For anyone thinking about getting a Macbook

Question

I wanted to write a quick review of my new Macbook for anyone thinking about switching from a PC. Although I’m a complete mac newbie I’ve been using computers (PC, Linux, Unix) since the 8088. Unlike some I don’t think Microsoft products are inherently bad and the vast majority of problems that people face are user produced or provoked.
Some thoughts:
1. Don’t worry about the glossy screen - for general use indoors and outdoors it offers terrific color saturation and minimal reflections (reflections are less than most PC glossy laptops).
2. Unless you really need to burn DVDs get the cheapest model. With the money saved upgrade the Ram yourself (about $90 for 2GB) - it’s super easy and well worth the real world speed gain.
3. If you’ve never worked with Mac OS X get yourself a good reference book (idiots guide, ect) and be prepared for a steep learning curve. Things are done radically different compared with Microsoft XP, Vista or even Linux.
4. Although OS X is by far the most superior general operating system I’ve worked with - be prepared for things to go wrong. Yes, sometimes things don’t “just work”. Driver installation is easy but often the same controls for printers and other peripheral devices that you had with a PC does not show up on a mac. You can still use it but it has a bit less functionality - this is not a mac issue but a vendor issue. Also I’ve had to force restart because of frozen programs (Mail and Safari) twice. It happens, no big deal.
5. Safari ***** - Get Firefox - although Safari is well integrated with OS X, some websites have limited functionality - again primarily the web-builder’s problem.
6. iPhoto and iWeb suck - good for compete newbies but you’ll quickly outgrow them.
7. Excessive heat has not been a problem thus far. The bottom case does get warm and when running intensive programs the fans kicks in pretty hard but my processor temp is always between 50-70 C. Considering the small form factor I think this is a great accomplishment.
Bottom line - If you’re thinking about getting one or switching from a PC to Mac - don’t worry and just do it - you won’t regret it.
Sam

Answer 1

MacBook comes with the OSX and iLife software preloaded. You will also receive a couple of disks with all the software on them.
You can run Windows software in a few ways:
1. Crossover is a package that lets you run many Windows applications within an OSX framework.
2. Parallels or VMWare Fusion let you actually create and run a Virtual Windows System, that runs inside of OSX, and can share files etc.
3. BootCamp (Apple Beta Software - Free) will allow you to create a dual boot system. When you start the MacBook, you can choose whether you want it to boot up as a Windows system or Mac OSX system.