Calling the Mac experts

[frogbeastegg]

O'Rielly

No free guides? I don't want to spend any more. Oh well; guess I can trust to a combination of experience and common sense. It can't be that hard to install a demo version of scrivener and get going.

Anything else I should know in order to maximise my changes of getting the thing, turning it on, and being able to write with no fuss or distractions in the least amount of time possible? Will the OS insist I tailor it, or will it accept the fact it's a fresh install and let me get on with my life without nagging and showing off its features? I can't stand the ever increasing trend in computers and consoles to waste user time with nonsense like creating profiles.

The comments about firefox and about more rigid structure reminds me - I shouldn't have any problems stuffing any and all internet browsers in an out of the way location, should I? Little icons which whisper at me to check [insert site or email here] need to be left behind on the desktop; their presence is a constant distraction and I know I would do far better without them. If I can't do anything but write on the machine then I will have to do nothing but write. Or so my theory goes.

[Lemur]

No free guides?

Many, of varying depth and quality. Here's a pretty good one oriented at first time users who are used to Windows (sadly it's four years out of date, but much of it still applies). Here's a more recent guide.

Will the OS insist I tailor it, or will it accept the fact it's a fresh install and let me get on with my life without nagging and showing off its features? I can't stand the ever increasing trend in computers and consoles to waste user time with nonsense like creating profiles.

As I said, OS X is a variant of Unix, so you have to create a profile. By default you'll be an admin (not root, thank goodness). But Unix doesn't know what to do with you unless you have some sort of profile, which defines permissions and access rights.

If memory serves there's a moderately irritating video, and then you have to do things like type in your name, timezone, and a few settings. Nothing too horrifying.

I shouldn't have any problems stuffing any and all internet browsers in an out of the way location, should I? Little icons which whisper at me to check [insert site or email here] need to be left behind on the desktop; their presence is a constant distraction and I know I would do far better without them.

The desktop and taskbar are fully customizable. If you want an app to hide in the Programs folder and never show up in your field of view, that's eminently doable.

[Fragony]

As a new mac user, it's easy to get the hang of it. Isn't as intuitive as I had expected, but it's starting to come together. Mac doesn't 'just work' though, openoffice is prone to crashes and I wouldn't exactly call it fast and fluid, opening documents takes a long time. Also crashes in quiktime and safari. Also had a weird hardware problem that's supposedly a known issue with macbooks, keyboard had to be replaced. Cool little machine, but I am somewhat dissapointed. What does do right, keyboard feels truly fantastic, and it's quite the looker. Battery is excellent, been using it for a year and it I still get solid 6 hours from it.

[frogbeastegg]

It's here. I have it charging up. Hehe, I was checking the order status on the Apple site during my breaks at work to see if it had arrived.

Many, of varying depth and quality. Here's a pretty good one oriented at first time users who are used to Windows (sadly it's four years out of date, but much of it still applies). Here's a more recent guide.

Great; thanks.

As I said, OS X is a variant of Unix, so you have to create a profile. By default you'll be an admin (not root, thank goodness). But Unix doesn't know what to do with you unless you have some sort of profile, which defines permissions and access rights.

If memory serves there's a moderately irritating video, and then you have to do things like type in your name, timezone, and a few settings. Nothing too horrifying.

I'm a windows frog; OS X, Linux etc are all nothing more than names to me. Never used any of them, so I'm uncertain as to what they do and don't demand.

Doesn't sound too bad. Not compared to the epic fresh install of XP which whines at you to register online while whining at you to edit settings while slapping an inane video all over your monitor while demanding you do a windows update while spamming you with messages about new hardware while generally refusing to allow you to do anything because it's not immediately configured into classic mode. Generally takes me half a day to tame XP into a civil state.

The desktop and taskbar are fully customizable. If you want an app to hide in the Programs folder and never show up in your field of view, that's eminently doable.

Phew. In that case I shall get firefox and set up the bookmark link as you suggested, then hide it safely out of easy reach. It will be convenient to have net access occasionally.

[Lemur]

I'm a windows frog; OS X, Linux etc are all nothing more than names to me. Never used any of them, so I'm uncertain as to what they do and don't demand.

Not to be terribly fussy, but if you use Google or Amazon you use Linux every day. I know, I know, not in the sense you mean, but it deserves saying.

[frogbeastegg]

It works.

The screen is very nice.

It's pleasant not to hear cooling fans while working.

Safari is quite decent. Might stick with it on the mac and reserve firefox for the desktop, since I don't intend to use the net much on the mac.

I hate the touch pad. My two main fingers of my right hand ache after 10 minutes of light touch pad use; the force required to generate a click is too much to be comfortable. I will have to get a mouse before my hand breaks. Unless the click sensitivity can be adjusted? I've found (and ramped up) the options controlling cursor and scroll speeds, nothing else touch pad related.

The bundled instructions are terrible. It doesn't cover things as basic as how to install programmes, or even what the various system settings do. I'm pretty sure I have scrivener installed now, but I've no idea how to clear out the downloaded file ... or even if I need to delete the downloaded file.

The bar at the bottom which I have tentatively identified as being named the object dock is full of junk. I need to find out how to safely remove stuff from it and to put in the few bits I will use.

:retires to read the instructional links, and to try out scrivener:

[Lemur]

Unless the click sensitivity can be adjusted?

Not near my laptop right now, but I think there's a way to enable tap-clicking instead of depressing the entire touchpad.

The bar at the bottom which I have tentatively identified as being named the object dock is full of junk. I need to find out how to safely remove stuff from it and to put in the few bits I will use.

Click, hold, and drag items out of the dock, and they go away. The only thing you have to keep there is the trash can; all else is negotiable. Personally, I prefer to have the dock on the left of the screen instead of the bottom. I also like it to hide itself and be much smaller. All of this is available in the control panel.

Default download location for OS X is in your user profile, called "Downloads." It also shows up as a default in the dock. You can change the default download location in Safari (I prefer to have things DL to my desktop, so's I knows what I gots at a glance).

-edit-

It doesn't cover things as basic as how to install programmes

Most programs install by dragging them into your Programs folder. To speed this up, a lot of installers include a shortcut to your Programs folder in the install package.

There are a few, a very few applications that run a Windows-style installer app. This is frowned upon in the world of OS X, and generally considered bad manners, but some of the bigger apps get away with it (Adobe, Microsoft).

If you dragged the installer icon into your Programs folder, it's installed. Next step might be to drag it onto the dock so's you can one-click to it in a hurry, when the muse is breathing down your neck.

[frogbeastegg]

Thanks. I'm now browsing and posting from my macbook instead of the desktop, so I must be getting somewhere.

Anything which will make clicking easier or further boost scrolling speed (I've maxed out the slider under options) would be greatly appreciated. This touch pad is not frog friendly and it's going to be a while before I can afford a mouse. I don't fancy disconnecting the one on my desktop each time I use this.

Scrivener is a wee bit awesome. I'm working through the tutorials now and the potential of the programme is shining brightly enough to blind.

Typing this I have noticed that there seems to be some sort of spell checker running. That's not bad ... if I can fully figure it out. I have found out to how add words but I don't know if this spell checker is limited to safari or whether it has a wider effect. I don't want to go to a lot of bother with it if it's safari only.

Is there are any way to speed up the rate at which characters are deleted when holding down backspace? It currently deletes at the rate of an arthritic pensioner walking up a steep hill. Needs to be at least twice as fast, preferably three times.

By this point in my post I have decided that this keyboard is ok. I was skeptical at first; I prefer a 'deeper' depression on my keys. I do miss the nice clicky sound of my desktop board - I've been using it for over a decade!

Resuming my planned post contents, is there a way to get safari to fill the whole screen? I can't get it to fill more than 1/3 of it no matter what I do. Annoying.

Installing was easy. Locating the applications folder was less so

I lost 30% of my battery charge in half an hour! Is that right? I'm wary because of it being a refurb, want to be sure everything is correct.

What is 'spaces'? It's living in my thingy bar and when I try to find out what it is so I know whether to boot it out or not it asks that I install it. It won't tell me what it is.

Likewise for 'preview', except it opens up what appears to be a limited and mostly useless PDF manual for the OS.

I do like this screen. So clear, so easy on the eyes.


EDIT: 1 hour later and I have found the tap instead of click option. So much better!