Yep, that’s the name. Corny it may seem to name a machine like a child, but my family likes it.
Now, how does a Linux geek turn to a Mac when buying n new machine? Actually, the decision (a family decision at that) was quite easy:
- We want a system that we know would last for about 5 years
- We want a laptop — not a desktop, so we can carry it around
- We want something that not only looks catchy, but also performs well
- We want something not everyone around is using
- We want something that can run several platforms
- We want something that has a good price to performance ratio
We got it for Php79,990 from Accent Micro. That includes a free 2nd Generation iPod Shuffle, which went to my wife. I can’t seem to justify the Php10,000 difference between the black MacBook and the white model, so we went for the white 2.16GHz Core 2 Duo model with 1Gb RAM and 120Gb hard drive.
What I did after buying the MacBook was to buy a laptop bag from CD-R King (Php680), Speedballs (Php950) from Digital Walker, Spark clear case (Php2700), an Apple sleeve (Php1200), and a keyboard skin (Php1200) from Power Mac Center. We have to protect our investment.
So far, things have been pretty well since we brought MacMac home. Now I have to learn how to use BootCamp to load Linux on a separate partition of the hard drive.
Responses to “MacMac: Our New MacBook”
August 2nd, 2008 at 11:53 pm
Hi sis!
It’s been a while indeed. Thanks for visiting my blog. 
As noted in Apple’s Mac OS X site (http://www.apple.com/macosx/techspecs/) Leopard does support G4’s, but there’s a catch. It has to be a G4 running at a speed of at least 867MHz. Checking out the PowerBook series’ specs at http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/powerbook_g4/index-powerbook-g4.html some mid-series TiBooks and AlBooks run somewhere in that speed range. Could you check your machine’s speed by selecting the Apple Menu and clicking on “About This Mac…” just to make sure your PowerBook runs at 867MHz or more?
Of course you have to add more RAM — Leopard requires at least 512Mb.
IMO, if you don’t need the extra features in Leopard, I’d say just stick with Tiger. The only reason I’m running Leopard right now is because of Time Machine (the automated backup application that comes with Leopard).
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:03 am
hey, thanks for the quick reply. know what i don’t even think this is a tiger, panther ata. or whichever is older. it’s a 10.2.7. this is a hand-me-down my sister decided to give me when she came home from the states last month. no book, no cds no nothing so i don’t really know much about the specs. im lovin it though, verry much! ;p
anyway, i went to the about this mac.. menu. are you pertaining to “machine speed”? cos i saw that and a “bus speed” too so i don’t know which one to give you. i got 1Ghz on machine speed and 133Mhz on bus speed.
ok you may now conclude that my tech skills aren’t that good. hahaha but im learning. like i found out the keyboard shortcuts and changed icons myself. i even deleted/replaced the admin account myself too (my sister forgot the admin password ofcourse), thanks to dave taylor’s website.
im ok with the os i have really, except that i think i need an upgrade on the browser atleast because most websites i go too looks funky and whatever software this has that plays videos on websites must be too old because mine can’t play those. hehe
August 4th, 2008 at 5:17 am
That “1 GHz” is your processor’s actual speed (machine speed, as you have mentioned) — that’s over Leopard’s minimum specification. You just need to add memory to your PowerBook to be able to run Leopard.
Most of the latest plugins that would allow you to play videos require a later-version OS indeed. Flip4Mac (a plugin that would let you play WMV files on a Mac) requires at least 10.3.9, and the latest Firefox browser requires 10.4.
Maybe you can ask your sister to send you some memory (and Leopard as well), it’s cheaper if you can get it direct from the US.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:43 am
i like your suggestion! however i doubt that my sister will know the first thing about finding RAM for this. i need to be very specific, and since you’re such a good friend, can you tell me which one to buy? like is there a specific brand and type? im sure there is, i just don’t know it. 
thanks ronnie!
August 6th, 2008 at 12:07 am
Remember the “About This Mac…” screen? I think the type of memory is shown there.
In your case, you have to buy 1Gb 133MHz DDR SDRAM SODIMM-type memory.
For instructions on how to install additional memory on your PowerBook, Apple has a good documentation at: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=95132
August 2nd, 2008 at 5:43 am
hey bro! how’ve u been doing?!
been a while huh? Ü
i got me an ancient hand-me-down mac. it’s a powerbook G4 with i think Tiger for an OS. im learning to use it and if i get a chance to buy my own brand new laptop, ill go for a mac too. it’s a lot stable that windows i think and it’s super cool looking. hehe
now while i have this im wondering if i can upgrade the OS to a Leopard. im sure i might need to up the RAM on it too cos it came with a 256MB only, but some research showed Leopard supported G4s. what do you think?