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Switchers: Get "Learn the Switch to Mac" for a buck in the Mac App Store
We've been hearing a lot about how many new Mac users there are. During the January first-quarter financial call, for example, we heard that not only were Mac sales up 23 percent over the same quarter a year earlier, but about half of the Macs sold in Apple Stores during that quarter were to people who had never owned a Mac before. For people switching from PCs to Macs, there's not a lot of help available other than scheduling a One-to-One session at the local Apple Store or begging assistance from a Mac-owning friend. For a while, though, developer Saied Ghaffari and his company It's About Time Products have had a Mac app available that can help switchers learn how to make the most of Mac OS X and many of the built-in apps. The app, called "Learn the Switch to Mac," has been available in a special bundle with Parallels Desktop for US$99. It uses the tested learning method of showing someone how to perform an action, then letting them try that action themselves. Saied explains how you'd do something in Windows, then demonstrates the similar action in Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard. Saied has now made the app available (without Parallels Desktop) in the Mac App Store at an introductory price of $0.99. The normal price for the Mac App Store edition of "Learn the Switch to Mac" will be $24.95, so if you are interested in learning more about your new Mac or helping out a friend who has just purchased his or her first Mac, let them know about this great deal. A video explaining how the app works can be viewed on the next page.
UltraEdit makes the leap to Mac OS X
UltraEdit for Mac was officially released this month. A favorite of Windows developers, UltraEdit was first released in 1994 as one of the earliest "Notepad" replacement text editors for programmers on Windows. When you use your computer for programming, you live in your text editor. Mac developers love TextMate's project management and plug-ins, BBEdit's built-in code validation, or its freeware sibling TextWrangler's fantastic find and replace. For web development, I use Coda with built in syntax highlighting, source code versioning and a CSS editing mode. But for Windows users, switching from Windows to Mac has meant giving up a favorite Windows editor, which can feel disorienting. TUAW readers who switched from Windows have been wanting UltraEdit for years, some even running Windows in a VM (virtual machine) just for their text editor. Back in 2007, reader Jon Niola commented, "As a switcher, the app I miss most on Windows is UltraEdit ... I wrote to IDM (makers of UltraEdit) to ask them if they were ever going to port to OS X and ... it sounds like it is something they are headed towards eventually." After 15 years, it's here.
AT&T Wireless CEO not worried if Verizon gets the iPhone
That's the word from AT&T honcho Ralph de la Vega this morning at a JPMorgan tech conference, as reported by Business Insider. Now Ralphie is not sayin' Verizon will get the iPhone, but he thinks if they do it will have a minimal impact. He told the crowd that switching carriers is a tough thing for many customers to do. He said that 70% of AT&T customers are on family plans, which are tough to get out of. He also said that 40% of AT&T customers are on corporate discount plans, which can be a pain to let go of. AT&T has been the exclusive source for the iPhone for the last 3 years, while Apple has often moved to multiple carriers overseas. The majority of AT&T complaints have been dropped calls, poor signal strength, and the lack of tethering, which was promised but hasn't been delivered as yet. It appears to be built into the soon to be released iPhone OS 4, but having the capability and turning it on are two different things. Survey after survey shows customers unhappy with AT&T, and the company has responded with some increased expenditures in cities that had really bad reception issues and a re-branding. Would Apple add Verizon to get existing Verizon customers who want the iPhone, thinking that most AT&T customers will stay with what they have? How about you? Would you ditch AT&T for Verizon, even if you had a family plan or corporate discounts?
Mac 101: Use the tab key in more dialog boxes
TUAW reader Cody Rogers wrote in to say: "I'm fairly new to my iMac and Macbook Pro running Snow Leopard. One of my biggest annoyances from switching over from PC to Mac is when a dialogue box comes up and says 'cancel' or 'okay' I can't find the keyboard shortcut to go from cancel to okay. In Windows, I could just hit 'tab' to go to the other option. Is this possible on a Mac? I've been doing some searching on it and can't find anything!" I happened to have found the same thing when doing a clean reinstall of Snow Leopard over the weekend. The good news is that there is a way to do it, but it is not turned on by default and it does require a bit of hunting around. I didn't remember where it was either. Launch System Preferences, either by choosing it from the "Apple" menu or by going to your /Applications/ folder. In System Preferences, select the "Keyboard" preference pane (middle of the 2nd row) Then click "Keyboard Shortcuts" at the top of that window (see image above) At the bottom of that panel there is an option to use Tab to move between either "Text boxes and lists only" (default) or "All controls". Select the radio control next to "All controls" and you will now be able to use the tab to go between "Save" and "Cancel" or any other dialog boxes which appear. Also note that for most dialog boxes, the Enter/Return key will select "OK" and command+period (or the Escape key) will cancel. If you'd like to learn more about using keyboard shortcuts with Mac OS X, Apple has a really useful page which will come in handy, especially for those switching from Windows.
Apple's "renaissance" is under way
A few months ago, I walked into a Paradise Bakery & Café in Phoenix -- a place known for its excellent food and free Wi-Fi. Like a lot of places with free Internet access, there were plenty of laptop users. What stood out to me was that all but one of the computers was either a MacBook or MacBook Pro. It's not just me looking through at the world with an Apple-tinged bias. The more places I go, the more I see people using Macs, or at least considering them. The Apple stores in Phoenix are still nearly elbow to elbow with people every time I visit, however the lone Microsoft store in Scottsdale was pretty empty the one time I visited. There's now data to back up these observations. Macsimum News reports that iMacs were the top-selling desktop for the month of October 2009 according to the NPD Group. After the proverbial jaw-dropping moment, there was quickly speculation as to why Macs finally outpaced PCs when it came to desktops. According to The Daily Gleaner, the NPD Group stated that PC sales were down as a result of the impending launch of Windows 7. Or, it could also be indicative that Windows users are finally getting fed up. "If Microsoft Windows is seen as a buggier, less-secure product that is slower, harder to use and ultimately raises costs for everybody, that opens up the market for Apple to gain that high-end segment. . . ," Harvard Business School's David Yoffie said in The Daily Gleaner. "If Windows 7 is not seen as more of an improvement (over Vista) then I think you'll see more erosion at the high end."
Ask TUAW: Recovering pictures, updating Facebook, iPhone battery life and more
Once again, it's time for another edition of Ask TUAW: the place where we try to answer all of your Mac and Apple-related questions. This week we're taking questions about recovering pictures from corrupted compact flash cards, Twitter for the iPhone, extending iPhone battery life and more.As always, we welcome your suggestions for this week and questions for next time. Please leave your contributions in the comments for this post. When asking questions, please include which Mac and which version of OS X you're running. If you don't specify, we'll assume you're running Leopard on an Intel Mac. Okay, let's get to it!Nick F. asks:I've got some pictures I need to recover from a corrupted Compact Flash card. What's the best, preferably free, software to do it on my Mac?This is one of those questions that can get frustrating if you're a Mac user. On the Windows side, there are a few good (and free) pieces of software that can help you accomplish this task. For the Mac, you're choices are mostly limited to pay applications -- at least if you want good results. Fortunately, these pay applications are very good.For my money, the piece of software that works best when you want to recover pictures from a bad CF or SD card is Klix ($29.95) from Joesoft. I've used it quite a bit with clients, and on my own bad cards, and each time it performed flawlessly, recovering every lost picture from the card. Other alternatives for the Mac include CardRaider ($19.95), PhotoRescue ($29.00) and Data Rescue II ($99.00). I realize that $29.95 for a piece of software might seem like a lot to some people. But if the software is easy to use and works as advertised, I think it's a worthwhile investment in the long run. Besides, it would cost far more to go back and take those vacation pictures you lost on the card again when you could buy Klix and recover them from your bad card instead. Given that, a program like Klix is actually a bargain.If you've got Windows running on your Mac (either through Boot Camp or virtualization) and you've had good luck with one of the tools from the other side of the fence, let us know in the comments.
My Dad, the Switcher: Day 7
Last week, my previously-very-anti-Mac dad started using a Mac mini, and I wrote about his experience -- positive, to say the least. If you haven't read the story of his first day with the Mac, you might want to read that first. Yesterday, one week in, I checked in to see how he's doing. So far, Dad has nothing but positive things to say about the Mac. Even when I asked him specifically for things he dislikes, he had to think for a second. "It's such a breath of fresh air from what I'm used to, I can't come up with anything specific that I dislike." High praise indeed from the man who doesn't like The Daily Show because of its intro music. He also just discovered that, in Leopard, there's a little light underneath each application that tells you it's running. That was his huge discovery yesterday, and something he was proud of finding on his own. Asked about what he does like, he mentioned the ease of application installations. He loves Dashboard widgets, and installed the MySQL Health widget that comes with the MySQL GUI tools. He did this without my help, too, which is great progress.
My Dad, the Switcher: Day Zero
This is the first part of an occasional series about my Dad, who, as a long-time Windows user, decided to switch to the Mac. If you're interested in the whole story, more installments are here. As far as database management and Windows programming is concerned, my dad is what you'd call "hard-core." He's been writing software since the 1960s, starting at Honeywell, then Hewlett Packard, eventually starting his own business. He is an expert with the HP 3000 minicomputer, which, in its day, was heavy computing iron to have lying around. So it came as a bit of a shock when he called last week and said, "I'm ready to buy a Mac." He and I are working on a web development project together using open-source tools. Because his workstation is set up for the Microsoft world of SQL Server and .NET, installing XAMPP was wreaking havoc with his complicated array of security software, including Norton and BitDefender. He wanted to start fresh, and work on a system without having to worry about something randomly disallowing access to port 3306. Understandable.
Sweden's Foreign Minister calls his new Mac 'a new world'
Former Swedish Prime Minister (and now Foreign Minister) Carl Bildt has, "after much reflection, examination and discussion" decided to switch to a Mac. Welcome to the family, Carl! May we recommend your next purchase: a snazzy IKEA desk to go with your Mac? According to the minister's website (in Swedish and English), he wonders why he waited so long to make the jump, and said "the new world is much definitely better than the old." How much of that is mangled by Google Translate I'll have to leave to the Swedish speakers among us. No word yet on whether Sweden's leading culinary celebrity uses a Mac. [Sorry, couldn't resist. -Ed.] Bildt is not the first world leader to use a Mac: Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore has a Mac connected to multiple displays (as well he should: he's on Apple's board of directors). HRH Queen Elizabeth has an iPod. Many political powerhouses have iPhones, including Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who might have scored himself a black-market model. Thanks, Gesen!
OS X Help simplifies the Mac segue
My mom and dad just purchased their first Mac. Unfortunately, it turns out I'm not a great teacher because I get overexcited about advanced features and take the basics for granted when I try to explain things. Fortunately for me, my father shares my autodidactic personality (might be where I got it...) and has been taking the learning curve in stride. I've felt like there are a lot of things they need to know about my favorite platform, though, that I haven't been very good at communicating. I've been wishing there was an all-inclusive, step-by-step resource that could better convey all of the information I try to share in my not-so-good-for-switchers way. Enter OS X Help, which debuted in January and has built up a nice catalog of articles for people just getting their first taste of OS X. The site features the tag "Insanely simple tutorials for the first time Macintosh user." I immediately thought, "son of a switcher! This could be the answer!" From hardware tips to an in-depth look at Safari and Finder, Scott Haneda and Caroline Merchiers have compiled a well-organized collection of brief introductions to Macintosh topics. The email to my parents is on its way. [Ed. note: Brett's modesty forbids any mention of our own Mac 101 series for new and returning Mac users... but look there, it got mentioned anyway!]
Chris Pirillo's 50 reasons to switch
It's a quiet day at TUAW headquarters (located in scenic Ann Arbor, MI) -- Monday is a holiday here in the USA, in honor of Presidents Washington and Lincoln, two leaders in times of dramatic change. Speaking of change, how many signs and wonders do you need to know that there's a major Mac migration afoot? TechTV veteran and vidcaster Chris Pirillo, a Windows expert and advocate of long standing (but a friend to the Mac community nonetheless) recently bought himself a Mac Pro and has let his freak flag fly as an official Mac Switcher. Our fondest congratulations go out to CP on this momentous occasion... combined with legendary gadfly John C. Dvorak's recommendation to buy Macs in the newspaper of record, it's an indication of how far we've come.Chris has posted a well-considered and ample "50 Reasons to Switch" piece over at his blog, where he notes that he's still an Outlook user and still runs Windows (in VMware Fusion or Boot Camp) for some tasks; as far as he's concerned, the OS choice isn't a "religious issue" but rather a recognition of what works, and what works for him is Mac OS X. He ends the post with a gentle dig at the Windows community: "I'd like to challenge any Windows enthusiast to publish 50 Reasons to switch from Mac OS X to Microsoft Windows. ;)" No doubt a few will take him up on that.
Seven tools for switchers
Samuel Dean at Web Worker Daily has compiled a nice list of applications that will make Mac OS X more familiar or recent switchers. Included in the list is Adium (for multi-protocol IM), WhatSize for identifying file sizes and types in a manner similar to Windows Explorer and Firefox, since they were probably using it on their Windows machine, anyway.One tip I always share is the spotlight search feature in System Preference. Many switchers get lost in translation; that is, figuring out what Apple has named a certain system preference, or where it lives. System Preference search lets them enter a keyword, like "trackpad", and see the highlighted result. It's very handy.
Five ways you can make life easier for new Mac users
As we close out 2007, there are thousands of new Mac users just beginning to explore the wonderful world found on those shiny computers that were tucked under the tree/menorah/nonsectarian gift deployment venue. If there's one thing we'd recommend that experienced Mac hands could do to make the adjustment easier... well, there isn't just one thing, there's five. Got other suggestions for onboarding the switcher nouveau? Drop them in the comments.1. Don't buy Apple RAM. This should be stenciled on every Mac box, printed on UPS driver caps, and possibly placed on street stickers outside the Apple Stores (I kid! Don't sue me). I recently priced a 512 MB upgrade for a vintage G4 iBook, and while I would have liked the convenience of the Apple Store for quick pickup, I could not possibly justify the 300+% markup over crucial.com's or OWC's price for the exact same part ($150 vs. $38). I doubt that an educated-customer avoidance of Apple memory, either BTO or upgrades, will make much difference to pricing policies, but this situation is so insanely out of whack that something has got to give. Update: Several readers have pointed out that you should hold onto your factory RAM in case you need to troubleshoot problems down the road, a good suggestion -- Apple support or Genius Bar techs will often ask you to return your machine to as-shipped condition. If you want to cross-check that you're getting the same manufacturer as Apple uses, you can always compare RAM prices and part specs in a jiffy at dealram.com. Reader JC did a quick survey of manufacturer markups on RAM and suggests that Apple's pricing may not be so far out of line when compared to other high-end computer vendors like Sony; still, I stand by my statement that buying Apple RAM is too expensive.2. Make a shareware gift basket. You've got the massive downloads folder and the experience with your favorite Mac programs; why not leverage that? Burn a CD full of your top shareware apps, or register a couple of them in your buddy's name. Nothing says "I care" like software.3. Give the gift of bookmarks. Your experience as a Mac veteran has populated your browser bookmarks with a zillion helpful sites; export them and send them on over! If you need a starter list: macfixit, macintouch, macworld, dealmac, macosxhints, versiontracker, iusethis, and of course our humble little blog.4. Provide a personal support gift certificate. An email that says "call me anytime" might give too much license for midnight pleas for help -- maybe a stylized one-sheet saying "This certificate good for three hours of handholding, gentle instruction, wireless troubleshooting & general Mac advice" will set the ground rules.5. Deliver the Kool-Aid. One of the hardest transitions for recovering Windows users to make when adjusting to the Macintosh Way is the attitude: expecting things to "just work" instead of having to tweak registry settings and swap out DLLs, being willing to cooperate with your computer instead of fighting it all the way. Sit with your buddy and watch them work for a bit; if you notice points of friction, try to lubricate. Remind them they can still right-click, allow them to plug in a printer and not go searching for drivers. See the light in their eyes return.
70% of Zune users plan to switch to iPhone
I'm a little skeptical about this one (who is the Eagle Research Group, and why are they polling people about iPhones and Zunes?) but a new study from the ERG says that a whopping 70% of Zune users are actually planning a switch to the iPhone. And perhaps even more revealing, 36% of Zune users say they never would have bought one if they'd have known Apple would produce something as "ground-breaking" as the iPhone (well, duh).Of course it's not news that the Zune sucks, and it's definitely not news that the iPhone is a revolutionary little device. But it's an interesting idea that while the Zune has been fighting to stay alive ever since introduction, it might be the iPhone that actually puts it out of its misery.The social hasn't been quelled yet, though. Of the Zune users keeping their phone, 43% say the reason they don't want an iPhone was the lack of storage space for music (which is kind of an obvious conclusion when you're comparing a phone and a music player, innit?). And 22% of those sticking to the Zune say the reason for doing so was simply an overall dislike of "all things Apple." [via DF]
Nearly 25% of iPhone buyers are AT&T newcomers
We'll admit, we aren't shocked by the fact that nearly one-quarter of those who have purchased Apple's iPhone thus far are brand new to AT&T, and honestly, we're a tad miffed that the figure isn't a bit higher. Of course, those pesky (not to mention pricey) early termination charges are the likely reason that some 75-percent of iPhone buyers had already hitched their wagon to AT&T before, but a recent study carried out by American Technology Research noted that "a fair amount of customers were willing to pay high early cancellation fees to get out of their existing service contracts for an iPhone." Interestingly, the last mobile to command such a substantial amount of ship-jumping was Motorola's legendary RAZR, and we all know how well that turned out. Still, only time will tell if Apple has a similar hit on its hands, but judging by early reports, things aren't looking too bad at all for Cupertino.[Image courtesy of Mobilissimo]
Leopard's Boot Camp brings 'fast switching' between Mac OS X and Windows
Thanks to you TUAW readers, tips are rolling in on all the tiny and not-so-tiny features that Mac OS X Leopard will be bringing in October. One feature that is definitely not-so-tiny is something I'll dub 'fast switching' between Mac OS X and your Boot Camp Windows installation. While this isn't quite the built-in virtualization that some users were hoping for, it will minimize the startup, shutdown and boot times when switching between the two OSes. Detailed on Boot Camp's new features page, Apple has hooked their safe sleep feature into Boot Camp to allow Mac OS X to save all your open applications and windows, and then boot over into Windows. Once you're done in Windows, you can boot back over to Mac OS X and pick up where you left off - with all your open applications and documents put right back where you left them. This is a great idea and an interesting compromise between making it a little too easy to run Windows on your Mac, and it also keeps Apple from stepping on the toes of virtualization products from companies like Parallels and VMware.Thanks, Daniel
Switcher side-by-side video training
With Mother's Day coming up, the perfect gift for your 'switcher mom' might be personal lessons in the Macintosh way. Don't have that kind of time? Mmm-hmm. Really. You never call, you never write..Well, if you're looking for something more wrappable than a bookmark for Apple's Switch 101 support pages, there's a new training product aimed squarely at PC-to-Mac switchers and the tasks they need to perform every day. It's saddled with the ungainly name of "It's About Time" to learn the Switch to Mac but I'm beginning to think of it as "Switching with Saied," since Saied Ghaffari is the genial, slightly-overexcited video host who walks you through basic computing tasks on side-by-side Windows and Mac desktops. This is the second training product from the company, following on the heels of "It's About Time" to learn iPhoto."IAT"TLTSTM is featured on Apple's download site at the moment if you'd like to check out the demo; the full version is $25 for the downloadable version, $30 for the boxed version. Note that you need at least a 1280x720 display to use the product.
Making the switch: App for app
Now that new Macs will run Windows beautifully, people are considering Macs who haven't before (I've seen it myself around the office). They may install Windows, but I'm sure that once they play around in the Mac OS for a while, they won't all go back. Being Mac newbies, however, these users may not be aware of the Mac counterparts for some of their favorite Windows apps. The good folks at Blather have compiled a nice list of popular Windows apps, and their Mac counterparts: Outlook >Mail and iCal HomeSite > TextMate AppRocket > Quicksilver FlashFXP > Transmit SecureCRT > Terminal SQL Manager > Navicat Tortoise SVN > SVNX OneNote > OmniOutliner FastTrack Schedule 9 > OmniPlan Visio > OmniGraffle Internet Explorer 7 > Parallels PHP Encoder > SourceGuardian Now, this list seems to cater the needs of a web developer, so we'll put the question to you: As a switcher with the needs of a home user, what alternatives would you offer?
TUAW Tip: switch to the Mac on the cheap
The word that there might be as many as 9000 switchers a day got us thinking: maybe all those switchers could use some tips on how to save a few bucks while hopping the fence to white, black and aluminum pastures. Sure, Apple typically doesn't offer much in the way of excitement when it comes to zany blow-out sales on their products, but who says you have to buy your Apple stuff from Apple? There are plenty of resellers who offer some great deals to lure customers away from Apple's shiny stores, and discount watching sites can help you jump on time-sensitive sales. If you take our tips to heart, we guarantee both you and your credit card will sleep better at night with your next (or first) Mac purchase. Read our recommendations after the jump.
On drinking the Apple KoolAid
WFAA has posted an article about the fundamental dualities of the world: Ford vs. Chevy. Coke vs. Pepsi. Mac vs Windows. It's not a very deep article or a long-one, but several quotes (particularly those from WFAA's online operations manager--and Mac aficionado--Doug Boehner) made me laugh out loud. "It's strange and cult-like...Once you kind of drink the Kool-Aid of the Apple product you realize: Oh my gosh, this is what a computer should have been doing all along." I personally didn't know that retailer JC Penney was switching from Windows to Mac. Good for them!
