New Apple options?

[Total Immortal]

Hey, my first computer was a Mac Performa 550 (we're talkin 100MB HD, 8 Megs ram, OS 7.5!). I've been on PC's eversince then, and I'm currently leaning towards getting an Apple laptop. I'd probably get an ibook if they came with a 15" display, and higher quality RAM. So I'm looking at the PowerBook with a combo drive (i'd rather spend a few hundered dollars on a DVD-R for my desktop then spend several hundered more for one on the laptop). There's a few options listed at apple.com that I'm not familiar with. Can you help me define them? Here they are:

- Keynote? (sounds like PowerPoint to me)
- .Mac? Is it worth anything?
- AirPort extreme? Is that just a wireless network card?
- Is Bluetooth cool? What's the battery life on a keyboard? I don't need a wireless mouse, cause I do a lot of navigating with the keyboard, and the D-Pad has never bothered me

What type of word processing programs come with it if any? On my Performa 550 (R.I.P.) I used to use ClarisWorks, and I loved it.
Lastly, would/did you buy direct from apple.com? Or buy in-store? Thanks in advance!

[g5orbust]

Originally posted by Total Immortal
Hey, my first computer was a Mac Performa 550 (we're talkin 100MB HD, 8 Megs ram, OS 7.5!). I've been on PC's eversince then, and I'm currently leaning towards getting an Apple laptop. I'd probably get an ibook if they came with a 15" display, and higher quality RAM. So I'm looking at the PowerBook with a combo drive (i'd rather spend a few hundered dollars on a DVD-R for my desktop then spend several hundered more for one on the laptop). There's a few options listed at apple.com that I'm not familiar with. Can you help me define them? Here they are:

- Keynote? (sounds like PowerPoint to me)
- .Mac? Is it worth anything?
- AirPort extreme? Is that just a wireless network card?
- Is Bluetooth cool? What's the battery life on a keyboard? I don't need a wireless mouse, cause I do a lot of navigating with the keyboard, and the D-Pad has never bothered me

What type of word processing programs come with it if any? On my Performa 550 (R.I.P.) I used to use ClarisWorks, and I loved it.
Lastly, would/did you buy direct from apple.com? Or buy in-store? Thanks in advance!

1. Keynote is Apple's Powerpoint program. Its really a step up quality wise from the PP that comes with MS Office and can open MS Powerpoint files, though Ive heard of the MS version stumbling or misreading files created with Keynote.

2. .Mac is a service that was previously free but now charges a 99$/year fee for use. Its for a 15MB email account and 100MB of server space coupled with various other ammenities all found here.

3. Airport Extreme is just an 802.11g spec wireless card that fits in its own little spot reserved inside the mac so as not to use up any multiuse expansion slots/ports.

4. Bluetooth is cool if you have a bluetooth phone (you can sync wirelessly) but aside from that its not really worth it. But it is 50$ and it could save you the hastle of loosing a USB port to a dongle if you do decide that you want it later down the road.

Since the Apple bluetooth keyboard is run by 4 AA batteries, the battery life cant be that great, but it, along with the mouse, has an off switch so you arent constantly changing batteries. Id say its probably in line with other devices that are powered by 4 AA batteries in terms of battery life.

5. Appleworks is Clarisworks, just updated and without the Claris part. Youll find Appleworks to be a very familiar interface.

6. Either works fine. Online allows customization, though most anything except for hard drive and optical drive changes can be done instore (drive upgrades are available, I believe, but no downgrades as available online.) So, pretty much the difference is, if you dont change anything on the computer besides RAM and the wireless connection, whether you get your computer that day or wait till it ships.

[mac_mogul]

Is .Mac worth it? Yes.

My cousin caved and bought it with her iBook. She gets virus protection(like that'l ever happen, but hey, it's nice to have) and she uses her iDisk like crazy. So I'd say, yes. I'ts worth it. I plan to get it with my iBook when I buy it.

[Total Immortal]

What's an iDisc? I'm really not familiar with anything apple related anymore. And is the airport extreme wireless integrated into the computer? My friend just got a new Dell Latitude from his work, and the wireless card is integrated into the computer, and that's what i'm hoping the powerbook will have.

[Qiranworms]

Originally posted by Total Immortal
What's an iDisc? I'm really not familiar with anything apple related anymore. And is the airport extreme wireless integrated into the computer? My friend just got a new Dell Latitude from his work, and the wireless card is integrated into the computer, and that's what i'm hoping the powerbook will have.

iDisc is the 100MB of storage you get with .Mac...which is accessable from anywhere, I believe (but wouldn't 100MB be pointless otherwise?)

And regarding the wireless integration, I've been following Apple products for a while, and they'll do a lot for erganomics. There is little reason for them would do something like leave a wireless card protruding. I believe it actually fits under the keyboard, but I could be wrong there.

[g5orbust]

Airport Extreme exists as both a base station (to broadcast the generic 802.11g signal) and an internal card (to recieve any 802.11g signal). The card fits inside the Mac in its own, specifically designated spot.

Unlike the Dell, which (Im assuming) has the Centrino Mobile Technology, the Apple laptop's wireless connection is not soldered on mobo. But, then again, Apple's card is better - Centrino uses 802.11b and Apple uses the newer and better 802.11g spec. The Airport Extreme card is a 100$ extra, but it is worth it. I have it and its an excellent wireless card.

[Qiranworms]

Originally posted by g5orbust
Airport Extreme exists as both a base station (to broadcast the generic 802.11g signal)

But there has to be some router no matter what...even with his friends Latitude...I think he was asking about whether the card has anything sticking out of the comptuer or not...which it does not. And by the way, before Centrino, Dell used what they called "Mini PCI" cards that were also integrated. They can be accessed by unscreweing a little cover on the bottom of the machine. The card itself is about 1" by 2" (I know this because I had to replace my brother's which proved faulty after the purchase of his laptop).

[Total Immortal]

Yea, we have a Linksys wireless router. I think this is getting a bit more confusing than it needs to be.

Originally posted by g5orbust
Airport Extreme exists as both a base station (to broadcast the generic 802.11g signal) and an internal card (to recieve any 802.11g signal).

Isn't that basically describing what all wireless cards do? They receive a signal as well as transmitting one? Or else, they wouldn't work? I put my parents house on a wireless network (Linksys G-router, and G-wireless cards). And further more, how do people get the "54 MB/s" transfer rate? Is that when you are transferring directly over the network? Like in "My Shared Documents" folder? We just use AIM and or ICQ to exchange files, and it never get's over a meg.

Here's what I'm want to know:
Say I already have a wireless router (which obviously also serves as the wireless access point) , will I be able to get on the internet with the just Airport Extreme?
And, I don't want it to sit there wasting a PCMCIA/USB.. or whatever type of port. I want the card to be integrated into the computer, which it sounds like it is from qirans post. So it IS NOT a card that I can remove from a PCMCIA or USB port, right?? Sorry for the confusion, I just want to be absolute certain.
Who thinks up the names for their products anyway, Stan Lee?

[Qiranworms]

I'll try and clear up everything . Here goes:

(Linksys G-router, and G-wireless cards).

The AirPort extreme card should work without issue with the Wireless-G router.

And further more, how do people get the "54 MB/s" transfer rate? Is that when you are transferring directly over the network? Like in "My Shared Documents" folder? We just use AIM and or ICQ to exchange files, and it never get's over a meg.

Those speeds are when transferring directly over the network. The 54 MB/s is the maximum speed the router can transmit and receive data at. If you use AIM or ICQ, what happens, is it is sent over the internet to the AIM or ICQ server, and then back...so it is limited by your internet connection. The program you are using does not know that it does not have to go farther then the LAN to access the other computer. This is why it is much more useful to use a shared folder.

[Here's what I'm want to know:
Say I already have a wireless router (which obviously also serves as the wireless access point) , will I be able to get on the internet with the just Airport Extreme?

Yes.

And, I don't want it to sit there wasting a PCMCIA/USB.. or whatever type of port. I want the card to be integrated into the computer, which it sounds like it is from qirans post. So it IS NOT a card that I can remove from a PCMCIA or USB port, right?? Sorry for the confusion, I just want to be absolute certain.

Yes. It is completely integrated. It does not protrude the machine in any way.

Who thinks up the names for their products anyway, Stan Lee?

Not quite sure, but I believe the "i" in "iMac" originally stood for "internetMac". They probably kept it because of the cool sounding factor. Now their trends seem to indicate that the higher end machines have the "Power" prefix (Powerbook, Powermac), the "i" prefix for the normal products and midrange (normal user class) machines (iPod, iMac, iBook, etc). The eMac aims at the lower end..., "e" probably standing for "education".

[Total Immortal]

Sweet, thank you very much!