After much deliberation and research, about a week:rolleyes:, I decided to get an Apple Mac Mini as I was getting so fed up with my Windows operating system, so last Saturday I took the plunge. I managed to locate a brand new 2.5Ghz Mac Mini with the latest OSX for £600 including wireless keyboard, I connected it to my Dell 24" monitor and within 2 minutes of switching on I had a WiFi connection, all that was required was to enter the security code for my WiFi router, how easy was that.

 

As I bought the Mac from a dealer in MK, I went to collect it on my bike:D

 

Then I spent the weekend going through the software, deciding on web browser, office suite and email.

 

I choose the Mac version of Google Chrome for the browser, prefereing it to Apple's Safari.

Then I downloaded trial versions of MS Office for the Mac, iWorks and the free opensource Open Office.

 

Having used Windows MS Office for years, I opted for MS Office and found a 2011 version of MS Office Home and Business for the Mac for £62 inc. delivery. I chose this version because in includes Outlook which I now use for email.

 

To upgrade the memory from the standard 4Gb to 8Gb would have cost £160 from Apple, but after a bit of surfing, I got 8Gb for less than £40 inc. delivery. It took 5 minutes to install, simlpy rotate the circular base, remove 2 existing memory sticks and replace with the new.

 

I did waste a lot of time transfering 86Gb of data, i.e docs, images etc. etc., from my PC. There are several ways to do it, wirelessly via a router or with ethernet cables which takes hours and hours, not including the hassle of disabling Windows firewall, and the constant updates. Then I remembered I had a 250Gb external hard drive, so I installed a bit of software from Apple to my PC, copied everything I wanted to the external drive, connected it to the Mac and within a few minutes had transferred it all to the Mac.

 

Now I am a convert, the Mac mini is so tiny, quiet and works like a dream compared to the huge black noisy monster it sits beside, just love it.

 

The one thing I am lacking is an accounting program. On the PC I use Quick Books and there is only an online version for the Mac which costs £9 per month.

MS Money is not around any more and Sage doesn't have a Mac version, so I tried to install a free opensource program called GNU, but so far it is not compatible with the latest OSX Lion.

I know that I could install a Windows partition, but I want to avoid that at all costs.

 

So if any one can suggest some good accounting software for the Mac, I would appreciate it;)

 

Oh, this is what I have been raving about The New Mac mini - Now With OS X Lion - Apple Store (UK)

So if any one can suggest some good accounting software for the Mac, I would appreciate it;)

 

 

Never having needed to use such a programme, I really can't help with that but I'd be surprised if there isn't something available which could do what you need.

 

In the event that nobody comes up with a good suggestion or recommendation, my advice would be to book a one-to-one appointment with one of the experts at your nearest Apple store. One of my sons had a number of issues when he first added Windows to his Mac hard drive using parallels. An hour at Apple Brent X resolved his problems and gave him insight to things that could be done on his Mac that he had never even heard about. He remains hugely impressed by their service.

 

Regards,

Indalo

Hi Indalo,

 

Thanks for the recommendation. I know my local Apple Store could help, I am just trying get some unbiased advice, of which there is plenty online.

 

Regards,

This was one of the reasons why I installed Windows / Parallels. A bit of an overkill, but it works very well and Windows doesn't conflict with OSX at all.

 

I have been using MS Money to archive all of my financial transactions in a searchable format for over 10 years, so its difficult to make the break. If you find anything for a Mac that does the same job (only interested in archiving / searching) I will be interested to hear.

Hi Tillson,

 

I intend to do bit of research this weekend as it looks like the weather is going to put a bit of a damper on cycling.

 

I will let you know what I come up with, and you have got me thinking about MS Money again, if I could find an old Mac version would that be adequate even if no longer supported?

Cyclezee

Where did you get the 8Gb memory from?

and what make is it?

Thanks

Hi Tillson,

 

I intend to do bit of research this weekend as it looks like the weather is going to put a bit of a damper on cycling.

 

I will let you know what I come up with, and you have got me thinking about MS Money again, if I could find an old Mac version would that be adequate even if no longer supported?

 

Yes, that would be fine. I don't think that MS Money has been supported for quite some time now.

 

I just want something that will allow me to import my old Ms Money files and to download new statements from my bank so that I have a searchable database. Sometimes it can be useful to retrieve dates / amounts / payees from years ago.

Cyclezee

Where did you get the 8Gb memory from?

and what make is it?

Thanks

 

Hi Graeme,

 

I got the memory from here RAM Memory Upgrade: Dell, Mac, Apple, HP, Compaq. USB drives, SSD at Crucial.com/uk.

Thank you.

Looks like a really good deal.

Edited August 26, 201114 yr by Graeme

Easy just use a program called vmware fusion, been using it for years and its been perfect.

 

https://www.vmware.com/uk/products/desktop_virtualization/fusion/overview.html

OK, despite saying I didn't want Windows, I have followed Tillson's route. I installed a trial version of Parallels 6 and got an external optical drive that is compatible with Windows and Mac ( Samsung WriteMaster SE-S084 - Super Slim External Writer (Black) : GADGETS - USB GADGETS : Memorybits.co.uk) installed a spare copy of Windows 7.

Next I downloaded a free Windows version of Quickbooks via this link Free Accounting Software | Download QuickBooks SimpleStart Free Edition | QuickBooks UK and installed it.

All is working very well, so I have bought a full working copy of Parallels 6 from here eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace it is £30 cheaper than the shop price.

Oh and the optical drive can also be used with my Windows netbook.

So for an outlay of just over £50, the accounting software that I used to use on the PC is up and running.

That's a good deal in Parallels 6. I paid more than that for the upgrade from 5 to 6.

 

Anyway, pleased to hear you have your accounting software up and running.

Just a little tip regarding Parallels 6, if you bought or buy a copy between 01/08/2011 and 31/10/2011, you qualify for free upgrade to Parallels 7 via this link Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac Tech Guarantee

Just a little tip regarding Parallels 6, if you bought or buy a copy between 01/08/2011 and 31/10/2011, you qualify for free upgrade to Parallels 7 via this link Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac Tech Guarantee

 

Thank you for that. I purchased Parallels 6 directly from Parallels on 20/08/11 and was a bit pi$$ed when they released 7 a few days later.

 

The link you posted says that I should get an email any time soon, so I will await its arrival.

 

Thanks again for the tip.

Hi Tillson,

 

I got the email within a couple of hours this morning, so you may not have to wait too long.

 

Regards,

OK, now I'm hooked by Apple:D After only a few weeks with a brilliant Mac Mini and am going to get an all singing all dancing 27" iMac. My PC, Mac Mini and laptop will go, Im going to hang on to my Windows Netbook for a while although I tend to use my Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone quite a lot now. I won't be getting an iPhone or iPad as I am very pleased with the abilities and performance of the Samsung.

OK, now I'm hooked by Apple:D After only a few weeks with a brilliant Mac Mini and am going to get an all singing all dancing 27" iMac. My PC, Mac Mini and laptop will go, Im going to hang on to my Windows Netbook for a while although I tend to use my Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone quite a lot now. I won't be getting an iPhone or iPad as I am very pleased with the abilities and performance of the Samsung.

 

My 27" iMac is now 2 years old and it is still as fast and pleasant to use as the day it came out of the box. By contrast, a friend who purchased a Windows PC with similar quad core hardware a few weeks after I bought my Mac is now ready to take a hammer to it because it is so slow. He thought that I had more money than sense because I spent the extra cash on a Mac. He tells me now that he will never ever buy another Windows / PC product again and concedes that it was a waste of money.

 

We are all Mac users in our household, iMac, iPhones and iPads. We have always used MobileMe, but with the new iCloud all of those benefits are now free for the time being. The synchronisation of devices and information is superb through these services.

What about the third option - much cheaper than a Mac and can be installed in any PC or llaptop (except Macs of course)

Ubuntu Linux is free

It comes with all the software you need including Open Office (compatible with Microsoft Office - opening and saving files)

You can get additional software for just about anything free from the software centre that searches and automatically downloads and installs - just like aps on you iphone or Android phone.

You can't get a virus

It's very easy to use - just like Windows

You can visit all the pirate sites, porn sites, gambling sites, etc without fear of filling you pc with spyware, addware and viruses. Plus, when you accidently click on one of those little pop-ups that try and install something, you're safe, or when you accidentally click on that e-mail attachment - still safe.

 

Linux used to be for geeks and was difficult to understand, but the Ubuntu version is for average Joes, and now it's easier to figure out than Windows. I've been using it on my laptop and main desktop pc for three years and I would never use Windows again if I can avoid it. From when I first open my laptop, I'm browsing the internet in about 3 seconds - no hard disk buzzing; no waiting for virus updates; and webpages load faster because they don't have to be virus checked, spyware checked or checked for any other type of malicious code befor loading. It's also very secure for on-line banking and on-line commerce. I'd recommend that anybody should give it a try. And one last thing: you can install it as a dual-boot system so that you can choose between Ubuntu and Windows when you start your PC. The only downside that I've found is if you need special hardware drivers. It can deal with all printers, cameras, phones, etc., but if you have something unusual - like a guitar interface - they don't always provide Linux drivers, but that situation is improving all the time.

 

I've never used a Mac, so I can't do a comparison, but I can't think what more I'd ever want, especially as it costs nothing.

Get it here: http://www.ubuntu.com/ubuntu

Interesting, I have an old laptop that I currently run Windows on, problem is the laptop is so old XP doesn't run well, and even though it has a DVD drive, it doesn't meet the minimum specs to play a film smoothly. Been thinking about putting Linux on it and might well give it a go soon.

 

I also have a Mac G3 from the late 90's, which gave me a nervous breakdown and forced me to buy a Windows machine. I still use it for basic stuff, but it is 80% useless now. The equivalent PC laptop at the time would still be usable now, because Windows 98 is still somewhat supported, and it isn't too difficult to get drivers. The Mac OS 8.6 isn't. I found a trick to get OS9 drivers to work in 8.6, but there isn't even a web browser available apart from the Netscape/IE 4-5, and the majority of websites either don't display correctly or freeze the Mac.

What about the third option - much cheaper than a Mac and can be installed in any PC or llaptop (except Macs of course)

Ubuntu Linux is free

It comes with all the software you need including Open Office (compatible with Microsoft Office - opening and saving files)

You can get additional software for just about anything free from the software centre that searches and automatically downloads and installs - just like aps on you iphone or Android phone.

You can't get a virus

It's very easy to use - just like Windows

You can visit all the pirate sites, porn sites, gambling sites, etc without fear of filling you pc with spyware, addware and viruses. Plus, when you accidently click on one of those little pop-ups that try and install something, you're safe, or when you accidentally click on that e-mail attachment - still safe.

 

Linux used to be for geeks and was difficult to understand, but the Ubuntu version is for average Joes, and now it's easier to figure out than Windows. I've been using it on my laptop and main desktop pc for three years and I would never use Windows again if I can avoid it. From when I first open my laptop, I'm browsing the internet in about 3 seconds - no hard disk buzzing; no waiting for virus updates; and webpages load faster because they don't have to be virus checked, spyware checked or checked for any other type of malicious code befor loading. It's also very secure for on-line banking and on-line commerce. I'd recommend that anybody should give it a try. And one last thing: you can install it as a dual-boot system so that you can choose between Ubuntu and Windows when you start your PC. The only downside that I've found is if you need special hardware drivers. It can deal with all printers, cameras, phones, etc., but if you have something unusual - like a guitar interface - they don't always provide Linux drivers, but that situation is improving all the time.

 

I've never used a Mac, so I can't do a comparison, but I can't think what more I'd ever want, especially as it costs nothing.

Get it here: Ubuntu for you | Ubuntu

 

You are absolutely right with what you say about Linux. It is well worth considering and I see that Mozilla support it with their browser and email software as do Google with Chrome.

 

I have recently installed Linux on an old Laptop for my 80 year old mother to use mainly for email. I am very impressed with the speed and simplicity of use.

Oh dear, I attempted to install Linux Ubuntu on my PC, however, now it loads neither operating system (I'm typing this on my ipad). Hopefully re-installing Windows will make my desktop useable again.

 

So, from my experience:

Installing Linux on a PC can be dangerous.

 

As for me, I shall never try that again!

oh dear, i attempted to install linux ubuntu on my pc, however, now it loads neither operating system (i'm typing this on my ipad). Hopefully re-installing windows will make my desktop useable again.

 

So, from my experience:

installing linux on a pc can be dangerous.

 

as for me, i shall never try that again!

 

rtfm ?? ;)

Dear eTim,

from your choice of emoticons I assume you're doubly happy, which is nice. However, would you please explain the meaning of your acronym. I am unsure what you are trying to say.

 

Thanks

RTFM - Let me google that for you

 

Do you know you can try Linux on a machine without installing it by creating a bootable USB or CD, that way you can try before committing to an installation. You can do that even if your machine is not running an OS (which sounds like yours isn't currently).

 

I would give that a try maybe, then try installing Linux again before going back to Windows, sometimes installation routines can mess up with no obvious reason and may work on the second or third attempt. In your current situation if you only have one computer to work with then just try re-installing Linux before giving up and going back to Windoze, otherwise try as suggested above and create a bootable USB/CD.

Just a FYI for all you Mac users, I have installed the free version of Sophos AV onto my Macs following this report:

 

Sophos warns Mac users as OS X hit by backdoor Trojan malware Tsunami-A - 10/26/2011 - Computer Weekly

 

I've gone for years without AV, but this is the first time I've seen such a report which means, unfortunately, it's time to put AV onto my Macs. Of course it might be hyped journo's and selling by Sophos, but as it's the first such report that I know about hitting the media then on balance I am better safe than sorry.

 

Download and installation was easy and it appears to use very little system resources, it's also configurable for on access scanning as well as on demand scanning.