| Issue #64/Aug. '00 |
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 Mac User's In IrelandMy name is Chris and I am 12 years old. I live in Dundalk in Ireland and know some people who own Macs in my roundabout area. We have our own Apple group and try to welcome in new members from all walks of life. This includes computer whiz-kids to people trying to get to know their Macs to people who are going to buy a computer and are thinking about buying Windoze. We try to get people to our meetings to convince them that Macs are good, PC's are bad. I think, personally, that people think that there are no people using Macs and that PCs are the way to go. And to be quite honest that is a fairly good assumption on their behalf. Firstly, Apple isn't advertising their ease-of-use and any of their advertising simply isn't been taken seriously. And secondly, people think that if they buy a Mac, they will fall behind the computer revolution and not be able to play their friends' brand new word processing program. I think that Apple's troubles will clear but they better clear fast.
Yours, PS. I love your publication and find it handy to start conversations at our Mac meetings. PPS. If anybody writes into your publication from around the N.E. Ireland region, could you please tell them about our Mac meetings. Remember that the meetings are very informative.
AOL Woe'sJust another letter to advise you of even more problems with the AOL "Golden" (what a laugh-haha) 3.0 From the moment I first installed the first preview and thru all the different versions, up to and including their haha "golden" edition, I have had nothing but trouble. It seems now that I can't even use it at all because everytime I launch aol 3.x anytime I go into the areas that allow text input (such as chat or reading/writing mail or posting boards area etc) anytime I enter a space or hit the return, I get a black shade that completely covers that input area. For instance - if I went into chat, everytime ANYONE in that chat area hits a return - my area where I read the chat text disappears and goes black. When I use WindowShade, it goes back normal, but then gets covered by black when anyone enters a return. In contacting AOL, they tell me that there is a group of people that they are aware of that has this problem, but they have no idea what is causing it. I have isolated it down to where this happens with nothing in extension or control panels except the one or two extensions necessary to open AOL. I have sent them screen shots and a complete list of everything on my Mac - a 5300cd with 64 megs of real memory and running 7.6. I used to do tech work for Apple so I do know what I am doing - and nothing will get AOL to function acceptably. So I am back at 2.7 with a bunch of hack patches. This now limits me to certain areas and I cannot connect to the Internet with 2.7 (even with giving AOL 35,000k memory in the Get Info). I have a direct ISP so that is no big deal, but I'd rather use 3.0 for the better features. Two months they have been writing me and saying that they still have no idea....... OH well...........Thanx for the good work you do on My Mac.
TeRRy
Apple AdvertisingSince you printed my letter in the March My Mac, I thought you might be interested in the site below: http://www2.apple.com/multimedia/demodays.html Apparently Apple isn't as deaf as I thought they were, even though I got no actual e-mail back from them. The only gripe I now have is that they did not include the Orlando area. What a better place to reach people from all over the country and globe; people don't stay at Disney, Universal Studios and SeaWorld ALL the time. Wouldn't it be nice for Apple to be able to evangelize on a worldwide scale, particularly when you have the people's attention? Check out the site and spread the news, try to visit a demo near you!
Steve Fenton
Ram & MoreFrom time to time I get the impulse to to write and say thanks...again. I'm glad you and your associates continue to put your energies into My Mac. Just finished the current issue, which didn't happen to have as many hot-button topics for me as usual (no fault of yours) -- and still I spent a pleasurable 45 minutes. Your article on 7.6 had me considering reconsidering. But my 7.5.5 is finally stable and has the new-but-previously-released features that seem to make sense for me. (Not Open Transport, does that benefit a stand-alone computer? Have you written about it?) Regarding Ram Doubler. I recently upgraded from 40 to 72 MB of RAM on a Performa 6112 (601 chip accelerated to 80 mhz). Got rid of RD and Ram Charger. Thought the system would run faster with fewer problems. There wasn't much difference in speed (maybe 5%, as measured by MacBench). I think I learned that it isn't RD that slows the computer down as it allows you to keep open a bunch of apps, it's the bunch of open apps that slow the computer down. I also discovered that without RD's virtual-memory-like benefits of running apps at lower RAM allocations, 72 wasn't a whole lot different than 40. With RD and RC, I was running Photoshop at 10 MB. Without them, it was running out of memory and crashing at 20 MB. (BTW, with Ram Charger one opens apps at minimum RAM allocations and if an app needs more, RC provides it, then takes it back later. I'm using a 3.5b5 beta.) After a couple weeks, I reinstalled RD and RC. Works better that way. BTW2: I had to do a lot of conflict testing to stabilize things. Among the culprits were Suitcase (replaced with MasterJuggler), Disinfectant, Scantastic Access and Aaron. I now have no crashes that I think RD has anything to do with, and few crashes overall (NavGold has most of those). BTW3: I'm not saying everyone should rush out and get RD and RC. Folks in your profession (Mac consultants) don't look on them too kindly. Maybe they have good reasons, maybe not. Production situations don't like downtime. After installing both, there were kinks to work out. Sorta like a puppy. If, before acquisition, you knew what was involved in housebreaking, you might not bring one home. But I didn't, so I made the RD/RC plunge. And now that things are peaceful, I'm glad I did. Miner is a funny guy. I laugh at his pieces, but don't actually read them word for word. I read enough to get a sense what the schtick is, and then I skim for a few more nuggets. When my belly has been adequately exercised, I move on. (It's like a box of chocolates. Some people want the whole box. I'm OK with 2 or 3 pieces...usually.) With the gorilla testing program, I just about finished the whole BIG box (skipped a bit in the middle). Echoing another reader, I like the press watch column. Interesting how fast things change. Hancock was a rising star, now she's on her way out. The NeXt people seem to be gathering power. Let's hope they're very, very good. Keep it up!
Chuck Miller
Thanks for the letter, Chuck. I was wondering if you're the same Chuck from way back in issue #4's letter page? Just curious...
You don't read ALL of Miner Thoughts every month? For shame! :-) As for Open Transport benefiting stand-alone computers; the verdict, as far as I am concerned, is still out. I have heard from people in both camps; those who swear by it, and those who don't. Apple, for whatever reason, recently cut Open Transport development. Perhaps that answers your question better than I ever could?
Offer To HelpI greatly enjoy your Macazine. It is the best Mac-info-journal source that I use currently. And it is free. I would like to help in some way, but I am not a Mac Technowiz, nor am I literaty wonder. I am quite busy working on a Ph.D. in biochem, but I may be able to squeeze time in to help your publication in some way. Just let me know.
Sincerely, Thanks, Chris! We can always use the help! For anyone wanting to write for My Mac (reviewers are always needed) simply write something and send it in. Don't worry about what program to use or what format. If your submission is accepted, we will contact you with future submission guidelines.
My Mac & SicilyI've the pleasure to inform you that since fews months, after downloading the magazine through internet I'm replicating it on my bbs. The name of bbs is C.I.A.O., it has been realized in Sicily (Catania) with FirstClass sw and is part of Italian OneNet network and International OneNet. Connection to C.I.A.O. is possible by Mac and Windows/DOS systems (using FC clients) as well as terminal program with modem direct call. C.I.A.O. is also reachable on Internet using the same above clients and by telnet on ciao.tau.it (we have also two mirrored Web pages at http://www.easyWeb.it/ciao and http://www.ipsnet.it/netpages/room175) All my users, mainly Mac users (win/dos users are only envious), enjoy of the magazine and of the news and articles written in a plain form. Do you thing it's possible to put a link (by a nice image to be supplied by you) on the Web page in order to make readable the magazine (probably only some articles)?. I want to say to all friends readers of My Mac: ciao from Italy and from
Alberto Glad to hear My Mac is a hit in Italy, and can be found on your BBS. (Hey, Sicily, Italy and Ireland: perhaps it's time to bring back My Mac International?)
Rosie Rule's!I scurried out early from work Friday (3-21) and clicked on the TV while I went off into the kitchen. Rosie O'Donnell was given an I LOVE LUCY CD-ROM from Lucy's daughter. Rosie said she was given it the day before and was so excited when she got home and turned on her computer and wanted to use it, but couldn't. Rosie said she wished it was in Mac form. Lucy said "I'll buy you a COMPUTER". Rosie said ,with firmness: "No! I love my Mac!" Lucy said they will make a Mac version. Maybe Ricky didn't want Lucy to come to his nightclub because they used Macs.
Brian Valentine You just HAVE to love Rosie O'Donnell! I did even before I got your letter. And I usually can't stand those television talk shows (with the exception of Dennis Miller, who I think is great!) It's no surprise to me that Rosie is a Mac lover. How could she not be?
PC Envy?>It's not very often that I can look at a PC, and wish I had a feature I see there. >In fact, other than the way menu1s pull down, there isn't any
Dear Tim,
I just received My Mac #23. As usual, I am finding all sorts of interesting and useful information. This time, though, I may have something to share back. I am not sure to what exactly you refer in the above quotation, but I wonder if it is the way in which Windoze menus stay down without holding the mouse button. If this is the feature you desire, do you know about StickyClick (v1.2 1992 SixxeHeads Software - written by Steve Zellers)? It's an extension I've had forever -- so long I don't remember
Nancy Faraday
GopherGolfI just wanna say I love the fact that you all do this game review ...not just to tell us that the game is good but that it exists!!! It's nice to be able for you to tell a buncha people about things you know that they don't, and that you can learn some things you didn't know from others ( I hope that made sense). Well, that's what I am hopefully going to be able to do....tell you all something I think rocks (besides your column) that you may not know!!! I was searching through a Rock'n area I heard about that exists on the Web at http://www.shareware.com (YES that's right-everything you can imagine for you to DOWNLOAD from the Joe Shmoe's around the world to the big business companies wanting to show you a little bit of there product. Not only that they have a search area - a NEWEST products area - and a most downloaded area + more) Anyway....I was searching through this area when I came across a game called GopherGolf...I I have to tell you it is the BEST game for $15 I have ever seen. I played it once (the three hole limit unregistered) and I was hooked and knew not only would it be a game for ME but a game for my whole family....let me tell you we are all hooked. I can't say how AWESOME and ADDICTING this game is!!!!!! Thanks for listening and I hope I told you something NEW!!! P.S. Review more FREEWARE games for us POOR souls out here - and one more suggestion, how about keeping a running list of your Games you have reviewed with a 5 star system at the end......maybe a list of top 10 Shareware and a top 10 Freeware games you've reviewed??? Just a suggestion!!!!
Comments? Complaints? Do you like a particular review or want to voice an opinion? Write in! It only takes a few minutes. And remember, don't just send me your letters; contact our writers, too. If you enjoy their writing, drop them a note. It's the least you can do :-) Remember, My Mac Magazine is a FREE magazine, so we "live" off the response we receive from our readers. |
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