(Slightly off-topic rant ahead) Some months ago, I mentioned a buddy of mine, very sophisticated with computers. Writes programs for applications ranging from high-end home theater remote controls to county-clerk agencies. Lives for the Unix command line. Reassembled a completely disassembled Moto-Guzzi (sp?) Italian dirt motorcycle without a manual or actual motorcycle mechanics experience.
But he was completely bumfuzzled when trying to help someone with a Mac. He became flustered because he was trying to locate some specific file on the machine, and was told he needed to use Sherlock. I laughed and patiently explained, "When Microsoft stole the Mac GUI, they stole it pretty much completely. Command-F would have brought up the find-file function, just as Control-F would have on a PC. Or, for that matter, just go to the pull-down menus. I mean, wouldn't menu items like File, Edit and Help ring a bell to a Windows user? Doesn't "Trash" look suspiciously similar to "Recycling Bin"? Doesn't the concept of a mouse, a cursor and icons seem familiar? But my very competent buddy, and many other PC-ers, have bought into some culture that holds that he Mac is a great puzzlement, clouded in mystery and operated by a man behind the curtain. Boo! -- Chuck on 1/28/04 12:57 AM, Jon Glass at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > on 1/27/04 4:21 PM, Chuck Stinnett at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > >> But while I am anything but a PC veteran, I find that >> anyone with a good working knowledge of a Mac can probably muddle through >> basic configurations on a PC, and vice-versa (these configurations are, >> after all, made via control panels, and while Apple might call its "TCP/IP" >> and Microsoft might call its "Network" or whatever, the idea is pretty much >> the same). So if you can find a tech support person who can put down his >> Windows-centric step-by-step procedures for a moment and give you an >> overview of what you need -- configuring using DHCP or manually configuring >> with a static IP address, subnet mask, DNS/domain name server, etc. -- you >> should have no trouble. > > You are correct. Our network/ISP guy is a Windows/*nix only guy who had > never laid eyes on a real Mac before in his life! I showed him how to find > the Control Panels and a couple of utilities (IPNetMonitor) and he was able > to quickly adapt to it, and, in the end, appreciate how it all worked > together... Oh, I cannot forget, he can hardly speak English, and our OS is > purely English. :-) There is no excuse for somebody to run away from a Mac. > Maybe you could gently remind them--prod them about their paranoia--and see > if you can goad them into trying... Silly children... -- Power Computing is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... 123Inkjets.com <http://lowendmac.com/ad/123inkjets.html> Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> Power Computing list info: <http://lowendmac.com/power/list.html> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> List archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/powercomputing%40mail.maclaunch.com/> Using a Mac? Free email & more at Applelinks! http://www.applelinks.com
