Really liking this mac mini

[Mbira]

I have been a "PC guy" for many years.  I really like building computers, and I have always felt like it was a waste of money to buy something like a laptop that you couldn't upgrade over time.  And I have done just that-fixing the occasional mobo and power supply, and buying new hard drives as they fill, etc.  The irony is that now for some reason I have 4 computers...one so-so PC that I built 10 years ago, a "recording computer" that I built about 5 years ago (rack mounted dual core), and a third PC that I recently built for my live gig setup that runs Ableton and our visual projection stuff. 

Then I got into programming, and decided I wanted to learn how to make iPhone apps.  I got myself a basic Mac Mini.  I haven't used in much in the last year, but in these last few weeks, I've been turning to it more and more-and the thing that draws me to it is it is SILENT!  My other computers all seem so much louder.  I've now replaced all the fans with quiet fans, and I guess the next step would be to get solid state drives, but they are so expensive. 

So then I started doing some of my video editing and photoshop, etc on the mac, and I'm really hooked now.

Now I'm pining for a mac book pro :-D 

But I know in 2 years, I'd be kicking myself because it'd be out of date and I'd be stuck with a $2000 obsolete thing.

But, man right now, my stage computer is a 4U rackmount thing in a 12U road case with a drawer that carries all the cables, monitor, mouse, keyboard, and racked up are the soundcard and the DIY midi drum trigger and arduino controller.  Man it'd be nice to scale that down to a 2 U drum trigger and soundcard and carry the laptop under my arm. :-D

 

[canidoit]

Macbook Pro is great. I have the 2+ghz core 2 duo and I am amazed at how good it is even at todays age. I use it for both PC and Mac operating system and software and it runs solid!

You really can't go wrong with it. I would keep your fastest desktop if I was in your position. Its handy to have just when you do not want to use a lappy or you want to expand on it.

 

[strangeandbouncy]

Hi,


  I've had my MacBookPro for more than 3 years, and it is far from obsolete!



    Kindest regards,



      ANdyP

 

[sodderboy]

It is a powerful tool.  If you stay with a version of softwares you can use it indefinitely.  The problem is that you start to do everything with it, and it is usually iTunes that demands it's own upgrades, and then with an OS upgrade the machine gets slow.  Add an iPhone and you are forced to upgrade everything every 24 months or so!

I used a Powerbook 12" for 2 years traveling with me to all tech sites, and it has been in regular use at home for another 2.  I travel with a Macbook now, which would not work for you because no FW port.  But it is a fab tool.
Get serious with your MicroMbira app and it will fund the purchase of a machine!
Mike
PS: I never liked PC laptops, and I had them back to a clunky NEC 8086!

 

[pucho812]

my macbook pro has lasted over 4 years now. one of the first intel macbooks. use it everyday. hardly obsolete.

 

[phishman13]

My iMac is the shit for my studio setup.  I can keep it in my studio, its dead quiet so no bleed issued, fast enough to run a 24+ track session with all necessary plug ins, and when I wanna watch netflix on my couch, unplug it, pick it up, move it, plug it in, done!  I was used to PC desktops, having to lug a monitor and the PC, and then hook up 20 cables for wireless, monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc. Pain in my ass.  I will never go back now.  Well, never say never, but more than likely I won't.

 

[gar381]

My main Machine is a 8 year old G4 Quick Silver 833 tower that I use
for everything but Audio (tape).  Works great for eagle, Photoshop CS1 and
all my office apps.

I can see using this guy for a lot more years or until the internet stops liking 10.4.11
( I do keep droooooling at the apple store however ;D ;D ;D  maybe someday????)

Macs just keep working and working and working.

GARY

 

[mulletchuck]

Apple machines have an incredible resale value.  Do yourself a favor, and sell the machine at the end of the year.  you'll get close to 90% what you paid for it.  Then purchase the latest and greatest (as needed) from apple, and repeat the process.  You can have a top of the line machine each year for only like $2-300!

 

[zebra50]

They do sell well, even when trashed.

I sold my G3 laptop a few years ago. It was three years old at the time, I dropped it down the stairs and broke the screen, the battery didn't charge, and it was overheating. I got £200 for it. Last year I sold my 3 year old Intel macbook. Similar story - ethernet connector was dead, battery dead, charger broken, plus cracks in the body. Again, I got over £200 for it.

(In the studio I still have my 1997 400MHz boiled sweet imac, in cherry red. It just runs the Nord modular keyboard software, and is still running fine.)

 

[Rybow]

I have a macbook pro 2GHZ core duo that I have been using for 4 years now as my main machine. I run Logic 9, superior drummer, and a schwack of other current software under snow leopard. Even though I just got a brand new iMac (SWEET!), my MBP still gets a lot of use. It takes a long time to make a mac fully obselete. My only issues with mine are the 2GB RAM ceiling due to its pre core 2 duo processor, and the battery is failing. Other then that, still going strong!

 

[MartyMart]

I have a macbook pro 2GHZ core duo that I have been using for 4 years now as my main machine.

That series of MB-pro before "unibody" are killer, I have an almost 4 year old version that still works a treat
and a newer one that was on "offer" when the Unibody came out, that's a 2.4ghz core duo with 4 gig ram.
It runs a LOT of music apps and is my workhorse when I'm out of the studio / recording elsewhere.

They are not cheap but as my Dad used to say "you get what you pay for" .... in general he was right on.


MM

 

[canidoit]

I travel with a Macbook now, which would not work for you because no FW port. 

You could always get a firewire ports card for it on the express slot. Im not sure how stable that is, but I have heard people using an eSata ports card with no probs.

 

[amorris]

I keep wondering what the down side of a mac mini is. $600. very solid where we have them here at work. I dont get to use them but our mac guru has nothing but praise for them. other than configurability. but $600 for a real mac? ends the cost issue for me.

 

[Nat]

I've had my Mac Mini for almost 4 years now and it's still being used for several hours a day. I'm exceptionally happy with it! So they don't go out of date as quickly as you'd think.

 

[mulletchuck]

the downside is that they don't have more than 2 cores, and have a limited amount of ram.  OBviously this is in comparison to the Mac Pro or iMacs with quadcores.  but they're pretty equivalent to the MacBook Pros that came out about 3 years ago, spec-wise.    Nice piece of gear for the money!

 

[JohnRoberts]

Another downside (perhaps?) is they use laptop hard drives instead of regular computer hard drives. While these should be more robust, that didn't help me when mine took a dump with a bunch of data I hadn't backed up since it was only my web/email computer. and it was a MAC so how could it fail so quickly???  So no Virginia they aren't idiot-proof...  How come I never lost a PC hard drive?????

newer mac mini OS has automatic back up software built in that only works with a wireless network, so I still have no auto back up on this puppy, but it is OK for surfing the web... and email as long as I don't keep anything important on it.

I'm sure there is some way to make a mac do this pretty basic stuff but i haven't learned enough secret handshakes, and my brain is already in the Kelly Bundy mode where every new programming language or script I have to learn makes me forget some old friend.

Do I know you?

JR

 

[Matt Ward]

Hi John,

I've seen 1 Mac mini drive die within warranty of the 20 or so I've integrated.  I've lost PC drives of various types in the past.  All drives will fail eventually and there's no difference if they're in a mac or P.C..  I've found them very useful as "client" machines, although within a network where users home folders are sync-d up to central storage.


newer mac mini OS has automatic back up software built in that only works with a wireless network, so I still have no auto back up on this puppy

Are you talking about Time Machine?  Are you sure that's correct?  If so, I'm amazed.

Matt

 

[kazper]

It has to be time machine and the only downfall is you open up pandoras box by use of the OS CD.

BTW Time machine can be used with a external Hard drive or NAS as well.

 

[JohnRoberts]

I don't have time to mess with this today, but time machine prompts me to set up a time capsule (cute names), clicking on that starts a search for for an airport wireless device.  Another cute name that doesn't do anything for me (all my other computers and external hard drive are networked together with wire).

Yes, it seem logical that I should be able to do this pretty easily, but it's been dumbed down so much I can't.. probably some configuration preference somewhere....  another secret handshake.

But i shouldn't worry, it's an apple and they're easy to use. 

JR

 

[Matt Ward]

John, is the drive you want to backup to mounted before you try to backup?  It's possibly searching for airport devices because it can't see a drive.

In Leopard:

Mount drive you want to use as a backup.
System Preferences > Time Machine > Set drive you want to use as your backup drive under "Change Disk".  Set Options (like what you don't want to be backed up) in Options.  Make sure Time Machine is turned on.

From then on it will automatically stay backed up while the backup drive is mounted and if the backup drive is unmounted, it will backup the next time the drive is mounted.