Apple Questions answered by the Mac Guy

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Southern California
1

<p>Hey I'm a newly accepted member of the USC Class of 2011! I currently work at an Apple store and may be working as an Apple campus rep at USC if all goes well. </p>

<p>There are more reasons that ever to get a Mac today, especially for students.</p>

<p>Please feel free to post any questions you may have about a Mac. Film Student, Engineering, Journalism, Business? Whatever your major and whatever your questions, please feel free to ask. If I do not know the answer then I will find someone who does and make sure an answer is posted. I am NOT here to slam PCs and am NOT hear to offend you PC fans, but I will be happy to answer any Mac Vs. PC comparitive questions.</p>

2

<p>Please educate me to the advantages of the Mac.</p>

<p>My daughter attends USC, and says most students have Macs, and
now she wants or needs one! </p>

<p>We have always been a PC family.</p>

3

<p>What would be a good Mac Laptop to invest in? I'm not looking for a really expensive one.. but I want it to be easy to use and durable. Are Macbooks good?</p>

4

<p>i say stick with a pc, just because it allows for more uses</p>

5

<p>wilbanks I cant believe youre a mac guy. we cant be friends now.
jeriel</p>

6

<p>There are several advantages to owning a mac. I'll list some of the highlights.</p>

<p>1) Macs don't get viruses. This solves several issues.
Obviously you don't have to worry about your computer being destroyed and all your data lost because you opened the wrong email. </p>

<p>You don't have to spend $50-70 a year on anti-virus/spyware, saving $200-300 over the life of the computer.</p>

<p>No more pesky "YOUR SECURITY IS NOT UP TO DATE" Alerts</p>

<p>You won't be wasting hugh amounts of memory to run these programs.</p>

<p>2) Mac come preloaded with iLife, a full suite of multi-media software</p>

<p>You get iMovie HD (Video Editing), iDVD (DVD creation), iCal (Calendar/Schedule Manager), iPhoto (Photo storage/orgnazation/editing), Garageband (Music recording/editing), and iWeb (Web Design). </p>

<p>This is all included for FREE with your Mac. This suite includes everything you need to let the creative juices flow. It is full software, not simply a trial.</p>

<p>3) Mac OS X is more stable, faster, and more reliable</p>

<p>Macs obviously do not run on Windows. Instead they run on the OS X operating system. This is Unix instead of DOS based and handles memory functions far more effiently. As a result, Mac can do substantially more with less. A Macbook with 1 gigabyte of ram can easily run seven or eight programs at once without any noticable slowdown.</p>

<p>Macs are also known for their stability. Rarely, if ever, will your programs unexpectedly freeze or crash, causing you to lose important data. The random error messages of the Windows world are also gone.</p>

<p>4) Macs have better support.</p>

<p>As great as Macs are, they are still technology. There is no such thing as a magic computer. All technology, even the best, will sometimes not function as you want it to. This is where AppleCare comes in.</p>

<p>All Macs come with a 1 year factory warranty that covers parts and service should anything happen to your Mac. They also include 3-months of complimentary phone support. All Apple phone support is US based.</p>

<p>AppleCare is available for an additional fee of $99-239 depending on the model (with student discount). This provides protection for your computer for a full three years. This means three years of parts, service, and phone support. </p>

<p>If you have a problem with a Mac, you have a brick and mortar store to come to. You will have real people to interact with face-to-face. 90% of Apple Store repairs are done in-house and the average turnaround time is 48 hours. </p>

<p>If you are not near an apply store, you can request mail away service and apple will sent an overnight DHL package to your door. You pack up your computer, send it in, and it will be repaired and returned to you ASAP at Apple's expense. </p>

<p>Please keep in mind that Applecare does not cover user negligence. If you drop it, throw it in your pool, or let your dog eat it, then you are basically on your own. Apple will be happy to repair it for you, but you will be stuck with the bill. </p>

<p>4) Macs are engineered with mobility in mind.</p>

<p>Aside from being very cool looking, all Macbooks and Macbook Pros are very. 13" and 15" models weigh in at about 5 pounds.</p>

<p>Macbooks and Macbook Pros also have a sudden motion sensor. If you drop your notebook, the computer will sense the motion and lock the hard drive so that it is much less likely to be damaged in a fall. Now this is not say that you should drop your mac off a building to test this, but your data will be less likely to be damaged should the unthinkable happen.</p>

<p>Mac also have magnetic power cords, so if someone trips over your cord, it will magnetically disconnect itself from your computer so that your Macbook does not go flying across the room.</p>

<p>5) All Mac laptops have a built in iSight camera and microphone</p>

<p>With the included iChat AV software, you can stay in touch with your friends and loved ones via easy to use, high quality video chatting.</p>

<p>6) It runs Microsoft Office</p>

<p>Microsoft Office is undeniably the standard when it comes to word processing and spreadsheet applications. Students can purchase Office for Mac for only $149.99. This is includes Microsoft Word, Powerpoint, Excel, Entourage, and MSN Messenger. These use the same formats as their PC counterparts and will be fully compatible with any documents created on your PC.</p>

<p>Office for Mac ironically includes more features for the Mac than the PC. For example, Word has a special student mode called Word Notebook, which creates a notebook-like document which is automatically set up in outline format with easy bulleting and shortcuts. It has the ability to divide your notes into different tabbed sections. But perhaps coolest of all is ability to use the Macbooks integrated microphone to record your professor's lecture and integrate it into your notes.</p>

<p>7) Macs run Windows too</p>

<p>This is Apple's new trump card. All Macs now have the ability to run Windows through either Boot Camp or Parallels. With windows on your Mac you will be able to run any windows software side by side with your Mac programs. The days of compatibility issues are GONE.</p>

<p>You can run Windows on a Mac, but you can't run OS X on a PC.</p>

<p>8) Apple has great student discounts</p>

<p>For complete details check out Apple's education website. Average discounts are about $100 but can be a little lower or can go as high as $200. Apple students also receive a sizeable discount on AppleCare, as well as on Microsoft Office (normally $400, only $149 for students)</p>

<p>I hope this answers your question, and hopefully I've preempted a few more. Please feel free to ask any and all Mac buying questions.</p>

7

<p>Forver A - The Macbook to get would depend on your major and what you want to do with it. For most students, I reccomend the midlevel Macbook. With the student discount, it costs $1199. Everyone should get at least a gig of ram. Processor speed has gotten so ridiculously fast that it's actually one of the least important factors in buying a home computer these days. For the everyday user, any of the dual core processors (Macbooks use the Core 2 Duo), should be fine. I am currently using the model I reccomended above and I LOVE it. It is so small and light and it is blazingly fast. It handles Photoshop and Final Cut with no problems. </p>

<p>The one and only area the Macbooks can really fall short in is gaming. Macbooks us the Intel GMA 950 integrated graphics card, so the video is having to run itself of the system's RAM. This results in lackluster 3D gaming performance. This of course fixed with the Macbook pro, which fits Alienware-like specs in a thin and light frame. The Macbook Pros can ratchet the graphics card up to 256 MB of dedicated memory. Again, most people don't need this, but for any gamers reading this you'll want to stear clear of the Macbooks and opt for a Macbook Pro, iMac, or Mac Pro.</p>

<p>Polite - And as far as a PC doing more, this argument really doesn't hold anymore since Macs can run windows. In fact, with programs like Parallels and VMWARE Fusion you can run much more than that. My iMac currently runs Mac OS X, Mac OS 9, Windows Vista (with full graphics) Windows XP, Windows 98, and Ubuntu Linux. There is no PC in the world that can do all of that (legally anyway).</p>

8

<p>hey man i got applecare wen i got my laptop but in january they switched my laptop for a different one and i want to carry applecare over. email me at <a href="mailto:harrymai22@yahoo.com">harrymai22@yahoo.com</a> so you can possibly switch it for me? thanks</p>

9

<p>Tronjansfighton - When you say they switched it over, I assume you mean the genius bar replaced it due to an issue w/the laptop. If so, it should be done automatically, but just to check I would call AppleCare, as they would be the ones to handle that. I believe the number is </p>

<p>1-800-APL-CARE</p>

10

<p>amazon3001, don't worry, I'm a Mac addict :)</p>

<p>1) Would I be better off buying a Mac through USC or at the Apple Store w/ edu discount? Like bundled software, AppleCare, better $$$ discount, etc. through USC? Because I was looking at the online USC computer store, and they still had PowerMacs and PowerBooks listed for sale! </p>

<p>2) The classic question: Is a 15" MacBook Pro too "big/much" for college use? I have a 17" PB right now as a desktop replacement (w/ iCurve, Apple BT mouse/keyboard), and really like the screen size. But I know I need something small, light, and portable for college, primarily for Safari/Microsoft Office/iPhoto/iMovie/iDVD. Is the MBP a significantly better machine than the MB to justify the price increase and size? I personally love the MBP, but alas, the treasury (a.k.a. parents) prefer the size and price of the MB. </p>

<p>3) When Leopard (10.5) comes out and I get a new Mac (MB or MBP lol), can I use my existing education v.X Office for Mac, or will I need to get Office 2007? </p>

<p>4) Not really related, but what do you think about iPhone? I'm planning on getting that for college :)</p>

<p>Thanks! Sometimes, I feel like I'm the only Mac fan here on CC.</p>

11

<p>Well here's a question that's not really mac specific...</p>

<p>my macbook's screen seems to get dirty really, really fast - I clean it off with some pure water and lens wipes pretty much every day.</p>

<p>My mac-using friends say I should get some iklear, but that seems like an expensive way to accomplish the same thing. I can't imagine it would prevent it from getting dirty. I would much rather use isopropyl alcohol but I guess apple says not to use that?? Any thoughts anyone?</p>

12

<p>diehidun - I'll try to tackle these one at a time.</p>

<p>1) I just submitted my enrollment deposit so I can't get into the store yet to see what they have. Ususally the Apple Stores (online and retail) are the same price as the discounted Student stores for hardware. Software is usually cheaper through the student store. Final Cut is available on most campuses for $499 and the Adobe Creative Suite can often be purhcased for under $300. I would definitily NOT buy a non-intel Mac. If you can get a good Power Mac G5 for a good price then I might consider it because those things still scream, but I would definitely pass on any G4 at this point.</p>

<p>2) This is certainly a matter of preference. As far as size, the 15" is very doable for most students though I personally prefer the 13". I wish that there was a 13" macbook pro, but alas this is not the case. There is fortunately very little difference in weight between the 13" macbook (5.2 lbs) and the 15" macbook pro (5.6). I would say that the 17" is probably too big for most students. The only exception to this might be for film and art students who need the workspace. For the tasks you listed you will not see any sort of noticable improvement between the Macbook and MB Pro. The only difference might be in the real time previewing of effects and menus in iMovie and iDVD, wich are pretty dependent on the graphics card (which isn't great in the Macbooks), but this should be nominal. I use iMovie and iDVD all the time on my Macbook with no problems. I also use Final Cut and Adobe CS2 and it will work even better when CS3 comes out (since it's universal). Bascially this comes down to a preference issue. The Macbook Pro is an amazing machine, but for what you'll use it for it seems like the Macbook would be the way to go. Perhaps a good compromise would be to get the Macbook but opt for the 2 GB RAM upgrade. As fast as the Macbook is to start with, this will make it substantially faster.</p>

<p>3) Office X will work, but just like Office 2004 it is not written in Universal Binary to support Intel Macs so it will run a little sluggish on startup. It will take a little long to open due to the emulation required but once it's started up it will be fast as ever. Keep in mind though it may draw a little more RAM than usual. You're running an older version so you may want to think about updating when Office 2008 (finally Universal) comes out later this year.</p>

<p>4) iPhone rocks. </p>

<p>I hope this answered your questions.</p>

13

<p>jbusc - Basically, this is the downside to having a computer with a glossy screen. I would NOT use alcoho or water on it. Basically your friends hit it right on the mark with the iKlear. We use it at the Apple Store to clean the computers there and I really cannot think of a higher testament to its quality. </p>

<p>If you want to stay economical, you can purchase a jumbo sized bottle for $30 (the tiny one is kind of a rip off). It comes with a huge bottle, two microfiber rags, and some travel wipes. It should last you at least a year, if not more.</p>

<p>It really is the best stuff on the market and it will last you forever, so the cost really isn't all that bad. There are several similar products on the market but few rival the quality of iKlear and those that do cost just as much if not more.</p>

<p>And iKlear will to an extent prevent it from getting dirty. It will create a temorary buffer layer that repels dust and prints, but this will only last for a day or two and is by no means bullet proof.</p>

14

<p>HOW DO YOU RIGHT CLICK? And can macs use Firefox?</p>

<p>Stupid questions but as someone who doesn't even know how to turn on a Mac, much less use one, I should probably know these kinds of things before I buy one for college (as I plan on doing).</p>

<p>But I just have a really close relationship with my right click...</p>

15

<p>The mac mouses (or mices?) are absolutely amazing. I'm pretty sure the new-er Mac mouse has a right click! I love the buttons you squeeze on the size so that you get a "preview" of all the applications you have running...</p>

<p>p.s I LOVE MACS/APPLE!</p>

16

<p>ohh, I got this one. There are lots of ways to do right click:</p>

<ol>
<li>you can always plug in a regular USB two-button mouse and it works just fine</li>
<li>you can hold down the "ctrl" key while clicking (awkward)</li>
<li>(my favorite) on macbooks and macbook pros, there is an option where tapping with two fingers on the trackpad instead of one, or holding two fingers on the trackpad while clicking, right clicks.</li>
<li>Just don't right click in the first place, if you don't need to. The mac environment is made to minimize your need to right click as much as in windows. If you are a keyboard-shortcut person like I am, you barely need to right click ever.</li>
</ol>

<p>So I just avoid right clicking in the first place, and if I need to, then I just tap two fingers instead of one - easy as pi. :)</p>

17

<p>
[quote]
1) Macs don't get viruses. This solves several issues.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Ridiculous. </p>

<p>I point you to the key findings of a report released by McAfee.</p>

<p>Key Findings:</p>

<pre><code>* From 2003 to 2005, the annual rate of vulnerability discovery on Apple's Mac OS platform has increased by 228 percent, compared to Microsoft's products which only saw a 73 percent increase.
* As demonstrated with their recent patches, Apple's Mac OS platform is just as vulnerable to targeted malware attacks as other operating systems.
* Apple's success with consumer products and its resulting higher profile will entice security researchers and hackers to target Mac OS and other Apple products, such as iTunes and iPods.
</code></pre>

<p>Link (Warning, Large PDF): <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdownload.nai.com%2Fproducts%2Fmcafee-avert%2FWhitePapers%2FNewAppleofMalwaresEye.pdf&ei=R5YURvuRAoP-gwPluuXuAg&usg=__N1HP8e2VqIv1Gqh7joFhJBv31nQ=&sig2=_XnBYcSucAxj1G-6GPbWew%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdownload.nai.com%2Fproducts%2Fmcafee-avert%2FWhitePapers%2FNewAppleofMalwaresEye.pdf&ei=R5YURvuRAoP-gwPluuXuAg&usg=__N1HP8e2VqIv1Gqh7joFhJBv31nQ=&sig2=_XnBYcSucAxj1G-6GPbWew&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Here's another article for you to digest. <a href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/09/19/symantec_threat_report/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/09/19/symantec_threat_report/&lt;/a>

[quote]
"Mac users may be operating under a false sense of security as a noteworthy number of vulnerabilities and attacks were detected against Apple Mac’s operating system, OS X," Symantec said, reflecting comments in the previous edition of its threat report that OS X was an emerging target for attack.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Sorry, didn't want to get involved but at the same time I don't like to see completely false statements giving people false impressions.</p>

18

<p>I can say from experiance HP gives HORRIBLE support. My sons laptop crashed twice and both he and I were on the phone to INDIA where very nice polite people WITH ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA about whats wrong keep you on the phone for hours on end. The kicker - his laptop was still under warranty. Took over 2 months to "take care of the issue" and my son was at the library doing all his work.
Finally we threw in the towel and bought my son a MAC last week even though the HP is still in warranty. His IPOD was a lemon and Apple had very good customer support so we were pleased with that.
I don't know anything else, but heaven forbid your new HP is a lemon. It will be a nightmare calling INDIA.</p>

<p>Another thing, I am computer ignorant, I don't know if my son is right or not, but he said as a film student they need a Mac (but he just could have said that to us because he wanted one)</p>

19

<p>There are two main ways to accomplish a right or "secondary" click on a Macbook. The first is to hold the control button and then click. The control+click option is a little annoying and somewhat of a hassle. </p>

<p>I reccomend going into your mouse and keyboard settings in system preferences and enabling the option to place two fingers on the trackpad and click. This is very easy and convenient and is not obtrusive to the user experience. </p>

<p>Another option would be to get a Mighty Mouse. Apple makes these in both wired and wireless versions. The mighty mouse has a right click, left click, center click, side click, and a 360 degree scroll wheel. </p>

<p>And yes, you can run firefox on a Mac. Mozilla ported Firefox to the Mac. If you like Firefox you might also check out Camino. It's a free browswer from the developers of Firefox that is designed exclusively for the Mac from the group up, as opposed to being a port.</p>

20

<p>SFGIANTS - First of all I would look at your two sources of information. McAffee and Symantec, the two largest makers of Antivirus software stand the most to gain from perpetrating alarmist information about the Mac's security. Though there have been a few Malware attacks in recent history, these have all very very minor, ie they erase your buddy list in AIM and small things of that nature, not viruses that corrupt your hard drive and effectively destroy your computer. Furthermore Apple has released pathces for these within a week and does not make you buy expensive software to take care of the problem like Windows does. </p>

<p>It is important to differential between a virus/malware and a VULNERABILITY. What companies like McAffee and Symantec do is fill a room a with savant code readers and throw the OS X code on a big screen. The code readers point out THEORETICAL vulnerabilities, ie ones that if exploited would still have six to seven other barriers to overcome. Therefore, these "vulnerabiliites," though technically there, are not exploitable on the Mac OS are essentially irrelevant. These companies do this so that they can sell more software to customers accustomerd to living in the Windows world.</p>

<p>Every Apple Store has an open wireless network and none of our computers have antivirus installed on them. It's simply not necessary. If the Apple Store is confident in putting it's equipment onilne without Antivirus then you should be too.</p>

<p>I have been a Mac user for years and have never run antivirus. I have never been infected with anything.</p>

<p>None of the Mac Geniuses at my Apple Store (the certified technicians) use antivirus on their personal computers.</p>

<p>I have not once seen a Mac come into the store infected with any sort of malware or virus, nor have I ever heard of it happening to anyone firsthand.</p>

<p>Aside from some incredibly rare and minor malware, the Mac is effectively Virus-free. McAffee and Symantec run businesses and it is their goal to sell antivirus software, so always keep that in mind.</p>

<p>While there have been only a handful of very minor security issues with the Mac, they have all quickly been rendered benign with Apple's security updates (this is only rarely necessary). By comparison, there are about 300,000 viruses in the "the wild" for PC users. </p>

<p>I will not say that it is never possible under any conceivable circumstance to get a virus, but it is so anstronomically rare that it is a complete non-issue. As the popularity of the Mac grows, this may change in the years to come, but for now it is without a doubt the safest platform for the home and professional user.</p>

<p>I'm not trying to be combative here but people who say Macs can get viruses have obviously never spent much time on a Mac.</p>

<p>ebayispayingforcollege - I can' tell you how many times I hear horror stories of this nature. Apple really tries to stand far above the compettition in customer service. As you can see with the iPod lemon, no technology is perfect, but Apple does a better job than anyone else in the industry of standing by their product. If it doesn't work, we fix or replace at our expense, not yours.</p>

<p>Just make sure to get Apple Care!</p>

<p>As far as the Mac I'm not sure if it's required. When I get down to USC I'll know much more about the requirments of each major but I can tell you without a doubt that if he is a film major he will want a Mac. Final Cut Studio, a software package which normally retails for $1,299 is available for only $499 through the USC bookstore. This is a must have for any film student. Also, the ability to run boot camp gives him access to the PC exclusive Adobe Premiere and After Effects, so he will have total compatibility with any multi-media software, where as a PC could not go both ways.</p>

<p>If he gets a laptop, it should definitely be a Macbook Pro. I reccomend the $2,299 model. Between the RAM, processor, and graphics card jumps, it will easily tackle even the most demanding editing. I would also reccomend picking up an external Hard drive with firewire 800 connectivity to be used as an external scratch disc. This allow for even better performance when editing because the computer isn't having to run all of its programs off the same disc it's having to search through gigabytes of uompressd video on. </p>

<p>A Mac will give your son the broadest range of compatibility and the best reliability and support.</p>