One thing that seems to be a matter of personal preference for many people is the way in which the keyboard operates. Not only do you want to be able to easily type your native language, but you may want certain keys to do certain things.
Apple decided to be different by coming out with their own keyboards, which have a slightly different key layout than the typical PC keyboard. Nevertheless it is quite possible to use a standard PC keyboard with a Mac provided you can get the hardware part right - for example, if you want to use one of those keyboards you got free after rebate a few years ago (that is still collecting dust in your closet) and you own a Mac Mini, you’ll probably need a PS2 to USB adapter. These are often available as a relatively inexpensive item on eBay - some of them will only convert a keyboard, but for only a small amount more you may find ones that will convert a keyboard and a mouse.
Whether you have a genuine Apple keyboard or a PC keyboard that has been pressed into service, you might wish that certain keys behaved differently. So, here’s a brief roundup of the most common ways to modify keyboard behavior.
First, to switch languages, go to System Preferences, International and then click on the Input Menu tab. There you can select among many different keyboard layouts, input methods, and palettes. If you are a native English speaker than probably all you want to do is make sure the correct country is selected for the keyboard input type, but it’s nice to know that the other options are available in case you ever decide to learn another language, or host a visitor that speaks another tongue.
But there’s another reason you might want to go to this particular preference pane. At the bottom there is a checkbox labeled “Show input menu in menu bar.” If this is checked, it shows a small national flag or symbol in the menu bar, representing the currently selected keyboard layout. It’s automatically selected if you select two or more different keyboard layouts, because this is what gives you the ability to change keyboard layouts easily from the menu bar - so you can, for example, change from English to Canadian English with a couple of mouse clicks. Yes, I am confused also - I thought that Canadian English was the same as American English except for a few minor spelling variations. Maybe when you press the letter “a”, it prints the character string “eh?” (Sorry, bad joke - I really have no idea what the difference is!).
If you keep “Show input menu in menu bar” checked, even if you only have one language selected, it will give you ready access to the Keyboard Viewer.
And what is the Keyboard Viewer, I hear you ask? Well, it has a couple of functions. For one thing, it shows a real Apple keyboard layout and when you press a key on your keyboard, it shows you what key it thinks was pressed on the Apple keyboard layout. This can help you learn the differences between your PC keyboard and the Apple layout, and it can also show you some interesting options (for example, try holding down the ALT key (if you have a PC-style keyboard) or the Option key (if you have a genuine Apple keyboard) and you’ll see an entire selection of extra symbols that can be entered. Want to say you have something on sale for 99¢, or that you need a 600Ω resistor, or that something you’ve written is ©2008? Those special symbols and many more are available by holding down the ALT key or Option key.
And, you can try other combinations of modifier keys for even more symbols (try SHIFT+ALT or SHIFT+Option, for example).
Also, you can click on the Keyboard Viewer with the mouse to directly enter keystrokes. This can be a lifesaver if you ever find yourself in a situation where the keyboard is non-responsive and you really need to enter a few characters. Not only can you enter regular keystrokes, but you can use the dropdown to change the font mapping to “Webdings”, or any of three sets of “Wingdings.”
But, maybe you want even more power over your keyboard. We’ll cover that in Part 2. Stay tuned…
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Does the world need another Macintosh Blog? I suppose that depends on who you ask. What we have found is that their are two rather indistinct groups of Macintosh users. The first is the long-time Mac user, who’s been using a Mac since before the days of OS X. That user is probably a Mac devotee, the type that thinks that the Mac is the greatest computer ever. That user is the type to try and convince all their friends and relatives to switch to the Mac. They are, in short, the convincers - if it weren’t for them, there would be far fewer Mac users today.
Then there is the other group - the “switchers”, a.k.a. the “recently convinced.” They’ve never known anything other than OS X on a Mac, but they may have struggled with several versions of Windows prior to finally getting a Mac. Now, some of them may be wondering if they made the right choice. For the first month or so after switching from Windows, they will probably experience much wonder and doubt - wondering what they’ve gotten themselves into, and occasionally doubting that the “convincer” friend or family member steered them on the right track.
The problem is that things are done differently on a Mac than on other platforms, and it’s not always in a manner that’s agreeable to everyone.
For example, let’s say that you are having a problem with your computer. Let’s suppose that in some application, or maybe all applications, the characters don’t always appear on the screen immediately as you type them. Let’s suppose that you are asking for help in an online forum devoted to your particular computer/operating system. What do you suppose the most frequent (though not necessarily correct) response would be?
In a group of Windows users, I would expect it to be something like this: “Your computer is probably loaded with spyware and adware, or maybe you have picked up a virus or a trojan horse program that is logging your keystrokes. Go install this and that anti-spyware/anti-adware/antivirus program. If that doesn’t work, reformat your hard drive and reinstall Windows.”
Okay, what about in a group of Linux users? “You are probably having a driver issue - type (some magical incantation) at the command line and that might tell you where the problem is …” (I will pause here to note that if you actually do this, you will probably get a screenful of information that would only mean something to a true Linux geek) “… and failing that you may want to run (some other incomprehensible command) or try recompiling the driver.” If you have just switched from Windows to Linux, this will all be about as clear as mud to you, and the geeks will think they are doing you a favor by not just telling you the solution to your problem in plain English (or whatever your native language might be), but instead sending you off on a Google quest or to read “man” pages, often without even giving you any hints about what search terms you should be using, or what “man” page would contain the answer.
So what about on a Mac group? Here’s the advice I’d expect to see: “Go down to the Apple store and buy a new Apple keyboard. If that doesn’t work, take your Mac into the Genius Bar and let them figure it out.”
And that brings me to my first crab about the Mac: Far too often, when you are looking for a solution to a Mac-related problem, the advice that you will be offered can be expressed simply as “Buy Something.” And if that something is computer hardware, well of course it will be strongly suggested that you should buy it from Apple.
That may sound like fine advice to long-time Mac users, but it doesn’t always sit well with the switchers who have just come from the world of “Windows and Gates”, and expect that most problems can be solved with software, and that most of that software is available somewhere out on the Internet as freeware or, at worst (or if you are too lazy to search beyond the first page of Google results), low-cost shareware. If, by chance, you do need new hardware, you can get it from a multitude of suppliers, and if you search the ‘net (or watch the local sale circulars) it will be very reasonably priced.
It would be easy to dismiss the Mac as being a machine designed for high-end users, like an expensive automobile. But that would not always be a correct assumption. In particular, the Mac Mini is a very reasonably-priced machine when you compare the specifications to available Windows boxes, and realize that the Mac Mini includes the latest version of the Mac OS X operating system. And many Windows users have found that a “pre-owned” desktop Mac gives reasonable performance at a fair price. Even if someone splurges for a brand-new desktop Mac, or whatever happens to be the latest and greatest Mac laptop, that doesn’t always imply that they have money to burn.
One of the things we hope to do here at CrabApple Forest is tell you about some of the great Mac Freeware that is out there, that doesn’t always get the recognition it deserves. But beyond that, we want to try and help people who have switched from Windows fairly recently, and are not long-time Mac fanatics. You really will enjoy using the Mac once you’ve had it for a while, but some things are done differently, and maybe we can help you with the transition.
Personally, I think that the biggest reason the world may need another Mac-related blog is because of this: We didn’t drink the hard Apple Cider - what I mean is, you’ll never catch us standing outside an Apple store in the chilly night air so we can be among the first to get our hands on some new Apple product. We want to put our Macs to use, not dress them up in expensive accessories and brag about them to our friends that still use Windows (well, maybe just a little, but only when the Mac really does do something better than Windows).
So if you are looking for a hard-nosed blog that’s not written by a bunch of Mac fanboys, maybe you’ve found it! When there’s something about the Mac we don’t like, we’ll crab about it. But when we find some delightful new freeware program, or some helpful hint or tip that makes it more of a joy to use a Mac, we’ll pass that along.
Oh, and don’t worry, most of the articles should be more concise than this one - we know you are busy and don’t have much time to read, and my editor has said he’ll chop off my articles if I let them get too long, and start to ramble on…..
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BigCrab here - There are two of us involved with this project at the moment. I’m the practical, down-to-earth guy. But the person who started this blog, and who will be doing 99.9% of the writing is, shall we say, a bit more open to flights of fancy. He writes, I proofread (and then yell at him for misusing and abusing apostrophes). I can try to make his writing more grammatically correct, but I can’t improve upon the content. Thus you may, from time to time, see the sort of perversity that follows. I’d like to know where he’s getting whatever Apple Juice he’s drinking when he writes this stuff, because I want some!!! Oh, he starts out okay (if you don’t mind be talked to like a child), but by the time he gets to talking about me in the third and fourth paragraphs, I know he’s been hitting the hard cider. Trust me, I am NOTHING AT ALL like the way he describes me. And, I live in the real world, not some enchanted orchard. But I do come and visit him every so often, and the men in the clean white coats are kind enough to pass along the crumpled slips of paper containing his notes and ideas, some of which are expressed herewith…..
JohhnyAppleseed here announcing the Orchard of Wisdom is now open… The seeds of knowledge have been sown. With the help of my partner BigCrab, we have nurtured the seeds of an idea to where we are today. Welcome to Orchard of Wisdom here in CrabApple Forest!
We decided to open the Orchard of Wisdom because we believe that the tree of knowledge belongs to everyone. But, here in the real world of CrabApple Forest we know that every good Apple comes with a price. You must carefully pick the good fruit to fully enjoy the sweetest Apple of them all, the Macintosh.
We have a whole orchard of Apples but unless you know how to pick and choose the right ones you may take a bite and get a VERY sour, bitter mouthful. Trust and believe I get an earful from BigCrab every time he takes a bite and gets a sour one! He gets so crabby that he storms around the forest making sure EVERYONE know where the bitter ones are. Many people who don’t know BigCrab think that he is just mad at the world all the time. But, that’s not true. Not everything is as it seems here in CrabApple Forest.
The truth is that even though I run the Orchard of Wisdom day in and day out, BigCrab started eating the fruit first! When he took his first big juicy bite of that sweet Macintosh. and tasted the pure perfection of the Apple, he was hooked for life. The next day was a different story. You see, that time he got a nasty bitter taste in his mouth. From that day forward he was committed to let all the newcomers to the forest know where all the bad Apples were. So, if you see or hear BigCrab during your visit here to the Orchard of Wisdom and he is yelling and waving his arms don’t be afraid. BigCrab is just trying to keep you on the path to the Tree of Knowledge. He may seem a bit gruff or odd but really he’s just trying to help you so you don’t have to suffer that bitter taste in your mouth from getting a bad Apple.
I will share with you at a later date how my partner BigCrab and I ended up here in the CrabApple Forest. It’s been a long jorney and it is far from over.
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