Macbook Pro Love! NEW! Tips and Tricks?

[Danoz]

13'' MacBook Pro
2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
8GB RAM
NVIDIA GeForce 320M
500GB SATA HD

Okay! Day three of MacBook Pro and I can hardly break myself from it . I've been testing out a lot of the preinstalled software to get a feel for what it does, and have installed some Open Source stuff (Gimp, Scribus, Open Office, etc.) until I decide to reinvest in the Adobe Suite teacher/student edition and Microsoft Office.

So far, very impressed with the way iCal syncs with Google Calendar (it's nice having a local copy of my calendar at all times). Also a nice mail function, which synced up very nicely with gmail.

The speed is awesome. Startup in a few seconds. I was able to load up a few hundred photos to sort and crop/color correct them with ease. I loaded a 2 hour high definition video in Final Cut Express and had absolutely no problems cutting, rendering, and playing with sound bits. Garageband runs flawlessly. Photoshop Elements trial also decent (though I'll need a full version of PS soon before I go crazy).

I'm enjoying the interface more than I thought I would. I definitely like the installation process better than Windows-- or even the Repository of packages in Linux. Very clean.

Tried some N64 emulation with sixtyforce, ran Star Fox very nicely. Watched a few DVDs, streamed videos, no problems there.

Battery is pretty remarkable compared to any laptop I've ever had. Held a charge from 7am from 5pm (periodic sleeping during class time) and still had charge to spare. Never heard of anything matching that.

As you can tell the compy and I are still in the honeymoon phase. Any advice on good, open-source/freeware stuff to test drive? Personal experiences? Advice?

 

[Candlelight]

Day three? Man, you should've waited two more weeks; new Macbook Pros will be out then...

I've always been a Windows man, and still think up until Tiger that Windows is a far superior product. But since Leopard and Snow Leopard came out, and Vista and 7 continue to slow the world down, Mac is now by far the surperior operating system.

Most of my stuff on my 15" is proprietary, like Final Cut Studio, Windows 7 under VMWare, Toast Titanium, Office for Mac.

I do have the odd program like FileZilla, MPEG Streamclip, Handbrake, Mac the Ripper, StereoSplicer (for 3D Anaglyph images) and VLC which is free.

 

[RoJoHen]

I love my MacBook. I've had it for nearly 3 years, and it runs just as fast as the day I first turned it on.

 

[Tom Hendricks]

Looks like March 1st for the new Macbook Pros.

 

[Danoz]

From what I'm hearing about the new MacBook Pros, I'm not entirely interested in an upgraded model quite yet (nor did I feel like waiting). No DVD drive? SSD only? They'll be introducing LightPeak, but I won't have anything to really take advantage. Nope, in the mean time-- I was pretty intent on the tested MacBook Pro for the computer to get me through my time in Japan. Plus, I still have a DVD collection that I'm not quite ready to mass rip

Anyway, I'm not the type to always need the newest machine-- just something that can the gold standard for 3-4 years.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Try Dropbox. Great for syncing between laptop and desktop Mac.

 

[Arrqh]

From what I'm hearing about the new MacBook Pros, I'm not entirely interested in an upgraded model quite yet (nor did I feel like waiting). No DVD drive? SSD only? They'll be introducing LightPeak, but I won't have anything to really take advantage.

All of that is pretty much rumor and speculation at this point.

Anyway they only advice I have is learn from my mistake: don't spill tea on it!

 

[Small White Car]

As someone said, Dropbox is a must. Not just the service but be sure to download the software.

Unless you're a super-adobe-designer, you might find that instead of Photoshop you can use Pixelmator to do what you need for much cheaper.

Be sure to download Flip4Mac, and Perian, and Flash, and (ironcially) the Flash blocker known as Click2Flash.

Finally, here's my super handy-dandy "So you're new to the Mac" guide for Windows folks.

And for the love of god, buy an external drive for Time Machine. That's not a request. I'm telling you. DO it.

If you want to rip DVDs then first download the VLC player. Then get Handbrake and use it by selecting the Apple-TV preset even if you don't have an Apple-TV. (You don't open VLC at all, but Handbrake needs it.) Make sure you get the 64-bit version of each program. You can tell by running them both and then searching spotlight for 'Activity Monitor.' It will tell you if they're 64 bit.

If you're at all into Photography then I'd say Aperture is a great deal now that it's so much cheaper in the app store. If you're not super-serious then iPhoto does just fine and you can just stick with that.

Spend some time in the system preferences and play with them all. You learn a lot that way. Make sure you understand all 3 modes of Expose and assign them to keys or mouse-movements if you want to. I only use 2 of them, but learn all 3 before you decide which ones you do or do not want.

Learn Command-H to hide programs. Learn Command-Tab to switch programs. If you EVER click the yellow 'minimize' button I will cry. SUCH a waste, especially if you're using a trackpad.

Speaking of trackpads, make sure you turn on right-click and know how to use it.

And I strongly suggest the magic mouse if this is a full-time machine at home.

Oh...you DID set up G-Mail as an IMAP account, right? Go back and re-import it as one if you didn't.

Here's a good trick...I say "screw the documents folder." Way too many applications use it as a dumping ground for their preference files and such. Go into your home folder and make a NEW folder. Call it whatever you want. Then go to the 'FINDER' menu and select the Finder Preferences. Set THAT folder to open every time you start a new Finder Window. I even change the background and the icons so my own folder feels different than the rest of the machine:

Drag it into the sidebar, too. Basically make this your home base and ignore the built-in documents folder.

 

[Danoz]

And for the love of god, buy an external drive for Time Machine. That's not a request. I'm telling you. DO it.

Service looks interesting--- I was checking out the Time Machine program last night. I'll need to get another External HD for it. In a couple months I should be able to afford it... until then, manual backups with my current 1TB mybook should be fine (requires a reformat to use).

 

[David cgc]

You can select files and folders in the Time Machine preferences to not back up. You kind of have to if you use Steam, since every little update tricks Time Machine into thinking an entire multi-gigabyte game is totally different.

In any event, you can specify it to only do the stuff you're pulling manually until you get a large enough drive to backup the whole shebang.

 

[Danoz]

As someone said, Dropbox is a must. Not just the service but be sure to download the software.

Unless you're a super-adobe-designer, you might find that instead of Photoshop you can use Pixelmator to do what you need for much cheaper.

I've been using the Adobe Suite for the last 3 years at my last job in D.C. (Photographer, graphic designer, new media coordinator etc. etc). It's not that I need it at the moment, but I sure want it . We primarily used PC's unless there was a specific need for final cut (which our video editor monopolized).

Be sure to download Flip4Mac, and Perian, and Flash, and (ironcially) the Flash blocker known as Click2Flash.

Thanks for the software advice-- all of these look very helpful.

Finally, here's my super handy-dandy "So you're new to the Mac" guide for Windows folks.

I checked it out . I knew a lot of that going in, which made this transition pretty easy (plus, compared to the insane amount of tinkering I do in Linux, Mac OS is cake).

And for the love of god, buy an external drive for Time Machine. That's not a request. I'm telling you. DO it.

If you want to rip DVDs then first download the VLC player. Then get Handbrake and use it by selecting the Apple-TV preset even if you don't have an Apple-TV. (You don't open VLC at all, but Handbrake needs it.) Make sure you get the 64-bit version of each program. You can tell by running them both and then searching spotlight for 'Activity Monitor.' It will tell you if they're 64 bit.

Sounds like exactly what I used to do in the P.C.! Though for ripping DVD's I really like to use Linux.

If you're at all into Photography then I'd say Aperture is a great deal now that it's so much cheaper in the app store. If you're not super-serious then iPhoto does just fine and you can just stick with that.

Big into photography-- part of my past job and now a big hobby in Japan. I use Lightroom and Photostop-- but iPhoto is pretty cool!

(Oh, last thought...you DID set up G-Mail as an IMAP account, right? Go back and re-import it as one if you didn't.)

Of course! IMAP, not POP3. All done!

Thanks, very helpful!

 

[Small White Car]

until then, manual backups with my current 1TB mybook should be fine (requires a reformat to use).

You can use that. Just reformat it for Mac and tell time machine to use that drive.

That's it!

(Also, go back and re-read my post...I was editing and think I added more while you were posting. You probably missed some stuff!)

Ah...one more thing. The 'Preview' application is more than just a viewer. It has some damn nice photo controls as well for doing simple color edits! Worth checking out while you're photoshop-less. It's already on your machine.

 

[Major Chord]

I LOVE my MBP. Got it as a graduation gift last summer. I basically use it as a really expensive Netbook...but it is awesome. I'm certainly no expert, and I probably don't use this thing for 1/10th of what it can do...but I'm fine with that.

I don't use the mail app...no real reason, just that I usually have an email tab open in my browser . Always have...probably always will.

One cool feature that I love is the ability to customize your dashboard. All sorts of cool, useful, and oddly useless things you can put on there.

Here's mine.

One little widget I do suggest getting is iStat Pro, (or micro...I have both, but only the iStat Micro open right now). Gives you instand read outs of stuff like CUP usage, core temps, battery status, fan speeds, etc. But as you can see, I have a currency converter, calendar (in LCARS theme! ), Hula Girl...fire place...pet rock...a clock set to the time zone of an overseas friend, so I know when we can Skype and such...oh, and Festive Lights! The Sticky Note app is nice for writing little notes and reminders. I have it open in both my dashboard, and on my desk top.

Take a look through the widget section of apple's website...I'm sure you'll find some stuff that you'll find useful or entertaining. I currently have about 1/4 of the widgets I have installed actually open in my dash at the moment.

I will say that after using the lovely multi-touch track pad for any length of time, nothing else will do. I had to fiddle around on my mom's Netbook the other day to figure out her browser...and after about 1 minute of fighting with the track pad, I grabbed her mouse. I have no idea how I lived without Multi-Touch gestures and a track pad this size.

Do you have Apple Care? It's a lovely warrantee to have...extends the manufacturer's 1 year warrantee to 3, I believe, and gives you better coverage. Dinged up the corner of the screen when I slipped on some ice on campus (the laptop was in my bag, nice and padded...bit it still took some of the impact). Took it in to my local Apple store to make sure it was nothing serious (if it was just a dent...I can live with it, but I wanted to make sure everything would still function properly), and they offered to replace the entire clamshell, for free. That is what I call customer service.

 

[Candlelight]

Sweet mother of crap, what a mess! And we really don't need to know about your chemical reactions!

Danoz, avoid Time Machine. It's so intrusive. I turned it off and just do manual back ups as I need to.

For those thinking about new Macbook Pros; first week in March is now the estimate, shipping has started, and Apple's own website reports 17" models are now 4-6 days shipping time, which means stocks are really getting low.

SSD and no-optical drive are just rumours. I think Mac would shoot themselves if they did that - an SSD would price themselves out of the market.

 

[Small White Car]

Danoz, avoid Time Machine. It's so intrusive. I turned it off and just do manual back ups as I need to.

Got a story to go with that? I'm trying to figure out how a system I never notice is "intrusive."

SSD and no-optical drive are just rumours. I think Mac would shoot themselves if they did that - an SSD would price themselves out of the market.

Well, the current MBPs have SSDs as an option. I'm sure the next ones will continue to offer it.

They're not mandatory and I don't think anyone really thought they would be anytime soon. There's a reason they sell both an 'Air' and a 'Pro.' If the Pros really were going that way, why would they sell the Air?

 

[David cgc]

Danoz, avoid Time Machine. It's so intrusive. I turned it off and just do manual back ups as I need to.

Got a story to go with that? I'm trying to figure out how a system I never notice is "intrusive."

Some folks dislike that their processor and hard drives suddenly fire up ever hour, on the hour. I understand it can cause slowdowns during games and other intensive tasks. Personally, I've never had a problem with Time Machine lagging outside of situations where I have enough other stuff going on to make the computer start to become slow without Time Machine coming on. And it'd also depend on how powerful your hardware is. Time Machine backing up (or any backup) would cause more of a performance hit on older machines.

It's possible to change the schedule from hourly if you think that's more often (or, heck, less often) than you need. Google gave me this page with the relevant Terminal command.

 

[Candlelight]

^ Exhibit A.

 

[Major Chord]

^I have Time Machine turned off, mainly because I do not have a wireless HD, so I'd ned to be constantly plugged into it to back up each day. I find that once a week is good enough for me. When I plug in the Ext. HD Time machine opens and starts the back up.

 

[Candlelight]

SSD and no-optical drive are just rumours. I think Mac would shoot themselves if they did that - an SSD would price themselves out of the market.

Well, the current MBPs have SSDs as an option. I'm sure the next ones will continue to offer it.

They're not mandatory and I don't think anyone really thought they would be anytime soon. There's a reason they sell both an 'Air' and a 'Pro.' If the Pros really were going that way, why would they sell the Air?

The rumour I had heard was they would be the standard option.

The Mac Air is there for portability. I can't see myself editing Final Cut Pro on a Mac Air.

 

[Small White Car]

^ Exhibit A.

Ok, so turn time machine on when you want it to run and turn it off when you don't want it to run. That's what I do.

It solves all of those problems and I know I have multiple backups going back in time rather than relying on my own brain which, if I did that, means I will absolutely forget to back something up eventually because I can't remember every single thing that's on my computer.

The idea of doing it manually is just...