John’s Blog

So I know in my last post I said that I had picked up another used Mac and that would be my last one until I was able to buy a new one.

But, I had the chance to pick up a grea deal on a used iMac G4. Something that I just could resist. It allows me to move my wife over away from using a pc to a Mac. It is in really great shape, just needs a few upgrades. First in line are the RAM (it’s running 512MB right now and I am going to max it out a 1GB), and the OS (currently running Panther, want to upgrade it to at least Tiger, maybe Leopard if it is supported).

I just spent a little while setting up and am very impressed with the performace of the machine. That is one aspect that I have to give Apple full credit. Their hardware even the older stuff runs great.

Ok, so for a very long time, like up until about a year ago I have been strictly a pc guy. Had never owned a mac, or really for that matter used one.

So after spending a few years listening to some of my acquaintances rave about them, I decided to give the mac a shot. I went out and bought a used G3 iBook. I know, I know, not very fancy compared to what Apple has out these days. But it did have one advantage…it was a hell of a lot cheaper than paying two grand for a new one.

Well over the last year I have played with it when I could, installed what apps I could, etc.. However I did find myself using it more and more at home for the internet, email, etc.. The only issue I really had with it was the size of the screen being 12″.

So yesterday I picked up a used Power Mac G4. Again, I know, nothing fancy considering the slick products Apple is churning out now. And to be honest I would love to make the switch to macs. But I have a few issues. One being that I manage a computer company where we built, repair, and sell pc’s among other things. The whole shop is Windows based. Now I could get a new mac and run Windows on it as well, and to tell the truth, I think once I get through tax season (Uncle Sam has it in for me, no refund, have to pay in). I am going to get the ball rolling on a mac fund. I could afford to go out and get an entry level one now. But I would really prefer to wait and be able to get just what I want.

So for now it looks like I will be running mac at home, and still carrying my Windows laptop to work….but just for now. 

Well today was Wednesday, so that means it was my “day off” from work. I use the quotes because it is never really a day off on Wednesday since I usually end up doing some work from home. Which I did, I got as much done as I could while not being in the office, and at the same time managed to get to watch the first few episodes of The Lab (a very good show by the way), and listed a laptop for sale online. It’s not that it’s a bad laptop, it’s an Avertec 3200, with an AMD processor and a 12.1″ screen. It would make a great portable laptop for someone. It’s just that I got it for free and have no use for it. I already have 3 laptops in the house (1 pc and one Mac that are mine, and one that is my wife), plus a few desktops that never get used. I would much rather sell this one and apply the money towards something else. I have been looking at replacing my old Creative MP3 player, and have narrowed it down to either a 30GB iPod, or the 30GB Zune (can get a Zune on sale for under $200 this week). I am still trying to decide which one I would like better, and hopefully by the time the laptop sells I will have decided. I am also in the market for a GPS unit, but am hoping I get that for my birthday next week so I don’t have to buy it lol

Just got home from work a little while ago, and after a day of fixing other people’s computers, what am I doing? Fixing my own lol I’m re installing OS X on the iBook I bought recently. When I bought it, it had a fresh install, but some of the files were corrupted some how, so I finally have a chance to sit down and get it working and that is what I’m doing, that and drinking even more coffee than normal.

Well after much searching I finally found a reasonably priced used Mac laptop, and today, I bought it. It’s nothing fancy…a iBook G3, but it’s something for me to use to get acclimated to the Mac OS, before dropping big bucks on a new MacBook. Hopefully it doesn’t take me too long to get adjusted, I already have it up and running with the wireless network in my house, so now I just need to dive in and see what else I can learn.

Well I have been considering it for over a year now, and today I decided I am going to go ahead and take the plunge and buy my first Mac. My reasons are fairly simple, I have been interested in seeing what all the fuss is about, plus, I have been in the computer industry for many years now, but have yet to move beyond a good knowledge of Windows, and a small knowledge of Linux. So with all that in mind I am setting out on a search to buy a decent used Mac laptop. I had considered buying a brand new one, but would rather start slow by getting something a little more reasonably priced and if things go well, then dropping the 2 grand on a new one.