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[RnDr FOX]

For the past couple of weeks I have been thinking about buying a macbook. It will have the mac os x leperd operating system and I was wondering if anim8or or any other 3d modeling systems are copatable with the macbook. (If I have to I will use boot camp) Would you suggest for me to buy a mac. I really want one but I also want all of my programs that I use on my Windows XP to work with it. I would prefere to receive comments from people who own a mac. 

[hihosilver]

There are many 3d modeling systems compatible with macs, anim8or is not one of them sadly.  You may be able to run them with bootcamp or parallels though.  I can't be specific with that, but I'm sure it could work.

[Raxx]

The Mac operating system and hardware are excellent (if pricey). However, you should purchase yourself one only if you plan on committing yourself to programs that run natively on the Mac. Sure, bootcamp, parallels, or even crossover might work, but don't buy a mac to use that unless A)the mac is going to just be a toy for you or B)there is a windows program you absolutely need for your job/business at home/while traveling. Anim8or shouldn't qualify for B if you're paying so much for the Mac, so plan on switching to some other program for your 3D needs, just to save yourself from wasting time with bootcamp or parallels when it'll be a great excuse to venture to other programs such as: blender, modo, maya, zbrush, silo, lightwave, cinema 4d, etc...that are natively compatible with the Mac operating system and hardware. Macs are well known for graphics and film development, so you'll find no shortage of CG tools for that system.

[RnDr FOX]

yea I wasnt going to buy a mac just for anim8or i was going to buy it because i need a computer for on the go (I am gone alot) and I heard that they are very good computers. But I still am going to use anim8or but i will mostly use it for other things such as web browsing, photo editing and various other stuff. Now what is a parallels? And also what do you use your mac for besides business and would you recomemend me geting a macbook and do you think it is better than windows? One more question, if I decide not to get a mac what laptop would you recomend. Thanks for the replys. Sorry aboult all of the questions.

[thecolclough]

macs are good if you're used to them, but if you're used to windows, the differences can be quite confusing.  i'll happily admit that macs look good, and seem to work good too, but there's enough difference between mac and windows, mainly in the control setups, to annoy me every time i sit down at a mac.  so don't change if you're not prepared to deal with some annoyance

- colclough, shameless windows xp user

[RnDr FOX]

Now what do you mean about the control setups? How does that work?

[hihosilver]

Parallels us simply another program such as bootcamp allowing you to use xp on your mac.

[thecolclough]

Now what do you mean about the control setups? How does that work?

the main ones that bother me, are:

• a mac has a ctrl key, but ctrl+c, ctrl+v etc don't do what they do on a pc.  you have to use apple+c, apple+v, etc instead.  i always find it a pain trying to remember that.
• most macs seem to have a one-key mouse, and to get right-click functionality, you have to hold down hte ctrl key while you click.  in other words, it takes two hands to do a right-click!  i'm told you can get 2-key mice, but the default is 1-key.
• i find that in some programs, the delete key doesn't delete stuff when you'd expect it to, and you have to use the backspace instead.  not sure if that's a general thing, but i seem to keep getting trouble from it.
• there's no taskbar, so it's not as easy to see what programs you've got running.  the only indicator for a running app, if you can't see its window, is a tiny little black arrow under its icon, in a big bunch of icons at the bottom of the screen.

if you end up with one mac and one pc, you could end up finding it hard to move data from one to the other too, as i've seen cases where some portable drives won't work on windows after being used on a mac, and things like that.

not to mention, of course, that a mac won't run anim8or without installing special compatability software, as other people have been mentioning

yeah, looks like i'm doing free advertising for microsoft here, doesn't it?  well, for all their faults, i am.  i'd basically advise you to stick with a pc, preferably an xp one if you can get it

- colclough

[RnDr FOX]

So if I was to buy another laptop that has windows XP is it possible to install mac os x on the laptop (kind of like bootcamp) Is it also possible to install certain mac software on that computer. And what kind of laptop would you suggest

[csf]

I have a mac book pro and I use boot camp to access programs like anim8or that don't have mac versions. Boot camp makes a mac work just like any other windows computer. I even play games on  it. I would stay away from parallel if you want your programs to run at full speed and you want all your programs to work. parallels your basically cutting performance in 1/2 buy running two operating systems and not all programs work with it.

I think macs are much better then pc's all around. I would say 95% of the time I use boot camp is because the program I need to run there is no mac get around for. Once you get used to a mac you will not want to go back to PC.

[thecolclough]

Once you get used to a mac you will not want to go back to PC.

oh, but i do.

if you mean "get used to" in the sense of "come to prefer", then of course you won't want to go back to a pc.

but if you're using the phrase to mean "knowing what the differences are, and how to get around stuff", well...  i'm "used to" macs enough in that sense, but every time i use one i still sit there thinking "this is annoying.  where's my taskbar?  where's my start menu?  where's my right mouse button?  why doesn't ctrl+z work?" etc.  i do know the answers to those questions, but i really, honestly, genuinely prefer the windows way.  i know it seems incomprehensible to some apple aficionados, but there are people out there (myself among them, obviously) who know what macs are like, but still prefer to stick with bill gates and co.

i think the difference is that most windows users are willing to admit that windows has its shortcomings, which some mac users just won't do for OSX (i'm saying nothing personal against csf here, of course, just speaking generally), and microsofters don't get as zealous as mac users do in promoting their favoured OS.  but we do like it better.

nobody take the above personally!  if you're a mac fan, i have nothing against you for that.  i just wanted to make it clear, for the benefit of those such as rndrfox who don't seem fully decided yet, that there are people on the other side of the debate too

- colclough

ps.  i do admit that Leopard looks more stylish than WinXP - but looks aren't everything

[RnDr FOX]

Ok so if I was to buy a mac how do I make a program like anim8or compatible for the mac. Also like I said before if I was to buy another laptop with windows xp can I install mac programs on it and what kind of laptop would you suggest for me to get. And does mac have a good return policy if I happin to not like the mac

[thecolclough]

the mac people have been talking about Boot Camp (which i think lets you run windows instead of OSX), and Parallels (which i think lets you run both at once).  one of those should be able to let anim8or run on mac hardware, but i don't think you can actually run anim8or under OSX itself.  i don't think it's generally possible to run mac software on a pc either.

i don't know enough about laptops to be able to advise on makes and models, unfortunately.  we've got a dell inspiron one as the main family computer, it seems to be pretty good. 

no idea about the apple returns policy.

one of the guys on my media course bought a mac laptop recently, but it only lasted a few weeks or something before blowing up.  he sent it off to the mac repair centre to see if they could recover the data from his hard disk, but apparently the whole inside of the computer had been reduced to a big, nasty blob of melted plastic and stuff... 

- colclough

[Raxx]

thecolclough, I don't think we can consider your advice on this matter particularly informative or helpful.

If you purchase a mac, imac, or macbook, then you should be prepared to learn how the new operating system and hardware work. It's different than using a mac on occasion in that it's yours and you paid for it; you'll be inclined to dedicate yourself to learning it without bias. Therefore you will learn to get used to the differences and adapt. Things won't be "annoying", they'll just be done differently.

Judging from Apple's website, you'll get a one year repair coverage and 90 day support. This can be extended for a fee. As for returns, go here: http://store.apple.com/Catalog/US/Images/salespolicies.html#topic-20 Seriously though, you should do your own research in this matter, and it's obvious you're not doing much of it. If anyone ever buys a new computer, they should know that research is the most important step in the process. If you ask individuals about it then you'll just get opinionated/biased information based on their personal experiences or what they think they observed about others' experiences, and you're just setting yourself up to blame others if you're not satisfied when you should blame yourself first. If anything, look up professional reviews and articles about the products you're interested in and what it takes to make the transition from pc to mac so that you'll be better prepared for it. You can also look at several customer reviews as a whole to get an overall impression of it.

And yes, you can run the Mac operating system on windows-based PCs. However, it's a complicated process for users without in-depth computer hardware/software experience. So do this at your own risk (my computer has windows xp, windows vista, and mac os x leopard on it).

As for what to get for either a windows or mac based pc, and what specs...again. Do your own research. You'll be more satisfied that way. For computer graphics, you should look at getting the best in memory, graphics hardware, and processing speed that you can within your budget. Don't overspend for outrageous next-gen hardware, because in a month or two you'll just look back and wonder why you paid so much for such a thing that you can't fully utilize.

[RnDr FOX]

Raxx I have been doing alot of research in those past couple of weeks. Like yesterday I watched  a bunch of video tutorials on how the new mac os x lepord works. I really just wanted to know if anim8or worked with the new mac and it erupted into a debate on which is the best. I do thank all of you guys post because they were really helpful. -thanx