begin to understand the architecture of the Mac, it is

very simple, so simple that Apple doesn't provide much in the form of

instructional information. Again, I can see that if you never used PCs

and Windows, it would be very intuitive. My problem is I have Windows

burned into my brain.



The jury is still out.









You need to start visiting the Apple Genius(god) for spiritual guidance..

That Mrs E is a smart cookie. She knows that you don't accept mysteries..





I'll tell you one thing. Don't believe any Mac enthusiast who says "a

Mac never crashes".



Maybe it's not a full bore, screen of death "Crash" but I've locked up

both iMacs a couple of times. Similar to the Windows, "program not

responding" thing.



I was trying to set up network file sharing so I could transfer some

files from my PC laptop to the iMac. Finally got it so I could access

the PC files, but only the ones stored in the "Public" folder. If I

tried going anywhere else, the iMac stopped responding and I'd have to

do a "force quit". Still working on that one.

Place I work built a new building, and decided that there would be no PCs in the conference rooms, instead folks would bring their laptops and hookup to the flat panels via HDMI. Unfortunately, some older laptops had just VGA, some had HDMI, and some just have display ports (HPs). Now we need adapter cables, and some laptops just wouldn't output the required resolution.

After a few weeks of wasted time and frustration, the decision was to put Apple Mac Mini's in each conference room. Great, except... we're a PC shop, with just a handful of people having Macs. More frustration and wasted time.

After having a chance now to use one, I don't see any positives to them. Different, cool looking, but no better. Macs? Meh.