Question about switching from pc to mac

I am going to be purchasing a new computer in March. I am seriously considering switching to a mac. I've owned a mac before and I obviously have my reasons for wanting to go back...however...I've always been a pc and all of my software is pc based...and a lot of them I no longer have the install discs for. I'm a designer and my main concern is losing the ability to use my software, such as Adobe CS4 because I dont' know if it will be compatible with the mac. My question is, is there a way to transfer my software from my pc to a mac without any external hard drives and without having to buy all new software for the new mac? This is going to be the deciding factor on whether or not I go with a mac instead of a new pc. I really could use some input on this. Thanks so much.

If you've bought your Mac, be sure to exchange your Windows CS4 license before CS5 comes out. Adobe will only do a cross-platform swap on the current version (which I found out the hard way!)
Take a look here: http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/405/kb405819.html
I have heard of a lot of folks having trouble getting a cross-platform swap. Also, don't believe anything an Adobe customer support rep tells you. They are either "misinformed" or they flat-out lie.
Best of luck!

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I recently switched from PC to Mac and am able to find and transfer most of the larger files of music to iTunes, but there are about 750 songs that are held in sub-files that require me to dig in and transfer them one by one to iTunes.. I've tried transfe

I recently switched from PC to Mac and am able to find and transfer most of the larger files of music to iTunes, but there are about 750 songs that are held in sub-files that require me to dig in and transfer them one by one to iTunes.. I've tried transferring the parent folders, but it doesn't seem to work. Does anyone know of a more efficient way of getting iTunes to dig into the subfolders and transfer the music without me having to go one by one?

There is a good general guide to switching from Windows to Mac at the following link that touches on moving music as well How to Move to a Mac - Get your stuff from your PC to your new Mac
There are also these guides:
How to move music between authorised computers
Networking with a Windows PC
Don't forget to deauthorise your old PC if you are disposing of it so you don't use up your 5 allowances: About iTunes Music Store Authorisation and Deauthorisation

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.

Switching from Windows to Mac. Is it worth it? Please help!

Hey everybody,
I think I finally made my decision to switch from windows to Mac,..the I-book. G4 (not the power book). The I-book I want is around 1299.00, with the wider screen,..than the smaller i-book.
Anyhow,.what led me to this decision was just sending back the Sony FS series. It was sleek beautiful and"white" like I love,..but the speakers were awful. I have just about given up on trying to find a decent notebook. I love the look of the i-book,..but cant get that gorgeous wide screen from Sony out of my mind. It was more than the speakers. Just too noisy. Anyway...if you bought this i-book all over again,..would you? Alos I have a brand new Linskys Router with the built in Security. Would the Macs intergrated wireless card,..work with my router?
Please help!
Lil
planning on getting this notebook. Need advice

I'm afraid you're not exactly going to get an unbiased opinion here
As a long-time Mac fan (back since System 6) who was forced into a PC world man years ago, OSX has re-kindled my passion for computing. I'm an old Unix guy and OSX has combined the best PC operating system with the power of Unix. To the average user who doesn't care about shell scripts and porting free applications, what you'll get from Unix is a tremendous amount of reliability and security...
One of the best reasons for anyone to switch to the Mac was summed up in a post over on iLounge as a reply to someone who was switching. When asked why anyone would switch, one reply simply said, "...because he realises that a computer should be a productivity tool, not a virus scanner."
In the year since I've bought my Mac Mini, the only failure I've had has been a crash of Virtual PC (an emulator that will allow you to run your old Windows-based applications), which took the virtual disk out and forced me to reinstall my Windows environment. That's nothing different than I've experienced countless times on my old PC.
That said, I'm looking at a 12" iBook. I didn't even consider the 14" because I don't want something larger that doesn't give me extra screen real-estate. I debated the 15" Powerbook but decided I don't really need it's larger screen, and I'd rather have something more portable. There are companies out there that sell dual-layer DVD-RW drives that can be installed in an iBook (even the 12" Powerbook only ships with a single-layer DVD burner).
512mb should be plenty, unless you plan on editing video or running Virtual PC--in which case, I'd recommend at least a gig.
Mini Mac OS X (10.4.3) 12" iBook + 2.3ghz Powermac on the way! Former Newton OMP user.

How do I switch from Windows to mac?

How do I switch from Windows to mac on a macmini?

Hi,
I assume you are talking about a BootCamp Windows, right ?
If so, usually you hold down the Alt/Option-key at startup of your Mac to get the Boot Selection screen.
There you can choose which Operating System to boot into.
Once in OSX you might wanna go to System Preferences - Startup Volume and set your OSX to be the default.
Regards
Stefan

Painless switch from PC to MAC

As many people do so, i will be making the switch from PC to MAC in 2009.
Since i want to do this as painless as possible, i want to be prepared as good as possible. I already found some information about licensing but i'm also much concerned about the technical issues.
- Creative Suite CS2 / Photoshop CS3 : can i take all my actions, custom settings, brushes etc to the other side? All compatible. Concerning third-party plugins i know i will have to contact them seperately
Working a lot in Indesign and Illustrator, i expect to have many Font issues. Any advice on this?
- Lightroom: i have 5 collections and some 100,000 photos in DNG, JPEG and PSD format on 3 different (internal and external) drives. I backup on another external drive. I'm concerned making the switch, Lightroom's database will either not be compatible or will not take along all settings (presets, keywords, sets, etc).
- color consistency / calibration. I know the colors displayed on my current monitor are correct. Can I expect differences when displaying my photos on a mac?
Anything else I have to think about? I don't want to lose years of work neither spend weeks switching from one platform to the other. Any advice is really welcome.

Mr. Isaacs,
Please note this definition of the word misinformation:
"False or inaccurate information, esp. that which is deliberately intended to deceive..."
I am not a lawyer, and you might not be either: but when I am repeatedly given misinformation by representatives of a corporation, I must consider the possibility of fraudulent behavior. Whether or not the persons giving out the misinformation are employees or outsourced contractors is immaterial to me; the ultimate responsibility lies with Adobe's management.
Here's another example for you of misinformation. I discovered yesterday (after quite a bit of searching) that Adobe Acrobat Pro for Mac does not include the application LiveCycle Designer. However, when I looked at the product description on the Store page, I saw no mention that this is a Windows-only feature:
From http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobatpro/features/:
"Create dynamic forms
Use Adobe LiveCycle Designer, a professional form design tool included with Acrobat 9 Pro, to further customize and automate dynamic XML forms."
I have several forms that I have created for clients using LiveCycle Designer. However, now that I have a Mac, I will be unable to edit those forms in Acrobat Pro, which I purchased as part of Creative Suite. From Help files http://help.adobe.com/en_US/Acrobat/8.0/Professional/help.html?content=WS58a04a822e3e50102 bd615109794195ff-7dfd.html:
In Windows, you can use LiveCycle Designer to edit forms that were created in Acrobat, but Acrobat can’t edit form fields that have been opened and saved in LiveCycle Designer.
So now I will need to purchase a full copy of Acrobat Pro for Windows ($449.00 USD) in order to continue to use the forms that I have created for my paying clients.
Just out of curiosity, I decided to ask a sales representative about whether or not LiveCycle Designer is included in the Mac version. I clicked the Chat button on the Acrobat Pro product page, and initiated a chat with "Randy." Here's the important bit of our conversation:
"Adrienne: Just to clarify, the Mac version of Acrobat Pro 9 does have LiveCycle designer included?
Randy: Yes."
"Randy" was only too eager to take my money then and there. Of course, if I had purchased Acrobat Pro 9, and once I opened, installed, and ran the software, I would have discovered that I did not in fact have LiveCycle Designer. I could then initiate a return, which would hopefully be completed within the three-week time frame specified.
I repeatedly requested that I be given an ID for the chat, either the representative's ID or a reference number for the chat. "Randy" told me he couldn't give me any "personal information," (I did not ask for his last name, just a way to identify him) but said I could email myself a copy of the chat. I entered my email address as instructed but never received a transcript of the chat.
I can only conclude two things from this experience:
One: Adobe's management of its Customer Service and Sales departments is incompetent;
OR
Two: Adobe is deliberately trying to deceive me, the customer, with "bait and switch" tactics.
If it's the first case, then I am only too eager to stop buying products from a company that cannot manage its Support and Sales teams. If it's the second case, I must consider filing a complaint with the FTC.
Mr. Isaacs, if you were in my position, what do you think you would do?

Building a NAS while switching from PC to Mac

I am getting ready to make the switch from PC to MAC. I currently have my primary desktop PC functioning as a shared media storage center, with USB external drive as backup.   All media is funnelled through iTunes and synced with two Apple TVs in the house that are CAT-6 connected to network switch.   I use Apple TV (cut the cord) to browse my iTunes library over LAN and stream recorded TV/ripped movies quite a bit.
My plan is to purchase a MacBook Pro and eventually get a Thunderbold Monitor, Keyboard, and Mouse to act as docking station.
I would like to transition my media files to a NAS, but I'm struggling to find a good guide for making my own NAS. My understanding is that it would be pretty easy to use the parts I have on my home built PC to function as a NAS in an area separate from the MacBook.
A few specific questions:
1) Will I need to specially format my NAS drives to be Mac-friendly?
     1a) Will any special formatting limit flexibility of sharing that data with non-Mac laptops/PCs?
2) Will the Apple TV be able to "see" the music/movie iTunes library on the NAS or, like it is now, will it require the PC/NAS to be running iTunes in order for the libary to be viewable on Apple TV?
I really don't want to drop several hundred bucks on a Time Capsule. I already have an airport extreme with express x 2 (working great, love them).
Any advice here would be appreciated. I look forward to your responses.
Thanks and take care.

I am getting ready to make the switch from PC to MAC. I currently have my primary desktop PC functioning as a shared media storage center, with USB external drive as backup.   All media is funnelled through iTunes and synced with two Apple TVs in the house that are CAT-6 connected to network switch.   I use Apple TV (cut the cord) to browse my iTunes library over LAN and stream recorded TV/ripped movies quite a bit.
My plan is to purchase a MacBook Pro and eventually get a Thunderbold Monitor, Keyboard, and Mouse to act as docking station.
I would like to transition my media files to a NAS, but I'm struggling to find a good guide for making my own NAS. My understanding is that it would be pretty easy to use the parts I have on my home built PC to function as a NAS in an area separate from the MacBook.
A few specific questions:
1) Will I need to specially format my NAS drives to be Mac-friendly?
     1a) Will any special formatting limit flexibility of sharing that data with non-Mac laptops/PCs?
2) Will the Apple TV be able to "see" the music/movie iTunes library on the NAS or, like it is now, will it require the PC/NAS to be running iTunes in order for the libary to be viewable on Apple TV?
I really don't want to drop several hundred bucks on a Time Capsule. I already have an airport extreme with express x 2 (working great, love them).
Any advice here would be appreciated. I look forward to your responses.
Thanks and take care.

Airport express switch from pc to mac

Where can i download the airport express setup assistant for my new macbook?

akurl wrote:
I own Photoshop Elements 4, and recently made the switch from PC to Mac. Of course, my installation CD is useless. Is there a way to download the Mac version (with my serial number, etc.) without having to pay for another copy?
Unfortunately not. There is no way to officially download old software packages. Your best way is to get a new version (version 10) from Amazon:
<http://www.amazon.com/Adobe-65136385-Photoshop-Elements-10/dp/B005MMMT6E/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF 8&qid=1343016745&sr=8-4&keywords=pse10>
It is about $67 + Free shipping
The package sold by Amazon can be installed in Windows 7 or Apple Mac, or OS X so you have future proof technology depending on how often you upgrade the technology.
Good luck.

Hi. Just switched from PC to MAC (lion 6.7) and I am trying to import my bookmarks but Firefox for mac will not recognize the file. How do I move my bookmarks to my MAC from my PC?

Hi. Just switched from PC to MAC (lion 6.7) and I am trying to import my bookmarks but Firefox for MAC will not recognize the Bookmark back up file. How do I move my bookmarks to my MAC from my PC?

Make sure that the backup file with the bookmarks has the correct file extension: .html for a HTML backup and .json for a JSON backup. 
You can check that via the right-click context menu of that file and open the Properties. 
If you are not sure about the file type then you can open the file in Firefox via "File > Open File" 
A JSON backup will show as one long text line without line breaks and a HTML backup as a web page with clickable links. 
A JSON backup starts with: <nowiki>{"title":"","id":1,"dateAdded":</nowiki> 
An HTML backup starts with: <nowiki><!DOCTYPE NETSCAPE-Bookmark-file-1></nowiki>

Just switched from PC to Mac, What's the tutorial items out there to learn this system?

Would like to know the best ways to learn this system. Wasn't very good with PC but there is something about this iMac that makes want to master it. (Ha!) I would welcome any suggestions on what to get to help me learn in an easy every day language. Any suggestions greatly appreciated..... Thanks

I didn't prune this list, so some might have been mentioned.
Switching from Windows to Mac OS X,
Basic Tutorials on using a Mac,
Mac 101: Mac Essentials,
Mac OS X keyboard shortcuts,
Anatomy of a Mac,
MacTips,
Switching to Mac Superguide, and
Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Mountain Lion Edition.
Additionally, *Texas Mac Man* recommends:
Quick Assist,
Welcome to the Switch To A Mac Guides,
Take Control E-books, and
A guide for switching to a Mac.

I have switched from PC to Mac how do i use my windows version of adobe photoshop CS3 on my MAC?

i have switched from PC to Mac how do i use my windows version of adobe photoshop CS3 on my MAC?

rebel1568,
All Photoshop versions through CS6 came with platform-specific licenses, either Windows or PC. You could get a cross-grade of platform swap at a nominal cost but not for older versions, only for whatever Photoshop versions was current at the time.
CS3 is totally out of the upgrade or cross-grade loop. You'd have to buy a new license for CS6 Mac or subscribe to Photoshop CC, as Trevor points out.
Curt Y is correct in that CS2 will not run on current Mac-Intel machines. You would need a used Mac G5 or G4 with a PowerPC (IBM) CPU, which have been obsolete since mid 2006.
Of course, you could run your Windows on your Mac if you installed and ran BootCamp or Parallells.

I have CC for work and my PC to do work at home. At home I switched from PC to Mac this weekend. I want to redownload my apps for the iMac but it's telling my I'm using a 30 day free trial. I need to discontinue the PC apps and download to the new compute

I have CC for work and my PC to do work at home. At home I switched from PC to Mac this weekend. I want to redownload my apps for the iMac but it's telling my I'm using a 30 day free trial. I need to discontinue the PC apps and download to the new computer.

YOu need to sign out of the PC thru the CC manager and then sign in on the Mac.

I have CS6 Design & Web Premium, would like to switch from PC to Mac. Can I do this for free?

I have CS6 Design & Web Premium, would like to switch from PC to Mac. Does anyone know if it's possible to do this for free? I have no interest in upgrading to CC.

Order an Adobe product platform swap or language swap
Mylenium

I'm switching from PC to Mac. I'm using my one time switch for Lightroom. I have elements 7. Can I upgrade or do I née to just buy outright?

I'm switching from PC to Mac. I'm using my one time switch for Lightroom. I have elements 7. Can I upgrade or do I née to just buy outright?

If you use the organizer, you need to buy the boxed version of PSE 12. You can usually find it at big box stores and online retailers for less than adobe's upgrade price, if you shop around. You need the boxed version because you get a serial number that works on both platforms, and you will need to install PSE 12 in windows first, upgrade your catalog, then make a full backup to a removable drive and restore from that to the mac, after installing PSE 12 there.
If you don't use organizer, it doesn't matter.

IPod classic - switching from Windows to Mac

I have an iPod classic and am switching from Windows to Mac - what's the best way to retain my iPod library? Thanks!

If you just want to connect and use the iPod on the Mac then set it to manual update on your PC first. The content of iTunes and the iPod are not syncronised in this mode so the two can be different. You can directly access the content of the iPod and play it through iTunes and you can drag and drop whatever you want to the iPod from either library:
Using iPod with Multiple computers
Managing content manually on iPod and iPhone
Syncing Music to iPod
Something else to be aware of when using an iPod in manual mode is that the "Do Not Disconnect" message will remain on the display until you physically eject the device: Safely Disconnect IPod
Macs can read Windows drives, the iPod shuffle for instance comes Windows formatted and is fully supported (you can update the firmware or restore it on the Mac and it retains it's Windows formatting). Other iPods (such as a 5th Generation or Classic for example) can be used in Windows format on a Mac but have to have the firmware updated or be restored on a PC to maintain the formatting. If however you don't intend using the iPod on a PC again you'll need to transfer your library from your PC so you can restore and reformat the iPod and keep it's firmware updated.
Once you are safely connected there are a few things you can do to restore your new iTunes directly from the iPod. If you have any iTunes Music Store purchases the transfer of purchased content from the iPod to authorised computers was introduced with iTunes 7. You'll find details in this article: Copying iTunes Store purchases from your iPod or iPhone to a computer
The transfer of content from sources such as songs imported from CD is designed by default to be one way from iTunes to iPod. However there are a number of third party utilities that you can use to retrieve music files and playlists from your iPod. I use Senuti but have a look at the web pages and documentation for the others too, you'll find that they have varying degrees of functionality and some will transfer movies, videos, photos and games as well. This is just a small selection of what's available, you can read reviews and comparisons of some of them here:
Wired News - Rescue Your Stranded Tunes
Comparison of iPod managers
Senuti Mac Only (Currently only the beta version is iPod Touch & iPhone compatible)
PodView Mac Only
PodWorks Mac Only
iPodDisk PPC Mac Only (experimental version available for Intel Macs)
TuneAid Mac only (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPodRip Mac & Windows
YamiPod Mac & Windows
Music Rescue Mac & Windows
iPod Music Liberator Mac & Windows
iGadget Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
Floola Mac & Windows
iRepo Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPod Access Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
TouchCopy Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
There's also a manual method of copying songs from your iPod to a Mac or PC. The procedure is a bit involved and won't recover playlists but if you're interested it's available on page 2 at this link: Copying Content from your iPod to your Computer - The Definitive Guide

Question about switching from pc to mac

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