June 04, 2004

• Hope this helps! :)
• OS9 sucks. The guy in Shawns link is right about that. Just keep using your PC for the interweb until then. You'll thank us later.
• 1. It should be pretty easy to set up your dialup account. When you install OS X, there'll be an option to use your existing internet service. If you have all of your settings (account name, password, phone number, dns), then you'll probably be able to figure it out on your own. If not, email me from your PC and I'll help ya out. 2. It can run Photoshop now just fine. If you're doing large images with lots of layers, it'll likely be sluggish, but it will still work fine. 3. You can run Garageband on the laptop, so you should be able to run just about anything audio-wise. You'd be a bit strapped trying to run iDVD on it, but you probably don't have a superdrive installed in any case. 4. My main bit of advice is to keep everything where the computer thinks it should go (Applications in the Applications folder, Documents in the Documents folder, etc). You can try moving stuff around, but be ready to put it back if it doesn't work. Most of the time it will, occasionally it will not. If you have the space and money, go ahead and max out your ram. If you can fit a Gig, go for it, though it may only go as high as 768 MB or what you have in it now. Have fun exploring. If you do light programming, learn about Applescript. Don't install an OS update until you've let other people try it out first, unless you're the adventurous type. Take advantage of the huge community for all things Macintosh on that Internet thing that everyone's talking about. And, yeah, skip OS 9. (In case it counts for anything, I am an Apple Consultant)
• Look into the reputation of your particular model, check for endemic problems, before dropping money into repairing it. Apple has a tendency to release buggy models now and then, particularly when they're the first in a line. I am actually a fan of Macs, but I've had enough experience to know they're not perfect.
• apple menu >> control panels >> remote access will bring up the dial-up config menu. if not visible click the "settings" button on the resulting popup window. (i had to do this over the weekend for my stepmom, she couldn't get her powerbook to dial up.) have to second sandspider - osX is better. i'm primarily a windows guy myself, but i've used macs on and off since freshman year when my roommate obtained his mac classic (he still has it, it still works...). osX is far better than any of the older mac os versions. as a mac newbie you needn't bother learning os 9 when X is so much different. sort of like starting with windows 3.1 while you wait to upgrade to XP... sure, you can make the computer work, but why bother learning how to use an OS that you'll never use again when you will have to re-learn everything after the upgrade anyway? and, um... remember that with only a single mouse button, the right-click (context) menu is now only accessible by holding down one of the keys in the lower corner of the keyboard. that cloverleaf-one or the ctrl key, i always forget until i'm actually sitting down with a mac and have to make it go. you can always plug in a multi-button USB mouse if you miss your right-click. oh yeah - file >> exit. most non-mac users forget this; unlike windows, closing the window does not mean closing the program. used to go into computer labs and find slow, slow macs - generally had lots of programs open, because casual mac users kept forgetting to actually exit the program. click the finder (top right) to see what's open. file extensions don't matter any more. unless you want to move the files back to windows. if you're sharing disks between mac and windows use pc formatted disks, which macs can read. windows can't (or won't) read mac format. wait - how clueless are you again? i'm hoping i'm not being too simple here. just remembering what i had to tell my wife the first time she got a job in an all-mac workplace. she wasn't happy with having to learn an new OS, but she survived. finally, watch out for the mac-happy people. they'll find you and welcome you warmly, but it's a cult! be strong! resist the smooth molded curves and aesthetic appeal! remember your beige-box blue-screen roots! (ok os 9 and X aren't exactly as different as win3.1 vs XP, not on the surface anyway. under the hood though, probably even more different...)
• Speaking of the p-p-p-powerbook, did the guy ever hear back from the scammer?
• I just read through, and the only thing he got back was a trojan program sent to him via email.
• I only have OS 9, but here's some tricks I use a lot. If you command-click (command = the apple key) the title of a window, it will pop up a contextual menu that shows you the location of the file (or folder) and allows you to open any of the folders in that path. If you hold down the option key when you double click to open a folder, the folder will open in a new window as usual, but the parent window will close itself. I've got a great extension called Default Folder that enhances the Open and Save dialogs. It's a real time saver... it gives you quick access to favorite folders, recently open folders, and any open folders in the Finder.
• Setting up dial-up on OS9. Yes, it's quite simple, all you need is the phone number of your ISP, and the login/password. I'll second about upgrading your RAM to as much as you can afford, and getting OSX (Panther). I've got a lot of problems migrating from 9 to X, but that's due to all the third-party plug-ins that some of my apps use. However, since you're staring from scratch, it's better than you don't invest athat much time anymore on learning OS9's vagaries. Welcome aboard! Who gave you the 'book teach you the secreta handshake and location of nearest tepl... I mean, AppleStore, right? :)
• Another dialup guide. Be very grateful you missed they days of trying to do dialup on System 7. A general overview of the bits in a Mac OS 9 system. VersionTracker is your friend. An older Moz for MacOS 9. Photoshop will be fine, as will music editing. Bear in mind the Mac has been so starved of horsepower for so long most vendors write software for relatively modest requirements. And, incidentally, my wife and I both prefer the MacOS 9 UI to the spinning, candy coloured abomination that is OS X.
• I also loathed X, rodgerd, but after I was forced almost at gunpoint (well, metaphorically speaking) to migrate, I've learned to appreciate it. Just install it in some fast enough Mac, with ample RAM, and you'll even find bearable the thought of having to pay for updated apps and plug-ins. I.e., my main 3D app actually renders twice as fast on Panther, since it's finally fully taking advantage of my G4's two processors. That alone is worth the upgrade $$$ and OS fine-tuning time spent for me. And once you get used to thing like Expose, you don't want to go back.
• Wow... thanks, guys. I really appreciate the advice. I'm gonna put more RAM into the machine after this week is over (it's the end of the school year, so I'm ridiculously busy). My brother has OS X and a license that allows him to install it on multiple computers, so his copy of the OS is winging its way to me even as I speak (type?). Frogsy: You're not being too simple at all. Again, thanks to everyone.
• ARRGH. Installed more RAM into the computer. I tried to install OS X... and received this error message: "Startup Disk was unable to select the install CD as the startup dick. (-2)" In other words, I blew $130 on OS X tonight and can't install it... this is on top of $300 in repairs and $120 for more RAM. Please hope me!
• Don't dispair- it's probably something minor. A) Insert the OSX disk, reboot, and hold down the "c" key while it boots. This should startup the CD. B) If this fails, reboot and hold down "option" until you see a blue screen. The machine will look for viable system files. If it finds the CD, then choose it and continue. C) If the above fails, you may have a firmware problem. Go to Apple's PowerBook support page, download and install the firmware, (I assume you've configured OS9 for dialup, as discussed above) reboot, and try A) again. Let us know how things turn out!
• Zedediah: Option A did the trick, and I now have hot OS X action. Thanks a million!
• Monkeyfilter: Hot OS X action
• Woo hoo!