Soompi Mac User Group

[Guest bonbons]

^neoOffice? it's free xP

[j79]

what program are you supposed to use to type documents?

i just got my macbook a week ago, and it takes some getting used to..but i love it

I wasn't a big fan of Pages in iWork 06 but Apple's developers did a great job in updating the app for iLife 08. bonbons mentioned NeoOffice, which I'll second (http://www.neooffice.org/) -- it's a port of OpenOffice.org with a GUI facelift to feel more "Mac-ish" It's free, which is nice!

Some more options: http://www.pure-mac.com/textword.html

I've used TextEdit in the past as well. It's nothing fancy (Notepad/Wordpad equivalent) but it does open and export to Word doc (or, Print as a PDF!) so if you just need to type up an essay, it does the job!

[dogs7268]

I wasn't a big fan of Pages in iWork 06 but Apple's developers did a great job in updating the app for iLife 08. bonbons mentioned NeoOffice, which I'll second (http://www.neooffice.org/) -- it's a port of OpenOffice.org with a GUI facelift to feel more "Mac-ish" It's free, which is nice!

Some more options: http://www.pure-mac.com/textword.html

I've used TextEdit in the past as well. It's nothing fancy (Notepad/Wordpad equivalent) but it does open and export to Word doc (or, Print as a PDF!) so if you just need to type up an essay, it does the job!

i'm seriously too broke to buy ilife..i didn't know that my mac wouldn't come with something to type with..

is neooffice easy to use like abiword? i used that when my pc was still alive

[shortee28]

^^

i use text edit cuz its quick an easy. i have microsoft word, but it runs slow and takes long to load...

if you just need something to typing out lecture notes and nothing too too fancy, then textedit is fine to use..

you just have very basic options. it s equivalent to notepad/wordpad on pc...

if you want it in page format, just press "apple(cmd) + shift + W" which is the "wrap to page option"...

it'lll automatically have it set in a 1 inch margin page....

you just cant have images or anything on it... just text....

you can also open word files in text edit as well,

just won't be as "pretty looking"

[dogs7268]

^^

i use text edit cuz its quick an easy. i have microsoft word, but it runs slow and takes long to load...

if you just need something to typing out lecture notes and nothing too too fancy, then textedit is fine to use..

you just have very basic options. it s equivalent to notepad/wordpad on pc...

if you want it in page format, just press "apple(cmd) + shift + W" which is the "wrap to page option"...

it'lll automatically have it set in a 1 inch margin page....

you just cant have images or anything on it... just text....

you can also open word files in text edit as well,

just won't be as "pretty looking"

oh good idea. i didn't even think about taking lecture notes yet =P

but i was talking about like typing essays on a document program

[Guest veryeviloranges]

macbook 13" white loving it .

[Guest VEGECHAN]

i just bought my macbook today (13" white) & i bought the protection plan for $160 because the dude at the apple store was convincing but is it really necessary/worth it?

& should i buy iworks or just download a free program?

it's my first mac so i'm still pretty lost x.x

[shortee28]

oh good idea. i didn't even think about taking lecture notes yet =P

but i was talking about like typing essays on a document program

yah, i figured. you could still use textedit..

but you're very limited to what you can do...

sometimes i use microsoft word..

but like i stated previously, it takes too long to load...

2008 version is to come out soon though...

i have yet to check that out...

to do my essays, i personally use Adobe InDesign...

its obviously not freeware....

but because i use it a lot in my program,

i'm so used to it plus i have more options...

i, and i quote "Design" my essays,

that's why i use InDesign too...

haven't tried neo office.... but it's worth giving it a try since its free and all

j79 and bonbons seem to have experience with it with no problems, so why not?

i just bought my macbook today (13" white) & i bought the protection plan for $160 because the dude at the apple store was convincing but is it really necessary/worth it?

& should i buy iworks or just download a free program?

it's my first mac so i'm still pretty lost x.x

congrats on getting your macbook today =)

i had a powerbook and didn't purchase the apple care...

i now have a macbook, and still didn't purchase the apple care...

both of them i did fine without the plan...

i don't know if anyone else has advice on that

on whether or not its best to have it...

if i bought it, it would not of made any use to me...

download the 30-day trial of iworks and see if its something you'd be satisfied with...

and see if the programs it comes with would be useful to you...

cuz if you're only gonna use one program, there's no point...

my bf uses keynote and that's about it..

personally i don't use iworks, i can do without..

but that may be because its not necessary for my line of work...

[j79]

i just bought my macbook today (13" white) & i bought the protection plan for $160 because the dude at the apple store was convincing but is it really necessary/worth it?

& should i buy iworks or just download a free program?

it's my first mac so i'm still pretty lost x.x

Congrats

For laptops, if you can afford a protection plan, get it. 160 dollars today may seem like a lot of money, but in six months, you won't be thinking much about it. In two years, *if* you have an issue with your display (whether it's the LCD panel or the backlight), that 160 bucks will more than pay for itself. Same goes if you have issues with the logic board, which can cost almost as much as the laptop to repair/replace.

On the other hand, depending on how the laptop was purchased, you may already have "protection" on the purchase. Some credit card companies offer "insurance" on anything purchased with the card. That's something you may want to check with.

In addition, you also have 1 year warranty through apple for your MacBook and if you have any problems, hopefully it will show up sooner (rather than later...)

As for iWorks, you should check the trial out (iWork 08) == you may have gotten it with your laptop. If you didn't (or got iWork 06), check it out here: http://www.apple.com/iwork/trial/

It's pretty nice, but it's not for everyone. There are other apps out there that do work (NeoOffice, or Microsoft Office) that people like as well

Good luck! Switching is tough at first. But, once you get over the initial differences, you'll find OS X is really nice. There's stuff that I'm STILL learning about my Mac that just amazes me (the attention to detail from the guys at Apple is amazing...)

----------------------------------------

Edit -- Shortee makes a good point regarding AppleCare (and for any warranty plans) -- its kind of a"gamble" you're taking...almost an "optimistic/pessimistic" way of looking at your purchase. On one hand, most people who use Macs will tell you how great it is...how everything just works...etc etc etc. Even the sales person probably told you something along those lines. Then suddenly, they're telling you, "it could break down!" or, "what if your display stops working!" and painting the worst imaginable scene possible. Its partly the reason I hated working retail...

Personally, I would get AppleCare on a laptop because both PowerBooks I've purchased had issues (both didn't have AppleCare) -- I did purchase AppleCare on my PowerMac and display (more for the display) and haven't had to use it yet *knocks on wood and crosses fingers*

My experience(s)

PowerBook G3 -- It was the "Pismo" and really and really sturdy. I dropped the thing 5 feet (from my bag) and it landed on its corner, on cement. I thought, "OH $&@*! My screen is cracked...my Pismo is dead..." -- amazingly enough, everything was fine except a small "crack" on the levers to pop out the battery (for Pismo owners, you know what i'm talking about...) What I experienced was the "pink" display. The LCD screen, over time, started going "pink" (or red). Usually it would boot/wake up red and then "warm up" to the correct colors. This began 1 year and 2 months (so two months out of warranty) so I was SOL. Eventually the thing just stayed pink and I decided to swap out lcd panel (it was actually a backlight issue) -- the cost of a backlight was around 70 bucks...if I wanted, I could have probably just swapped it out, but instead, I swapped out the entire panel (which came with a backlight) for around 350 (installed myself). Around 2 years after owning, my "internal" dvd-rom/cd-burner died. I personally didn't mind - Pismos were "bay" based -- you could swap out your dvd drive and pop in another battery if you wanted -- which is what I did. I got near 9 hours of battery life with the thing

PowerBook G4 -- I didn't purchase warranty. Luckily, I found out I had an issue BEFORE my 1 year warranty expired. My ethernet port wasn't responding. I took it to the "Genius" at the local apple store, who decided to fight with my ethernet port. He (or some else) ended up snapping the ethernet port completely off the logic board. The thing is, everything in OS X appeared "correct" -- I ran the Hardware test and everything past. Since I used Airport, nothing seemed wrong. I didn't find out I had an issue until I installed linux (I forget which distro) and found my ethernet port was dead. When it got sent out to tech support, they sent it back saying it wasn't covered because *I* had damaged it. I sent it back and then spoke to someone in a "customer care" position (I forget which, but they're higher than sales/tech/etc.) -- and we finally got everything settled. They did fix the issue, but at the same time, because they couldn't prove it was neither the genius or me who damaged the ethernet port, I would lose my 1 year warranty to get the ethernet port fixed.

OH, I should point out: To fix an ethernet port, they have to replace the logic board, which cost $975.00!

I agreed to give up my 1 year warranty and they replaced my logic board. When I received it, I noticed the LCD panel had a "blemish" that it didn't have before hand (it almost looks like some oil got on the screen and was never cleaned...not sure)

Other experiences I know of:

My brother owns a PowerBook with no warranty. His LCD screen is going "pink"...

His ex-girlfriend owned an iBook and had an issue with the audio port (her fault, actually) -- she had AppleCare and got it replaced (Logic board swapped). No problems since.

My coworker owned an iBook and the Power adapter went. She had AppleCare and got a new one (as well as new battery) through it. She's since purchased a MacBook

My friend owned an iBook and didn't purchase any warranty. The guy treats it like hell (throws it around) and it has the scuff marks to show. Yet, it runs perfect and he loves the thing. (I'm amazed, really...)

Friend owns a four or five Macs -- no warrantees. Never had a problem.

[shortee28]

(the attention to detail from the guys at Apple is amazing...)

^^not at yorkdale mall, some of them are just clueless to what a mac can do :/

Other experiences I know of:

My brother owns a PowerBook with no warranty. His LCD screen is going "pink"...

His ex-girlfriend owned an iBook and had an issue with the audio port (her fault, actually) -- she had AppleCare and got it replaced (Logic board swapped). No problems since.

My coworker owned an iBook and the Power adapter went. She had AppleCare and got a new one (as well as new battery) through it. She's since purchased a MacBook

My friend owned an iBook and didn't purchase any warranty. The guy treats it like hell (throws it around) and it has the scuff marks to show. Yet, it runs perfect and he loves the thing. (I'm amazed, really...)

Friend owns a four or five Macs -- no warrantees. Never had a problem.

power adapter and battery coverage is pretty important... one of my friends' adapter just stopped working... another friend, the longest time his battery can last now, without plugged in with the power adapter, lasts him about 17 minutes (poor guy still didn't get it fixed or checked out even though i keep telling him to get it fixed)....

i have a story bout my powerbookG4 12"

i was in class/lab, i always have my apple extension cord too... (know it gets pretty long)

its plugged in an all and the rest of the cord is just of the table but loops back up cuz the plug is on the middle of the table...

i'm on a rolling chair, and rolled over to the middle table behind me (about 2 metres away)

i rolled pretty fast and faced that empty table and heard a loud *THUMP*

i turned around, and the stupid chair got caught on the power cord,

which pulled my powerbook off the table and land on the ground (keyboard and screen facing down)

i was sooo flippin' shocked! picked it up and the screen was popped out of the casing...

i popped it back in.... and it was still working fine.. hahaha.. (THANK GOD!)

only a slight dent on the bottom right corner of my powerbook...

talk about luck (especially when i don't have apple care)

[Guest SherTeukie <3]

Gahhh.

I'm a new macbook user! :/

Just wondering, how cn i download softwares like, MSN and all.

Cos' i tried frm MSN web, and it doesn't run.

Gah, help!

Aw. Nvermind. I got it.

But thn. For those .exe files, mac users can't download?

O_O

Anw, i'm loving it xD

[Guest chriskong37]

But thn. For those .exe files, mac users can't download?

yes, thats correct. ".exe" files are executable (programs) files that run/work only with windows.

[Guest Smileforjessie]

my dad has been bugging me to get a macbook for a while..he's planning to buy one for me soon i think, i used to use a mac when i was small....and just recently last year i begged my dad to get me a windows laptop because the programs i want to run are basically window programs....soo yea, but now sine the dual core thing is out i wanted to know before i really decide i want a macbook that the paralell program thing...that like makes ure mac run windows, does it work just like a normal pc on it? is it fast and no lag? can u transfer picture and music files for the mac deskto to the windows?? can u plug ure on webcam on the macbook and use it in the windows desktop? does it work good?

haha =]

but overall the macbook looks sexy....if it wasnt for some programs that wouldnt work in a mac...i would still be using a mac.

[shortee28]

my dad has been bugging me to get a macbook for a while..he's planning to buy one for me soon i think, i used to use a mac when i was small....and just recently last year i begged my dad to get me a windows laptop because the programs i want to run are basically window programs....soo yea, but now sine the dual core thing is out i wanted to know before i really decide i want a macbook that the parallel program thing...that like makes ure mac run windows, does it work just like a normal pc on it? is it fast and no lag? can u transfer picture and music files for the mac desktop to the windows?? can u plug ure on webcam on the macbook and use it in the windows desktop? does it work good?

haha =]

but overall the macbook looks sexy....if it wasnt for some programs that wouldnt work in a mac...i would still be using a mac.

how long are you willing to wait to get a macbook?

in october the macbooks will be launching their latest operating system called "Leopard"

at the moment it is "Tiger"

if you wait till october to get your macbook,

you'll get the latest operating system PLUS

and application called "BootCamp"..

boot camp is the same thing as parallels...

except apple provides it for you..

the only thing you need to get for windows

is the windows disk to install its operating system...

parallels you still have to pay for...

you can still run it like a pc...

both parallels and boot camp

can transfer files from one to the other...

well actually, you don't have to move your files..

your hard drive could just be partitioned...

and why would you plug a webcam if the macbook

already comes with one??

[Guest paeker]

i just posted a new topic...but how well does a macbook pro run World of Warcraft?

[Guest bonbons]

^it should run pretty well, since the pros have the more advanced graphic card, and a bigger screen lol~

yaaay i'm getting my macbook + both rebates aka freebies today XD

i'd love to wait till leopard comes out but it's too late then ><

plus i've everything for bootcamp, so ready to install =D

omgomg can't wait lmao

[Guest Smileforjessie]

how long are you willing to wait to get a macbook?

in october the macbooks will be launching their latest operating system called "Leopard"

at the moment it is "Tiger"

if you wait till october to get your macbook,

you'll get the latest operating system PLUS

and application called "BootCamp"..

boot camp is the same thing as parallels...

except apple provides it for you..

the only thing you need to get for windows

is the windows disk to install its operating system...

parallels you still have to pay for...

you can still run it like a pc...

both parallels and boot camp

can transfer files from one to the other...

well actually, you don't have to move your files..

your hard drive could just be partitioned...

and why would you plug a webcam if the macbook

already comes with one??

i read off somewhere that the iCam in the mac does not work in the windows OS...><

ah, thanks, i think i'll get it sometimes during october then.

ahhh, so we have to the windows CD separetly? ><

thanks for answering my q =]=]

[shortee28]

i read off somewhere that the iCam in the mac does not work in the windows OS...><

ah, thanks, i think i'll get it sometimes during october then.

ahhh, so we have to the windows CD separetly? ><

thanks for answering my q =]=]

i don't see why it wouldn't work...

i'll look into it to see what it can do...

so far i found this:

iSight on Windows

Built-in iSight

Version 1.1 of Apple's Boot Camp added Microsoft Windows XP drivers for the built-in iSight. Version 1.2 implemented support for the built-in iSight in Windows Vista as well.

courtesy of wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISight

for bootcamp you need your own copy of Windows CD.

Apple will NOT provide it for you, nor can you purchase

from them, simply because microsoft is its main competitor...

if you have a current pc with windows installed,

you can most likely use that disk to install into your imac....

hope this helps! =)

if you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

someone is most likely going to reply =)

[Guest teddylove2]

haha hi everyone xDDD

i'm so glad that there's Mac user group page here xDDD

i've actually been stalking this thread for the past week

and finally got my mac yesterday

iMac; 20 inch

# 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo

# 2 GB memory

# 250GB hard drive

so far, i'm still getting use to it, but i still have some question

-For MSN, can i use the built in isight for webcamming? or does it not even support it or work at at all? i know it works for the ichat aim and stuff... but i mainly use MSN.

-second for rmvb files... does VLC player support it? >___< i haven't tried yet cause i still need to move it from my HD. but if it doesn't or if there's no other alternative for e to play it on the mac with softsubs, then i won't bother with it

i think that's it for now XDDD haha YAY for mac userrrssss ^_____________________^v

[dogs7268]

haha hi everyone xDDD

i'm so glad that there's Mac user group page here xDDD

i've actually been stalking this thread for the past week

and finally got my mac yesterday

iMac; 20 inch

# 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo

# 2 GB memory

# 250GB hard drive

so far, i'm still getting use to it, but i still have some question

-For MSN, can i use the built in isight for webcamming? or does it not even support it or work at at all? i know it works for the ichat aim and stuff... but i mainly use MSN.

-second for rmvb files... does VLC player support it? >___< i haven't tried yet cause i still need to move it from my HD. but if it doesn't or if there's no other alternative for e to play it on the mac with softsubs, then i won't bother with it

i think that's it for now XDDD haha YAY for mac userrrssss ^_____________________^v

look up aMSN on google. it integrates voice and visuals, but it can get unresponsive at times..