Advice for someone switching from PC

I've been an avid PC person for like 15 years, even used to work as a PC tech and consultant.
I am SERIOUSLY considering switching to Mac -- and I adore the 15" PB, it is exactly what I need...
Frankly I despise Windoze XP and cant deal with it, or mismatched hardware etc, any longer!
and... OSX is simply astonishing. I cant wait to run it.
...but I have a few questions before I drop the $$$ and make this major life switchover!!
1.) Expensive software
2.) The serious issue of the lower memory slot/logic board burning out on the 15" PB's (should I go 12" or 17", which I dont want to?) Perhaps the newest revision will solve this.
3.) Needing to drop a bunch of money for Apple Care -- I've never had to do this with the 7 PC's I've owned. (granted most laptops dont make it to 3 years) But over $100 a year for an extended warranty is kind of insane, but by reading these forums, it seems the PB's are prone to many issues and looks as if AC is needed.
I am in a quandry here? Thoughts? I really really want to make this switch to Mac, but this is more than just a computer switch, it is a life switch for me!
Thanks!

I was in the same position you are in now. I am the VP of IT for my large company and have been a windows girl from the start. I'd dabbled in Unix/Linux but with the job it just didn't afford me the time.
I am now the proud owner of a new G4 Powerbook. I have the upgraded Ram for 1gig and 100G Hard drive. I was able to integrate it seamlessly to my network at work and my home office. Other posters were correct about Version tracker. I have Office standard addition and it retails US for $399.95 at the apple store.
Here is a link that I did as a comparison to PC base Office also. You will see that they cost the same.
http://shop3.outpost.com/search?searchtype=regular&sqxts=1&querystring=office&cat=12068&submit.x=13&submit.y=12
As for the Apple Care, all it will take is once of your computer whether it be a laptop or a desktop for you to be willing to turn out the extra money. I myself have not had any problems with the logic board but my PB is still fairly new being only 3 months old.
Since I have owned my Powerbook I find it very hard to open a Pc.
Hope this helped.
HH

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Request Advice for creating DVDs from 7.5 gig file sizes

Hi,
[using dvdstudio 3]
I’m looking for advice for home DVD project i'm working on. I want to create a DVD from video that has been captured to my computer using iMovieHD, and have completed my wanted edits for two clips. They are about an hour-plus each. When exporting the two clips separately (Sharing, in iMovie terms), the file sizes are about 7.5 Gig each at full quality,and I understand I’m going to have to cut some corners in the process to get both on one DVD and I’m even willing to have two DVDs, but still need to know the best way to decrease the file size for each one. The audio should remain as 16 bit 44.1 Khz, Stereo.
I’m wondering what the best method to achieve an optimum quality DVD is. Again, I realize I’ll have to compress the video at the loss of quality (i.e., “cut corners”) to make the DVDs.
In my previous experiences, I’ve retained the larger file size all the way up through the authoring process in DVD Studio letting it build a 7.5 gig dvd format (VIDEO_TS). Then, I used DVDx2One to compress it down to 4.5. The end result was pretty good and I never had any troubles per say. However, this project is important to me and I want to make the best quality I can. What would you do differently?
Here are my software tools that I use interchangeably for previous projects; copying, authoring, editing, etc:
-> iMovieHD 4x – used to capture the video.
-> DVD Studio 3 - to author and build my dvd session
-> ffmpegx - as a video conversion and compression tool
-> DVDX2one to recompress DVD formatted (VIDEO_TS).
Thanks very much for your tips!
JeffTronics

Hi Jeff - is the iMovie file in QT format?
If so, you need to compress it to MPEG2 - you don't need to suffer too much of a quality loss by doing so - how long (in minutes) is the video?
You should also encode the audio to AC3 - this will save loads of space as AC3 is about a tenth the size of a .aiff.
ffmpeg will create the MPEG for you, but so will DVDSP (as indeed will Quicktime). In your applications folder you should find 'A.Pack' which will handle the audio conversion as well.
The exact encoding parameters you use will depend on the nature of the footage that you have got - it's more than just squeezing it to fit - you need to account for fades, pans, zooms and fast action as well. Some parts can have a lower bitrate applied than others, and this is where a tool such as Compressor comes in handy. DVDSP will encode the footage as you work, or when you build if you want it to - this is also a reasonable option if you have nothing else available, or if you are new to the whole thing.
The best workflow is to go from iMovie to a compression tool to create your MPEG2 file. Take the associated .aiff file and encode to to Dolby Digital (AC3). Import both the MPEG2 and the AC3 file into DVDSP and you should be able to get the entire project to less than 4.37GB (the maximum capacity of a DVD-R).

Setup advice for a *switcher*

I do need advice and I am not sure what is the right post for this. After a less than great experience with Vista and great experience with a Macbook (my son's machine) and iPhone and iPods, we are ready to move to a 100% Mac environment (Thanks to Adobe as they will allow me to transfer all my expensive Adobe products from Windows to Mac). What is the best way to get advice on what to buy? The Genious Bar? I need to buy one iMac (or should I buy a Mac Server??) as the main unit to replace my HP Tower, get my pre-ordered MBA and set up my home network, set up 2 Terabytes of Hard Disk space for my pics (NAS preferred), set up 500GB of NAS device for my music for use with a SONOS system...
I am a writer and a photographer so my main application is Lightroom, a bit of Photoshop CS3, Microsoft Office and tons on Internet usage of course. I also need to manage with website, that is currently hosted by a provider that does not support Apple so I will need to switch to a provider that allows me to edit my web site from Apple platform...
I am not an IT guy but managed to set this up with Windows XP and Vista so I would expect it to be easier with Apple? Should I go to the Mac store? contact a IT Consultant in the Seattle Area? or get the advice somewhere here in the forums?
Thanks in advance!

Hi Lujosalgo,
Welcome in the Mac Community. I will try to help you as much as I can here.
Genius bar is of course a logical choice for you. They seem to be great (unfortunately we don't have those in Europe yet.).
However, a short note on your website designing... You might already know that each new Macs sports the iLife apps and with that iWeb, which is a great piece of software.
With that, you should be able to publish your websites to just about any provider who allows you to publish HTML sites via FTP. (My provider first told me too that they don't support Macs, but here I am: http://www.vaosdesign.com )
Everything made with iWeb. I just needed a little workaround: iWeb can't publish it directly, but with the help of another piece of Software named CyberDuck (just google for it) you can publish directly to the FTP server of your provider.
If you need more help, just drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll be glad to help you out.
I don't have any experience with NAS though... but I work with Apple computers since 1992 so I should be able to help you on the most standard problems.
Cheers mate,
Rene

Advice for a switch to connect to my Extreme?

I want to buy a switch that will connect to my Airport Extreme N and give me additional ports to connect ethernet cables to. Can anyone give me any things I should look into when buying one? Is there one that works well with the Extreme?
Thanks.

if I have slow internet service is there still an advantage to having the gigabit switch?
It won't help your Internet speed, but any data transfers, copying, backups etc between devices on your local network will go about 10 times faster with Gigabit capability. For an investment of an additional $15-20 or so for a Gigabit switch, that buys you quite a lot of potential performance improvement, and you will be future proofing your network as well.
Which ethernet cable will need to be upgraded? Just the cable going from the wall to the modem to the switch? OR will all cable on the network need to be upgraded?
You would want to use CAT5e or CAT6 cabling if you want to realize the advantages of Gigabit speeds on your network.
The cable from the modem to the router is not as critical, as chances are you do not have a 100 Mbps connection from your Internet service provider. But, if its been 4-5 years since you installed the modem, it couldn't hurt to go ahead and replace that cable as well.
If you don't want to utiltize the advantages of Gigabit speeds on your network, regular CAT5 cabling will work fine. If the runs are not too long, CAT5 cable will usually support Gigabit speeds as well.

Advice needed to switch from Trial WS2012 to live version.

Hi,
I'm new to Windows Server OS & powershell, but facing a problem now.
With my trial WS2012 R2 as DC & AD, I've converted one of my client PCs from Win7 workgroup to domain.
Now I've prepared my actual WS2012 R2 in a new PC, with every setting the same as the trial version (Computer ID, domain name & IP). And added the client PC into the domain again. Thinking of a quick change over.
Just when I thought it can be easily done with a 1-to-1 replacement, my client PC created another new account when links to actual WS2012. With same domain and username again, but in another folder.
Now in my Client Win7, I have under Users folder:
1. Orginal account folder for workgroup: MyName folder.
2. After converting to domain in Trial WS2012: new MyName.MyDomain account folder.
3. After replacing to actual WS2012: another new MyName.MyDomain.000 account folder created. And files from MyName.MyDomain folder are not accessible.
Why doesn't it link up with MyName.MyDomain account folder?
I don't wish to convert the trial WS2012 to live because it was installed in an old hard disk.
I wonder will migration procedure helps. Any advice to resolve it? Thanks.

You stated in your original post that you created a new domain with all the settings the same as what you created in your original domain. That really does not make any difference because you created a new domain. Each new domain creates a new
identity. If you wanted to have everything remain the same, what you should have done was build your second server, join it to the existing domain, promote it to a Domain Controller. When it becomes a domain controller, all the information in the
existing domain is replicated to any new domain controller. After the replication completes (in your environment it would be done almost immediately), you can remove the original domain controller. At that point, your PC would have been able to
log into the exact same account as you did with the second installation and you would not have ended up with a third profile.
As for recovery of a failed server, that's what backups are for. You can use a backup tool, such as Windows Server Backup that comes as part of the operating system, to create an offline backup of your domain controller. Recommendation is to
keep this up to date; that is, take regular backups.
A second method is to have at least two servers in your environment running as domain controllers. This generally applies to shops that have more than a single server. That way if one Domain Controller goes down, the other one remains to service
requests. It does not preclude the need to take backups.
.:|:.:|:. tim

Advice For Someone Using A Professional Printer For The First Time

Hello everyone
1. I'm doing some posters and flyers for my club using Pages. We've got them looking how we want on my home inkjet printer but now we need someone to print out large quantities. I've never used a professional print service before. There are simply loads of posts on this topic but I wonder if there is anyone out there that does this a lot and can tell me how they do it. I was hoping to initiate the definitive Professional Printing FAQ thread.
2. Reading the numerous posts, there are lots of terms that I don't understand like 'bleeds' and 'pantone'. Understandably, print is a whole new world of technical terms. Can anyone recommend a good introduction to all this on the web?
Thanks

I don't know of a good basic FAQ for printing, but I can try to address some of your issues.
What is a "large quantity", IanB? Tens, hundreds, thousands? In my experience this is probably the most critical issue, since it pretty much determines the printing method used (and thus the cost). Anything under about a thousand copies will these days likely be printed "digitally", which essentially means run off on a colour laser printer. In my experience, as long as you are not fanatical about colour accuracy, this method is very forgiving of the way the source file is set up, and most houses will take standard PDFs. It is much more expensive on a per-unit basis than offset printing, but there is also little/no "set up" cost, which means that for short runs it is often far more affordable in terms of total cost.
Once you get to big runs, where you need offset printing (presses that use metal plates for different colour inks), things change a fair bit, as you have to deal with colour separations and possibly spot (Pantone) colours as well. The setup costs for this kind of printing can be very substantial (making metal plates is expensive), but once set up, the cost per unit is far less than digital printing. If this is your first time out, I'd suggest either avoiding going this route, or finding a very understanding print shop that is willing to hold your hand through the production process.
As for bleeds, that refers to when objects on your document go all the way to the edge of a page. The problem with using bleeds is that they require the printer to print the page on a larger physical piece of paper, with the bleeding objects slightly over the desired edge, and then trim that paper down to size, cut so that the bleeding section is cut through (to avoid a white unprinted edge). But because the cutting is not always absolutely accurate, you need to leave space between the edge of the page and any material that absolutely has to be on it (e.g., text), so that the trimming will only cut away some of the bleed, but not the critical material.
Bleeds make setting up (and printing) your document much more complicated, and you will be much better off if you can avoid bleeds for your first experience doing professional printing. If not, I'd again suggest that you shop around for a print house that says they'll be willing to walk you through the process of how to format your document to do this.
I'm sure others here that are more experienced in the printing process can point you to more comprehensive resources, or give you more detailed advice.

Can I setup new iPad for someone else from my computer without it messing up my iTunes account?

Would like to know if anyone has done this with success. My mom wants to mail me her new iPad so I can set it up for her.
Please advise and thank you.

There is no need for you to use your computer to set up an iPad for your mother. You can do it over the air with WiFi and then you do not have to worry about syncing your content to her device - which I would not recommend anyway.
Why don't you just talk mom through it over the phone. It is a very simple process. Take a look at this. Or if she insists on you setting it up, do it this way.
http://www.imore.com/how-to-setup-backup-restore-update-use-icloud#icloud-setup
The gentleman from Philadelphia knows of whence he speaks when it comes to using more than one ID on the iPad but I also recommend that you NOT use your ID on the iPad and this is why.
iTunes Store: Associating a device or computer to your Apple ID

Better dictionary? for easily switching from A - ...

Having just returned from holiday, it was infuriating to look up a word i.e.
unlock - apps - dictionary - options - languages - source - english - options - languages - target - french
and then type the word in!
then the same all over when you want to go from french to english, hardly a good UI
can't it remember language pairs...?
not only that but it didn't even seem to have half the words I was looking for
is there a better product than the standard dictionary?

Exchange email:
yes, it is certainly compatible, but like another said, your admins have to be nice guys, depending on what version of Exchange you're running.
also, Steve has said they have corporate deals in the works for support for "companies you've heard of", and Microsoft released a patch last Tuesday that had enhancements specifically for iPhone, so I'd be surprised if something isn't in the works for better Exchange support.

Hi. Can use events to look out for input switches from any DAQ board?

I tried using events to detect signals from input switches Advantech PCL-8181L, but it seems no response.
I have read an article about the events that user controls can trigger and some external IO cannot.
Is there any one know how I can get the program to monitior them all the time without using event function?

Astroboy,
I am not sure that I have a complete understanding of your question. Are you attempting to use LabVIEW Events (Functions >> Application Control >> Events) with your Advantech DAQ board? This will not be possible. Could you expand upon the functionality you are trying to achieve?
Spencer S.

Need advice on a switch from GB2 to Logic Express

Hey people,
So I love GB2, obviously, but I can no longer stand not having any track automation. I want to be able to add effects to a single track in different sections, and of varying degrees. For instance, I want to increase the reverb on a single guitar track as it plays, instead of fading in a duplicate track with the reverb added. Know what I mean?
So I want Logic Express.
My REAL question is the following: HOW MUCH BETTER AND MORE CLEAR WILL MY MUSIC SOUND WITH LOGIC? Is the 24-bit audio resolution available in Logic REALLY GOOD? Will recording midi and audio in Logic sound more "real" and less fakey? Sometimes my GB2 tracks come out sounding unprofessional, especially when exported to iTunes, converted to mp3 and burned to CD, and played in a car stereo. Something doens't sound right, you know what I mean?
Anyway, I want to know if it's worht it to switch to Logic for those two reasons: track automation and an overall increase in SOUND QUALITY.
You guys friggin' rock, thanks for your help.

GB2, as you know, exports a track to AAC format
It's AIFF that GB exports, which is uncompressed and the highest quality. AAC is another compressed format which again tosses out data.
Still, will Logic offer me higher sound quality?
This can easily become a Theory and Reality discussion. A LOT will depend on your expertise as an engineer. The end result, if you'll be burning a CD, will be a file sampled at a rate of 44.1K. This is the standard for CD audio regardless of what you use to create it.
LE will let you record at a higher rate than GB will, but a questionable recording, sampled at a higher rate will still be a questionable recording ... it'll just take up more disc space.
My opinion is that in the right hands, yes, one could probably get a better sounding recording with the expanded limits LE offers. In reality, just having LE is not going to make everything sound better.

Device switch from Android 2.2 to BB10

Hi There, I seek some advice how to switch from a Android 2.2 to BB10. I already searched for some information, and most pages advise, that I should download the device switch app to both devices and the app will perform all steps required. Unfortunately, my Android device has the version 2.2.1. and the device switch app required 2.3 and my device can't be upgraded. Is there any way to transfer data from the android device to the BB10? When I started to use the Android device, it had an app called Transfer Data and it automatically pulled the contactsetc. from my previous device. Is there anything similar for BB10? Thanks, preizer

hi, normally you can sync your contacts on your bb 10 device with your email accounts. for transferring your contacts to a bb 10 device, sync your android phone with your gmail account first and then sync your bb 10 device with your gmail account. for transferring other stuff like pics, music etc. i think you need to use a pc/mac for bridging. you won't regret switching i used android for a long time and also use ios at the moment. in my opinion, bb 10 is the most advanced mobile os together with sailfish os on the market. but people do not see that and just go for specs of the devices, not performance and security. regards

I am writing to this forum to ask for help in determining whether Aperture will satisfy my needs when I switch from Windows to MAC in the near future.

I am writing to this forum to ask for help in determining whether Aperture will satisfy my needs when I switch from Windows to MAC in the near future.
I am currently using Photoshop Elements 8 on Windows 7. After several years of use, I am self taught and adequately proficient for an amateur. What I didn't realize (until I started researching my upcoming migration on the Internet) is that I actually use PE8 for two functions: digital asset management and digital editing.
Regarding Digital Asset Management: My research leads me to understand that PE on MAC does not provide the same level of organizational capability that I am used to having on Windows, instead providing Adobe's Bridge which does not look very robust. Furthermore, iPhoto, which come on MAC will not support the hierarchical keyword tagging that I require to organize my library of photos. The two SW applications which I am thinking of switching to are either Aperture or Adobe's Lightroom. Frankly, I'm thinking that it would be smoother to stay within the Apple product line.
So the remaining question is whether Aperture will support my digital editing needs. The tweaks that I do to my photos are not very complex (no, I do not want to put people's heads on other animal bodies). But could someone who uses Aperture tell me whether It will allow me to do the following kinds of edits?:
- If I have a photo where someone's face is too shadowed, can I lighten just that person's face, and leave the rest of the photo as-is?
- if I have a photo where the background is cluttered (eg, 2 people in front of the Parthenon which is undergoing renovation), can I remove just the construction cranes?
- Can it splice together several separate photos to give a panoramic?
If, once I get Aperture, I find that it cannot enable the kinds of editing that I do, I would probably get PE11 in the future. However, if people in this forum tell me that Aperture will definitely not support the kinds of editing which I've described in the previous paragraph, I would prefer to get PE11 with my initial configuration (since someone will be helping me with my migration).
Thanks in advance for your consideration and help!

I am concerned, however, about using a non-Apple Digital Asset Manager in OSX. I would really like to avoid integration problems. Is using PE11 to import and catalog my digital photos likely to cause conflicts?
Thanks for any insight on this
Amy,
Not so much conflicts as maybe a little less seamless integration with Apple software and perhaps some third-party software providers in the Mac App Store where some programs build in direct access to iPhoto and Aperture libraries for getting images into those programs easily. Typically, there is a manual command to go to Finder (think Windows Explorer) to browse folders.
One caution to mention however, is that the organization you set-up in PE Organizer is unlikely to transfer over to either iPhoto or Aperture if you decide to change at some point.
The only real stumbling block that I see in your opening comment is that you want hierarchical keywording (Kirby or Léonie can go into the details on keywording limitations as I stay at one level). If you can work with the keywording schemes of either iPhoto or Aperture, then using PE for your external editor (either program supports setting an external editor) would probably be ideal since you know PE well. This is the idea with the Mac App Store version of PE (editor with no organizer).
Note - I use Photoshop CS6 (full version) with Aperture and it works really well. The only downside is that Aperture has to make either a TIFF or PSD file to send to an external editor so that the original file is protected by not sending it to the pixel editor. While TIFF or PSD files protect the integrity of the image information without degrading it, they are typically much larger file sizes on disk than either RAW or JPEG files. Therefore, your library size (iPhoto or Aperture) will balloon quite a bit if you send a lot of files to external editors.
One other possibility for an external editor would be a program called Pixelmator. It is pretty similar to early versions of Photoshop, but built for Mac. Other than the panoramics you want, it will do most pixel editing that PE can do. It is not an organizer, so it is built to go with either iPhoto or Aperture. It does have differences in how you complete certain procedures, so there is bit of a learning curve when you are used to doing it the Adobe way.

I switched from Sprint for THIS???

Sent: Fri Jul 20 08:05:39 EDT 2012
To: << personal information removed >>
Primary Subject: Internet and Data Products
Secondary Subject: Broadband Access
Message Body: My Jetpack 890L is repeatedly dropping out of 4g mode to EVDO, dropping connections, and not reconnecting automatically. This has been going on since Ive had the device and after 2 service calls. In the first call, your tech tried to tell me that I'm not even in a 4g coverage area. The 2nd was much more helpful, acknowledged that I should actually be getting 4g and tried reprogramming the 890L after it showed on his end on not being fully activated. I am on the most current firmware. I am about 0.75 miles from the tower, and my device has a direct line of sight to the tower with no obstructions. I usually have 4 or 5 bars shown for signal strength. This is getting ridiculous. This morning I'm trying to work from home and its dropped connection 4 or 5 times already. Is there no way to open an actual trouble ticket????
Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2012 12:22:13 -0400 (EDT)
From: << personal information removed >>
Hello Chad,
I understand how frustrating it is to continuously lose your connection. My name is Renee and I am here to help.
I have taken a look at your account and notes from the previous representatives with whom you worked. Based on the troubleshooting that has already been done, it will be necessary to submit a trouble ticket to our engineers, which I have done. Your ticket number is << personal information removed >> It typically takes 2-3 days to fully investigate an resolve and issue like this, although this time may vary based on the nature and complexity of your issue.
Chad, I am confident that we can get this issue resolved for you. Thank you for choosing Verizon Wireless. I hope you have a terrific day.
Since 7/20 - no improvement and no update on << personal information removed >> and there doesn't seem for me to have any way of looking up the ticket myself.
Based on all the negative feedback on these Jetpacks, is Verizon doing ANYTHING at all on these issues???

Red,
The only way to check in for updates is to call the 1-800 number and speak to a rep in the Technical Support area. Enter a bogus hardware replacement problem into the automated menu so you can speak to someone. From there the rep will be able to look up your file and tell you if any progress has been made. Chances are that if your ticket is sitting with the engineers that there is no progress to report anyways.
If it were me I'd continue checking in every few days for updates. It's never happened to me but there are several threads where users claim VZW dropped thier tickets without following up with them.

How can you print something from icloud? I'd like to print a copy of my schedule for someone from the calendar, but print is disabled. Going around that, the pages in the preview are blank.

So far I am only seeing the possibility of being able to print my schedule from my computer at home in iCal.
It doesn't seem possible to save it as a PDF since the pages appear blank on the print preview. Is this just the broswer I am using, or is printing really not possible? I could share it to "anyone" (since this person doesn't have iCloud), but to be honest I don't feel very comfortable with having something like that "open" on the web. Even though it's only through that specific link, it still would exist out there for someone to potentially stumble onto it.
Any ideas, or is it just not possible to do this?

Welcome to the Apple Community.
A bit of a pain, but you'll need to take a screenshot and print that, Skitch makes taking such screenshots much easier if you are interested.

Is it possible to switch from the preinstalled iTunesU to the original iTunes on an iPad. If it is can someone explain how to do it?

Is it possible to switch from the preinstalled iTunesU on my iPad to the original iTunes. If it is can someone tell me how, and is this something that commonly happens?

I'm not sure what you are asking. There is no "preinstalled iTunesU" on an iPad. The iTunes app is a portal to the iTunes Store. Use the icons at the bottom of the page to switch to different sections of the store. Use the Music app or the Videos app to access iTunes media you have synced to the iPad.
To learn more, refer to the iPad iOS5 User Guide

Advice for someone switching from PC

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