iMac for beginners

stuartam

stuartam

stuartam

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Joined
18 Oct 2002
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397
Hi all, my girlfriend is going to get an iMac but has never used a mac (got an iPad & iPhone) any advice on any good books / web sites to help her get use to it.

Thanks

Stu
 
Google.

Just put in "how to do this" + "mac" usually give you the right answer.

Seriously. It is very easy to use and most stuff do just work.
 
I would just recommend sitting down with her and just finding your nose through it to be completely frank.

All else fails, the Dummies books are always good.

Jake
 
I recently switched to a Mac and it isn't too difficult. The things you really need to learn are the basic workflow, and shortcuts and how to navigate around the OS. Things like cmd+w to close windows/tabs and cmd+q to close the app, how to use spotlight, spaces, expose. Most other things just work the same.
 
If she's used a computer before it's not really difficult. The main thing is going to be dealing with the odd OSX quirk, for which a web search should get you a quick answer.

Is the mighty mouse still garbage? I've not used one for a while, I had to replace mine with a decent PC mouse it was that bad. Your mileage may vary but it's something consider from a usability standpoint.
 
theheyes said:
Is the mighty mouse still garbage? I've not used one for a while, I had to replace mine with a decent PC mouse it was that bad. Your mileage may vary but it's something consider from a usability standpoint.
Click to expand...

It's the Magic Mouse now. Mighty Mouse wasn't that good. The newer Magic Mouse I found okay and scrolling/gestures on it are nice but I still think a decent PC mouse is all round better like you said.

Personally I use the Magic Trackpad on my iMac, though I don't do anything major on it, but IMO it can't be beaten for web browsing/casual use. It behaves very similar to the MacBooks trackpad.
 
Yep, Mac trackpads are best in class. The mouses not so much.

By all means give the bundled mouse a try, but I really couldn't deal with it and I'm not the only one.
 
I made the leap in June having barely touched a Mac before. Still learning a few bits and pieces, but it's mainly things like keyboard shortcuts and navigation that are different. It felt completely alien at first, but after a couple of weeks I'd gotten used to it.
 
Most casual users won't care about keyboard shortcuts etc, so they really aren't needed.

Just spend some time with the machine, you'll soon work it out.

IMO the Magic Trackpad is fantastic, gestures become second nature and really improve the speed in which you can interact with the OS. Perhaps look at swapping the mouse for a trackpad on your order, and then pick up a mouse if she doesn't get on with it.
 
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