It could physically fall apart at any second now! Here's what, ideally, I want:

- Good amount of memory (hard drive size not that important)
- Hi-def screen (if the comp. has a Blu-ray drive and/or a matte screen, that's a bonus)
- HDMI-out
- backlit keyboard (could survive without it)

Ace said:

I recommend a macbook pro. The 13inch is fine for your needs, but they also offer the larger ones. If you're using it for browsing the internet, making movies, etc. you can't go wrong with one of those.

If you must get a PC based laptop, I'd go with Sony but make damned sure you get an anti-virus program straight away---I recommend Kapersky (far better than Norton and won't hog your resources the same way).


Avoid Windows Vista, but make sure your laptop will be compatible with Windows 7. Or hold off for Windows 7.




But yeah. Get a mac.

Imago said:

Thanks, man! I forgot to mention that I really want one with a scroll strip on the tracking pad!

Ace said:

I don't know anything about those



Macs have true multi-touch pads, and to scroll in any direction you use two fingers on the pad and swipe in the direction you want to scroll.

I was planning on waiting for 7, but this box ain't gonna make it! They tell me I can get a free upgrade?

Re: anti-v: Is the free version of AVG not sufficient? Do I need to get this Kapersky thing?

If you by a high end laptop--one that's a powerhouse then it's ok to have Vista.

But upgrade to Windows 7 when it comes out



I've finally had a chance to play with Vista and I didn't care for it. xP is a dated OS, but it wasn't terrible either. Windows 7 looks promising.

Imago said:

Close enough! I was just stopped in at a Best Buy to have a look, and they were telling me that - aside from some HP's - most of the other PC laptops now require you to navigate to scroll bars or use the up-down-left-right keys on the keyboard.

I must admit, you're making going back to Mac very tempting. What about all my fuckin' files that were created on PC? Will I have to "convert" them, or somethin'?

Excuse me; I haven't used a Mac in years and years.

Ace said:

no free upgrades for either OS.


And I don't know if the free AVG is sufficient. I always installed the beefiest AVG I can.

Imago said:

So, there'll be no issues in moving my shit over to a Mac?

Ace said:

You mean music files?

Are the protected by DRM and in .wma format (did you rip them, steal them, or buy them?)

If you ripped them or stold them, you're safe--iTunes on mac will convert your files .AAC or .mp3 files


All your other files work the same way on mac. I'm not a 'mac snob' in that I don't believe EVERYTHING Apple does is great--but I'm telling you... They're terrific machines and the OS is shit hot.

Ace said:

I had no issues going to MAC. When I first bought my mac, my primary concern was whether I was going have issues making it cooperate with the files i had on PCs (I really had very little knowlege of MACS).
Within a week's time, I was adjusted, and actually annoyed by features I was used to on my mac which weren't on my PCs.

OS-X is very stable, feature rich, and uses far fewer system resources than Vista.


I'm sure others will offer differing opinions on this though. But I don't know of any recent mac users (in the last 5 years) who hate their macs. You can watch the Apple Keynote on some of the macbook features here: http://www.apple.com/quic...isco-2009/


The only thing I recommend is to use Micrsoft's Office 2008 instead of Apple's office suite. The Microsoft product is superior.

Miguel thought he was a computer nerd until he read this thread.....

Imago said:

I wasn't thinking specifically of music, but all of mine is legal (iTunes, etc.).

Right now, I'm backing up to one of these:

http://www.staples.ca/ENG...7FEBFE5719

Are you saying I can just plug this into a Mac, transfer everything onto it and that's it?

Imago said:

Thanks, man - you're a lifesaver! Seriously considering it...

MIGUELGOMEZ said:

Ace said:

If you bought everything and it's legit then there's DRM involved.
I don't really know how that works, but it would be the same as moving to a PC.
You bought the stuff on iTunes so I would imagine that it's easier.

Do you have a mac store near you? You can always go and ask them about that. They're not pushy salesmen or anything like that--they don't really need to be.

Imago said:

Yeah, there's a Mac store just around the corner.

By the by: as I understand it, a lot of stuff on iTunes is now DRM-free and a lot of older DRM files can be upgraded to DRM-free.

Ace NEEDS

An HP HDX16 which I'm using right now...

- Good amount of memory (hard drive size not that important) CAN BE ADDED
- Hi-def screen (if the comp. has a Blu-ray drive and/or a matte screen, that's a bonus) CAN BE ADDED
- HDMI-out - HAS THAT AND WE LOVE IT!!
- backlit keyboard (could survive without it) - SORRY NO...

RenHoek said:

Thanks, man! What about scrolling?

I'm assuming you still can't right-click on a Mac? How the fuck does that work, these days?

Ace said:

It's got the little scroll thing on the touch pad and it works SUPER! It has a built in webcam and what I feel is THE COOLEST FEATURE, it has fingerprint ID reader built in and you can fingerprint ID ALL your logins... one swipe and youre good!!! NO more typing paswords!!!

Also has the 10key pad to the left of the full sized keyboard... HELLA NICE!

RenHoek said:

The ball's in your court, Dan.

Ace said:

It has the ill executed windows registry. !



And all macbooks have built in webcams. The finger print ID sounds good, but I'm not sure how inconvenient typing a computer password really is.


For me it's about the day to day use of the machine and I do a lot of video editing and uploading to youtube. So I'm all for mac.



HP make good laptops though. I had had to buy a PC and the Sony I wanted wasn't available, I'd be in good hands with hp.



get a mac

Ace said:

Yes, you can right-click on a Mac. You can also do scrolling and gestures. Check out this video:

HDMI-out


I'M DYING TO KNOW WHAT THAT IS!!!!!

MIGUELGOMEZ said:

HDMI is a connector like DVI or component or AV, but it handles both audio and video in one cord. It would allow you to hook your computer to an HDTV with one cable.

AlexdeParis said:

Ohhhhh!! Thanks for that. I think I have an HD Kodak vid camera that lets me do that.
[Edited 8/10/09 15:36pm]

AlexdeParis said:

My old crappy Dell regularly gets a one finger gesture.

Work you bastard!

mcmeekle said:

Miguel, you're welcome. Yeah, it's mainly an HD thing.