Faq for switching from Windows to Mac - hot buttons, program analogues, external drive. My transition from Windows to Mac How to switch from windows to mac os

Pitfalls when moving from Windows to OS X. Impressions of using an iMac after a long time working with computers with Windows on board.

Introduction and purchase background

I have been thinking about changing my computer for a long time. The first thoughts began to appear after testing the budget nettop 3Q Sign. I immediately noticed that the room was suspiciously quiet. It turned out that my old "system unit" was very noisy, just the noise of coolers was so familiar that I stopped paying attention to it. However, you quickly get used to the good, and after the return of the nettop, the difference in noise level was audible to the “naked ear”. Then thoughts of an “upgrade” began to appear. My "system unit" is about four years old, at one time it was bought as a gaming PC, but since then a lot of water has flowed under the bridge, and now I hardly play on the computer.

After testing the nettop, it became clear: small quiet boxes that do not take up much space and are productive enough for everyday activities are what I need.

As luck would have it, various information about OS X appeared on Twitter, then on the site, Alexander Zubkov published his huge “Mac Mini Operating Experience” at about the same time. I trust Sasha's opinion, in many ways our use cases from this article were similar, so I turned my gaze towards Apple technology.

It was clear that if you already take a Mac Mini, then it is necessary with an SSD, so as not to worry about the speed of work. But I did not see such models on any site (now, by the way, they have appeared). It became clear that most likely you would have to install the disk yourself. I adequately assessed my technical knowledge and decided that although I could install an SSD myself, it was better to turn to specialists.

Among my acquaintances, there was only one person working in this field - Alexey, known to some of you on Twitter as @androidioswp. Lesha and I had a long conversation about customizing the Mac Mini: initially I planned to take the cheapest version and just install a 128GB SSD + 1 or 2 TB hard drive into it. But it turned out that such an “upgrade” would have been very expensive, and it was more profitable to take an older version of the Mac Mini (with a Core i5 Quad-Core + 1 TB HDD) and simply install an SSD in it. Thus, the price tag for the Mac Mini has gradually grown to 35 thousand for the configuration I need.

In addition to the nettop, I also wanted to replace the monitor. Artem Lutfullin rightly noted that this is the main tool for work, so there is no need to save money before your eyes. He even recommended that I pay attention to the same monitor as his, we are talking about the Samsung SyncMaster S27A850D model. Its main features are a PLS-matrix with soft colors and high resolution (2560x1440 pixels), as well as support for MiniDisplayPort (and the Mac Mini has a compatible Thunderbolt connector).

Thus, the total cost of the computer approached 60 thousand rubles. Continuing the discussion, Alexey mentioned that people often come to iMac from talking about custom Mac Minis. And then it dawned on me: iMac is indeed the best option, but I did not consider it, assuming that it is insanely expensive. However, it turned out that the configuration I needed would be no more expensive than a bunch of Mac Mini + monitor from Samsung.

In addition, iMac has a number of significant advantages over such a combination. Firstly, it is a single cable for connecting a computer and a monitor. Secondly, built-in speakers, which again has a positive effect on the number of wires. And thirdly, of course, cool appearance and materials. The only problem was the hard drive, no SSD versions were available.

Alexei said that they can pre-order the version with Fusion Drive, and as soon as it arrives at the warehouse, I will be immediately notified. It is important to note here that almost no one is engaged in iMac custom deliveries (did not do it at the time of this writing, the Apple online store has already appeared): for example, I went to MVideo and White Wind, and they were not even heard of them. I did not contact Re:store because of the high prices. In general, Lyosha advised me in some detail, so I purchased an iMac from www.max-up.ru.

It is important to note here that I pre-ordered in mid-February, and the iMac arrived at my place only at the end of April. This is due to a delay in deliveries from the official dealer. As far as I know, now custom iMacs are delivered much faster. In addition, with the opening of the official Apple online store, ordering custom configurations has become even easier.

I apologize to the reader for such a long introduction, I wanted to describe my purchase background and note that I came to the iMac through much thought, that is, it was not an impulsive purchase.

Appearance, materials

The monoblock comes in a large "trapezoidal" package. Interestingly, Apple's new shipments use a double box: cheap cardboard on top and quality packaging underneath. I will not describe in detail the unpacking, since nothing special can be said about it.

Taking the computer out of the package, you immediately notice how light the iMac is, especially if you have dealt with other monoblocks (its weight is just over five kilograms, while the weight of analogues starts from 8-9 kg).

Looking at a freshly bought computer, you can't help but notice that after all, designers at Apple don't eat their bread in vain. iMac looks very nice: stylish appearance, aluminum body, strict black frame around the screen. It is immediately clear that this is a computer that was made so that, among other things, it was simply pleasant to look at. I have had experience behind other all-in-ones, design and materials Apple leaves them far behind. After buying an iMac, you understand what “overpaying for design and materials” is and why it is justified.

In the iMac 2012 review, Sergey Kuzmin noted that reducing the thickness of the monoblock does not carry any functional advantages, but from the point of view of appearance, this solution looks very impressive.

Thanks to the small weight for monoblocks and the successful coating of the iMac support leg, it is very convenient to turn left / right, but you have to do this, because all the connectors are located on the back of the device.

While you have to move your iMac all the way to turn it left/right, you only need to slightly tilt the monitor to adjust its tilt. I note that initially the screen tilted very easily, however, as the device was overgrown with various cables, it became a little harder to raise / lower it.

Design iMac - it's something amazing, even after six months of use, it is still pleasing, the candy bar is just nice to look at. Of the functional features, I liked the back leg, on which you can put some frequently used item, such as a notebook or phone.

Screen

Before describing the screen, I would like to note that before that I used an old ViewSonic with a resolution of 1280x1024 pixels as the main monitor. Its characteristics seemed to me sufficient for comfortable work, and thanks to a convenient aspect ratio, I could manage the workplace as productively as possible (first of all, we are talking about Word and web surfing).

I had experience using a couple of all-in-ones on Windows, so I assumed I knew what quality monitors were. As it turned out, I was deeply mistaken.

When you turn on the iMac, you immediately notice how big the difference in picture quality is between it and everything that you had to test before. The image seems to float out of the screen, the picture is amazingly bright and clear. It was not in vain that I mentioned the computers and monitors that I used and tested before, an experienced reader will notice that neither the MBP Pro Retina 13/15 nor the iPad 3/4 are among them. In fairness, I note that I dealt with both devices, however, for a very short time. And the fleeting memory of “what amazing screens they have” quickly vanished from my mind.

Why all this long introduction? The fact is that to me, as a person who has not previously used Apple technology with Retina displays, the iMac screen seems wonderful: bright, clear, with rich colors, however, for example, to Sergey Kuzmin it no longer seems good enough, the use of iPad 4 and MBP Pro Retina 15 significantly affects the impressions.

As you remember, the previous generation had two significant problems with the screen: dust got under it and it glared a lot. This, by the way, was one of the reasons why I did not consider iMac initially: my workplace is located near the window, and the sun often hits the screen. In iMac 2012, they significantly worked on the display, the absence of an air gap removes the problem with dust under the glass, and a special anti-glare coating negates almost all glare and reflections. Even in strong sunlight, you can work comfortably at the computer (of course, the barely noticeable outlines of your face will be visible on the screen, but this is not at all what it was in the same monoblock from Acer, where the monitor turned into a mirror in sunny weather).

The screen brightness can be conveniently adjusted using the F1/F2 keyboard buttons. Interestingly, this combination does not work in third-party keyboards, but more on that below. In everyday work, I used about 30% brightness, in sunny weather I increased it to 60-70%. To be honest, I have never had a situation where all 100% of the screen brightness would be needed, it is redundant.

I really liked the screen in iMac, I would love to buy a separate monitor from Apple with the same characteristics. Previously, I never understood why buying expensive monitors for 30-40 thousand, and even more so for 90 and above. However, after using an iMac, I see the validity of such decisions even for the average user.

Operating system and firmware

In absentia, I was very loyal to OS X: a lot of positive feedback on the network, some of which were from very authoritative people. Morally, I was ready for changes, a different OS logic, as I assumed that this would be associated with some features that improve the usability of the computer. It is important to note here that I have never considered myself a conservative user: new is always interesting, especially if this new one will be even more convenient in the end.

Before moving on to describe my experience with OS X, I would like to briefly talk about my computer usage scenarios:

First of all, this is a tool for work - a typewriter and a simple photo editor (quickly rename files, correct something, nothing more). Of course, all this is combined with web surfing, twitter, checking mail and other routine activities. In addition, I use the computer as a video player along with a TV connected to it.

It would seem that OS X should cope with such simple actions without unnecessary problems, but it wasn’t there. Working for the "poppy" for the first couple of weeks, I directly felt how he did not want to fit into the environment I was used to. It all started with the fact that I didn’t want to get used to switching the language via Command + Space, on Twitter they immediately suggested a solution in the form of the KeyRemapforMacBook program, but as luck would have it, the Alt + Shift combination could not be configured normally there. It was the same with Alt+Tab. It's amazing how hard it is to retrain for other combinations: imagine that for ten years your right hand was raised at your mental command to raise your right hand, and now, with the same command, your left hand is raised. These are the impressions I experienced from the change of the usual "hotkeys". But my misadventures did not end there. In addition to changing the language, I'm used to Enter opening a folder, Backspace takes you back a section, and F2 is responsible for renaming a file. On OS X, Enter is responsible for renaming, Cmd + down opens the folder, Cmd + up raises you to the section above, Backspace does not have any specified actions at all. And yes, I could do everything through KeyRemap4Macbook in the same way as on Windows, but I liked the quick actions assigned to “efks” by default so much that I didn’t do it. In addition, some users on Twitter logically noted that they should try to adapt to the system, and not try to “make a second Windows out of it”.

But the built-in photo viewer and iPhoto caused the most problems for me. I need very little from such programs: open a picture, rename it (in the same window), move on to the next one. However, when you open a photo in this viewer, you cannot quickly rename it or move to the next one. It's the same with iPhoto: you can only rename a photo if you click on its name. In general, there are a lot of unnecessary actions, and I could not find keyboard shortcuts that cause quick renaming (similar to F2 in Windows).

I will say in advance that I successfully solved both problems, but the first two weeks for the iMac were just a nightmare. I seriously considered either giving it back, or selling it, or putting Windows as my primary OS.

The main message of such a long introduction is that you need to get used to OS X, and even if you are mentally ready for changes, it is far from certain that in your individual case the transition to Apple technology will be easy and painless (although there are many such cases).

About the disadvantages of OS X, I have already said above, now it's time to move on to the merits.

Work tables

On OS X, you can create multiple desktops. In addition, each of them can host certain programs. That is, let's say for work I need Finder, Pages and CyberDuck, and for entertainment I need a browser and a video player. I can set up desktops so that when Pages is opened, a second desktop will open immediately. Thumbnails of all tables are called up by pressing F3 or by swiping up with four fingers (if you are using a touchpad).

In addition, there is a separate desktop with widgets. To get to it, you need to swipe four fingers on the touchpad from left to right. I use this table to post sticky notes and sometimes to check the weather.

Screenshots

I really liked how this feature is implemented in OS X. You can take a screenshot of the screen (Command+Shift+3), a screenshot of a part of the screen (Command+Shift+4) and a screenshot of the active window (Command+Shift+4 followed by a spacebar). By default, all snapshots are on the desktop.

Active corners

A favorite feature of many OS X users. Its essence boils down to the fact that when you hover over a corner, some action is performed (for example, windows are minimized). Personally, I could not start using it, because with any chaotic movement of the cursor towards the corner, an unnecessary action is performed.

Installing and uninstalling applications

OS X has three methods for installing third-party programs. The first one is the simplest. You install an app from the App Store. After downloading, it automatically appears in the list of programs. A long press of the left button on an icon allows you to easily delete it (similar to iOS).

The second is installation using a pkg file. This method is somewhat reminiscent of installing with the help of "executables" in Windows.

The third method is to copy the app file of the program directly to the application folder. As a rule, such files are packed into a dmg archive, and you just need to move the file icon to a folder. If you copy the file to another folder, then the settings and permissions for the application may not be registered.

Finder

Already at the level of the file manager, you begin to understand that in OS X the logic is completely different. There is no hard drive familiar to you, files are sorted by category. I really like this approach, I sorted them the same way on Windows (separate folders for videos, music, photos).

The Finder (and all of OS X) has a handy preview option. You click on the file you need and press the spacebar, after that you will see a preview of the selected image, text (if we are talking about a text file), or the video starts playing. Using the navigation arrows, you can quickly move to the next / previous files, the preview will also be updated in real time. For me it was just a lifesaver. It was possible to view pictures without any problems using previews and immediately rename them by pressing Enter. However, there was one more problem: when renaming the file I needed, it “went” to the top of the list, and I had to scroll through the entire list from the beginning. I tried to set sorting by creation date in the settings, but this sorting only applied to a specific folder, and I had to set it manually each time. I suspect there is a simple solution to this problem, however I couldn't find it.

iTunes

It's amazing how different the experience of the same program can be on different operating systems. For example, using iTunes on Windows is not very convenient: the program either slows down, then freezes, then crashes, in general, there is little pleasant.

But on OS X, none of these problems exist. The application "flies", fits perfectly into the OS interface and does not cause any complaints. I enjoy using iTunes as my main music media player. However, it is important to note here that iTunes has a different logic, and you most likely will not be able to use your usual folder sorting. Here they are replaced by playlists. Of course, it's inconvenient to re-create playlists from your favorite tracks, but after making them once, you can then synchronize them with another Mac or iPod / iPhone without any problems.

The purchase of audio and video content deserves special attention. I fully support the purchase of licensed music, another thing is that most of the tracks I need are most likely sold only in the Japanese section of iTunes (where you can’t figure it out without knowing the language). However, if we talk about Western or Russian performers, then the range is quite extensive. I liked the ease with which you can buy tracks in iTunes. In my opinion, this is how a good music store should be: ease of purchase and ease of listening.

In addition to music, you can also buy movies. I was pleased that among the available resolutions there are HD / FullHD, as well as subtitles and audio tracks in several languages.

I was almost ready to call the movie buying service ideal, if not for a number of “buts”. Firstly, all movies are DRM protected and you can't just copy a movie to your Android smartphone. Secondly, when viewing through iTunes, you cannot select the size of subtitles, for me this drawback turned out to be decisive, since I like to watch films with the original track and Russian subtitles. Thirdly, these same films cannot be played by a third-party player (MPlayerX could not), in which I could adjust the size of the subtitles. Fourth, I would really like to see movie premieres on iTunes at the same time as theaters or with a two-week delay. I think that many, like me, would prefer to watch a movie at home for the same money instead of going to the cinema.

update: In Mavericks, you can now adjust the size of subtitles.

Pages

In Pages, I immediately liked the synchronization with iCloud. Every time I create a document in Pages and make any changes to it, a copy of it is automatically saved to the cloud. It is very comfortable. For example, I can turn off the computer, and the system itself will save the latest changes in a copy. Or here's another example for you: somehow I was finishing the next review, and our lights were suddenly turned off. To say that I was upset is to say nothing. Five minutes later, the lights were turned on again, I launched the iMac without much hope ... And what do you think? My entire document was there, the iMac even graciously opened the programs I was using before shutting down. What would happen on Windows? He would most likely restore the last saved copy and 2-3 hours could go down the drain.

But I didn’t like the spell check in Pages at all. It does not correct even the simplest errors, and this, of course, is frustrating. With grief, I installed MS Office for Mac 2011. However, I could not use it, because I experienced noticeable delays when entering text. That is, I enter "check", and the word appears only after a couple of seconds.

And one more thing: the cost of Pages is 600 rubles. You pay for the program once and receive all future updates for free. The $20 price tag favorably distinguishes Pages from MS Office, which is constantly updated and asks for some wild sums (5,000 rubles) for its license.

By the way, I left MS Office anyway, since it works much better with tablets than Apple's Numbers.

safari

Before installing Google Chrome, I decided to give Apple's built-in browser a chance. At first glance, everything was great - well-drawn fonts, a nice interface, a convenient reading mode, and much more. I adjusted the scaling for myself and started using Safari. After some time, it became clear that the browser does not save the scaling settings, that is, each time you need to scale the site manually. A partial solution could be to set the font size in the settings, but in this situation, the formatting got lost, that is, you saw large letters with tiny pictures. Frustrated, I went to download Google Chrome.

Some time later, I still forced myself to switch to Safari, and all because the rendering of fonts in it is much better than in the same Chrome.

iPhoto

At the beginning of the section, I noted that iPhoto did not suit my tasks, but, nevertheless, I cannot help but talk about the capabilities of this program. If you're a complete photography nerd but want to tweak a particular image a little, then iPhoto is perfect for you. With a simple interface and clear settings, you can easily change the brightness or other photo settings.

Notification Center

As in iOS, in OS X all notifications come through the notification center. In the settings you can change their appearance, I liked the notifications in the form of pop-up windows the most. Unfortunately, for me, the font used in these "clouds" is very small, so I could not fully enjoy the twitter client, which is praised by every Apple user without exception.

Mail & Sparrow

Two great email clients for OS X, one built-in, one third party. I will not describe their functionality in detail, I will simply note that this is exactly what a “mailer” should be like: beautiful, convenient, functional. Personally, I settled on Sparrow, because in Mail, the font size in the inbox column cannot be adjusted.

iMessage

Own messenger for Apple devices. Very simple, but no less convenient. You can also connect the same Google Talk to it. For me, its main advantage is the ability to immediately put images into the chat. It is very comfortable

original accessories

Apple Wireless Keyboard. One of the most beautiful wireless keyboards and one of the few that work via Bluetooth. Before that, I worked on a simple Genius SlimStar i220 White keyboard and got very used to it. Initially, I assumed that the transition to Apple's solution would not cause any problems, the keyboard seemed beautiful and comfortable. But it was not there. Fingers literally "ache" from how unusually the keys on the Apple Wireless Keyboard are located after the solution from Genius. I got used to this keyboard for almost three weeks, and the only argument in its favor was: "Well, it's so beautiful and fits the iMac's appearance so well." Now I only lack full-fledged navigation arrows and a separate digital panel. And of course, it's a shame that the keyboard, which has both arrows and a separate panel... is wired!

Apple Magic Mouse. I was biased towards the Apple mouse even before I got to know it. I fully supported people who criticized its flat appearance, it was immediately clear that holding and using such a mouse would be uncomfortable.

However, at first glance, everything was in order. Yes, the mouse is flatter, but it did not cause any particular inconvenience. However, after half an hour I realized that this was not so. Due to the fact that the index and middle fingers are on the weight, and not leaning on the mouse, after a while, fatigue appears in them, which was not the case with a conventional mouse.

However, there are Magic Mouse and indisputable pluses. For example, horizontal gestures, with their help it is convenient to scroll through the same photos or scroll through some large picture in the browser. In addition, the mouse also supports two-finger gestures, horizontal “swipes” allow you to switch between desktops.

Magic Trackpad. At one of the presentations, I complained to my colleague about the uncomfortable Magic Mouse, as well as the lack of comfortable mice that fit the design of the iMac. He suggested that I take a look at the Magic Trackpad and spoke highly of it. In addition to this recommendation, I had my own interest in getting to know this accessory. To be honest, I have not used Apple laptops for a long time and have long wanted to understand what their touchpads are praising for.

Its main advantage is, of course, multi-touch gestures.

Swipe up and down with two fingers allows you to flip through a web page or any other page.

Swipe with three fingers emulates the selection of an area on the screen.

Swipe with four fingers allows you to switch between desktops.

And yet, despite the amazing convenience and functionality for touchpads, do not forget that these devices act as a replacement for a mouse, so even the simplest mouse can be more convenient than the most sophisticated touchpad. Personally, it’s easier for me to scroll through articles in the browser using the touchpad, but it’s more convenient for me to select objects with the mouse. As a result, I still have Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad lying next to me.

Time Capsule. One of my friends once told me that any of the OS X devices can also act as a router. I got curious and decided to test this feature after taking speed measurements on my previous router. The difference between my router performance and iMac performance as an access point just amazed me. It turned out that the router cut the speed almost twice, while the iMac reduced it by no more than 10%.

After such sad (for my router) tests, it was decided to replace it with an AirPort Time Capsule. A regular Apple router costs about 5-6 thousand rubles, but the “capsule” is only five thousand more expensive, but it has a built-in 2 TB hard drive (there are also modifications with 3 TB). The $5,000 extra seemed appropriate, and I picked up the recently announced updated Time Capsule model.

According to many Apple users, the whole process of setting up the capsule came down to connecting an ethernet cable to it and two or three clicks "Next" in the settings menu. In the worst case, you will have to enter the IP address and DNS servers manually. I, of course, "lucky" most of all. Neither automatic nor manual settings helped. Perhaps this was the only call of the master to the house for the entire time of working with my provider. By the way, he easily managed to set up the capsule, however, he clarified something and asked the adjusters from the office to change it.

After connecting and configuring the capsule, its separate icon appears in the Finder, and you can easily copy and open the files stored on it. They just open with some delay, apparently due to the fact that the capsule works over a wireless connection. As a result, I store almost nothing on the Time Capsule, except for backups.

Windows installation

You have two ways to use Windows on your iMac. The first is using Bootcamp, this utility allows you to install Windows on a separate part of your hard drive and run it as a full-fledged OS on your computer. However, there are two nuances here. First, if you use Windows, it will be installed on your hard drive and you will lose the benefits of Fusion Drive. Secondly, the built-in Intel HD 4000 graphics will not work on Windows, that is, the monoblock will make more noise.

The second option for using Windows is through Parallels. Parallels allows you to start Windows in two modes:

A full fledged emulator, meaning you have a separate window with Windows in it.
"window mode". Each program has its own separate window, in fact, you can work on OS X, and if you wish, switch to the window with the desired program. This is ideal for those who are happy with OS X, but lack a couple of programs from Windows.

Important Note: If you plan to use Parallels frequently, it's best to get an iMac with 16 GB of RAM.

Interestingly, when installing Parallels, the program automatically downloads a clean system image itself, which is very convenient. Parallels can also "hook" your installed through BootCamp Windows.

Performance

I deliberately ordered the simplest configuration available. I don't need a powerful graphics card, so I didn't see the point in paying extra for it, but I knew for sure that the Fusion Drive was something worth paying extra for. So my iMac has the following configuration:

Video card: NVIDIA GeForce 640M
Internal storage: Fusion Drive (128GB SSD+1TB HDD)
RAM: 8 GB
Processor: Intel Core i5 Quad-Core Ivy Bridge

The first thing I immediately liked was that the iMac turned on very quickly, as if I turned on the TV, not the computer. A little later, I noticed that Apple uses a clever trick: as soon as you turn on the device, a gray apple appears on a white background with the sound “Ta-dam”, and you subconsciously think that the computer is already on. However, this apple hangs for about three or four seconds, during which the system is still loading, but the user is sure that it has already loaded.

Second, Apple computers don't need to be turned off, they don't boot up with junk, and they don't slow down without long reboots. In the case of the iMac, this is of course not so impressive, but I am sure that all MacBook owners love this feature very much.

Third: the almost complete absence of noise, if you switch to an iMac from a regular desktop computer, this will be immediately noticeable.

Now I propose to talk about the features of Fusion Drive. Ideally, iMac will automatically move frequently accessed files to the SSD, and less frequently accessed files to the HDD. In fact, all new files are first written to the SSD by default, and then, when the threshold of 4 GB is reached during a one-time transfer, they are transferred to the HDD. To be honest, I don’t really like this approach, I prefer the HDD and SSD to be two separate drives, and I could independently set the folders that will definitely be on the SSD.

As far as performance is concerned, there are no complaints when performing my daily tasks (video, browser, twitter, mail, browsing and minimal photo processing). The only thing is that sometimes when quickly scrolling through the “previews” of iMac photos, it can think for a second or two. As other Mac owners have told me, if the photos were on the SSD, there would be no such problems.

I'm not afraid that the "stuffing" of my iMac will become outdated, given that new versions of OS X work stably even on devices with the last generation of processors and Intel HD 3000 graphics cards.

Webcam, microphone, speakers

As I said at the beginning of the article, the indisputable advantage of monoblocks is the minimum number of cables. So, you do not need to specifically connect the same webcam or external microphone. However, the convenience and quality of the built-in components do not always meet the user's requirements.

In my opinion, the iMac has excellent stereo speakers, they can perfectly replace the speakers for a couple of thousand rubles. The sound in them is clear and without wheezing, even at maximum volume.

I was very pleased with the built-in microphone, it has excellent sensitivity, they can hear you perfectly, even if you are sitting at a distance of two meters from the monoblock.

The quality of the webcam is also beyond praise, I would separately note the fact that it works better in FaceTime than in Skype.

Conclusion

I paid 67 thousand rubles for the iMac configuration I needed. Now it costs 62 thousand. Perhaps the key question that I wanted to answer is: “How convenient is iMac and OS X for a simple user?”. If we talk about the iMac itself, then there are no complaints about it: a stunning design, a high-quality display, nice body materials and fast work. But about OS X, I can’t speak so unequivocally. The impressions of it for each user will be individual, it all depends on how it fits your needs. It took me about a month to get used to, and I can’t say that the transition was “smooth and painless”. Now I am happy to use OS X, because all the necessary programs have been found, and I am used to all the features of the OS. Of course, OS X has many strengths: excellent synchronization of your documents with iCloud, fast work speed, nice interface, and easy system backup. But some functions seem simply illogical, for example, why you need to use a combination of two keys to open folders, although this is a frequently used operation, why it was impossible to make a separate “hotkey” for cutting, etc. I don't like Apple's "we know what's best, do as we say" approach. On the other hand, they use a tricky trick: they make 80% of the actions in their OS very convenient, and the user is forced to put up with the remaining 20%, because in general he is satisfied with almost everything.

OS X seemed to me in many ways more convenient than Windows, but at the same time, I understand that both operating systems have their pros and cons. Another question is that I don’t like the direction in which Windows is currently developing (we are talking about the “tiled eight”), but in OS X everything seems to be stable so far (and I really hope that the colorful trends from iOS7 will not touch the “poppies”).

Now I would like to talk about the possible configurations of Apple home computers and which one I think is the best.

In my opinion, it makes sense to take an iMac 2013 Late with a 256 GB SSD, and then buy an additional external hard drive of the volume you need for it. Now there are many models (starting from LaCie and ending with 3Q) that look great on Apple technology. An SSD model will run faster than a Fusion Drive, and all rarely used data can be stored on an external drive.

Also an interesting option is a combination of a Mac Mini and any external monitor. The ideal option is the Apple Thunderbolt Display, but it only makes sense to wait for an update built on the basis of the current iMac line.

A little more about the price: Apple computers are expensive, on average 30% more expensive than their Windows counterparts. Yes, in some respects (appearance, materials) they win, but for everyday work, the capabilities of a laptop / monoblock on Windows will be enough for you. And the last piece of advice I would like to give to prospective "switchers": don't jump right in, if you decide to switch to OS X, then you don't need to start with an expensive iMac or MacBook Pro Retina, choose something simpler, the same Mac Mini or Air of the previous generation. No one can tell in advance whether you will like this operating system or not.

Evgeny Vildiaev (

Updated: 2017-3-4

Oleg Lazhechnikov

Most recently, I voiced my own and now, as promised, I am publishing a mini-faq on the topic of switching from windows to mac. If someone remembers, then at the very beginning I asked a few questions about using a poppy. Then I asked if there was some kind of manual for beginners on the network. I was advised a lot of things in the comments, but no one gave a link to the summary post, apparently everyone figured it out themselves without any problems. In principle, this is indeed the case, it is not difficult to figure it out, much easier than it seems. But nevertheless, I still wrote this article, which will contain what I needed then. Some might find this useful in the transition.

The touchpad has both taps and clicks (quite hard pressed), as well as various gestures. Therefore, first of all, you need to go to Programs / System Settings / Trackpad and see everything that is there, some of the questions will end there. The touchpad here is excellent, and I still don’t use a mouse in principle, I hope to get used to it without it, since it’s not always convenient when traveling with it because of the need for an additional surface.

I will list the most basic actions on the touchpad.

Double click: double tap or single click.

Middle click: cmd + tap

Text selection: click on the touchpad and, without releasing, select text. And through a double tap, as you can’t do on Windows.

Move a window or tab in a browser: click on the touchpad and, without releasing, drag where you want. But it's easier to do it with two fingers, with one click in the lower left corner (the cursor should be on the window name), and with the second we drag. The second method allows you to drag to any distance, while the first is limited by the size of the touchpad.

Scroll down or up: move up or down with two fingers at the same time (very convenient).

Three fingers up gesture: we get into mission control, or if, in Russian, then all windows are reduced and we see all running applications on the desktop at once. By clicking on the reduced window, it is now very easy to go to the application you need.

Three finger gesture left/right: move between desktops.

The last two gestures, it's just mega-convenient! I can't imagine now how it is possible to work without them.

Multiple desktops

Desktops can be created while in Mission Control mode. In any desktop, you can run the required number of applications or transfer already running ones there. Someone, for example, distributes by topic: work, communication, entertainment. Also, any application switched to full screen mode (usually shift + cmd + F) itself creates a new desktop. True, in this case, only one can be located on this desktop. Thus, we have the required number of desktops, each of which contains, or one full-screen
application, or multiple windowed applications.

Hot buttons on mac

What's convenient is that the basic combinations are valid for any program, such as "open settings". This will work everywhere. Equally convenient is that you can create hotkeys for almost any action in any program. This is done in System Preferences / Keyboard / Keyboard Shortcuts.

To the bottom of the page: cmd + down arrow
To the top of the page: cmd + up arrow

At the end of the phrase: cmd + right arrow
At the beginning of a phrase: cmd + left arrow

Close a stuck application: option+cmd+escape. Or open System Monitor (located in programs), this is an analogue of the task manager, and there we select the process to close.

Hide the Dock: option + cmd + D. Frees up screen space, and only appears on hover.

Copy: cmd+C
Insert: cmd+V
Cut in Finder: first just copy and then paste via option + cmd + V
Regular cut: cmd + X. Works in all programs, and in particular in Pathfinder.
Delete: cmd+delete

Layout switching: cmd+space
Cancel punto switcher layout switch: option

Starting the spotlight window: control + space. Spotlight is a global Mac search.

App exit: cmd + Q. Not exactly analogous to the red cross, because some applications remain hanging in the background when you click on the cross. And here is the full output.
Close application window: cmd + W. It is convenient to close tabs in the browser or the Finder window (it always opens with a window, as it were).

Expand window to full screen: control + command + F (less commonly shift+cmd+F)

Dot: cmd+7
Comma: cmd+6

Open program settings: cmd + ,

external hard drive for mac

I discovered the unpleasant news that Windows and Mac have different file systems, which means that an external hard drive can be used by default with either a MacBook or a Windows laptop. That is, my hard drive, formatted in NTFS, is seen on a poppy, but you can only copy files from it to a laptop, but you can’t write it back. In fairness, I can say that if you reformat the hard disk to HFS + (mac file system), then Windows will not see such a disk at all, neither for copying nor for writing.

There are more or less ways out of this situation:

Format the hard drive to FAT32. But there will be a 4 GB file size limit.
Leave the hard drive in NTFS and put NTFS Tools, NTFS-3G, Paragon NTFS, Tuxera NTFS and the like drivers on the poppy. The solution is bad because you can lose all the data on the external drive if you use it frequently with a poppy. Also, not all Mac programs will be able to work with the disk directly (I read about it, but did not check it).
Format the disk in HFS + and install Mac Browser on Windows. The same thing, you can lose data with frequent use on Windows.
Formatting in exFAT is seen by both operating systems, but the file system itself is not very suitable for storing important files, because it is not very reliable.

I acted differently. Since the files on the hard are very important to me, I sometimes have them in a single copy, and this disk is also working and I work with it every day, the choice is obvious for me - HFS +! This is the most stable and secure solution, and you don’t need to install anything else anywhere. But since sometimes I have to transfer files with a Windows laptop, I also created a 50 GB exFAT partition on the disk, which is quite enough to transfer files to Windows or work with this disk on it. As an option, set up a network between laptops, and use network drives.

Applications and analogues

You can find all the programs with tablets on any trackers. You can buy or download free ones on the App Store or official sites. In fact, there are a lot of free programs.

Lightroom - remains the same, there is a version for poppy with a tablet or for money. Instead, they still advise a cheaper, but not worse analogue - Aperture, but I have not yet set it as unnecessary. And the analogue of Photoshop is Pixelmator, although Photoshop can be installed.

The built-in image viewers (there are two of them) by default do not allow you to scroll through photos from one folder, for this you need to select a group of files and press enter or space, depending on which viewer you like best. You could get used to this additional action, but they scroll through Raw on Retina with a delay, moreover, and small pictures are small, the resolution is high.

And I installed a free XnviewMP viewer for myself. It scrolls through everything quickly, and scales the photo to fit the retina (multiplies the photo resolution by two), and in it you can change the image format, crop the photo, and so on. The only bad thing is that it bugs me a little, it consists in not remembering some settings. I also installed Xee and Sequential viewers, but they also scroll RAW very slowly. Xee is still standing and is used to scroll jpeg, maybe I’ll just leave it, because I started watching Raw only in Lightroom. There is also a Viewer from the App Store for 169 rubles, which is simple and scrolls through everything from the folder, but also scrolls through RAW with a delay.

Clipboard history - Clipmenu, free.

Punto switcher has a version for poppy, it's a pity it doesn't have a diary, it's free.

Microsoft Office - available for a poppy with a tablet or for money.

Life hack 2 - how to find a hotel for 20% cheaper

Thank you for reading

4,50 out of 5 (ratings: 2)

Comments (32 )

Blue

Dmitriy

Nowadays, users are not particularly surprised to hear such words as Mac or OS X - many people know the advantages of "macs", but unfortunately not everyone can switch to a new platform. There can be many reasons for this: someone is afraid that they will not be able to find analogues of their favorite programs, and someone is worried about the new user interface. There are times when users, after buying a Mac, install the familiar Windows on their computer because of some little things. The publication Hitech.vesti.ru offered a list of useful tips for those who decide to switch to OS X.

In case of emergency, back up your entire Windows system, preferably to an external hard drive. To ensure your saved files are fully compatible with OS X, make sure the drive is formatted in FAT32. (The fact is that NTFS - the “native” Windows file system - works with the “poppy” “out of the box” in read-only mode. In other words, on OS X you can open and copy files from a “flash drive”, but you won’t be able to change or delete them. The problem can be fixed by installing a third-party NTFS driver, paying about 600 rubles for it).

Migration Assistant, a free utility that comes with every Mac, will help you directly transfer the contents of one computer to another. It copies literally everything: from the background image and email accounts to music, documents, contacts in the address book and bookmarks in the browser. You will need to install the same utility on a Windows computer and connect both PCs to the same network (via Wi-Fi, a router or an Ethernet cable). You can download Migration Assistant and read the full setup guide on the Apple website.

There are two ways to install applications on OS X: from the official Mac App Store (similar to the App Store for iPhones, which use the same Apple ID), or by downloading distributions from the Internet. If you want to resort to the second, less secure method, then keep in mind that the Mac is prohibited from downloading programs from third-party sources by default. To remove this restriction, go to “Settings” → “Security” → “General” and check the box next to “Any source” for “Allow the use of programs downloaded from”.

Most programs are very easy to install. As a rule, for this it is enough to “mount” the DMG image by double-clicking on it in the Finder (analogue of “Explorer” in Windows), and drag the .app file into the Applications folder. However, when installing "heavy" applications such as Microsoft Office or Photoshop, the whole process will be about the same as in Windows.

To uninstall a program, open the Finder, find .app in Applications and right-click on it and choose Move to Trash. To completely clean the system, it is recommended to use utilities such as CleanMyMac, which help to get rid of not only the program itself, but also all related settings and other elements.

On OS X, there is an alternative to almost every application that exists for Windows XP. However, if you need any specific software, or you often play games (very few of them are available on Apple's operating system), you can use the free Boot Camp utility. It will allow you to install XP, Vista, Windows 7 or 8 on your Mac by creating a new partition on your hard drive. To select one or another OS, hold down the Option (Alt) key while the computer boots. If you want Windows (as well as Ubuntu, Android, Chrome OS, etc.) to run side-by-side with OS X, and you can freely drag and drop files between applications, one of the virtualization solutions - for example, Parallels Desktop - is your choice.

Apple's UNIX-like operating system is very close to Windows - you can easily find analogues of familiar programs in it. For example, File Explorer corresponds to Finder, Control Panel → System Preferences, Flip 3D (on the Windows 7 desktop) → Mission Control (to access it, press F3), Gadgets (in Windows 7) → Dashboard (to open the panel, press F12), Office → iWork, Notepad → TextEdit, Start menu → Launchpad (you will find it in the Dock), system tray → menu bar in the upper right corner , “Task Manager” → “System Monitor”, taskbar → Dock (a row of icons at the very bottom of the screen), Windows Live → “Messages”, etc.

Everything related to OS X settings is located in the System Preferences app. From here, you can connect your Google, Microsoft Exchange, and Twitter accounts, set up firewall, sound, mouse, and keyboard settings, change network and power settings, connect printers and scanners, and more.

To enable the firewall, go to Settings → Security & Privacy → select the Firewall tab and click on the Enable Firewall button. From now on, OS X will block incoming connections that you have not authorized. Firewall, which would monitor outgoing connections, the “poppies” do not. However, this problem can be solved by installing a special utility - for example, Little Snitch.

OS X (since version 10.5 - Leopard) includes an excellent Time Machine application for system backup. This function works very simply: if the computer “sees” the drive connected to it, it will automatically suggest using it as a backup location. Duplicates of photos, documents, applications are made automatically every hour. In the event of an emergency, the “time machine” allows you to “return to the past” and restore the file in the form in which it was at a certain point in time. Copies are made until the disc is full. If there is no more space left, TM will automatically delete the old files and write new ones.

The keyboard layout on Macs is pretty much similar to Windows, but it will take some getting used to. Most commands that are executed by holding down the CTRL (Control) button in Microsoft OS begin with Command (the key with the ⌘ icon) in OS X. For example, to copy text, press ⌘ + C, and to paste - ⌘ + V. Also, keep in mind that Macs do not have Alt buttons - Option (⌥) serves as their replacement.

In general, any keyboard can be connected to a Mac computer, even with a Windows layout. For convenience, the functions of the keys can be reassigned: go to “Settings” → “Keyboard” → “Keyboard” tab → “Modification keys…” and change, for example, pressing CTRL for your Windows keyboard to Command.

The Delete button on a Mac keyboard, unlike Del on Windows, deletes "back". To delete "forward" on MacBook laptops or Apple wireless compact keyboards, hold down the FN button and press Delete. Alternatively, you can buy a “large” Apple Pro keyboard with a numeric keypad, where there is such a key.

Finally, Mac keyboards have dedicated F-keys for adjusting audio volume, screen brightness, controlling iTunes music playback, and more. However, by connecting a Windows keyboard, you will not be able to use them without installing special software. So we recommend that you master the powerful KeyRemap4MacBook utility, which allows you to remap absolutely any button on any device, or the simpler Keyboard Maestro.

In Windows, scrolling a window with the mouse wheel corresponds to moving your finger, but in OS X (as of version 10.7) it's exactly the opposite. If you don't like Apple's "Natural Scrolling" approach, go to Settings → Mouse and uncheck "Scroll Direction: Normal". With other peripherals, there should be no problems: your printers, scanners and audio systems will most likely be compatible with the Mac. However, in some cases, in order for OS X to “recognize” the device, you will need to install special drivers. You can download them from the manufacturer's website.

The Mac is capable of reading and writing to hard drives and flash drives formatted in FAT 32 (but not NTFS) for Windows. This applies to all types of connections - via USB, FireWire or Thunderbolt. But even in this case, not all information (for example, metadata) can be transferred. Thus, if you no longer plan to use an external drive with a Windows computer, it is recommended that you format it under OS X. You can do this using the Disk Utility that comes with your Mac.

For five months, I experimented with trying to completely abandon the PC in favor of the Mac. I stopped using my powerful 6-core desktop with 32 gigs of memory and put laptops on the shelf. It's time to sum up.

Will I return to the PC, will I put the good old Windows 8.1 on the Mac instead of OS X, or will I continue to fly? Let's figure it out. When I took it for a test, they asked me if I was a win-user or a poppy. Then I was definitely a win-user and didn’t plan to leave for the Mac, but it was then that I thought about the experiment and did not put it off indefinitely.

There are those who have heard a lot about the wonders of the Mac and dream about it, those who switched to the Mac and no longer want to go back, and those who tried, returned to Windows and don’t step on this rake anymore. The first is a clear exaggeration, the last two options have the right to life.

About config

For the experiment, in August 2014, I took an average MacBook Pro 13 with Retina Display (Late 2013), which I later regretted a lot. I did not put Windows on it either through Bootcamp, did not use any emulators and virtual machines. The config chose a good one, but not the top one - 8 gigabytes of memory, 512 GB on a solid state drive and a Core i5 processor with a frequency of 2.6 GHz on two cores plus HyperThreading, as is the case with Intel. The video card in this configuration is integrated, also from Intel.

The final impressions are quite ambiguous. In places, MacOS X is very annoying, and the reason, as I understand it, is twenty-odd years of using DOS and Windows, starting from the earliest versions. To this day, I'm stuck with habits that might not work on a Mac.

When interviewing my Mac friends, the most common response I hear is “weird, I haven’t run into this problem,” and as I googled, I found the internet was full of questions on the same topic from disgruntled Windows migrants. I don't know how the "don't use it that way" skill is passed on, according to Jobs' precepts, but this method somehow works, damn it.

You have to understand that MacOS X is in many ways just a very different system, with a different initial ideological approach. She tries to get as far as possible from folders and files to documents, more and more merges with iOS, where, unlike Android, data is not “on disk” but “in applications”. Hence the peculiar logic, which you can not get used to.

Do not think that in all aspects MacOS X is intuitive. This system has to be studied as carefully as I once studied Windows, and it will take months and months to fully get used to, with a thorough understanding of what and how to do. You get used to something instantly, but something “from good Windows” spoils your nerves for a long time. Let's say I couldn't intuitively figure out how to use the MacBook in “external monitor only” mode, while in Windows beeches this is done through a simple Fn + F button or a single checkmark in the settings.
There were also problems at the first stage, immediately after installation - a conflict between switching layouts and Spotlight, the inability to connect to an iCloud account, then Continuity did not immediately work for me in full when Yosemite came out. There was a glitch with keyboard recognition, Safari crashed, etc. I even created a special file “jambs when I first met a Mac”, where I meticulously stuffed a couple of dozen lines.

But a day later, I realized that in general, all the main tasks, if they do not go beyond the ordinary, can be solved comfortably on a Mac, and only a step to the left or right here leads to dullness and googling.

The situation is reminiscent of iOS vs. Android, especially those who switched from Android to the apple axis will understand me.

About the bad

According to the results of the test, I remained of the opinion that MacOS X is not as stable a system as Windows 8. If something is frozen (a process, a dialog box, a setup wizard), then often it can no longer be picked up, and it will even be impossible to restart the laptop through the menu (killing the process and dancing with a tambourine at the user level will not help either).

I also remember the epic moment when, when an external 4K monitor was connected via the Thunderbolt port (miniDisplayPort interface), the control panel hung and could not be revived. The dialog boxes of copying processes hung, tightly, when the USB drive was accidentally disconnected. My Mac really doesn't like to stop ringing through Continuity when there is an incoming call on the iPhone (the smartphone stopped ringing a long time ago, and the Mac shows that there is an incoming call and rings all over the room). Especially delivers early in the morning, when the iPhone is set to “do not disturb”, and Mac and stung larks are not affected.

Why go for examples? During the first installation, for about ten minutes, the main control panel hung in the hourglass. It’s not just that I compiled the already mentioned list of “problems that I encountered when I first met the Mac”, this has not happened with Microsoft products for many years, since the days of buggy hardware and the first releases of Win’95. If once I could call Windows glitchy and slow, then those times are long gone, now there are other problems, and in 2015 we will eat them with a ladle, exactly at the speed of distribution of 4K screens and laptops with 3200x1800 matrices.

Finder… is another story. It is he who annoys me the most in MacOS X. Periodically, I need to clean up a large array of different drives (SATA, USB, NAS, DAS) - search, delete, regroup folders and files in them. Explorer in Windows XP was even smarter, smarter, its implementation for Windows 8.1 is two orders of magnitude more efficient than Finder in MacOS X.

Why in 2014 Apple does not understand that it is often necessary to merge several folders with the same name together without overwriting them with each other, I have no idea. Why the Merge command is hidden in the wilds and does not always work, too. Why can't the transfer or copy process be paused? Why is it not really visible, the progress bar in the taskbar? All this has been in Windows for a long time, and it is very difficult to refuse it.

Even add-ons like Total Finder don't really solve the "merge folders" problem. I spent a lot of time looking for an alternative program, eventually settling on Disk Order, which is also not ideal.

I suspect that Mac users, on average, don't do much with file operations. In the classic scenario with iCloud, documents in app folders, using Spotlight, everything works like clockwork, exactly as you suspect. That is, it is a user-friendly system, but not power-user-friendly at all until all reflexes change. No, I don't understand and don't want to understand why you need to merge folders through the console.

The window management system is also in its infancy. When you connect a Mac to a screen with a resolution of 2560x1440 and higher (not to mention 4K), this rises to its full height. Where in Windows I spent exactly two clicks and a couple of button presses to remap windows, here you have to dance with your hands or install the BetterSnapTool plugin, which is good, but not perfect. And yes, with 4K monitors and TVs, the system works completely differently than with native Retina displays. Everything is very small, right pixel by pixel. Even at 65 inches diagonal is not very convenient.

There are problems even in the elementary. Say, I told the system a dozen times that AVI files should always be opened only in VLC, and not in QuickTime, but she stubbornly does not listen to me: “The AVI file was created in VLC and will be opened in QuickTime” ?! Where is the logic if I just said that the file needs to be opened in VLC and always?

And where is the “archive it for me there”? And why does the regular archiver still have problems with the Russian encoding? Okay, you can also get around, but you have to look for an alternative. In general, this notorious “find an alternative” became an exciting quest for me, because I know a lot of good software for Windows, which could solve my problems instantly.

Software is another headache. Developers around the world are guided by the mass nature of the platform, choosing which OS to write software for. Therefore, Microsoft Office is disgusting for Mac, therefore it is impossible to find a normal photo folder manager, and in general for some tasks you do not immediately find software that is as effective as for Windows. But, after a while, after smoking forums and googling, something is found. As a rule, something very paid and not quite the same as under Windows. There is no ACDSee alternative here, for example.

To my Mac's credit, I have no problem working with Office documents, including presentations and spreadsheets, but it's not as pretty as it is with native apps and documents.

Because of my Windows habits, I don’t like a lot in MacOS X. Much has not become familiar, but over time, I felt how adaptation was coming. You start doing something differently, you stop doing some things altogether, and as a result, tasks are solved and the process goes on. I can do absolutely everything on my Mac without Windows. It took some getting used to, but it worked out in the end. There is a class of tasks that you cannot do without Windows, something from the field of accounting, as I understand it, but this is not my profile.

About good

I don't plan to move from MacOS X to Windows and don't want to use PC anymore. As an IT specialist with many years of experience, it is difficult for me to explain this, because there is little rational in this decision. As a techie, I understand that I am wasting time on some things, and that MacOS does not give me any obvious performance benefits. Photoshop and Lightroom do not work faster here when measuring with a stopwatch, videos do not compress more efficiently, archives do not create better.

This feeling of comfort works in all familiar applications. Let's say I fell in love with the Apple Magic Mouse and the way it scrolls through a sheet in Photoshop, I enjoy typing articles in Pages instead of Word, and I love the order that iTunes keeps in my library. Lightroom doesn't run faster, but it does feel smoother on a Mac. Safari has a very, very nice scaling of pages with multitouch and, like on tablets, by double tapping on the mouse.

On a Mac, it's nice to read books from the screen, surf, listen to music, there are excellent regular applications like iPhoto and iMovie for amateur work with photos and videos. In general, in the basic version, for the usual tasks of ordinary users, the Mac is well equipped. Merge footage on iPhone to clean memory? Easy and logical. Make up a home video? No problem. Write an article, make a presentation, calculate expenses and incomes in a table - at ease.

I really liked the concept of Continuity, which Windows has yet to grow and grow. Really convenient to answer SMS and calls from Mac without interrupting your work. When you go out for a breath of not fresh and not air, it is convenient to continue reading the site from the iPhone, which will show which tabs are open in Safari. When you return, you can continue in the big Safari. On the Mac, I left with Chrome, the native browser is more convenient here, although it is not without flaws.

It is also convenient here to work with documents “in the cloud”, continuing what you started on one device with another. Let's say, having started writing on an iPhone or iPad, I can just continue on a Mac, and this allows me to unload the bag, not always taking a large system with me. Writing articles on the iPhone using a stand, Pages and Bluetooth keyboard is very convenient. However, Android also allows you to connect a mouse, but there are always some glitches with failures.

And of course, the Mac is strong in terms of infrastructure. When you have an iPhone, iPad, AppleTV, MacBook, and MacPro, it all integrates and interacts beautifully. Really convenient for everyday tasks, from entertainment to working with content. Creating something like this on Windows + Android, with DLNA and UpNP will require much more skill from the user, and will not work like a clock, it is also intuitive (outside of native films, everything will not be so smooth, say BluRay 3D images or films in non-H.264 codecs are also not easy to watch).

I liked the concept of “drag an application to Programs”, the lack of a registry, Launchpad, widgets, gesture control, grouping programs in the dock and working with network drives in MacOS X. All the necessary utilities started up, I found good add-ons and extensions, I appreciated how convenient it is to format articles by taking screenshots and how convenient it is to conduct presentations and lectures from Mac. That is, almost adapted.

Many benefits of the Mac, such as "great color work", are greatly exaggerated. Some things, like “it lasts longer than writing laptops on battery power” is ready to confirm. And yes, I really like the power adapter with the MagSafe II connector, which folds perfectly and is not afraid of cable jerks, as well as the unification of power supplies between models (the power supply unit from the older MacBook can charge the younger ones) I really like. I have never seen such a wonderful power supply for winbooks, in all the years.

The touchpad, as well as working with the native Apple Magic Mouse, is a separate issue. I've tried just about every touchpad out there on modern winbooks, and some are great, but none even come close to being a MacBook touchpad. Working with it is so comfortable that I constantly forget to connect a mouse to the beech. When I was told this before, I did not believe it, I was full of skepticism. I confess, I beat my heel in the chest.

Let me summarize

I stay on the Mac and will use Windows as needed for individual work tasks and experiments, tests of various gadgets and hardware, and, well, so as not to lose my qualifications. And yet, the Mac will be my main system in 2015, as it became the main iPhone 6 Plus smartphone, and the main AppleTV media player.

First of all, I will think about upgrading (non-trivial) or replacing the MacBook Pro 13 with a more powerful configuration. I don’t want 15, it’s too heavy for my tasks, and I’m really looking forward to 4-core processors in “trinas”, my next system will be with 1 TB of solid state memory for storage and 32 GB of RAM, because 8 GB slows me down, and 500 gigs for all the necessary files is not enough.

I will have a lot of questions about the Mac on my blog, stories about how I dealt with this or that problem or bypassed the system limitation. The topic is fruitful, it is interesting to understand it.

Should you switch to Mac from Windows? Good question. If we are talking about whether the system will give some clear gain in performance or in working with graphics, then definitely not. Other things being equal, the same power PC will cost much less. Working with photos and videos will not become faster from changing the operating system, as well as working with any heavy content. By itself, MacOS X does not speed up the processor, and the software for Windows is well optimized.

Is it difficult to switch to Mac? Not really, but there are a lot of pitfalls for those who know Windows well. Habits will have to be forgotten, and it will be difficult to return back. Still, Windows and MacOS X are noticeably different, and when reflexes change, you get slower, for a while.

But, in general, MacOS X is a very comfortable and well-tailored system for infrastructure, it’s just a pleasure to work with, and this comfort, in my opinion, is worth the transition if you can afford to overpay for systemicity and connectivity. Some things here are made more convenient and easier, the same RAW viewing directly in the Finder, or its methods of navigating through folders with previews.

Starting with MacOS X, giving away a Mac as a first computer, makes a lot of sense. If you really press it, you can always roll Windows here and the system will become twice useful.

The question is to those who left for a Mac with Windows and did not return - what bribed you in the end? And there are those among my readers and friends who are back and more on the Mac with a foot?

As I wrote before install Windows on iMAC/ MACBOOK PRO/ AIR, MAC mini is not a big deal. But after installing Windows, this operating system will boot every time you turn it on by default. And if you want to boot MAC OS, you need to hold down the ALT key when you turn on iMAC / MACBOOK PRO / AIR, MAC mini to select MAC OS boot later. Agree, this is not very convenient, especially if you mainly work on MAC OS and only occasionally do you need to boot under Windows. In order to correct the situation and select MAC OS as the default boot, you need to follow a number of simple steps.

So, our goal on iMAC/ MACBOOK PRO/ AIR, which has a second Windows operating system installed, is to make MAC OS boot by default. To do this, you need to boot your MAC device under MAC OS. To do this, restart your iMAC / MACBOOK PRO / AIR, MAC mini and at the very beginning of the download, press and hold the ALT key. As a result, the OS boot selection window should appear. Choose MacOS.

Select "Boot Volume".

In the boot volume window, choose which operating system will boot by default. In this example, this is a MAC (Mavericks OS X 10.9.5). Just click on it, below in the menu you will see the line "You have chosen ..." - this is a confirmation of your choice.