2 Many Apple Laptop ?'s

[dseagrav]

Don't feed the troll...

(ZOMG LINUX FTW! LOLOL)

 

[Flyingtoohigh]

Background: I was a PC repair technician for a major electronics retailer for five years during college while working on my aviation credentials. After several years of dealing with broken PCs I bought a Mac. Take it for what it's worth.

Currently I'm a full-time IT professional and part-time aviator. I use a PC desktop and an Apple PowerBook during my normal course of business. My personal laptop is an Apple iBook.

1. Will an Apple still run Microsoft and other products such as: MSN Messenger, WORD, Excel, AIM, Yahoo Messenger?

The disks you have now for those programs will not run on a Mac. Mac versions of these programs are available you may have to purchase them separately.

2. Some people have said Apple is virus proof, even checking out porn sites, how is that possible?

People write viruses primarily for the PC due to its large market share and thus easy of virus propagation among infected machines. I have never personally had an instance of a viral infection on a Mac. During my repair tech days we had a virus infect all of our repair center machines, rendering them useless. Microsoft's solution: download the patch online. I went online, downloaded it on a Mac, and then transferred the patch to the shop PCs.

3. What about Apple's customer service and follow-up?

I worked with both Apple desktop and laptops. Typically Apple laptops are shipped back to Apple for repair. Desktops can typically be repaired at an approved facility in-town. They overnight most items and provide excellent customer service on both ends. Out of all the computer manufacturers out there including Sony, Dell, HP, etc... Apple was always my favorite to work with.

4. I heard that Apple has specific Apple retail stores that sell for close to wholesale? If that's the case, I would not need to look at various websites and shop around? Correct?

Apple has pretty strict pricing standards and most places sell Macs for the same price -- the manufacturer's suggested retail price. I strongly suggest you purchase your Mac from Apple directly, either through their online store or through a retail outline. The price will be the same. You will pay sales taxes at the retail store and may have to pay for shipping if you order it online.

5. Is it worth it to wait to buy during Christmas time and wait for a sale or does Apple not lower it's prices during the Christmas time?

Prices typically drop when new models come out; they don't do traditional 'sales'. They introduce new products around holidays, precipitating a price drop on some models. Macs aren't cheap, but they are well worth it in my opinion.

6. Is a new update or version of Apple's laptops coming out soon (i.e. should I wait for that)?

Apple is switching chip makers from IBM/Motorola to Intel. The switch won't happen for another year or two. You can read more elsewhere on the internet if you want more details. If you need a new laptop soon, I'd go ahead and buy now.

7. How long can I use my new Apple laptop before it gets outdated and I would need to buy a new one again?

Apple laptops tend to have similar staying power to their PC counterparts. I mean, how fast do you really need to run MS Word? If you do standard tasks such as web browsing, e-mail, and other basic tasks then your laptop should last awhile.

8. How do you sell your laptop after you're done and want to move on?

eBay -- but don't expect much. Used computers don't keep much of their value.

Look forward to your responses. If you're currently using an Apple laptop could you please mention that in your response.
Thanks

No problem. Now, how's the pay and QOL?

 

[Groundpounder]

I'm thinking of getting an iBook, but I have a very very very important question...........


Can I still use Microsoft Flight Sim on it?

 

[semperfido]

I'm a new Apple user (returned after eons of Windows based oppression), and I'm not going back to PC's any time soon. I have the newest version of the 12" iBook. This thing is rock solid awesome. One or two programs from my PC days weren't able to carry tover to my Mac, but the loss of them is well worth the switch. The iBook has great battery life, the graphics are fantastic, and it is more user friendly than any PC I have ever owned.

As a few above have said, thier customer support is unparalleled. The reason alot of viruses do not affect Mac's are because the viruses are all coded for Windows. So they might try to load on a Mac, but the *.exe files will not work on a Mac. So that kills most spyware.

If you have no real reason to choose PC over Mac, go for the Mac, it's well worth the switch.

Once you go Mac you never go bac!

apple shmapple-- no self respecting pilot would be caught dead with an apple. i have seen quite a few corp pilots "rue the day" they bought an apple. compatability issues.

 

[ultrarunner]

Hello,

A while ago, I made a post about purchasing a new laptop. I'm leaning towards an Apple...


Not to reiterate what everyone else has said, but you'll love the G4 Powerbook, or whatever laptop model you choose.

Some options to consider.....

#1. The aluminum PB cases are likely a bit more durable than the plastic iBook enclosures. I have the 15" G4 PB and it's holding up quite well.

#2. The 12" units are WAY more portable and lighter than the 15" units.

#3. The 12" iBooks and PB's have MUCH better battery life than the 15" units. Especially the 12" iBook.

#4. Make sure you put at least 1 gig of memory in the unit. And if you choose the 'build your own' option at the Apple Store, pick the 7200 rpm HD. It makes a difference.

Have fun.

 

[Gulfstream 200]

apple shmapple-- no self respecting pilot would be caught dead with an apple. i have seen quite a few corp pilots "rue the day" they bought an apple. compatability issues.

explain this Fido.

give me a compatibility issue??

hell, my mac runs Office faster than any PC I have seen. Im halfway through emails on a Mac while the PC is still "booting up"...hard rive churning away....virus scans starting up....spyware loading....

F that. -- you can keep it!

Ditch the PC crap, get a MAC....cut your frustration in half.

go with a powerbook - tougher than an Ibook. The aluminum case is great for dropping.. The 12 inch is a bit small but very portable..the 15 is perfect.

Hit the apple store and test drive if you are in doubt of any "compatibility" garbage you hear.

All good liberal pilots use apples and have golden retrievers who carry stuffed animals.



Hey, when is that next version of Win 95 coming out?? Longhorn? longdong?


Do I still have to hit START to shut it down?

 

[semperfido]

explain this Fido.

give me a compatibility issue??

afiscomm 1.2 and not sure if my treo would sync with it. some scheduling software.

 

[flydrummer]

I'm thinking of getting an iBook, but I have a very very very important question...........


Can I still use Microsoft Flight Sim on it?

Probably not. The only thing you can do is try to run Virtual PC but I really don't think it would run that well if at all.

 

[AA717driver]

My daughter is using my 4-year old PowerBook G3. My company pays for a laptop every two years (that's because everyone else has a non-Apple laptop and they don't last much over two years). Now, they're stretching it to 3 years between purchases.

My G4 i-book is only 6 months old so it's hard to tell. It doesn't seem to be built as well (case-wise) as my G3. I don't use AFIScom so that's irrelevent and I sent my Treo back and will get a crackberry. I don't synch stuff, so that's irrelevent, too.

Works for me. (Writing from my iMac G4 desktop with my feet propped up on the carcass of my Gateway...)TC

 

[Groundpounder]

Probably not. The only thing you can do is try to run Virtual PC but I really don't think it would run that well if at all.

Well, where can I find a list of games that are made for a Mac? I'm not buying a laptop just for gaming, but I would like to be able to play some stuff, like MSFS, or something like it.

 

[Gulfstream 200]

afiscomm 1.2 and not sure if my treo would sync with it. some scheduling software.

afiscom, arinc, and any halfway useful scheduling program are all web-based today. Compatability should not be an issue! - I schedule 5000hrs a year on mine!

not sure about treos....everyone seems to use crackberrys these days (and Im not too fond of those..)

come to the dark side fido. You won't miss hauling that PC dinosaur around...






and no, my guess is MACs are not for gaming. To me they are more for photos, making dvds, digital video, and no non-sense web and office apps...(90% of computer usage)

Gamers may not be happy...then again they are pasty white and weird as hell anyhow....

 

[Sunnfun]

not sure about treos....everyone seems to use crackberrys these days (and Im not too fond of those..)

Most devices work out of the box with iSync, especially bluetooth. For some you might need the The Missing Sync for OS X. That let's you sync with almost anything ($40). Remember that all *books have wireless networking and bluetooth built in standard.

Gamers may not be happy...then again they are pasty white and weird as hell anyhow....

There's a couple of games available, not much though. Check out http://www.apple.com/games/features/. As far as flight sims go, there's the fantastic X-Plane: X-Plane/

 

[flydrummer]

Well, where can I find a list of games that are made for a Mac? I'm not buying a laptop just for gaming, but I would like to be able to play some stuff, like MSFS, or something like it.

I've been playing x-plane on my iMac and that works really well. I've never played MSFS so I can't really compare. All I can say is check x-plane out. http://www.x-plane.com/

 

[learflyer]

afiscom, arinc, and any halfway useful scheduling program are all web-based today. Compatability should not be an issue! - I schedule 5000hrs a year on mine!

not sure about treos....everyone seems to use crackberrys these days (and Im not too fond of those..)

come to the dark side fido. You won't miss hauling that PC dinosaur around...






and no, my guess is MACs are not for gaming. To me they are more for photos, making dvds, digital video, and no non-sense web and office apps...(90% of computer usage)

Gamers may not be happy...then again they are pasty white and weird as hell anyhow....

Does anyone here go to online school with the apples? That is my primary concern because that is what I will mostly be using it for. Any problems with emailing from an apple to a PC? Sending documents from an apple to a PC? Can the PC people open them up? Thanks.

 

[CA1900]

Does anyone here go to online school with the apples? That is my primary concern because that is what I will mostly be using it for.

Check with the particular school. Most don't have a problem, but a few stubbornly cling to only using Internet Explorer 6 for Windows. (My health plan does that.) In those case, I'd either shop for a school that uses web standards, or use a program called VirtualPC that will emulate a (slow) Windows machine for that particular use.

Any problems with emailing from an apple to a PC? Sending documents from an apple to a PC? Can the PC people open them up? Thanks.

Absolutely no problems at all. The document formats have been cross-compatible for years when it comes to things like Word .doc files, Excel spreadsheets, etc. Other stuff, like PDFs, JPEGs, etc., aren't platform-specific anyway. They'll open on just about anything.

So the short answer is "no, no problems at all."