[Smush]

Hey, so I've just decided to go back to Mac, previously owned a Macintosh IIsi (still working ), so I ordered myself an iMac:

20'' Intel
ATI Radeon X1600-256MB SDRAM
1GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM-2x512
250GB Serial ATA drive
SuperDrive 8X
Kybd, Mighty Mse & Mac OS X-B
Country Kit-B

I'm upgrading from a Windows XP machine, which I've been using for a long time now.

I've got a couple of questions,

What does the Country Kit-B mean?

And also I'm not sure what protection software to use, I can't find any free ones, I used to use AVG anti-virus and Kerio firewall, but I've got no idea about Mac.

Any free or cheap ones you can recommend (not Symantec or Mcaffe), I plan to use peer guardian 2 as the packet filter.

Also anything else I should be aware of with OSX.

Thanks for any help

[thiagofll]

Hey Smush,


I've had a Mac for a little over 6 months now (also switched from PC) and it is absolutely awesome. You will never go back to a PC again. Now to answer your questions. I first purchased the 20 inch G5 2.0 Ghz version, a week later the 2.1 Ghz with iSight came out so I sold my first machine and bought the G5 2.1 Ghz. Now the Core-Duo came out so I decided to sell my 2.1 Ghz and buy the Core-Duo (LOL Steve Jobs has to stop for a minute, I can't keep up with him). Anyways making story short. I used to use Norton Antivirus 10 on my G5 machine and it worked great but when I tried to install it on the Intel Core-Duo, all it did was give me headaches, the computer wouldn't even log on, I had to do a Factory Restore. Antiviruses software is something that should be Native and not run under Rosetta. There are no viruses for Macs yet (if so very few), so I wouldn't worry about getting an anti-virus software yet, until Native Applications are released. Hackers usually target Windows PCS (which most people use) with viruses, worms, spam etc. Don't worry you will be pretty secure with your Mac.
Also The Intel Core-Duo has been giving me some headaches with some softwares that are not Native, so don't freak out, it will be fixed soon, you will find some bugs for now (because of the Intel transition) but MAC OSX is the best OS software out there.

Hope you enjoy your new machine.

[Calimus]

I can't really say any specific protection software as I haven't really found a need. I've seen quite a few mentions of little snitch to monitor your network traffic though it's not free. Other good places I've found to find all the mac software you'll need:

versiontracker.com
macupdate.com

Hope you enjoy your new mac! I'm on my third since coverting about 3 years ago. My first ibook still works great, I just can't keep myself away from the new shiny macs.

[tinoproductions]

Hi,
Ive ordered the same spec as you, well nealy,
i got the wireless keyb+mouse, and i also took the 1gb dimm
option for ram, so when i upgrade ic an just put in another 1gb!
Call up and see if u can change over, it makes sense!
This is my 1st mac, but i wont bother with antivirus, as you must have heard
macs r bulletproof, well, nearly
Anyway, the wait is on...ive been waiting since it got released, as I ordered it that day,
its STILL not here..its killing me softly!
T

[Smush]

wow, thanks for noticing tinoproductions , I was meant to choose 1 stick.

It's going to be weird not having any protection, just gotta have to get used to it.

do you think it'd delay my order if I change it, it was ordered at 12 today.

[harveytorriti]

Just ordered my new imac this morning.

iMac 20-inch 2GHz Intel Core Duo
ATI Radeon X1600/256MB VRAM
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
250GB Serial ATA drive
SuperDrive 8x (DVD+R DL/DVD+RW/CD-RW)
Keyboard & Mighty Mouse

Upgrading from my 1GHz G4 emac, which has served me well. Always nice tog et an Educational discount too.

Wonder how long Ill be waiting............

[Smush]

it tells me it'll be delivered in about 2 weeks :S, hope it's sooner

does anybody know if one of the sticks of RAM is soldered in?

[eightfive]

Originally Posted by Smush

it tells me it'll be delivered in about 2 weeks :S, hope it's sooner

does anybody know if one of the sticks of RAM is soldered in?

They are not.

[hickey]

Originally Posted by Smush

does anybody know if one of the sticks of RAM is soldered in?

I think on the latest PPC G5s they have a 512 stick soldered in, but im not sure about the intels RAM status.

[thiagofll]

No they are not soldered. It comes with 512 MB PC2-5300 200-pin RAM which is removable and one available slot for upgrade. If you wish, you could sell the 512 MB RAM that comes in the iMac and buy 1 GB RAM or two 1GB RAM. It only supports up to 2 GB MAX.

[goofticket]

First off, forget worrying.
open your mind and relax.
A mac is an easy world to navigate and be productive in.
Far less clicks to get anywhere are needed, no more windows asking if "Are your sure you wanna do that?" and a fluid, intuative desktop will let you think more about what your want to do, rather than expect obsticles and fearing what "might" happen.
As a novice, you will use keyboard shortcuts from windows which may be frustrating.
If I can give you one word of advice is "Apple key+Z"
This is the undo command, and will often get you back to where you were.
The Apple website is also a great place for tutorial help & videos. ( As is this website)
Good luck and have fun.

[goofticket]

Originally Posted by harveytorriti

Just ordered my new imac this morning.

iMac 20-inch 2GHz Intel Core Duo
ATI Radeon X1600/256MB VRAM
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
250GB Serial ATA drive
SuperDrive 8x (DVD+R DL/DVD+RW/CD-RW)
Keyboard & Mighty Mouse

Upgrading from my 1GHz G4 emac, which has served me well. Always nice tog et an Educational discount too.

Wonder how long Ill be waiting............

I ordered my Intel iMac within an hour of it being posted on the Apple Store on Jan 10th. There was no shipping date posted, so I called and the support folks said expect it sometime in early Feb.
It left Shanghai, China on Mon. 1/16 @ 11PM CDT and arrived at my door on Wed 1/18 @ 10AM CDT
I was lucky to get the order in early. As orders got going the delivery dates became longer and longer.
But...it will be worth the wait.

[macintologist]

Don't waste your money on antivirus software. You don't need it. I've been using macs literally my entire life and never used antivirus.

[tinoproductions]

Wow goofticket, that was amazing,
are you a magazine reviewer?!
Im making the switch now and i got convinced
just out of good things said about this system!
T

[Smush]

It has just been shipped , can anyone tell me how long it takes from when it's been shipped?

i'm in the UK.

[quantmonkey]

To give you an idea (I'm in London), I ordered my 20" iMac Core Duo (with extra RAM and VRAM goodness) on the 11th of Jan, shipped Shanghai the 17th, arrived here the 25th - so about 7-8 business days, just like the website says.

Wasn't able to track it (except with the Apple Order Status tool) until it hit the UK. I do remember thinking at the time that they were shipping it over from Shanghai by propellor plane, couldn't figure out why it took a week to get from Shanghai to Amsterdam . Once it hits Amsterdam expect to have it on your doorstep within two working days.

Tell you what though -- it's worth waiting for. Very happy with it after some teething troubles.

[Smush]

it's just got to the Arnhem Hub thats about 50 miles from Amsterdam.

can I expect it on monday?

[macintologist]

TUesday

[mavherzog]

Originally Posted by macintologist

TUesday

When's yours due on your doorstep??

[SMacTech]

Originally Posted by mavherzog

When's yours due on your doorstep??

Mine will be here any minute now !!!

[MusicalTone]

Originally Posted by Smush

it's just got to the Arnhem Hub thats about 50 miles from Amsterdam.

can I expect it on monday?

Mine took about 3 days after passing through Arnhem Hub to Spain. It goes ground...

[Smush]

it's 30 miles away from me in Croydon and TNT say it's not going to be here untill friday

Also will it network will my PC's wireless router ok?

[Zubir]

Here's a free virus scanner. It's for Unix in general, with a Mac front end. The setup isn't very intuitive, be hey, it's free.

http://www.clamxav.com/