[Jbroad572]

Well it'll be here tomorrow says Airborne. I ordered the 17" standard model. My plan is to pick it up, and let it sit in a corner in my room, or maybe under my bed so I won't be as tempted. I don't want to open it until after my last class on Friday then I will spend some time with it to really get intimate with it and OSX. My last Rev A, I kind of just jumped in on it and just assumed that "this did that" and so on. I've been PC all my life, and didn't really care for OSX, so I knew there was something I was missing when reading all the praise it gets even from PC users. So this time I just want to learn all the ins and outs. I kind of wish I had a book to explain certain things like customization. What I missed the most was the start button which gave you access to almost everything on the computer. I guess that's sorta what the finder is now. Anyways, if you know of any online guides feel free to post a link. Do you guys think I can hold off until Friday ?

[amoris]

No

[aapljack]

Holding off until Friday. Wow, you have some willpower!

Check out David Pogue's Mac OS X: The Missing Manual. Not free or online, but really, really good. Especially for beginners!

Have fun Friday (or tomorrow nite).

-b

[Link]

The dock totally replaces the start menu.. if not better. If you want to have a menu for your apps just drag one into the dock and right click it or hold-click (or control click)

[nagromme]

The standard procedure is to have your common apps in the Dock, and get to the rest in the Finder when you occasionally use them.

But you CAN get to EVERYTHING--not just apps--from the Dock: just drag your HD itself into the Dock (after the divider line). Then, click-hold (or control-click = right-click) and see what happens. You can navigate every folder and subfolder! (Doesn't matter whether you keep the button held down while you navigate or not.)

The same works with any folder. Want a Windows-style "Start menu" system for your apps? Drag the Applications folder to the dock and click-hold on it.

Or, like me, make categories: I have a folder called "Games" and one called "Others" (for the apps I want in my Dock, but don't use enough to be worth taking up Dock space). I put them in my Dock, and filled them with aliases/shortcuts to the apps of my choice. Plus, within "Other" I put a shortcut to "Applications"... the Dock turns it into a live, navigating submenu--a way to get to those really obscure apps--and never need the Finder. You can also make folders-within-folders, to organize your shortcuts further.

Three tips for making folders of shortcuts in your Dock: 1) The folders you make must reside somewhere--I choose to put them in "Shared": that way I can put them in any user's Dock, not just mine. 2) The contents of a Dock menu are alpabetical. To force something to be listed first, just add one or more spaces to the start of the shortcut's name. 3) Any time you want to rename or delete stuff in a Dock folder, just click the folder (instead of click-hold or right-click). Any time you want to add a shortcut to a Dock folder, just drag the desired file or app into that folder--BUT, to make a shortcut instead of moving the file, hold Command-Option when you drag. (Works to make shortcuts in the Finder too.)

And you're right, a lot of the fun/usefulness of a Mac is customizing it to work the way YOU want it to. Here are the places you should browse through, looking for settings to tweak and options to play with:

* Apple menu > System Preferences

* "Application" menu (the first one next to the apple) > Preferences (for the current app)

* View menu and /or Edit menu for each app--look for "View Options" for instance, and "Customize Toolbar.

* Right-click things (Control-click). Macs rarely have commands that you can only reach that way--the OS is one-button-friendly--but there are useful things there, as on Windows.

* As you browse through menus (and right-click menus too), try tapping the Option key to see additional "advanced" menu items appear.

BTW, I recommend the Dock on the left--away from all scrollbars--and if you like Hiding, don't also use magnification. Magnification is "fun" but annoying when used with Hiding. I finally figured out that the combination was making it slower for my to get to what I wanted.

I have a whole list of "tips for OS X newcomers" that I can send (or post here) if you like--just private message me.

Enjoy the new 'Book! Read the battery-charging instructions, maybe you can do that before Friday... And get Panther ASAP--it looks like the biggest OS upgrade Apple's ever produced, including an all-new Finder and various speed enhancements.

[forcelite]

Trust me when I say that OSX is superior to XP.

I have used pc's since dos, and currently work for THE major pc manufacturer (cant get any more specific sorry).

During a typical day xp crashes a vital program at least once a day, if not more.

When I worked for apple a year ago I can remember all of 2 times that something crashed.

OSX 10.2 is superior to every other OS (except redhat cause its based on that)

Force

[Simon]

Originally posted by forcelite:
OSX 10.2 is superior to every other OS (except redhat cause its based on that)

Bullshit. According to that statement, I doubt you work for anybody that can even spell the word computer.

Redhat is a Linux distribution. OS X is derived partly from BSD Unix. The two are completely different and by far not the same thing.

Saying OS X is based on Redhat is about as smart as saying the US and Australia are the same because they both had something to do with the Brits.

[amazing]

Panther just got announced, and you won't qualify for the $20 upgrade, because your invoice date will be before October 8.

So, here's a strategy: Don't open the box, don't break the seal. Take it back and get a full refund. Buy the same unit again with a new invoice date and you'll qualify for a $20 upgrade. Then, you partition the HD and put Jaguar on one partition and Panther on the other (once you get it.)

Will it work? Whadyathink?

[nagromme]

Here's my list of OS X beginner tips for Windows users... I will need to update it for Panther soon!

1. Ctrl-click is the same as right-click, if you don't feel like adding a 2-button mouse. Works just like in Windows. And in some apps--the Dock and browsers, you can click-HOLD and not even need Ctrl.

2. Don't quit an app if you'll use it again soon. Leaving an app running in X doesn't use up many system resources at all. Just Hide it: Command-H instead of Q. (Command is the "cloverleaf" key, used for shortcuts just like Ctrl on Windows.) When you want the app back, there it is with no loading delay!

3. Try holding Option (Alt) when switching from one app to another. It auto-hides the previous app with no need to choose Hide. This works whether you switch apps by clicking in the Dock, OR by clicking on a window of the other app. (Or by Commnd-Tab... like Alt-Tab in Windows.) You can even hide the current app just by Option-clicking on exposed desktop. (And to switch to an app and auto-hide ALL other apps, Command-Option click its Dock icon.)

4. Move your Dock to the left to get it out of the way of scrollbars (just my preference). Don't use Dock Magnification AND Dock Hiding at once: they are both nice, but the combination makes it harder to click an app.

5. Turn off hard disk icons on the desktop, in Finder Preferences. Your screen will be nice and empty, and you can bring up a new Finder window any time without that. Your "Home" directory (the one with your name) is where everything goes anyway--the rest of the HD won't concern you except when installing software (always in "Applications," for best results.) By the way, to get to Finder Preferences (or any app Preferences) just switch to that app and look in the app's named menu (the first one after the apple). To get GENERAL system preferences, they are always in the Apple menu. To customize an app's toolbars, Ctrl-click the toolbar. Add the Path menu to your Finder Toolbars for instance--very handy.

6. If an app has no windows open, it can STILL be running. Look at the name up by the apple to know what app you are in. And if you want a new window in any app that has none, just click the app's icon in the Dock. That's how you get a Finder window for instance.

7. When you click one of an app's windows, it comes forward alone, leaving all other windows behind. Makes it easy to use several apps at once. But if you want ALL the app's windows, switch to the app by clicking it in the Dock instead. You can always use the Window menu to find any or all windows in the app, too.

8. Right-click (Ctrl-click) OR click-and-hold on Dock icons. Each one does some nifty things, especially when the app is running. If you put a folder (or hard disk) in the Dock, click-and-hold to get to everything inside without ever opening a window! You can make folders full of shortcuts (called aliases on Mac) and not have to clutter your Dock with apps you don't use often. This makes "subcategories" for your Dock. I put my "subcategories" into the Users/Shared folder so that ALL user accounts can access them.

9. Add common locations to Favorites (in the Finder's File menu, or just drag them to the heart in your Finder Toolbars, or click Add to Favorites when in a file dialog)--you'll then have quick access to them in Open and Save boxes. (Update: in Panther, there's now a sidebar of common items instead of a Favorites folder.)

10. Always look for software that runs in X. (Older stuff still runs in "Classic," but "real" X software runs better.) Try macgamefiles.com for lots of downloadable games, and versiontracker.com for all kinds of software.

And www.apple.com/switch/howtohas very detailed info on switching stuff over from your old PC.

[dcsmrgun]

Originally posted by amazing:
Panther just got announced, and you won't qualify for the $20 upgrade, because your invoice date will be before October 8.

So, here's a strategy: Don't open the box, don't break the seal. Take it back and get a full refund. Buy the same unit again with a new invoice date and you'll qualify for a $20 upgrade. Then, you partition the HD and put Jaguar on one partition and Panther on the other (once you get it.)

Will it work? Whadyathink?

Well, if you ignore the fact that you'll be out $280 due to Apple's restocking fee, yeah, its a fantastic idea