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Progress and the Right Handed Mac
Frank Wells - 2002.01.21
My Turn is Low End Mac's column for reader-submitted articles. It's your turn to share your thoughts on all things Mac (or iPhone, iPod, etc.) and write for the Mac web. Email your submission to Dan Knight .
After spending the last three years using a Power Mac 8600, my desk was laid out in a comfortable manner. The 19" monitor had it's place on center stage, the 8600 sat directly to its left, with a external CD-RW drive on top of it, and a Umax scanner on top of that. To the right of the monitor was my Lexmark printer and fax machine. Squeezed between things was a Zip drive and an external 2 GB SCSI drive.
Ever since I got my first Tower Mac, an 840AV, I've
positioned the computer to the left side of the monitor, as this always
seemed the most comfortable. When the 8600 arrived,
it assumed the same spot on the desk. This worked
out perfectly, as the 8600 has a removable door on its left side that
allows easy access to its internals.
For three years I went on haply upgrading the computer with more RAM, faster processor cards (as they became available), faster video cards (to help with the gaming), and so on. I even vacuumed the insides 2-3 times a year, something I never did on older Macs that were more difficult to get into.
Well the day came when I needed FireWire ports. This is a simple matter of adding a PCI card; then you're off and running. I thought this over for awhile: Do I want to upgrade the 8600 any further or should I upgrade to a newer model?
The choice was a tough one. The 8600 had been a great computer, but I longed for a change. After all, it'd been three years! As a dyed in the wool eBay-aholic, I checked what was available online at the time.
As luck would have it there was a B&W 400 available with 256
MB RAM at a "Buy It Now Price" of $425. I'd always
admired the B&W model in the ads, but I had never
seen one in person After careful thought (about 30 seconds), I found I
could not resist. My bid was placed immediately; it was mine! The
B&W 400 has everything I need: fast processor, good video, two USB
ports, and two FireWire ports - not to mention good looks!
After a short wait, it arrived. It is a thing of beauty! Apple did itself proud with the smooth flowing lines, the beautiful color combination, the handles to make it easy to carry, and the easy access door on the right side.
WHAT? On the right side? Can't be? No, tell me it isn't so! It doesn't fit into my desk layout.
What genius changed sides?
Why would Apple change something that worked so well?
Why didn't they ask me?
After pondering these questions for awhile, the only answer was to change the desk around. This was not as easy as it sounds. Over the years I'd minimized cable lengths to keep things neater on and under the desk. This was corrected with the addition of another power cord and a longer phone line for the B&W's internal modem.
Because of the handles on the B&W, the CD-RW and scanner did not fit on top as they did on the 8600, but a small table added to the side of the desk cured this problem.
The new computer sits to the right of the monitor, and the printer and fax are on the left. It took a few hours, but after everything is said and done, it works! I can access the door, and all I need to do is move a lamp and I'm inside.
Now if I can stop trying to shove CDs into the printer 2-3 times a day, it will be a perfect setup.
Progress?
Share your perspective on the Mac by emailing with "My Turn" as your subject.
Recent My Turn articles
- Using Low End Macs for Internet Radio, 08.18. When the local public radio station moved classical music to HD radio, it was time to find another way to listen. An old iMac with iTunes solved the problem.
- 'That's Not a Computer', 07.30. Salvaging a broken PowerBook by turning it into a desktop computer.
- Upgrading a Digital Audio G4 to work better in Leopard, 06.02. In its original configuration, the dual 533 MHz Power Mac G4 was slow with Mac OS X 10.5, but add the right upgrades, and it runs Leopard quite nicely.
- My 4 favorite PowerBooks, 05.28. The PowerBook 150 has a big screen for a vintage PowerBook, the 165c has color, the 100 is diminutive, and Lombard has USB and a great keyboard.
- More in the My Turn index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: 17" iMac G4/800 MHz, July 2002 - The iMac 'grows up' with a 17" 1440 x 900 display.
- Group of the Day: LisaList supports Lisa users.
- November 8 in LEM history: 99: OS 9: I think I like it - 01: The simplified Mac life - Soured on Windows - Flea market Mac - 02: Little room for improvement in new 'Books - Combo drive upgrade for iceBooks - 04: Re-Porter - 05: Fix the old iMac or buy a Mac mini? - Apple's Copland project - 06: MacBook Core 2 - MacBook value equation - Cheap is as cheap does - 07: Problems with Classic mode in Tiger - The G4 Power Mac that won't run Leopard
- Support Low End Mac
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- Quad-Core CPU Makes Sense in MacBook Pro, OS X 10.6 Causing Overheating, Overseas Power, and More, The 'Book Review, 11.06. Also Late 2009 MacBook reviewed, how to add RAM to new MacBook, 18.4in Acer notebook used Intel i7, and SanDisk SSD chosen for Sony VAIO X.
- Dumping Macs for Google Apps, SSD in iMac, Late 2009 iMac Performance Problems, and More, Mac News Review, 11.06. /newsrev/09mnr/1106.html
- WiFi Paranoia, iMac-O-Lantern, Magic Mouse Does Click, Free Clipboard Managers, and More, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 11.05. Also strange time stamps, problem with ColorIt on Intel Mac, and the story behind OS X 10.5.4 install discs.
- IDE Is Dead; Long Live SATA!, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 11.04. SATA has displaced parallel ATA. While IDE hard drives haven't disappeared, the best deals are in SATA hard drives.
- QuickTime X in Snow Leopard Imports, Trims, and Publishes Video Quickly and Easily, Alan Zisman, Zis Mac, 11.04. The long, slow process of importing video into iMovie to edit it, then render it to another format, is history as QuickTime X does that much more quickly.
- More links in our archive.
Recent Deals
- Best Mac Pro Deals, 11.03. Used 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,300; 3.0 8-core. $2,299; refurb 2.66 4-core Nehalem, $2,149; 2.93, $2,549; 2.26 8-core, $2,799; 2.93, $4,999.
- Best iPhone Deals, 11.03. New 8 GB iPhone 3G, $$99; refurb 16 GB 3GS, $149; new, $199; 32 GB, $299.
- Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.03. Used 867 MHz SperDrive, $348; 1 GHz, $499; 1.33 Combo, $298; SD, $559; 1.5 Combo, $448; SuperDrive, $589.
- Best Power Mac G3 and PCI Video Card Deals, 11.02. Used beige 300 MHz, $25; G4/366, $49; blue & white 350, $80; 400, $90; 450, $105; PCI video cards from $15; shipping additional.
- Best Power Mac G4 and AGP Video Card Deals, 11.02. Used 400 MHz, $50; 733 MHz, $69; 933 MHz, $209; 1.25 GHz dual, $299.
- Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 11.02. Used 2.0 GHz, $800; 2.2, $900; 2.4, $1,000; refurb 2.53, $1,449; 2.66, $1,699; 2.8, $1,949; 3.06, $2,169; new 2.53, $1,579; 2.66, $1,799; more.
- Best Mac mini Deals, 10.30. Used 1.33 GHz G4 mini, $379; 1.42, $389; 1.5, $419; 1.83 GHz Core Duo, $350; Core 2, $439; new 2.26 GHz nVidia, $580; 2.53 GHz, $770; Server, $990.
- Best G4 iBook Deals, 10.30. Used 12" 1.07 GHz Combo, $225; 1.33 GHz, $298; 14" 1 GHz, $349; 1.33 GHz, $398; 1.42 GHz SuperDrive, $498.
- Best Classic Mac OS Deals, 10.30. System 6.0.8 floppies, $10; 7.1, $12; 7.5, $20; 7.5 CD, $4; 7.6 $13; 8.1, $11; 8.5, $20; 8.6, $90; 9.0, $20; 9.2.2, $30.
- More deals in our archive.
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