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Thread: Is it time for a Mac?

  1. #61
    Quote Originally Posted by Scott Shepherd View Post
    And all of that proves exactly what I said in a previous post. "Mac's don't like water spilled on them", "They are hard to replace internal components". None of that has a single thing to do with the user experience of operating it on a day to day basis.

    Keep actioning off those water damaged macbook pro's. I buy them whenever I can. There's a company that fixes them for a fraction of the price of apple and you can end up with a $2,000 Macbook pro for about $500 once it's all bought and repaired.
    LOL, failures are part of the "user experience of operating it on a day to day basis." You cannot separate one from the other.

    And I'm not saying Macs are especially failure-prone. They don't like liquid, but otherwise tend to be highly reliable.

  2. #62
    Quote Originally Posted by David Masters View Post
    I performed the ultimate boneheaded stunt — I dumped an entire cup of coffee on my MacBook Air. The laptop was powered on at the time, and although I immediately powered it off, you cannot remove the battery. I drained and sopped up the worst and flushed with distilled water. Waited two days for everything to dry out and powered it on.
    This has pretty much been my experience with everything computer and liquid related, and was going to ask the same thing - based on my experience at work of seeing other people inundating their computers and keyboards with water, only to have them work again a few days later, I'd wait a couple of days before I took any PC (and if I had a mac, same thing) to be repaired.

    I don't know the different levels of mac books, but do you have to take it back to them to get the battery replaced if you mistreat it and let it discharge too many times?

  3. #63
    Quote Originally Posted by David Masters View Post
    I performed the ultimate boneheaded stunt — I dumped an entire cup of coffee on my MacBook Air. The laptop was powered on at the time, and although I immediately powered it off, you cannot remove the battery. I drained and sopped up the worst and flushed with distilled water. Waited two days for everything to dry out and powered it on. Still in use today. I've taken many Windows based laptops apart to repair and don't find them any better sealed (even Thinkpads). In full disclosure, I haven't performed the cup of coffee test on a Windows laptop yet.

    As to iMacs, we have to remember that we are buying a single processor/monitor unit and aesthetics aside, are designed to tightly control heat and noise. Although I haven't worked with the Lenovo, HP, Acer, and Dell single processor/monitor clones that were introduced after the iMac, I suspect changing components in these are somewhat difficult as well. If you really want to test your skill in replacing a hard drive, try upgrading one of those Acer desktops like the Revo, and Veriton. (but I love these guys for single application use)

    But when I choose a computer, I consider productivity first, and I have found Apple and OS X to be better over Windows (XP, 7, and 8.1) and Linux (Ubuntu). It's not that the others can't perform the tasks I need to accomplish, but Apple has a lot of little things that make me more productive.

    Dave
    Huh.

    Two days after getting a motherboard wet, it is still wet. Thin spaces (between the PCB and components, for example) soak up the water via capillary action.

    My advice to anyone that spills anything on a notebook is: (1) Invert it (make gravity work for you), but don't let fluid get to the panel. (2) Turn it off. (3) Unplug it. (4) Remove battery, if you can. (5) Seek the help of someone that can tear it down, clean it, and dry it (with compressed air).

    Any moisture left behind will just result in corrosion (see pic). If it is bad enough, eventual failure.
    Attached Images Attached Images
    Last edited by Phil Thien; 07-28-2014 at 5:08 PM.

  4. #64
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    Don't disagree, but with three years after the incident, I'm pretty impressed that it's still going. I suspect that the liquid was largely contained to the keyboard and little if any fluid leaked onto the motherboard.

  5. #65
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    I'd be interested in seeing a reasonable analysis which documents how many vulnerabilities there are for each platform at a given time if you can provide a link.
    www.cert.org - they handled all the advisories up until 2010.
    After 2010, then www.us-cert.gov took over.

    Just go to both and go over all the bulletins from the archives. They list a totally unbiased history and assessment of all the vulnerabilities from 1980- something up through the present.


    Cert and US-Cert are the authority on security and vulnerabilities.
    They rate a threat as it comes to their attention - usually well before the actual vendor is aware of it's existence - and assign it a numerical value based on a number of things.

    Feel free to peruse both sites and read the archives. It's a real eye opening experience and it pretty well will tell you that all the bogus myths of this being more secure than that are just that - bogus myths.
    Every single electronic device that runs an operating system has vulnerabilities - from a Microcell to an HP disk array to you name it - - Cert -or US-Cert will list them.
    Last edited by Rich Engelhardt; 07-28-2014 at 5:57 PM.
    My granddad always said, :As one door closes, another opens".
    Wonderful man, terrible cabinet maker...

  6. #66
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    I started using Mac about 2 years ago, on a few air books, now I'm using macbook retina pro.

    Its the best thing I've done.

    I run windows 8.1 as a virtual machine using VMware Fusion, and windows runs better / faster there than it does on a new toshiba laptop we have at home.

    I run McAfee antivirus on the windows virtual machine, but I don't use any antivirus on my mac.

    I do all my email / browsing on the mac, and use windows for coreldraw etc.

    Once you go Mac, you'll never go back...

    Cheers,
    Chris
    HARDWARE - Macbook Retina Pro - Toshiba Satellite - Epilog Helix 60W Co2 Laser & Rotary - Trotec Speedy 300 Co2 Laser - Gravo IS400 IQ Engraver. - Pcut CTO630 Vinyl Cutter. - Wacom DTF720 Touch / Trace Screen - GKS DC16 Sublimation Press - Chinese 6040 CNC Router
    SOFTWARE - VMware Fusion / Windows 8.1 - Coreldraw X6 - Trotec Job Control 9.4.4.2 - E-cut - Gravostyle 7 - ULS 1Touch Photo - BizzWizz Invoicing / Stock Control / Ledger - VB6 Pro - Mach3 - V-Carve Desktop

  7. #67
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    Citrix is a company that specializes in delivering virtual Windows desktops and applications. Citrix has a Bring Your Own Device policy and various employees have told me that the Macbook Air is one of the most popular devices. It is more about the hardware than the OS because employees connect to virtual apps and virtual desktops via Citrix software much of the time.

  8. #68
    What I find amusing about all this is, in the past 4 months I've bought 3 fairly new used computers from rebuilders... for $100 I get really fast multi-core processors, 4 gigs of ram, and plenty of HD space for my needs. I have a copy of XP, SP3 with every 'fix', and a cheap subscription to a driver update service. I load up the software, get "Avast" AV going, turn on the firewall, turn off the update notices, and without all the daily update nonsense, I have 3 of the fastest computers I've ever seen. Now of course, I've been warned by countless people that I MUST get these XP computers off the internet. Well, they're all on the internet, and I get no threats of any kind. No viruses, malware, nothing. I'm pretty sure it's because nobody cares. And why should they? How much fun can hacking into a few XP's be that Microsoft won't even bother hacking into anymore? Kinda like swatting already dead flies is my guess...

    And for the record, I use XP because I have to. I make my living using older machinery that anything newer than XP won't run. And until some virus or hacker gets in, I'll keep using it.
    ========================================
    ELEVEN - rotary cutter tool machines
    FOUR - CO2 lasers
    THREE- make that FOUR now - fiber lasers
    ONE - vinyl cutter
    CASmate, Corel, Gravostyle


  9. #69
    That's one of the things which I really mis-like about Mac OS X --- NeXT/OPENstep ran well on 33MHz 68040 processors (okay on the 25MHz board I had in my Cube, esp. once I managed to almost max out the memory) --- and simply flew on faster machines.

    ``Windows vanish'' was one quote from someone who installed the developer's preview.

    Somehow, w/ all the overhead for transparency, Quartz, Carbon, &c., this O.S. which would fit comfortably on a 105MB H.D. and run well on a 32MB machine lost its elegance and incredible performance, to say nothing of features such as Display PostScript, nxhosting, PANTONE colour libraries at the system level, pop-up main menu, &c.

  10. #70
    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Elfert View Post
    Citrix is a company that specializes in delivering virtual Windows desktops and applications. Citrix has a Bring Your Own Device policy and various employees have told me that the Macbook Air is one of the most popular devices. It is more about the hardware than the OS because employees connect to virtual apps and virtual desktops via Citrix software much of the time.
    I support RDP servers in institutional (hospital, financial, etc.) environments and Apple users are a minority of our clients, and they always struggle.

    My E-Mail instructions seems to be easily followed by Windows users. The Apple users almost always get stuck. Just telling them to get something from the app store seems to result in confusion!

    I would also say that Apple users are way-overrepresented in the group that needs a password reset. Apple users simply forget their passwords way more often than Windows users. I find that interesting.

  11. #71
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    Quote Originally Posted by Phil Thien View Post
    I support RDP servers in institutional (hospital, financial, etc.) environments and Apple users are a minority of our clients, and they always struggle.
    The folks that work for Citrix and choose to buy Apple are highly technical folks. The Citrix employees I have talked with all bought the Macbook Air because they like the hardware and could care less about the OS. The MBA is just a device to connect to virtual desktops running Windows where they do their real work.

  12. #72
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    I know about that. I have a lot of Appleworks files. The OS on my machine is getting a little outdated. It is the last one to support Appleworks. I understand there is a translator available.

    Heck, I still have some old Clarisworks files.

    Not sure if I could maintain the old OS on an external drive and upgrade the OS to the latest my old machine will support. It would likely give me another 5 or 6 years of use at least.

    jtk
    FWIW, I've heard that LibreOffice (a fork of OpenOffice after a kerfuffle when Oracle started taking OpenOffice in a direction the community was less than enthusiastic about) can handle a lot of legacy Appleworks/ClarisWorks documents.
    " Be willing to make mistakes in your basements, garages, apartments and palaces. I have made many. Your first attempts may be poor. They will not be futile. " - M.S. Bickford, Mouldings In Practice

  13. #73
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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Elfert View Post
    The folks that work for Citrix and choose to buy Apple are highly technical folks. The Citrix employees I have talked with all bought the Macbook Air because they like the hardware and could care less about the OS. The MBA is just a device to connect to virtual desktops running Windows where they do their real work.
    Plausible for sure. Work environments are like that!

    My employer started formally allowing BYOD about a year and a half ago. Nearly every participant I've met (including, well...me) has opted for an Apple machine. And we only use Windows for a few applications where their nature makes them Windows only. (some system design tools, primarily) I don't even use VPN anymore most of the time...80% of what I need to get to is available via single sign-on without VPN. Honestly, we should all be able to use whatever platform we enjoy and feel most comfortable with to do our work. (and play) I and others have been lobbying very, very hard for the above mentioned tools to migrate to web applications and be browser independent, for both internal users and our partners "out there" who also use those tools.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  14. #74
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    The number one security vulnerability on any system is the user. You can have the most secure system, but if a user with admin rights decides to install some random program they found online, it doesn't make a difference. It's like buying the best alarm system in the world for your house, but opening the door for someone claiming to be a repairman without stopping to think "did I actually call a repairman?".

    While OSX/Linux are a lot less prone to system-compromising attacks due to their design (despite what a lot of Windows apologists think it isn't just because Macs are less popular), the mentality of "Macs don't get viruses so I'm completely safe" is setting yourself up for problems. A trojan is not a virus, so immunity to the latter doesn't mean much when it comes to the former.

    As for Windows, the majority of attacks aren't caused by hackers finding a new vulnerability, they're caused by hackers who wait for MS to release a patch and then use it to find the weakspots. If users would update their systems asap, there would be fewer less issues.

  15. #75
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jason Kowell View Post
    The number one security vulnerability on any system is the user. You can have the most secure system, but if a user with admin rights decides to install some random program they found online, it doesn't make a difference. It's like buying the best alarm system in the world for your house, but opening the door for someone claiming to be a repairman without stopping to think "did I actually call a repairman?".

    While OSX/Linux are a lot less prone to system-compromising attacks due to their design (despite what a lot of Windows apologists think it isn't just because Macs are less popular), the mentality of "Macs don't get viruses so I'm completely safe" is setting yourself up for problems. A trojan is not a virus, so immunity to the latter doesn't mean much when it comes to the former.

    As for Windows, the majority of attacks aren't caused by hackers finding a new vulnerability, they're caused by hackers who wait for MS to release a patch and then use it to find the weakspots. If users would update their systems asap, there would be fewer less issues.
    Exactly - I'm my experience, the user ends up being the key vector in most malware; a poorly patched system might make things worse, but when you basically let someone untrusted install a RAT or similar, all bets are off.

    The last major Mac virus/trojan scare I remember ended up being specifically tied to folks trying to install an infected, bootleg "cracked" copies of "Photoshop" they found on BitTorrent. Yeah; who'd have thought that would end poorly.
    " Be willing to make mistakes in your basements, garages, apartments and palaces. I have made many. Your first attempts may be poor. They will not be futile. " - M.S. Bickford, Mouldings In Practice

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