I'm doing my part for Cupertino . . .

As a result of being given a free 17" CoreDuo iMac with LCD issues, I have wound up buying:

- 2GB of ram to max it out
- KVM switch to hook it up to the LCD panel that the PC uses
- Mini DVI to VGA adapter
- OS X 10.5.6 and the new iLife '09 (facial recognition in iPhoto!)
- Service & Tech Manual CD

Last week, I was given a free 17" G5 iMac . . . needs new motherboard capacitors, so it seems they were snookered by cheap asian parts just like Dell. I think my leisure weekends are set for awhile. :rolleyes:

Great little box...picked one up several weeks back.

And yup...OS X goes on without much pain, even if you don't have a DVD drive - here's the install screen from when I played around with it, using the dual flash drive install method documented over at MyDellMini.com.

However...I blasted OS X after a couple days, and went back to Ubuntu 8.10. Mainly, because I like it better, but it also has fewer issues. Were I of the mind to keep OS X on the Mini, two problems I encountered drove me batty. First, the touchpad drivers/settings are whacked...I tried a bunch of different settings, and never did get the one thing I like best about OS X (multitouch) working well. Also, sleep/hibernate gave me fits, although I've read others have figured out workarounds. Last I read, the SD slot wasn't working either.

Still...the Mini is probably the cheapest way to get OS X running on a portable, and if the remaining kinks can be worked out I might play around with it again.

And yes...that's a bra in the background. Much as I'd like to brag about getting lucky in the kitchen, truth is, the island doubles as a laundry counter.

My mac needs Leopard installed on it...I'm still using version 10.3.9! Does anyone have the install discs? :D

Macbook here... about three years old. No problems. Rarely turn it off. It just works. I love it. I surf the web, even "questionable" sites without virus protection.

OSX is NOT linux. It does have a unix core (unix, not linux). But whatever is at it's core remains well hidden away from me by the brilliant interface that Apple has created.

You know, a Camry is a fine car, but I choose to drive an older MB instead. And Windows ain't no Camry.... (IMO)

I've yet to meet someone who switched to a Mac who hasn't been happy with their choice despite some of the comments posted here.

I just rebuilt both mine and my wife's PCs today for less than $550, and that included a new 19" LCD for her (I already have a 20" :D) We both have identical systems except that I have a faster CPU (Black Edition AMD 7750) and better/bigger hard drives) Hers is beyond fast for what she needs, so she should be set for a while. The main goal for hers was to be cool and quiet....it runs so cool with the Athlon X2 4400+ that the CPU fan shuts down half the time! As in it comes to a complete halt! :eek: Crazy efficient. The rest of the time its running at like 800rpm....its essentially dead silent unless you put your ear against the case.

She is running Windows 7beta and likes it. I have XP still due to some older devices I need.....eventually I'll move to 7 though.

Bah to MACs.....they are unnecessary and waaay too expensive. When you can build an apple to your own tastes for under $300 and get a good performing system out of it....then I will be interested. :D

I think that the point Appleholics feel is important is that they have no wish to know how to build a computer. They don't care about tweaking this to get that. They just want an appliance, not a hobby.

However, a lot of them certainly carry an overwhelming amount of "look at me with my MAC" pride.....not all, but many....and thats just annoying. They have no clue how it works or anything, they just like to brag about their spiffy appliance.

Most Mercedes owners do the same thing. ;)

You're just jealous! :D

Geez, always be hating on macs....


Its good to have an open mind about things, especially computers. Some things my Mac can do better than my Windows machine, and my Windows machine can do some things better than my Mac....

No question.

Will the Retail 10.5 copies work?

Its true, I am a lifelong MAC-hater. :D I suppose for the graphics design crowd there's more offered on them than for PC's.....but the main part that bothers me is the "superiority" claims....and the hugely higher price for the same hardware....

I am still gaming with the 4200+ I bought years and years ago. I had to upgrade the video card this year but its still chugging along pretty well. It shows its age sometimes but nowadays games are very GPU intensive rather than CPU intensive. Great processor though, bulletproof.

Hehehe, I have a 6000+. Things a beast with a small O/C to 3.4....



Definitely better at gaming than my MacBook...