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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Mac Desktops > Let's talk about last straws...

Let's talk about last straws...
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No Time 4 Love Dr. Jones
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Aug 8, 2005, 11:51 AM
 
Windows/PC user since 1994. Last week I switched to Cingular and got one of them new fandangled Motorola RAZR V3 (black) phones; after buying the necessary software from Motorola (as if the $200 phone wasn't expensive enough, they couldn't even give you the sync, etc. software for free) AND the $25 USB cable, I got files transferred to the phone once. The rest of the time, the software couldn't find the phone, only some of the software suite would work with it, or the thing would just flat-out not sync anything. I've uninstalled the software, dug through the System32 folder and nuked the .sys files and USB device profiles, factory reset the phone, scrolled through forums, etc., etc. No luck.

Well, fast-forward to Saturday. I stopped by a friend's house who has an iMac. I told him about my problem, and he asked me if the phone had Bluetooth; I said yes, he opened iSync, and tried transferring some files. It worked FLAWLESSLY. It recognized the phone, did its thing and blamo. No installation, no driver fuss, no crappy software suite.

As lame as it may sound that a problem syncing/transferring data to a cellphone was the final straw for me to switch to a Mac, that's exactly what happened. I ordered a Mac mini today (toe in the water, since I have a 20" LCD and peripherals already).
     
tooki
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Aug 8, 2005, 12:14 PM
 
Awesome! Provided you have enough RAM in it (512MB minimum for adequate performance), the Mac mini will make a great intro Mac for you.

tooki
     
No Time 4 Love Dr. Jones  (op)
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Aug 8, 2005, 12:18 PM
 
Originally Posted by tooki
Awesome! Provided you have enough RAM in it (512MB minimum for adequate performance), the Mac mini will make a great intro Mac for you.

tooki
I configured it with 1 GB of RAM from the factory. I know there is a price premium for getting memory preinstalled, but Crucial's price for a 1 GB stick is $135 ($175 from Apple) and I really didn't want to have to break the thing open myself. I know that precludes me from a refund from Apple, but I don't plan on getting one anyway.

I'm looking forward to being a part of the Mac community.
     
volcano
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Aug 10, 2005, 07:50 PM
 
I never really had a last straw. My first encounter with a Mac occured during middle school - we had the first iMacs that were released in 1998. I loathed them at first, but when the school replaced them with the Rev. D version in 1999 (all of them were Strawberry, to match my school's colors) - it wasn't so bad for me. Plus, I couldn't stop playing with all those voices on the system. I would sit there all class period typing things up for the voice-over to repeat.

Fast forward to March 2005. With the introduction of the new 6GB iPod mini, I finally give in and purchase one. I throw my ancient MiniDisc player away, and instantaneously fall in love with this little device AND iTunes at the same time. I took it everywhere with me. I start hating Windows even more and eventually I begin to think 'if I love the iPod this much - I bet I'd love the computers even more' - so I venture out to our local Apple store in April and again, fall in love with the iMac. Luckily, I was forced to wait until June to purchase my iMac (because of insufficient funds at the time), and I bought it after the Rev. B was released. I'm now the happy owner of a 20" 2.0GHz iMac G5.

To top it all off, I just ordered a 12" iBook G4 yesterday to add to my growing line of Apple products. My new iBook, free iPod mini (which I'll probably sell - it's only 4GB, anyway), and $30 HP printer (after rebate) should arrive by later this week or early next week - and I can't wait.

So basically, I have my iPod to thank for my switch to Macs.
     
budster101
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Aug 10, 2005, 07:58 PM
 
That's how it happens now. People are using the iPod and loving it, and thinking, what the heck am I using an iPod on a Windows Machine for?... it's just so much better on a Mac...

For me though it was a last straw. I went through two Windows machines in one year. The OS just made me sick when I used it after a while. Too many crashes, lost files, wasted time fixing them, it was about time to find something else for me. I looked at the new 17" that was coming out and pre-ordered it... the anticipation killed me, but when I went in and picked one up, it was a love afair to begin and still it's going strong two years later... with no end in sight. Apple is my computer of choice from now on.

You've made a wise choice, may it be validated by days, weeks, months, years of joyous trouble-free use!
     
volcano
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Aug 10, 2005, 08:06 PM
 
Although I didn't have a specific "last straw" I know the pain of owning a Windows PC. My desktop that I was using before the Mac had the hard-drive crash twice within a year. The first time I lost everything I had on it - the second time, I caught it just in time (the whiny cat noises sounded too familiar) and my brother was able to hook it up to his computer and save all the files on his PC. Still, that first crash caused me to lose 3+ years of accumulated documents. Not to mention, my PC sounded like an airplane that was getting ready for flight. Compared with my PC, my iMac is whisper quiet. I can hear myself typing for a change!
     
DigitalEl
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Aug 10, 2005, 10:11 PM
 
Nice thread. I didn't have a "last straw" moment, but I used to be into PC gaming. I never had a state-of-the-art system though. I was always maybe a year to 18-months behind the technology curve. I was sick of buying software (mostly games) and wondering whether it would work on my system... Even though I was well within the minimum system requirements.

Since switching in late 1999, I haven't lost anymore sleep faxing a printout of my "config.sys" or "win.ini" file to some long-distance tech support number so they could maybe tell me why their software won't work on my machine.

No more .dlls or ActiveX problems. No more ugly beige box making a poorly-constructed particle board desk wobble. No more AOL. No more BS.

Using Windows at work is bad enough. I couldn't imagine switching back.
Jalen's dad. Carrie's husband.  partisan. Bleu blanc et rouge.
     
bembol
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Aug 10, 2005, 11:02 PM
 
Congrats! Welcome to Mac World

I haven't touched my Dell since I "switched" over the weekend with the Mini...1.42GHz, 512MB, 80HD

It makes sense to pay the price and order it with the 1GIG but I had to take care of some accessories...
     
JazzCatDRP
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Aug 10, 2005, 11:29 PM
 
No real last straw for me. I grew up on Macs...I still remember playing Escape Velocity on my dad's Centris 610. They bought a Windows PC for school computer compatibility, so I said goodbye to the Mac world. Last year, I was looking for an inexpensive laptop to take on a trip. The last MacOS that I knew was 7.1, so I had no idea what to expect with OS X. I decided to go ahead and get a Lombard 333 Powerbook for fairly cheap on eBay instead of a Windows laptop. I fell back in love with Macs, and in love for the first time with OS X and can't imagine going back. Sitting beside me is a lightning fast Pentium 4 Windows box, yet it still takes second place to my slow Lombard.

Try to find a 6 year old Windows laptop that is good enough to run XP at a decent speed, handle 3-4 apps at once, and even the occasional photoshop job.
     
irockdabari
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Aug 11, 2005, 04:25 PM
 
iTunes... the single app that sucked me into the Mac world. Even before I knew about iTunes, I just liked Macs for the way they looked.. the cool plastic casing, and heck the OS wasn't that bad. But then the flat panel iMac G4 came out... and I fell in love. I loved everything about iTunes, and Mac OS X... So simple to use, that I learned how to use it in the local CompUSA store. My old windows machine was crap... viruses, slow, and I couldn't even use my CD burner because my version of WMP didn't have that option... and I HATE Music match. Once you go Mac, there's no turning back.
iMac G4 800Mhz 256 MB, 12" iBook G4 1.0 Ghz 768 MB, 12" PowerBook G4, 1.5 Ghz, 1.25 GB RAM
     
ApplCmptrDood
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Aug 11, 2005, 09:33 PM
 
I still remember playing Escape Velocity on my dad's Centris 610....
I LOVE THAT GAME! I played it on this really old mac my dad had, about 6 months ago, but sadly, the computer broke... I played Power Pete, Vic Combat... Good times, good times.

Now back to the subject... I never really had a fed up moment, but i got attached to the Mac because of the iBook my school supplied me for the year (i got to take it home, the whole schbang!) Sadly, I am on a crap Windows machine right now, but my mom is definately talking about getting a Mac, and she was asking about the Apple store today! I think I'm getting her switched because I've told her about how easy the mac is to use, and she hates Windows because of all the spyware... Hopefully we'll get one soon!
Apparently, I'm a sig violator. I feel honored. Oops.
     
westrock
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Aug 12, 2005, 05:26 AM
 
Originally Posted by No Time 4 Love Dr. Jones
Well, fast-forward to Saturday. I stopped by a friend's house who has an iMac. I told him about my problem, and he asked me if the phone had Bluetooth; I said yes, he opened iSync, and tried transferring some files. It worked FLAWLESSLY. It recognized the phone, did its thing and blamo. No installation, no driver fuss, no crappy software suite.

You think thats cool? If you have a newish DV camcorder with a Firewire port, your gonna be blown away with iMovieHD
     
Ozzpot
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Aug 12, 2005, 08:25 AM
 
I was quite late in owning my own computer. I was not introduced to computers until at the age of about 10 (about 1989 I think) my school got an "RM Nimbus" I think it was a 286 or something, running Windows 3.1 I think. Throughout the remainder of my education I was taught to use Windows to a basic level.

It was not util I was 18 (1997) that I bought my own computer. Knowing no better, I simply bought (what was supposed to be) the most powerful Windows PC available - a Cyrix 686 monstrosity. It cost me £2000 (about $3600). Within a year it had to be repaired 3 times for various reasons. I also found that it wouldn't play a lot of games because it didn't have an Intel processor, even though it was easily powerful enough. The following year I spent £600 ($1100 ) on upgrades, including an Intel Pentium 2 processor. Even then a lot of games didn't like the "brand" of graphics card, or sometimes even the soundcard in the machine. When I did find a game that was compatible, I often suffered up tp 10 crashes a day. I thought this was a ridiculous state of affairs, but didn't know there was another way. Macs were not very common in Britain, and I knew precious little about them.

Then, in 1999, I met a woman who would become a very good friend. She and her boyfriend had an iMac, and she was always going on about how great it was. All I knew about Macs was what I had heard from very zealous Windows-related journalism. I basically thought they were a failed format, a Betamax in a VHS world if you will. I could see no end of compatibilty issues if I were to go down that road, but my friend persuaded me.

In July 2000, a present to myself for my 21st birthday, I bought a Strawberry iMacDV. At first it was a strange experience and I struggled, but it soon became crystal clear that Apple were years ahead of anything in the Wintel world. I couldn't believe I had been so blind for so long. This was on OS9 too. I switched to OSX when Jaguar was released. My world has never been the same.

I now have 3 Macs, go here to see them. I have only ever required 1 repair, when my iMac DV was struck by lightning, and the modem was fried. All 3 of my Macs are in perfect working order. They are all running Tiger, all on a wireless network that took minutes to set up, and they sync and communicate with each other flawlessly. My newest 2 Macs, my iBookG4 and my iMacG5 have never crashed. NOT EVER. They are the centre of my digital world, my livelihood, my entertainment, my hobby, my addiction, my pride and joy.

I would not switch back Windows for all the gold in your Fort Knox.
iMac G5 17" 2.0ghz 1.5gb RAM MacOS10.4 • iBook G4 14" 933mhz 768mb RAM MacOS10.4 • iPod Touch 16gb
     
Randman
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Aug 12, 2005, 09:08 AM
 
Welcome to a new and exciting world. By the way, you can leave your anti-virus stuff behind.

This is a computer-generated message and needs no signature.
     
ApeInTheShell
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Aug 12, 2005, 10:20 PM
 
I used to drink my coke with two straws because I could get faster refills. Then I switched to iced tea and it just had to go! That was certainly the last straw I would be using.
     
   
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