- 2005.05.18
I am typing this on a PowerBook G4
purchased with grant funds. This PowerBook replaces a damaged TiBook I've been using for
some time.
The TiBook was dropped onto a floor - twice - and as a result it had
one hinge broken loose completely (except for a wire or cable leading
to the lid), internal breaks in its support frame in seven places,
cracks in the upper case where the keyboard and trackpad are in three
places (including a nice one right over the SuperDrive), a backlight
that would not wake up from sleep every time, a useless trackpad and
button, and the usual assortment of scratches and worn out paint
areas.
The poor TiBook still booted, though, and with an external mouse I
limped along until I was able to get a new PowerBook G4.
The new PowerBook has been reviewed elsewhere, I'm sure, but I just
thought I'd share some impressions of it as there are still many TiBook
users out there who may be interested in making the switch.
First of all, the
PowerBook has a more iBook-like lid hinge, with the descending lid that
sits slightly behind the body of the computer when open. This
necessitated moving all the ports from the back - sans the annoying
little flip-lid to cover them - and here Apple has made some nice
choices, including having one USB port on either side. FireWire 800 is
included, although I wish I had two FireWire 400 ports so I could
connect an iPod and an iSight simultaneously.
The power port is on the side, which I am not sure I like as well,
but it has to be somewhere. The drive still has the nice right side
front slot-loading design, which I have always liked.
The keyboard has a nice crisp feel. The keyboard seems to be
recessed just slightly, perhaps to help prevent screen marks common to
TiBooks. The computer feels sturdier as well, and the finish doesn't
appear to attract scratches as much.
The speakers are nicer, as well. They are larger in area and sound
better than the TiBook's speakers.
This computer runs at 1.5 GHz, compared to my older 1 GHz, and
the difference in response is perceptible. Part of this may be due to
the Tiger operating system installed on delivery. Tiger makes a bunch
of improvements on the last version of Panther, and if you have the
hardware to support it, I recommend the upgrade.
A new version of iWork, including an updated Keynote, was included
on a 30 day trial. The new version of Keynote solves every major
objection I had to the original, including timed transitions sans mouse
clicks, better integration with other iApps (really - it's easier to
select files than it was because the interface is improved with better
organization), and some new transitions to play with.
Tiger's Spotlight is better than Sherlock ever was, but you have to
be careful to type quickly or you'll get bogged down in a search of
files that start with "an" (there are a lot) vs. the phrase
"ancillary data" (there are not nearly as many). Results are
automatically sorted by type. The search initiates as soon as you start
typing, so type quickly to avoid bogging down.
Also included in Tiger is the new Dashboard utility to run mini-apps
called widgets. The widgets do very focused single-purpose functions
such as the weather or stickies. There is some sort of malicious
exploit connected with Widgets making the rounds on the Net, so maybe
you want to leave Dashboard off until Apple updates it. [Editor's note:
Apple has just released the OS X 10.4.1 update, which addresses
the problem.]
I have to say that it is very handy to just pop up the weather,
AirPort base station list, and whatever else I've selected with just
the press of the f15 key, which I can find in the dark.
Speaking of the dark, I like the new backlit keyboard controls. I do
a lot of work in the dark, being an astronomer, and the ability to see
the keyboard - and more importantly, to turn it off on demand - is
important. I wish it were backlit in red, though, but you can't have
everything.
Obviously there are many many more features than I can cover in a
single article. Overall, though, I'm very very pleased with the
computer, the OS, and the new versions of iApps.
For the first time in a long time, the upgrade to a new machine has
left me with so many new features I haven't had time to try them all
yet. I haven't even launched Pages (part of iWork) yet, for
example.
Only a few things have broken in the upgrade - nothing really
critical. It took me a while to reset a certain FTP connection I used
for some reason, but it eventually worked. I had some trouble figuring
out how to move over and import my older Mail folders to my new Mail
application, but I got that working eventually as well.
Mac OS 9 did not come preinstalled, but it is still available on the
installer discs included with the computer. This is the first Mac I've
ever owned or used that could not boot into OS 9; that was one of
the reasons I got the TiBook.
As it turned out, I rarely needed to boot into OS 9. The last
time I did it was some months ago because some old game I had would
only run in OS 9, and that seemed to be more a function of my
being unwilling to let go of the old OS than my real need for it.
is a longtime Mac user. He was using digital sensors on Apple II computers in the 1980's and has networked computers in his classroom since before the internet existed. In 2006 he was selected at the California Computer Using Educator's teacher of the year. His students have used NASA space probes and regularly participate in piloting new materials for NASA. He is the author of two books and numerous articles and scientific papers. He currently teaches astronomy and physics in California, where he lives with his twin sons, Jony and Ben.< And there's still a Mac G3 in his classroom which finds occasional use.
