Thread: I have taken the plunge and become a "Mactard" :)

I'm interested in getting an Airport. I am assuming I can connect my ToT modem and a hub into it and have wireless internet then?

Originally Posted by Bung

Larv you are going to love it. I am still amazed at how much more of a better experience it is nearly a year after buying it. I have yet to be frustrated with anything I ask it to do unlike my old Windows machine which frustrated me pretty much every time I tried to do something like connect printers, backup, connect to wireless networks etc.

Thanks Mate sounds great, cant wait

Can you play games on Macs?

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by PAG

The extra large screen is great for editing,

because the macbook can't accommodate an external large screen ?

Of course it can, just horses for courses. The MacBook Pro, as with any laptop, is a versatile tool based on mobility of use. Again, as with any laptop, there are compromises, such as screen size, normally capacity etc etc. Probably 90% of my online work is with the MacBook Pro, however, if I need to do some serious photographic editing, then I use the iMac, not that it can do it any better, only the screen size makes it easier for me. Maybe it's just me, and I haven't developed the 'gayness' that you deem necessary to operate OSX yet, so I defer to your experience and expertise in this area.

Originally Posted by DaffyDuck

Agreed with what Slackula said about Time Machine -- it's the software/utility, not the Time Capsule hardware that makes it work. You can plug any external hard drive in, and the Mac OS will ask you if you want to use it for Time Machine - it'll even properly format it for you.

Time Capsule is convenient, that's it, by combining an Airport Extreme router, and a hard drive into one convenient package -- but you can also get an Airport Extreme, and plug any external USB drive into it, and get the same thing - or just plug the drive into your iMac, and you also get the same :-)

One nice thing with Apple's Airport Extreme is that the USB port will also accept any printer, and make it instantly available over both the wired and wireless network via Bonjour - no address to know, no configuration to tackle. You can also attach a printer and a drive to the AE's USB port - the advantage of having the drive shared on the network is that you can then backup both your laptop and the iMac via Time Machine, if you have multiple computers.

Lastly, regarding AppleCare - you are smart in your decision having researched the issue, though I generally get AppleCare for any device that has moving parts that could be stressed (like a laptop). The only things that can fail in an iMac are the internal hard drive, the DVD drive, and the RAM -- all of which are technically user replaceable as well after the warranty expires, and for which you can get better parts by then, for less money, anyway.

Agree with the comments about the Time Capsule, and potentially using any hard drive. I'm usually running 2 machines (the iMac and MacBook Pro, both of which simultaneously back up to the Time Capsule every hour without any prompting (both wirelessly connected to the Time Capsule), and of course wireless printing to an ethernet connected Brother scanner/printer. Real simple.

Originally Posted by PAG

Probably 90% of my online work is with the MacBook Pro, however, if I need to do some serious photographic editing, then I use the iMac, not that it can do it any better, only the screen size makes it easier for me.

that doesn't sound logical (no surprise here) since you could attach a big screen on the macbook pro and do the same work as you would on an iMac ? obviously the motivations for having a second mac is elsewhere. Gayness attachment maybe ?

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by PAG

Probably 90% of my online work is with the MacBook Pro, however, if I need to do some serious photographic editing, then I use the iMac, not that it can do it any better, only the screen size makes it easier for me.

that doesn't sound logical (no surprise here) since you could attach a big screen on the macbook pro and do the same work as you would on an iMac ? obviously the motivations for having a second mac is elsewhere. Gayness attachment maybe ?

Nah, you obviously have a fixation with 'gayness', which tells me you're probably suppressing your latent tendencies, and using abuse to disguise your inner feelings. Don't be shy, let it hang out, we're all adults here. Could be to your ultimate relief to come out of the closet, and in the words of 'Blackgang': one day at a time.

Originally Posted by slackula

Originally Posted by Butterfly

maybe they gave him a discount for buying an overpriced POS.

OK, serious question time, and I am trying to post this without any pre-conceived notions - I am genuinely curious*:

Are there any all-in-one design PCs out there that will match the specs of Larvidchr's 27" iMac in terms of internal hardware (disk size, processor, memory etc) and external hardware i.e. coming with a nice wireless keyboard*1, mouse*2 and legal software and how much would such a machine cost in Thailand*3?

For reference here are the specs of the machine that larvidchr will be getting:

2.66 GHz quad-core Intel core i5
4 GB 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM (2x2GB)
1 TB SATA hard drive
ATI Radeon HD 4850 512 MB
LED backlight display at 2560-by-1440 resolution
8x Double Layer SuperDrive
Apple Magic Mouse
Apple Wireless Keyboard
OS X 10.6.2 (I am guessing that it will be 64 bit out of the box)
iLife 09
1 year Apple Care
a bunch of other useful things like textedit, mail.app, a proper Unix terminal etc (I'm sure I have forgotten some stuff)



* because I don't know how to do superscripts on this forum I'd like to qualify the questions

*1 I mean without having to plug in bluetooth dongles or buy something else, the Apple wireless keyboard is good, sleek and works with a Mac OOTB, no need for extra drivers etc
*2 I am not aware of any other mouse that has a multi-touch surface like the Magic Mouse that Larv will get bundled with his iMac so this may not be a fair question, so for this comparison we can accept any bluetooth mouse that is bundled with a PC and doesn't need a dongle or 3rd party driver to be installed etc.
*3 This is a bit difficult because Win 7 has so many versions, but OS X has the normal one and server with a few different pricing options for education or bulk etc AFAIK. Since OS X on a brand new machine is fully multi-user and comes with a whole load of stuff included like Time Machine, iLife etc I think that in this comparison we should use the top version of Win 7. Win 7 Ultimate is currently listed on Amazon at a bit under 9,500 Baht using 32.5 Baht to the dollar as the exchange rate.

Good post! Sharp intake of breath, and waiting for Butterfingers response, which as usual will provide slander and abuse, and the predictable lack of a comprehensive (or maybe comprehensible) answer to what is a straightforward question. Hitchcock, eat your heart out!

Originally Posted by slackula

2.66 GHz quad-core Intel core i5
4 GB 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM (2x2GB)
1 TB SATA hard drive
ATI Radeon HD 4850 512 MB
LED backlight display at 2560-by-1440 resolution
8x Double Layer SuperDrive
Apple Magic Mouse
Apple Wireless Keyboard
OS X 10.6.2 (I am guessing that it will be 64 bit out of the box)
iLife 09
1 year Apple Care
a bunch of other useful things like textedit, mail.app, a proper Unix terminal etc (I'm sure I have forgotten some stuff)

all this to surf porn and post on TeakDoor ?

like I said, completely overpriced, thanks for proving my point

as for POS, it was a figure of speech, I take it back

^^^^ I would add Dashboard with all the free widgets available.


http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/

Originally Posted by slackula

8x Double Layer SuperDrive

not even a DVD burner ? isn't that the DVD-ROM + CD Burner only ?

it's not like a DVD burner is expensive these days for Apple to afford it as standard on all laptop and desktop

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by slackula

8x Double Layer SuperDrive

not even a DVD burner ? isn't that the DVD-ROM + CD Burner only ?

it's not like a DVD burner is expensive these days for Apple to afford it as standard on all laptop and desktop

That's probably a typo, I C&P'd the specs from the shoppingmac Thailand site. I have been able to burn DVDs on my iMac since I got it, I don't think Apple are about to downgrade things..

Come on, step up to the plate, what other comps have all the things that the 27" iMac has and how much do they cost?

If you are going to state that something is over-priced then it should be pretty easy to show why.

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by slackula

2.66 GHz quad-core Intel core i5
4 GB 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM (2x2GB)
1 TB SATA hard drive
ATI Radeon HD 4850 512 MB
LED backlight display at 2560-by-1440 resolution
8x Double Layer SuperDrive
Apple Magic Mouse
Apple Wireless Keyboard
OS X 10.6.2 (I am guessing that it will be 64 bit out of the box)
iLife 09
1 year Apple Care
a bunch of other useful things like textedit, mail.app, a proper Unix terminal etc (I'm sure I have forgotten some stuff)

all this to surf porn and post on TeakDoor ?

It's larvidchr's money and computer, what he does with it is not the point.

like I said, completely overpriced, thanks for proving my point

What point did I prove?

as for POS, it was a figure of speech, I take it back

OK, fair enough.

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by slackula

8x Double Layer SuperDrive

not even a DVD burner ? isn't that the DVD-ROM + CD Burner only ?

it's not like a DVD burner is expensive these days for Apple to afford it as standard on all laptop and desktop

Yup, iDVD, burn what you want, in a semi professional type format (menus, music, titles etc etc). Good tool, and installed with every Mac.

how much is that iMac ? I would guess about 50,000 THB ?

you would probably get more from a PC desktop, but it wouldn't be as pretty though, the screen alone must be around 20,000 THB

Originally Posted by PAG

Yup, iDVD, burn what you want, in a semi professional type format (menus, music, titles etc etc). Good tool, and installed with every Mac.

it can't burn DVD if the specs are correct. Same as my mac mini, what kind of manufacturer keep installing SuperDrive as standard instead of normal DVD burner, just to save 10 USD, and yet ask for an 100 USD upgrade for a slightly better specs.

The shit Apple get away with is fucking amazing. No wonder their earnings are up, and they are making like bandits.

Do you have an answer for my question? If you call a 27" iMac "over priced" then show us something with the same capabilities for a lower price.

Originally Posted by larvidchr

Ordered my new Imac 27 inch quad core i5 today, delivery in one week, I have never used or tried a Mac before but felt it was time to try something new, I am really looking forward to getting to know my Mac and to play with it over Christmas where i will have the house for my self so I wont be disturbed to much.

I ordered IWork with the machine too, I could choose between the Mac office 2008 or IWork and chose the latter.

Now it is just the waiting time before it arrives, I confess with stuff like this I'm like a little boy that have a hard time waiting for my new toy

Congratulations, I hope. Let us know your experiences. I'm looking to buy the one up with the quad core i7 chips in it. I'll eagerly await your feedback.

In other news....

Apple are due to release the new Mac Pro with 2 6 core chips in the new year and will have exclusive rights to the latest Intel chips again, for a limited time.

Originally Posted by Butterfly

how much is that iMac ? I would guess about 50,000 THB ?

you would probably get more from a PC desktop, but it wouldn't be as pretty though, the screen alone must be around 20,000 THB

73.000 THB, but answer the question from Slackula, what desktop pc offers the same power, hard-drive size, mem size, and graphics card power, HD screen in 27 inch and design with an all aluminium and glass chassis, with only one cable to run it all, in one package ??

Yes it might seem a bit expensive to some, but not to me for what I get, it is also a furniture/ integral part of my office, and the design also means a lot to me.

I wanted to try Apples OS as-well because all-though I have been reasonably happy with XP it has had all the usual things happen where the OS seems to live a life of it's own and do strange shit no one can explain, and rescue action had to be taken on more than one occasion. But it is an OS that is on it's way out.

The GF runs Vista on her Acer notebook and that is really shit, we almost right out of the box had to upgrade the mem to 4 gig just to have it running at a barely usable speed, it just is a much to big power drain on a notebook to run Vista, and besides that she has never taken to it.

The new windows 7 is just to new for my liking as far as win programs go, they need to run for a couple of years before all the kinks is sorted.

So to change now the logical choice was to try Apple with the new IMac offering almost max. on all counts for a new desktop.

So just to surf regular porn and post on TD it should be sufficient, but imagine for you Butterfly- zoom in and get 27 inch LB c...'s in HD on an easy to wipe of all glass screen, your actions recorded for posterity with the excellent built in iSight, it could be your Nirvana.

Originally Posted by kfjvkjvk

BF is paying me 100 baht for every insult I give to a MAC user.

I do ?

Originally Posted by larvidchr

Yes it might seem a bit expensive to some, but not to me for what I get, it is also a furniture/ integral part of my office, and the design also means a lot to me.

that's probably the only argument for the macs and I am sure that weighted more than 70% in your decision. The gay look is found nowhere else. This is also the main reason I bought the mac-mini, because it was stylish enough not to look a fucking PC under my TV. And it had a very nice remote

Originally Posted by larvidchr

The GF runs Vista on her Acer notebook and that is really shit,

oh oh, welcome to MacOS X then because they share the same kind of "Desktop"

Originally Posted by larvidchr

The new windows 7 is just to new for my liking as far as win programs go,

good call, and it also share the same look and feel of a OSX desktop, so not sure if it will fit your needs. For me desktop usage is very important, but unfortunately it's all very clumsy in OSX. They haven't evolved how to do things since 1984

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by PAG

Yup, iDVD, burn what you want, in a semi professional type format (menus, music, titles etc etc). Good tool, and installed with every Mac.

it can't burn DVD if the specs are correct. Same as my mac mini, what kind of manufacturer keep installing SuperDrive as standard instead of normal DVD burner, just to save 10 USD, and yet ask for an 100 USD upgrade for a slightly better specs.

The shit Apple get away with is fucking amazing. No wonder their earnings are up, and they are making like bandits.

WTF are you going on about ?

The Apple SuperDrive *is* both a DVD burner and CD ROM burner. It has been for over 10 years. How retarded and behind the times are you??

yet on my mac-mini it's a Combo-Drive, and it can't burn DVD, how can Apple be so cheap to get away with that !!!

I am relieved that the expensive iMac can