I'm doing research on notebook computers and I am considering an Apple MacBook. I am a college student so having an application where I can type papers and put pictures into a paper are a must. I grew up using Microsoft Office and use Word, Excel, and Powerpoint very extensively. I would be open to buy one if Apple has a program or suite similar to that. Can you print papers with any printer or must it be a Apple certified one or something? Is it easy to transfer files from a PC to a Mac via home network or jump drive? I'm not a big fan of Quicktime, is there another Media Player I can install? I have read comments about people complaining that 512MB of ram is not enough. Best Buy has one on its website with an Intel Core 2 Duo @ 2Ghz and one gig of ram, is that good for this notebook? Obviously I have many questions. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Feel free to post pros and cons about the MacBook as well . Thanks and enjoy your day :)
2007-07-02 09:16:47 · 5 answers · asked by lrsp727 2 in Computers & Internet ➔ Hardware ➔ Laptops & Notebooks
If you like Office, you can buy it for the Mac or just run windows on the new Macs as a "dual boot" with OS X.
Transferring files over a network or a USB drive is quite easy. Printing is simple with most printers, though HP printers often don't play very well with Macs. They do work, but it's sometimes effort to make it happen. If they print, they print just as well as they do with Windows.
512 MB of RAM is definitely going to be light, whether you buy a Mac or a new Windows PC. 2 GB probably isn't necessary but if you get a good price it's worth it. Generally it's easy to install yourself for much cheaper though.
I use Windows machines, Macs and Unix machines and find them all great for their tasks. If you're pretty much just doing Office stuff the Mac will be more power than you need, but so will a new Windows machine. If you want to do other things like music and video, the Macs give you a little more flexibility and power with the built in tools, but Windows is getting there.
The hardware is the same now, so don't let anyone tell you a Mac is more expensive than a Windows machine. It's simply not true when you compare the same hardware.
In the end, play with a Mac and see how you like the interface because that's really all that will matter. If you don't like it nobody can convince you it's a good choice. If you do, nobody can convince you it won't be worth it.
2007-07-02 09:25:42 · answer #1 · answered by J P 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Hi,
The MacBook you have decided upon is excellent and you will be very pleased. I do agree that you should increase the amount of RAM. I recommend 2 gig if you can afford it. 1 gig is the minimum I would consider.
You will probably be surprised to learn you have been using Mac software all along. Word, Excel and PowerPoint are Mac applications that were ported to Windows, If you're comfortable with these products on a PC you will be right at home with the Mac version. There are differences, however. The Windows version of Office does a bad job of supporting QuickTime, so it's no wonder you don't like it. The Mac Office version has full QuickTime support. In PowerPoint you can use File>Save As and save your presentations as a quicktime movie, which you can put into iMovie and iDVD to make discs that play in regular DVD players or turn into podcasts and put into iTunes. There's lots of Mac-only features in Office. There are also some features missing - such as no ActiveX support and less robust programming in Visual Basic.
If you buy the laptop be sure to purchase the printer at the same time on the same invoice to get the $100 rebate. HP has a nice all-in-one that costs just $49 after the rebate.
Soon Leopard will be out. Cover-Flow is a revolutionary way to view your file system. Wait till you see it!
-Jim
2007-07-03 14:58:12 · answer #2 · answered by jimgmacmvp 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am an owner of many types of computer. Mac, Linux and Windows. And have found windows to be the most universal platform. I have linked all 3 types of computer to my network and after a certain amount of tweaking I manage to get them to file share and copy accross files. If you purchase a Mac, in the way of paper typing and importing pictures there is no specialist software for this on a Mac, your best hope of doing this on a Mac would be to purchase Microsoft Office for Mac. Personally I see the only benefit with Mac's to be if you are going to be using it for demanding video editing (this is where the Mac comes into its element) otherwise most software etc is all designed around a PC. In terms of printers, Mac's should be able to cope and work with all printer types on the market unless otherwise stated. Im also not a big fan of quicktime, but Mac's usually come installed with itunes which I also don't like but there are plenty of other free ones out there on the net to download. The Core 2 Duo Processor is a must in todays computers if purchasing now, Intel have already stopped producing them and therefore anything below will go out of date very quickly. 1GB of RAM is also a must in all todays computers otherwise you can soon have a huge backlog and find it becomes very slow. But this is ample for what you say you need it for. I have a MacBook and its all very nice and compact but I do find it also becomes extremely hot. Personally I would say stick with the PC as I find the only benefit of Mac is when it comes to video editing. Otherwise when it comes to other applications you may wish to install you may have to pay more for a compatible platform or maybe you won't even manage to get it on a Mac Platform. I would say stick with the PC. Aviod the hassle. Hope this helps :)
2007-07-02 09:37:39 · answer #3 · answered by Tom_Robbo 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
After 20 years on a PC I finally got a Mac Powerbook, and kick myself for not getting one sooner. It's intuitive and easy to use.
You can get Mac versions of Word, Excel and Powerpoint. You can use any printer. I have 512 ram and it's fine for my needs.
2007-07-02 09:25:44 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No it won't reason being because you could build a greater robust gaming laptop perfect now for greater or less 1300 money which comprise a visual exhibit unit and it will lap circles around it. The laptop Mac is robust for gaming because of the fact its a table perfect greater effective cooling and greater effective stressful ware then lap perfect. The laptop is greater for modifying and stuff like that or issues like minecraft. i might choose for the gaming laptop
2016-10-03 10:34:10 · answer #5 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋