Possible Mac acquisition

[Tiby]

Hi guys,

 

Hope you can help me on this, because even if I have been running on PCs for a very long time, I've yet to have decent knowledge about macbooks.

Thing is starting with next year I may be included in a development team that mostly addresses mac software.

In order to do this (hackintosh can be a last resort ) well it may be easier to consider buying a mac. I prefer one from the second hand market because:

- locally there are none discount Apple products to be offered directly (or if there are they are sold faster then McDonalds special offers)

- price of them is much higher then abroad

 

Now the problem is .. what should I search for? I can see many "late" 2009-2011 models, most of them modded with additional SSD's, but will I be able to run the latest software with them? Will there be any problem registering it to another user, since as far as I know Mac's are tied to Apple store and at any time can be declared as stolen.

 

Last but not least, will it be compatible with external USB cards (Xonar U series)? 

Some say that it will be detected by default, others that it runs like *rap and you have to turn the volume all the way down..

It's a bit confusing to hear this because everytime I go to listen some club music, every DJ on the scene, like 99% of time is using Macbooks.. Is it something special or just for the looks? I highly doubt the onboard sound is better then dedicated audio card, but then again, that's why I wanted your help on this.

 

Many thanks in advance.

 

 

[Lavachyste]

Is the nezwest model too expensive for you? The Imac is not that expensive actually. Try to find even second hand, newest model.

[Axel Sypkens Smit]

I really feel like any mac(book) before the retina MacBooks have not enough power in comparison to today's laptops. Building a hackingtosh is actually not that hard If you have ever booted a pc from a usb drive. I would go that route or a new macbook with retina display, but those are pretty expensive of course.

[Tsuki]

the new macs are actually really good, if i didnt need windows to run my software(games) i'd probably invest in one assuming i could get used to how impossible osx is to navigate for me.  as far as dj's and stuff like that go, the reason they use macs is cuz some of the best software available to them runs best on a mac. it also manages media really well(for some people, i think the folder structure is disgusting personally)

[ShadowCaptain]

the new macs are actually really good, if i didnt need windows to run my software(games) i'd probably invest in one assuming i could get used to how impossible osx is to navigate for me.  as far as dj's and stuff like that go, the reason they use macs is cuz some of the best software available to them runs best on a mac. it also manages media really well(for some people, i think the folder structure is disgusting personally)

 

Dude the OS is so easy to navigate, after a few days getting used to it you would absolutely love navigating it!

Literally the only thing stopping me being a full mac user is gaming!

 

The folder structure is no different to windows really... documents go in documents, pictures in pictures, you can make folders just the same....

[Tsuki]

Dude the OS is so easy to navigate, after a few days getting used to it you would absolutely love navigating it!

Literally the only thing stopping me being a full mac user is gaming!

 

The folder structure is no different to windows really... documents go in documents, pictures in pictures, you can make folders just the same....

i used to work for applecare back when Lion launched. and although you can make it the same, osx tries really hard to not let you.  and if you choose to use their applications(like iphoto), things get really messed up. instead of having normal files and folders, everything is packaged into one file kinda like a shitty zip file.  these packages can break super easy for no apparent reason, and although most of the time its as simple as telling it to auto repair, the package file itself(not the contense inside) will explode and you have to manually move everything inside into a new package. which can break all the thumbnails and images inside, then say bye bye to half your photos.   and its just not iphoto that does this, ive seen it with just about every application on a mac(i actually worked for the iapps department so its basically the only thing i fixed for an entire year)

[dmegatool]

Macs are selling at a high price even on the used market. Have a look at the refurbished section. You can get some nice deals. Keep in mind that in 2-3 years you can still sell that Macbook for a good price, which isn't always the case with regular PC. 

 

Personnaly I'm using this one : store.apple.com/ca/product/FD101/refurbished-133-inch-macBook-pro-25ghz-dual-core-intel-i5

 

It's hard to say if it's gonna be enough for what you'll do but for me it's more than enough. That include some web developement using a LAMP, designing in photoshop, etc. 

[GodSpoon]

Id say get the new iMac to completely honest, its actually a decent deal 

Next option would be either a hackintosh, an Air, or an older one with upgraded components (Not really what I would recommend)

[ShadowCaptain]

SNIP

 

I know I used to work with macs every, selling them and also helping set up and fix customers machines

 

With a decent backup I found it pretty decent, just as many people with windows PCs came in with missing files ><, I admit the library file is kind of annoying but I love how programs like iPhoto organise images, and I love expose and spaces etc

[dmegatool]

i used to work for applecare back when Lion launched. and although you can make it the same, osx tries really hard to not let you.  and if you choose to use their applications(like iphoto), things get really messed up. instead of having normal files and folders, everything is packaged into one file kinda like a shitty zip file.  these packages can break super easy for no apparent reason, and although most of the time its as simple as telling it to auto repair, the package file itself(not the contense inside) will explode and you have to manually move everything inside into a new package. which can break all the thumbnails and images inside, then say bye bye to half your photos.   and its just not iphoto that does this, ive seen it with just about every application on a mac(i actually worked for the iapps department so its basically the only thing i fixed for an entire year)

Packages are pretty much just folders You can open and browse them just as easily. I gotta say I like apps that are packaged that way instead of installer that put files everywhere. Want to delete that software ? Just drag it to the trash, no need for an unistaller... 

Never seen a package getting corrupted in 10 years of using Macs. But that's just my experience and can't be considered as the whole thing / thruth. 

[Tsuki]

Packages are pretty much just folders You can open and browse them just as easily. I gotta say I like apps that are package that way instead of installer that put files everywhere. Want to delete that software ? Just drag it to the trash, no need for an unistaller... 

Never seen a package getting corrupted in 10 years of using Macs. But that's just my experience and can't be considered as the whole thing / thruth. 

packages are not just folders.  you are not intended to browse them at all. yes you can easily, but the enduser can and will completely mess things up if they do. i do agree on being able to easily delete programs by just dragging them to the trash, that is super easy.

as far as how often packages get corrupt i honestly cant say, im sure it isnt anywhere near as often as i'd like to believe, my perspective is gonna be different since i was at a call center fixing it for 30 people every day.

 

With a decent backup I found it pretty decent, just as many people with windows PCs came in with missing files ><, I admit the library file is kind of annoying but I love how programs like iPhoto organise images, and I love expose and spaces etc

expose and spaces is nice. having multiple desktops is amazing, something windows should have had years ago..  im one of those people that simply doesnt care about pictures or music. i only have one folder with images on my computer and thats just so i can cycle through different miku pictures for my desktop, and all my music is handled by spotify. i personally never had a use for anything in the apple ecosystem so i never found any of it attractive to me.  

 

and keep in mind, as much as i hate the browing experiance of mac os, i think windows is just as bad ntfs is not a good filing system, and the entire registry is attrocious. however i think of it as the lesser of 2 evils, and thats only cuz it lets me play my games.

[Vedge]

I got a Macbook from work and I'm loving it. I have a desktop at home for gaming, so the mac fulfils my every need with respect to productivity.

[Tiby]

Ok so should look out for current models. Its no rush now. Will keep an eye on them especially during the holidays