Jason Bedell Online

And so, for question #6: (more of a 2 parter)
6a. Can you share a few cool apps to use on a Mac?
6b. What are some CONS for moving a Mac into a PC based environment?

As for cool Apps, man the list could go on and on, but I'll narrow it down to my Top 10 (in no particular order) with a brief idea of what it is.

1. Delicious Library 2- $39/ it catalogs everything, books, tech, DVD, clothing, etc. Ever lent out a book or movie to never see it again? not with this baby.

2. You Control Tunes- Free/ embeds itself into the menu bar to completely control iTunes while you work. I love it.

3. Adium- Free/ Chat client that incorporates all your chat profiles into 1 interface. Brilliant.

4. Wallet- $14.95/ Keep all your passwords, accounts, credit cards, serial numbers all protected so you don't lose or forget them.

5. Handbrake- Free/ DVD ripping program to put on iPod, use clips in a video editor for services, get my movies on my laptop for trips. It's a must have.

6. Cyberduck- Free/ FTP Client & Loader with an easy to use interface. It's wonderful.

7. Gawker- Free/ Time Lapse recording through built in iSight camera or screen capture. Saw Los use it a couple of times and now I'm hooked.

8. Fluid- Free/ Allows you to take your favorite websites (i.e. Blogger, Flickr, Twitter, Facebook) and turn them into their own program window. It saves a ton of time.

9. Tooble- Free/ Allows you to rip YouTube Videos directly into iTunes.

10. iAlertU- Free/ Ever been at St. Arbucks, needed to pee, but had your laptop there? How about a low jack for your laptop. Genius

Alright, now for the CONS of bringing a Mac into a PC world. Here we go:

-Macs don't natively run windows video. You can use Quicktime Plug-ins and Flip4mac, but if you don't load that stuff on, WMV files won't play (and there are a TON of .wmv files out there on the web)

-Macs sometimes have a hard time with exchange servers. This is not because they can't, but mostly because IT departments run a PC system and some (not all) IT specialists are not trained on Mac compatibility issues. So if you have an IT team based around PC netowork and throw a Mac at them... chances are they are going to tell you tough luck and find a PC to work with at the office. It's too much work to expect them to meet your Mac needs by jumping into an operating system they don't know much about.

-Macs don't work well with old network printers. Forefront has a printer that is kind of old but still is going strong... it took me awhile to get the correct drivers (circa 1997) to get it rolling. I am willing to bet there are a bunch of churches out there with some old printers, so it might take more than you think.

-Macs just don't run a lot of PC hardware. Yes you can run a Virtual Machine (bootcamp, parallels, virtual box, vmware fusion), but who really wants two operating systems on their computer? Seriously.

-Macs have an awkward control key placement. Windows has done a much better job and it makes more sense. It takes some getting used to (it's that 80% learning curve).

-Mac accessories & programs tend to be higher priced. (I will get into this on the next and final post in this series). You are paying for quality (and the silly Apple logo).

-Mac Memory. When you switch from PC to Mac you will have to break the habit of buying the cheapest RAM you can buy and/or cannibalizing old/dead machines. You will have to buy quality pieces of hardware. Quality hardware is expensive when one is used to bottom of the barrel and freebies.

So with those last two CONS you might be thinking, "Holy Crap! I am never getting into that if a Mac is going to be more expensive." Well, I don't want to burst your bubble just yet, so you'll have to read the next post...

Until then, J-del **over and out**