Mac Questions and Answers
Andre Andraos asks:
I’m buying a new laptop (Macbook Pro), and was contemplating whether I should get glossy or matte finish screen. What are advantaged and disadvantaged to each? I am using this laptop both indoors and out, and planning to use it for: playing high-end games, schoolwork, web and graphic designing, computer programs, etc. What would you recommend?
Glossy vs Matte is a matter of personal preference, and my personal preference happens to be Matte. Ponzi likes glossy.
On the heels of that email, comes a vote of confidence (and question) from Michael Gutierrez:
First, I just wanted to send you some feedback regarding a recommendation you made for me about VMWare Fusion for Mac OS X. I took your advice shortly after the you recorded the video and downloaded the 30 day trial. I was amazed how advanced Fusion was compared to Parallels product. I particularly like Unity, VMWare’s setting allowing you to run your windows apps alongside the Mac desktop instead of full screening the virtual OS. After the 30 day trial, I purchased a license and have been using it ever since. So, thank you for making that recommendation.
Second, I have another question I was hoping you can help me with. I noticed on your 15” MacBook Pro that was sponsored by lijit.com was equipped with a red Speck SeeThru hard shell case. I have been looking to purchase one of these for my MacBook Pro because I have had gotten a few scratches on my laptop that I am not happy about. What is your opinion of these? Do they provide good protection for the exterior of a MacBook Pro? Does it add any significant weight to the laptop?
Ponzi loves her red Speck shell, although she doesn’t like the actual Mac inside it because she says it’s… “too heavy.” I still use it all the time, although my preference would have been either a clear or black casing. Personal preference.
My third Mac question of the day came from Rich Schindler:
I used PC’s and Mac’s. I have used Mac’s for many years. My question is what can you suggest to run video from websites that use WMP? I usually use my one of my PC’s to watch these video’s. I am running OSX 3.9 and I can get these videos to run if I use Safari and flip4mac, but the quality of the frames is poor. Was wondering what you suggest?
VLC, which apparently also has an output setting to render the video into (color) ASCII art on the screen. As far as embedded WMP on Web pages is concerned, I… would look for different Web sites, or just run IE in Unity mode in VMware Fusion (or the equivalent in Parallels). The only other choice is purchasing Flip4Mac, which I’ve never done. Download the WMV files and watch ‘em with VideoLAN.
Just when I thought I was finished fielding Mac questions, another one arrived courtesy of “cybersheath” a few minutes ago:
I’ve ordered my first Mac, a 20″ iMac, and I have a few Mac related questions. I have noticed that there are several posts on the Apple discussion boards about screen brightness issues. People claim that their iMacs, both 20″ and 24″, have unevenly lit screens. I was wondering if you have heard anything about this? I was concerned about this at first, but I think that it may just be people nitpicking. I was also wondering if you have used a program called Circus Ponies, for mac. It seems like an interesting and useful piece of software, and I was wondering if it was worth paying the $50 price tag. My last question is just for fun. You often refer to yourself as a “power user”. How exactly do you define a power user?
I’m not sure what Apple’s policies (or tolerance level) for perceived LCD problems happen to be, but you’d be wise to pick up an AppleCare contract. The only time I ever needed one was when I didn’t have one. Mind you, I’m tripping into the Apple store tomorrow to see what’s wrong with my ol’ MacBook. Hardware is imperfect, regardless of manufacturer or OEM.
As far as that software is concerned, no - I’ve never used it (let alone, heard of it). Still, since they seem to have some kind of 30-day demo, you’d be smart to try it before buying it - and then make sure you’ve tried the viable alternatives just to be sure you’re getting what you want and need. There’s plenty of Mac shareware out there to try without fear of getting infected with viruses or spyware.
24 Comments
Jim Gottlieb
October 29th, 2007
at 11:52am
I rarely have any trouble playing Windows Media video or audio from the web. I still use Microsoft’s Windows Media Player for the Mac. It’s been discontinued but you can probably find it out there somewhere.
And if you use Safari and hit a page that wants to use an embedded Windows Media plugin, it asks if you would like to launch an external player instead and this usually works.
For your safety
October 29th, 2007
at 4:42pm
From :http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/10/28/mac-questions-and-answers/At : 2007-10-29T03:36:56+0 Andre Andraos asks: I’m buying a new laptop (Macbook Pro), and was contemplating whether I should get glossy or matte finish screen. What are advantaged and disadvantaged to each? I am using this laptop both indoors
For your safety
October 29th, 2007
at 4:42pm
From :http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/10/28/mac-questions-and-answers/At : 2007-10-29T03:36:56+0 Andre Andraos asks: I’m buying a new laptop (Macbook Pro), and was contemplating whether I should get glossy or matte finish screen. What are advantaged and disadvantaged to each? I am using this laptop both indoors
For your safety
October 29th, 2007
at 4:42pm
From :http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/10/28/mac-questions-and-answers/At : 2007-10-29T03:36:56+0 Andre Andraos asks: I’m buying a new laptop (Macbook Pro), and was contemplating whether I should get glossy or matte finish screen. What are advantaged and disadvantaged to each? I am using this laptop both indoors
For your safety
October 29th, 2007
at 4:42pm
From :http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/10/28/mac-questions-and-answers/At : 2007-10-29T03:36:56+0 Andre Andraos asks: I’m buying a new laptop (Macbook Pro), and was contemplating whether I should get glossy or matte finish screen. What are advantaged and disadvantaged to each? I am using this laptop both indoors
For your safety
October 29th, 2007
at 4:42pm
From :http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/10/28/mac-questions-and-answers/At : 2007-10-29T03:36:56+0 Andre Andraos asks: I’m buying a new laptop (Macbook Pro), and was contemplating whether I should get glossy or matte finish screen. What are advantaged and disadvantaged to each? I am using this laptop both indoors
For your safety
October 29th, 2007
at 4:49pm
From :http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/10/28/mac-questions-and-answers/At : 2007-10-29T03:36:56+0 Andre Andraos asks: I’m buying a new laptop (Macbook Pro), and was contemplating whether I should get glossy or matte finish screen. What are advantaged and disadvantaged to each? I am using this laptop both indoors
For your safety
October 29th, 2007
at 4:51pm
From :http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/10/28/mac-questions-and-answers/At : 2007-10-29T03:36:56+0 Andre Andraos asks: I’m buying a new laptop (Macbook Pro), and was contemplating whether I should get glossy or matte finish screen. What are advantaged and disadvantaged to each? I am using this laptop both indoors
For your safety
October 29th, 2007
at 4:51pm
http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/10/28/mac-questions-and-answers/
Joe Runciter
November 4th, 2007
at 4:19pm
I just bought a new MacBook (not a Pro) from the internet Apple Store. I did not know about the glossy screen, and I hate it. What matte monitor would you suggest I get for use at home? I don’t need a big one - even 15″ would be fine. The glossy screen on te MacBook hurts my eyes.
tutu
November 6th, 2007
at 10:31pm
Hello! I have a great problem with my Mac system installation: I’ve tried to upgrade it from Mac OsX to Mac Os Tiger by downloading the latter from the internet, but, as i’m a complete idiot in computers, it’s all gone wrong, and now I can’t start up my system at all. I have no-one to ask what to do, so please, could anyone help me somehow??? I have no idea what’s happened, but I need my computer urgently, and I have a lot of data stored on it… How can I restart or reinstall the system if all I see is just a CLEAR BLUE SCREEN and a moving mouse cursor? I’m so desperate that I can hardly think properly, as I’m not sure whether my problem could be solved or not. Please, anyone, help!!!
SocioBiblog
February 5th, 2008
at 8:50am
http://media.pirillo.com/“>Video Help</a> | <a href=”http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow”>Add to iTunes</a> Related Content:Penryn Mac ProAsk Leo - My Mac is Back, and running WindowsMac OS X: the Light or Dark Side?Mac Questions and AnswersI’m Not Buying a Zune!!!
Frank Tefft
April 4th, 2008
at 2:23pm
The Mac OS X (v10.4.11) has a feature which automatically addresses (email, order forms, etc) after the first or first two letters are typed. I think they call it “Auto-Complete”. Once a name is entered in an address block the Mac system remembers it forever and stores it somewhere for future use. Over the years I’ve had many friends change their email addresses and now whenever I attempt to enter their names in the appropriate field I’m given a drop down menu with half a dozen different addresses for the same name. I’ve culled out all unnecessary information from the Mac mail program application window (Address Panel, Previous Recipients, etc) but it’s apparent that there is at least one additional data base which is hidden somewhere on which this information is stored and I cannot find it. Can you please enlighten me.
Mark Mc
April 20th, 2008
at 12:49pm
I need to purchase a new video card to drive a 30″ mac monitor for my old Power MacG5 (processor speed 1.8GHz, dual CPU) and have heard of problems with the cards recommended on the Apple web site? Suggestions?
Carlos
July 25th, 2008
at 8:02am
Do you know if there’s a software Mac to have a wireless secutiry camera??
I want to record or take pictures with my mac while i’m away of home.
Any toughts?
Thanks
Bubble head
July 29th, 2008
at 3:05pm
my questionis if on my mac the safari had a ? mark on it and now is gone how do i get it back. i have tried everything and am very agervated.
alex
August 29th, 2008
at 3:15pm
Does any mac have a non motherboard integrated graphics card because macbooks sure don’t they are integrated so when i buy spore with my late 06 macbook it will and can not play unless its on a windows partition is there anyway that my problem can be solved without using the windows partition or buying a new computer
Maze
December 17th, 2008
at 9:09pm
When I download a file it opens into text edit by default. How do I change the downloads to open in Pages by default?
jonathan Howad
January 22nd, 2009
at 8:18pm
After i downloaded the latest versions of java and itunes to my iBook, I re-started it to finish the download and now the computer will not get passed the white start page with the mac logo. Any ideas how to solve this problem. Thank tiy fr your time.
brian darnell
March 27th, 2009
at 12:23pm
I have a Mac book pro. Why are all my photos on my hard drive so small when I view them?
I started to download all my images (a few thousand) to the new mac and I cant make the thumb nails any larger.
What can I do?
Klausnomi
March 30th, 2009
at 6:03am
HI! I just bought a new macbook and my old IBM Lenovo has some terrible virus on it and no anti-virus software can find it. It has slowed down my operating system terribly and even though I reinstalled my operating system the problem is the same. Can I copy all of my files from my lenovo on to a portable hard drive and then copy all of the files from that onto my macbook or will I infect my mac with the viruses?
Samantha
April 9th, 2009
at 8:59am
I am in the process of buying a Mac with 10gb hardrive, 400mhz and 384 m of ram…i have no clue about computers…is this a decent one? I’m only paying $75. my regular laptop crashed…and i just need something for writing, internet and music.
Jodi Radwell
April 18th, 2009
at 5:10pm
While trying to wipe my imac clean I reinstalled OSX creating a whole new profile which is the one that opens when I restart the computer. Now, however, all my info (music, pics, files) from my old account are somewhere in this machine and I cannot figure out how to access that account to clean it out.
Any suggestions?
Jodi
jinx
June 18th, 2009
at 6:14pm
I have a question… I have a Mac Os X, 10.4.11, and I was wondering if you can get an upgrade for an intel processor, or do I have to buy a whole new mac with an intel processor?