PC Guy with a Mac

Why did I buy this thing?

Archive for the ‘Apple Questions Answered’


My First Macintosh Support Question Answered!

Published January 9th, 2008 in Apple Questions Answered | 1 Comment »

Even though I can’t bill this customer $1500 for tech support (to make up for the purchase price of the MacBook and upgrades), I was awfully impressed with how fast the answer to this question came to me, AND it was correct:

Hey Brian,
I’m trying to put the shared (server folder) on (the) Mac but am not sure how to create a shortcut on the desktop. Any suggestions?

My response (and someone needs to get me a cookie while I pat myself on the back, STAT):

..go to Finder -> Go and select Connect to Server. Here, you can enter:

smb://192.168.10.1

..and select Connect to access the file server. If you hit the Plus sign next to the server address, the address will be added as a “Favorite Server”.

Thank you Jennifer at MAC Presents for allowing me to share my wisdom with you (smiley) In all seriousness though, any of my readers out there who know of a better or more exacting way of getting Jennifer’s Macintosh connected to a MSWindows Small Business Server 2003, please leave a comment!

My First Apple-related Tech Support Question

Published December 26th, 2007 in Apple Questions Answered | 1 Comment »

Well, it was bound to happen. One of my long-time customers and friends heard that I was diving deep into all things Cupertino and emailed me this question:

If I transition from a Palm Treo on Verizon to an iPhone on AT&T, what will I gain, and what will I lose? Will the iPhone sync with Outlook? Will my telephone coverage suffer?

Following is my response, and anyone can jump in here and correct me at will:

What you will lose in switching from the Palm platform to the iPhone platform:

  • A LOT of third-party applications to choose from
  • The ability to change out a dead battery
  • A proven track-record of dependability and performance
  • The ability to switch carriers
  • The ability to attach to a Microsoft Exchange server
  • The ability to open/modify Microsoft documents and spreadsheets
  • Slow Internet connection provided by AT&T (in my opinion)

What you will gain in switching from the Palm platform to the iPhone platform:

  • Street cred ;)
  • Full integration with iTunes (if you use iTunes for music purchases and playback on your PC)
  • A few good, solid applications that come pre-loaded with the iPhone
  • A very good camera that takes very good photographs (I’ve seen this in action)
  • Wi-Fi (assuming that your phone does not have this feature)

As for telephone coverage suffering, I really cannot say, but what I can say is that if you get in to bed with AT&T (which you will have to when getting an iPhone) you are stuck with their service, good or bad. Apple’s exclusivity with AT&T is going to last five years, so if you make the iPhone investment, make sure that you’re in it for the long haul (or hack the phone, which would be a hobby in and of itself).

My closing thought on the iPhone is that it is a neat device, and it definitely feels like I’m using it within the context of an Apple operating environment. The touch-screen is slick, but the fluidity of the animations that you see on the commercials (eg: when turning the iPhone on it’s side to display a web site in landscape mode) is not there.

Personally, I’m waiting for Google’s wireless offering (Android) to hit. I truly believe that the next evolution in operating systems (PC and mobile) will be to allow individuals to customize their operating environments, both functionally and visually (and I shouldn’t forget “easily”). By it’s open nature, Google’s Android should allow for a highly-customizable and “open” experience.