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PappyAnn · Nov 30, 2005, 05:54 AM

hey guys im new here and i have a question. im planning on getting a 17"powerbook and i was wondering for that price, how long is this powerbook going to last me????

PappyAnn · Nov 30, 2005, 05:57 AM

Also i was wondering how i can take my mp3's from my pc and get them tranfered onto it! My Burner is fried and i dont Have A firewire port

mduell · Nov 30, 2005, 09:15 AM

It really depends what you do. It could last an e-mail and web user for a decade while a heavy Motion user would punt it to buy the next revision.

You can copy all your songs (and other files) over a network.

B Gallagher · Nov 30, 2005, 10:04 AM

You can ultimately use your computer for as long as it will still work.

The latest 15" PB is identical to the 17" in every aspect except for the screen size, and the price. So the extra you're paying is purely for a bigger screen.

The 15" is already pretty damn big. Trust me, I'm using it right now.

There's a program called Move2Mac - check it out at:
http://www.apple.com/switch/howto/software.html

What are you planning to do with your computer? What do you use your computer for now?

Any other questions, just go ahead and ask.

And welcome to the forums, by the way.

rolfus · Nov 30, 2005, 12:50 PM

hey, i have just moved from a PC to the 17", the big screen is very nice, and i wouldnt want it smaller than that. you will be very glad for your PB when you are going to buy one.

PappyAnn · 01:14 PM

Originally Posted by B Gallagher

You can ultimately use your computer for as long as it will still work.

The latest 15" PB is identical to the 17" in every aspect except for the screen size, and the price. So the extra you're paying is purely for a bigger screen.

The 15" is already pretty damn big. Trust me, I'm using it right now.

There's a program called Move2Mac - check it out at:
http://www.apple.com/switch/howto/software.html

What are you planning to do with your computer? What do you use your computer for now?

Any other questions, just go ahead and ask.

And welcome to the forums, by the way.

Right now i just use my pc for email and internet and i use it to record my bands demos. i got a home built pc with a 800mhz gateway mother board and a 5.3 gb hard drive
im getting the powerbook cause im sick of pc's and i need to Ready Make the "switch" i need a portable computer because i wanna start recording our shows and be able to watch dvd's on long trips. i plan on keeping the pc because my mom wants to learn the computer but another reason im getting the pb is i wanna buy a firewire recording interface and my new ipod >>> Thanks Paul

when i get it i plan on upgrading to 2gb of ram any other recomendations?
Would you guys reccomend the 100gb or 120gb also i plan in the future to get a external hd what are the most compatable ones for the PB

Lesterm10 · Nov 30, 2005, 04:15 PM

The PB will last you a good few years with the regular wear and tear, don't know how long with all the band movement you're going to be making. A great external hard drive for the mac is a brand from Lacie, you can pick that one up at the Apple Store or wherever, my brother has one and I do as well. Works great. Also Maxtor makes a great external hard drive, I think they have one for a Network type Storage. Go with the 15 inch because of the smaller foot print than the 17 inch plus it has identical spcs, minus the smaller screen than the 17"

Whatever the case... enjoy your PB, you'll not want a PC again (unless you want to play PC games)

wuzup101 · Nov 30, 2005, 09:16 PM

This is my first mac, and comming from using PCs for quite a while, I love it. As for the files, just transfer them via a network. I would opt for the faster 100gb hard drive if you're going to buy an external anyway, it will make the system a bit snappier.

hickey · Nov 30, 2005, 10:12 PM

I also vote for the faster 100Gb hard drive and eventually upping it to 2 gigs of RAM will further increase the snappiness of the system.

I use a 15incher everyday and am very pleased with it, the only times it really leaves my desk is when I take it on the train every month or two. But I wouldnt want a 17incher there, just too big for that in my opinion.

Scooterboy · Nov 30, 2005, 10:30 PM

Now is a good time to buy a Powerbook, as ProTools is well optimized for Mac and PowerPC G4. I'm not sure how soon after the switch to Intel Avid will update Digidisign's Pro Tools or ProTools M-Powered. And who knows how soon Apple will have an Intel ready Logic. These are apps you won't want to run in emulation.
Also, the new brighter and higher res screens are the business. I wish my 1.5 Ghz 17" PowerBook screen was as nice.

hickey · Nov 30, 2005, 10:36 PM

does anyone here run Protools on a pbook, if so, how is it on the book. I've used it on dual 2Ghz G5's, and I liked it on that. Just curious as to whether or not you can stand it.

PappyAnn · Nov 30, 2005, 10:58 PM

[FONT="Comic Sans MS"][/FONT]
thanks for all your input ive been looking at the LaCie d2 250gb hard drive, but alot of people have had problems with it. Can anyone recommend a 250gb or higher for under $250 or would this be good for me? im new to computer recording. would anyone remmend a bigger drive because i would most likely just burn most of my mixes on cd so i dont need anything 2 big

hickey · Nov 30, 2005, 11:03 PM

I've only used one Lacie in my life, and it worked fine, so I cant really say whether or not there products are all good or all bad, but the one I used worked great. And it was a D2 250 gig.

brettcamp · Nov 30, 2005, 11:56 PM

For transferring files, if you don't have access to a network, you can always do it the slow way: get a USB thumb drive.

jvicinanza · Dec 1, 2005, 09:57 AM

If you have a dvd writer in your legacy machine yu can use that to transfer your mp3s to your next generation device

msuper69 · Dec 1, 2005, 10:20 AM

I'm still using my TiBook 15" 500mhz, 512mb, 30gb HD on a daily basis. Not good for heavy lifting but for email, surfing, word processing and light iPhoto, iMovie work it's ok.

I'll be looking at what MacWorld brings as I would like to upgrade to a newer Mac portable. 4+ years ain't bad no matter how you look at it.

mduell · Dec 1, 2005, 02:32 PM

Originally Posted by PappyAnn

thanks for all your input ive been looking at the LaCie d2 250gb hard drive, but alot of people have had problems with it. Can anyone recommend a 250gb or higher for under $250 or would this be good for me? im new to computer recording. would anyone remmend a bigger drive because i would most likely just burn most of my mixes on cd so i dont need anything 2 big

LaCie? Ugh. "Stay away" is my advice.

If you want Firewire 400, I suggest this $38 enclosure (Oxford 911 chipset).
If you want Firewire 800, I suggest this $75 enclosure (Oxford 922 chipset)
If you don't know what you want, Firewire 400 will probably do.

Now add a hard drive: 250GB for $115 or 300GB for $129.

Assembly involves about 4 screws (included) and takes 5-10 minutes.

Joe.MAC · Dec 4, 2005, 11:32 PM

Originally Posted by B Gallagher

You can ultimately use your computer for as long as it will still work.

The latest 15" PB is identical to the 17" in every aspect except for the screen size, and the price. So the extra you're paying is purely for a bigger screen.

The 15" is already pretty damn big. Trust me, I'm using it right now.

There's a program called Move2Mac - check it out at:
http://www.apple.com/switch/howto/software.html

What are you planning to do with your computer? What do you use your computer for now?

Any other questions, just go ahead and ask.

And welcome to the forums, by the way.

I want to purchase a power book and was wondering if the hardrive can be partitioned to run windows? I still have a need to run a few PC business applications; however, PC is a better machine. Virtual PC seems to be inefficient and I am looking for a happy medium without having to buy two laptops. Any suggestions?

msuper69 · Dec 4, 2005, 11:49 PM

Originally Posted by Joe.MAC

I want to purchase a power book and was wondering if the hardrive can be partitioned to run windows? I still have a need to run a few PC business applications; however,. Virtual PC seems to be inefficient and I am looking for a happy medium without having to buy two laptops. Any suggestions?

The current crop of PowerBooks require the use of Virtual PC.

The next crop (the Mactels) "might" allow booting into native Windows. Nobody knows for sure yet.

The Intel CPU in the Mactels "might" allow the simultaneous booting of more than one OS. Again, nobody knows for sure.

The Mactels "should" allow for native Windows to run in a new version of Virtual PC (no x86) emulation required so it should be fast). MS already has a version of Virtual PC that you can run on current Wintel boxes so I would think this is likely.

I disagree with your comment "PC is a better machine". Not hardly.

paul_edmo · Dec 5, 2005, 02:46 PM

Ive just made the switch to the greatest Os ever!!!

One problem i am faced with at this moment in time is getting all of my files from my pc to my mac. Can the two computers be connected via a firewaire cable and information transfered?

Help would be apreciated

hickey · Dec 5, 2005, 03:07 PM

Im pretty sure if you connect the two comps via firewire, you can copy files back and forth

scottiB · Dec 5, 2005, 06:19 PM

Originally Posted by mduell

LaCie? Ugh. "Stay away" is my advice.

If you want Firewire 400, I suggest this $38 enclosure (Oxford 911 chipset).
If you want Firewire 800, I suggest this $75 enclosure (Oxford 922 chipset)
If you don't know what you want, Firewire 400 will probably do.

Now add a hard drive: 250GB for $115 or 300GB for $129.

Assembly involves about 4 screws (included) and takes 5-10 minutes.

Repeated for emphasis. Rolling your own is the most cost effective way.

As for transferring files, just plug an ethernet cable between the two (it need not be a cross-over).

Have fun!