Hiimfxu's Full Review: Apple iBook 12.1 in. (M8860LL/A) Mac Notebook
I have experience Macintosh's all my life. I remember when I was in the fifth grade, I was one of the first people in my classroom to learn how to use a Apple computer. I vaguely remember what I did on the computer. All I remember is that the apple was rainbow and the computer was a rectangle.
Eighth grade came around and I had to take a computer course. Again, Apple computers were used...
High School. I went to a Math Science and Technology Academy and we used Power Mac's.
In art school (college) I used Macintosh's(school only had Mac's because Mac's are good for graphics...).
Eventhough, I had experience with Macintosh's I never really actually learned how to use it correctly. I never really knew the true potential of these creations. I still don't. I was using IBM's at home. I was familiar with Windows and I was very comfortable with Windows. The concept of Window's was easy to understand. I worked more on IBM's than all of my Macintosh experience put together.
I recently got my first Apple Macintosh in June. About 8 months ago. I purchased my IBOOK. I ordered it online and got a pretty good deal. SHOP AROUND BEFORE YOU BUY A COMPUTER!!!!!!!!!!! I got my Ibook, free color Lexmark Printer(after mail in remate), and free RAM for the price of an Ibook. The printer came before the computer... BUT when the computer got to my house I opened the box and I was surprised by how small this laptop was. I was used to working on a 17" flat screen IBM. This Ibook was only 12", so they say. Well the size of the computer is 11.25" BUT the screen is actually only almost 10" Ibook is almost 5 pounds. Eventhough I was shocked by the size I was amazed by the beauty of this thing. It is very stylish. I was never really trained to used Apple computer's so I had to take time and really figure it out. I turned on the computer and a registration program loads. After thats over the computer loads MAC OS 9. The screen looked vaguely familiar. I thought, what do I do now? Well, the first thing I have to do is LOAD AOL!!!! so thats what I did. AOL didn't work for me. I called Apple. It's not them who takes care of this program. I called AOL, they were able to help me BUT the person at the other end did say, "We're not really trained on Macs..." AOL works on Mac's yet there's not anyone at AOL to help troubleshoot? ODD, don't you think? Well, it's not odd. The business world USES IBM.
Using a Macintosh, you will find that MANY programs you will not be able to use on your computer. There are other programs that may do the same thing BUT they aren't as mainstream. You will find MANY art related programs that are made for Apple Computers. Hence, what I said above about ARt school having only Apple computers...Many programs that are able to run on Mac's are very elementary versions of the programs and they have lots of bugs in the program(AOL for MAC OS X). But there are window programs that are made for Mac's like Microsoft Office(includes excel, word...). One thing that MAC's do that IBM's don't is that if you take an IBM floppy disc and put it into a Mac, the Mac will be able to read it. This isn't true the other way around. But in this day many people aren't using discs anymore. The Ibook doesnt come with a floppy drive. IT COMES with a Cd-Rom drive. DON'T make my mistake and buy this one. Buy the version of this computer that comes with the CD-ROM drive that you are able to Burn discs on as well. IF YOU TRY TO EXCHANGE OR RETURN YOUR computer to get a upgraded on, APPLE WILL NOT LET YOU. They have a no exceptions(unless its broken) no return or exchange policy. I TRIED, OH YEAH DID I TRY! SO shop around and KNOW what you want.
I used Mac OS(operating System) 9 for a month and than I converted into Mac OS X. OS X is 100% better than its predecessor. MAC OS X is so much more user friendly. The desktop looks great. The DOCK, a little bar that you are able to hide that contains Aliases(shortcuts to programs, files, etc...) The screen has been updated to a more futuristic look. The rainbow apple is gone. Its just a solid color now. I prefer it like this. They've changed a few things... Clarisworks(mac's word) is now called Appleworks. The system updated its look as well as some technical aspects. They made it easier for you.
The keyboard is about the same size as any keyboard. The mouse is a touchpad. NOT seperated into left and right click BUT u can right click by holding down control and clicking. Brings up an Menu just like on IBMs.
Itunes is a great program. If you're connected to the Web the radio section is available to you. You can store you music in Itunes folder. Itunes is where you will play your CD's unless you use another program.
The graphics on Mac's are much better than that of IBMs. The clarity and smoothness is obvious. One of my friends at school recently said, "Everything looks better on Mac's, even the programs."
The speakers that come with the computer aren't the best. They don't get loud enough.
Sometimes you computer will freeze. This usually only happens when you are operating MAC OS 9(OS 9 freezes way too often). Since OS X is new, not every program has a OS X version and so in OS X, you are able to open OS 9 and use the programs of 9. Classic is the name of OS 9 opened in OS X. This concept sounds a little more difficult and confusing than it really is. If the program does freeze you can FORCE QUIT the program and it usually solves the problem.
When the computer is turned on it loads at a medium pace. it depends on what programs are being loaded along with the Operating System. If there's anything wrong with your computer, it will let you know by displaying Icons...ie. if there's something wrong with your computer, it will give you a sad face icon.
OS X has an automatic program that detects updates. When there any program updates a screen will pop up and ask if you want to update. You can choose what you want to update.
All Mac computers come with 3 month's complementary over the phone help. In these 3 months you can call Apple and recieve help for free. AFTER the 3 months you have to pay 45.00 every time you call OR you can buy a 3 year warranty for about 250.00. I don't like this policy.
Overall, I really enough my Ibook. I think it is a great computer. I use it everyday and I really enjoy working on Mac's. I would recommend Mac's to anyone. The quality of this piece is superior to many other laptops. I recommend Mac's for those who will be using their computer for art related things. I recommend it for anyone who isn't. To be proficient with IBM's and Mac's is a great thing. Mac's a making its way into the world. A word of advice. When you have your powercord plugged in, take out your battery. Constantly charging your battery eventhough it's full will shorten its life.
iBook has all the speed, storage, graphics, and software you're looking for right out of the box. It's small and light enough to slip in a backpack it...More at eBay
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