Posted on May 8, 2007 - by deCadmus
Switched
I’ve been using Microsoft Windows on a PC since… since before it was Windows, really. I’ve seen the introduction of Windows 1.0, 2.0, Windows 286, Windows 386 (had a tough battle with DESQview, that one), Windows 3.0, Windows 3.11, Windows for Workgroups, Windows NT, Windows 95 (great launch party!), Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows ME and XP. And that’s just counting the major versions, not all the dot-somethings along the way.
While I’m counting my scars here, I might as well note that I’ve been in beta or early release programs for Chicago, Snowball, Borg, Ferengi, Daytona, Cairo and Memphis. (Just for you’z geeks: there’s two OS/2 builds in there… spot ‘em?)
And so, after boning up on the features and requirements of Microsoft’s latest — Windows Vista — I worked out my upgrade strategy: I got a Mac.
I’ve actually been using this machine (an Intel Core 2 Duo MacBook Pro) since December, and it’s been a kick in the pants to experience how my brain-pan and eye-hand coordination have adapted in that time. No more clicking in the upper right-hand corner, no more hunting for menus, no “missed it by that much” collapsing menu cascades. I have to admit I’m still learning some of the finer points of how the Mac does compressed files and folders (my desktop is currently littered with an array of DMG files that — I’m pretty certain — don’t need to be there.)
I’m impressed by the quality of the core Apple software what shipped with the machine — no real surprise there — but I’m more impressed, still, with the exceptional variety, usability and capability of the current crop of Mac shareware and freeware. Next time around I’ll make a point to list some of the tools that I’ve found especially valuable along the way.
Meanwhile, I can’t say enough good things about a book — Switching to the Mac - Tiger Edition, by David Pogue and Adam Goldstein — that’s made this a near seamless transition for me, overall. Look for it wherever fine O’Reilly books are sold near you. And be sure to look for the latest edition; it covers the latest crop of Intel Macs, too.
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Hello.
Bloggle is the online playground of Doug Cadmus, a usability guy, writer, photographer and sometime dramatist who moved to Vermont for the coffee. When not writing, reading or walking his old, blind golden retriever, he roasts coffee in his garage and is the Web Guy for Green Mountain Coffee in Waterbury, VT. Flickr Photos
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May 9, 2007
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my desktop is currently littered with an array of DMG files that � I’m pretty certain � don’t need to be there.
Once you have dragged-and-dropped the applications from the DMGs to your Applications directory you can “eject” them from your desktop. You can do this at least 3 ways:
1) right-click (if you have a multi-button mouse) and choose “Eject _____”
2) click-hold-and-drag the DMG to the trashcan in your Dock
3) open Finder and click the up arrow eject button.
I save all my DMGs in a folder on a networked drive so that I have access to them when I need them on other machines, but also so it is easy to find them and delete them.
I switched and 2003 and I am soooooo happy I did. Let me know if I can help with any Mac questions you may have.
Although, now (thanks to Jessamyn) I want a cheap x86 laptop to put Ubuntu on :)
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May 9, 2007
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Saw Jessamyn’s video on 802. I think I my have to rescue an old machine from the basement for the Ubuntu treatment, too. ;)
So, about those DMGs. I got the mechanics of ejecting ‘em down (and have been similarly storing a copy of these things on my iDisk.) What I’m wondering is, can I make someplace other than my desktop the default for where they get downloaded to? Like maybe instead to a Downloads folder under Documents? Or is the desktop the essential “space of arbitration” for everything that’s downloaded?
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May 9, 2007
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If you are downloading the DMGs from the web, where they are downloaded is a function of the browser.
In Firefox, click on Firefox > Preferences > Main, and you should see how to tell the browser where to save downloads.
In Safari, it is similar. Click on Safari > Preferences > General, and there is a section where you can instruct the browser where to download.
Hope that helps!
Email me if you have anything else you want to discuss.
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May 9, 2007
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If it were a snake it’d bit me. Doh!