New MAC Convert !

[Phoenix]

Hello MUGOO and MAC users,

I recently converted from a 2000 model Dell XPS Dimension 4100 PC and bought from Compucentre (at Rideau) an Apple computer for the first time; the Mac Mini 2004 basic model, 1.24 MHz, 512 MB and OSx, Tiger, 10.4.4.; which I use for basic home functions.

I was able to hook up my 17" Dell monitor, my Natural keyboard and my Logitech optical mouse.

I'm still working on setting up my HP Printer 930C and my HP 5370C Scanner. I'm not sure they'll work properly, if at all.

1 - I was told that the system comes with basic settings.

Any detailed instructions on properly enabling the Firewall, Tabbed browsing and any other functions that need to be enabled for my Mac to work efficiently?

2 - Trying to keep my system "clean" the only external software that I installed are Symantec's 2006 Anti-Virus for Mac and Adium X.

Would it be safe to also install Firefox, since some sites can't use Safari?

Any other recommended and safe software needed to be installed to completely enjoy my new toy?

3 - I am still figuring out what IChat and Bonjour are.

What are they?  Do I need to have a paid subscription to use them?

Any ideas on how I could set up an audio/video communication with other people other than sending text through Adium X?

I tried my Logitech and Asus webcams.  They didn't work.  Any ideas?

4 - Well I guess that I have to make new friends now and keep up to date on Mac issues.

Any MAC sites, other than MUGOO, which are safe and reliable that I need to bookmark in order to get info.  and downloads for my computer as well as sites and chat rooms to meet people?

5 - Any other advice at all ?

Grazie (Thanks).

[AylmerQc]

Can only offer a few tips as I'm new at this myself.I have a 932C printer and it works fine with a Mac.
Try ehmac.ca for a national mac group forum.
I use Firefox, no problems. Don't use a running antivirus program, haven't since getting a Mac 10 months ago although I've been doing the odd virus scan with ClamXav, a free AV program you can download (don't have the link here but shouldn't be hard to find) and do find viruses but they're only for Windows. They don't seem to affect MAcs but can be passed on to others who have pc's.
There are many Mac sites around, every city seems to have their user group and most of them have real good websites with plenty of information. You can spend many hours just going through them all. Just do a Mac or Apple User's group in Google and see what I mean.
Ex:     http://homepage.mac.com/applespicemug/
When I registered my Imac with Apple.ca, I received a free 6 months subscription to Macworld magazine. Don't know what other promo they have now but that was it at the time. It's an ok magazine, pretty good info.
That's about it for me. Don't get on the Mac as much as I would like as the kids have pretty much adopted it for themselves now (hmm, time for another Mac for me maybe..?), so I'm not as familiar with some of the issues you brought up as other more knowledgeable members here. Maybe the can help you out more.
Enjoy the experience of a Mac, it's different.
JM

[MacMoore]

Download driver for HP 932c at
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareList?dlc=en&lc=en&product=61236&lang=en&cc=us&os=219

HP does not admit to making an HP 5770 scanner.

Firewall can be found under "System Preferences"  -  "Sharing"
Tab Browsing for Safari under "Sarafi"  -  "Preferences"  -  "Tabs"

I have never used any anti-virus software on my Macs.  No problems.
I never forward email to pc users.  Mail has a junk mail filter in its "Preferences" that works well for me.

To use iChat I believe you need to purchase iSight  http://www.apple.com/isight/
I think other end must be using iChat also.
We use pc headset connected to our iMac through an iMic http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/imic2/index.php
to talk (no video) to to our daughter (using pc version) away at university. 
Download (free) Skype  http://www.skype.com/

I visit these sites daily
http://www.macfixit.com/
http://www.macupdate.com/index.php?os=macosx

[Michael Humphrey]

Congrats!

Other useful Mac sites:

http://www.xlr8yourmac.com (a techie website)

http://www.versiontracker.com (though I suppose OS X's automatic updates may make this less useful, unless you have 3rd party software)

http://www.everymac.com (often quoted on these pages, re: specs of old/new machines)

re: webcams: I think I saw a USB 2.0 camera from Logitech that was Mac compatible - it was a bit cheaper than an iSight (but still over $100) - dunno about iChat compatibility

-Mike

[JIrving]

Hi There,

Generally speaking, your paranoia isn't justified. Spyware and viruses are generally not a concern for Mac users. If you stick with trusted sites with legitimate user reviews of software you'll be fine. Versiontracker.com is a great starting point. Another very helpful site for news and infomation is Macintouch.com (been around for ages). Macworld magazine has interesting reviews and tutorials.

Despite what Apple might suggest there is a lot more compatibility on the hardware side than one might initially realize. This requires adequate research, of course.

I'm not sure how much RAM you have but you should have at least 512Mb for Tiger if not 1Gb. This will really speed up the machines performance and minimize disk activity. I say this as just today I upgraded the Ram in a friends G5 Imac that came stock with 256Mb of ram which made the machine run slower than my G4. It should never have shipped with only 256Mb of memeory. These details and many more can be found using /Applications/Utilities/System Profiler. Apple menu->System Preferences is where most of your machines settings reside.

I have tried many browsers but find Safari to be the best (I used to be an advocate of FireFox 1.0 but found 1.5 slower).

About the only things that really might muck up your system would be manually deleting files and/or folders that the System needs in order to run properly. For the most part, leave /System, /Library, /System Folder and the invisible file system alone unless you know what you are doing. If you don't know what the invisible file system is don't worry about it. Also insure that software you do install is compatible with your version of OS X and run Apple Menu-> Software Update regularly as it keeps your system up to date, performs maintenance and installs security patches and security improvements.

Finally, the best way to avoid disaster is to back up the entire disk to an external Firewire drive or USB 2.0 drive periodically. Although it has never happened to me, if your internal disk dies (for example) you can boot from the external disk to fix the problems or use it to revert to a previous system configuration. Utilities such as Carbon Copy Cloner and Super Duper! (the latter is easier to use with Tiger) are excellent at making bootable back-ups and are free for basic functionality. In lieu of an external drive, at least back up your Users folder to DVD (CDRom otherwise) once in a while.

These are just a few pointers off the top of my head. Hopes this helps - it is by no means exhaustive - but you'll find OSX 10.3 and later to generally be very stable. Again, sufficient Ram should be your first investment if necessary. It can be obtained on line much cheaper than locally usually (true for many other things as well).

John

[JIrving]

I should have also added these caveats in my previous post:

1. If you do get (or have) an external drive make sure it is bootable (not all are). That is to say that you can start up and run your computer from an operating system on the external drive.

2. I think anyone running OS X should have at least two login accounts with administrative privleges. Should the primary account become unusable (i.e. you can't login temporarily because you mucked up something) you can use the secondary account to attempt to fix the problem. If you have another Mac handy this precaution might not be necessary but it's too complicated to explain why here. Search "Target Disk Mode" if curious.

John

[Earl]

I have been using my HP 970ce as a network drive on my PC and the old Power Mac 5500 I have can use it as a networked printer. I acces the printer through the PC and not the Mac if thats any help

Earl

[Dan Millar]

A few more notes for your mini:

iChat does not require iSight - only if you want to add video-chatting. iChat works with iChat, Jabber, AOL, etc. You need either a .Mac account or a Jabber or AOL account. Adium allows you to chat with other systems, i.e. MSN, but does not enable video-caht with those networks. See this thread  for morei info: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=762042&tstart=0

Bonjour is what PC users call zero-configuration networking. It allows PC and Mac users on a local network to easily share resources over a network without the user having to perform any networking operations.

Your scanner will work if it is a 5370Cse or 5370Cxi - is it? If not, try plugging it in and using a program called "VueScan" - it explicitly supports your scanner.

As to your webcams, it depends on the model, but there is a piece of software out there call "Macam" that enables even my old un-supported LogiTech cam in OS X.

Good luck, and Happy Mac'ing!