PDA

View Full Version : MAC users help


hoey222
11-25-2002, 09:58 AM
I need to get a client an ibook. i'm a pc user i dont know that much about the ibooks.

a couple of questions i have.

it says air port ready - does that mean that the wireless is buitl-in or theres a slot for the card?

is there a pcmcia slot on a mac?

thats all i can think of now.

thanks for your help

:D
ribitch
11-25-2002, 10:05 AM
all macs are airport ready. Its simply a spot to plug in the airport card. You will need to purcahse a airport card if you want wireless on most systems with the exception of teh powerbook.

pcmcia is only on the powerbook. iBook was designed for education, therefore the PCMCIA wasnt added due to the cards being very fragile.
seqiro
11-25-2002, 12:07 PM
Originally posted by ribitch
pcmcia is only on the powerbook. iBook was designed for education, therefore the PCMCIA wasnt added due to the cards being very fragile.

I would think it was more of a cost savings issue than anything else. That and that fact that the target market for the iBook will never need the PCMCIA slot.

I mean, what are you going to use it for? It has a modem, ethernet, USB, and firewire built in, and the airport card has it's own port. I can't think of anything I'd even want to connect with a PCMCIA card.
spigidygak
11-25-2002, 04:51 PM
Originally posted by seqiro


I would think it was more of a cost savings issue than anything else. That and that fact that the target market for the iBook will never need the PCMCIA slot.


Yeah but makes it seem like a great excuse to say they're for education doesn't it ;) hehe, damn marketing bastards
hoey222
11-26-2002, 04:12 AM
i was hoping to use a 3rd party wireless setup. there will be pc's and macs in the same building. i was thinking of using a usb wireless connector.

thanks

:D
chadlnc
11-26-2002, 04:55 AM
You can still use the airport card without any problems. The airport card is compatible with all 802.11b wireless gear. So if there is a 802.11b wireless hub (Apple or not) somewhere in the office it will work fine. Right now we have a Dlink wireless hub in our office that PCs and Macs share without any problems.
seqiro
11-26-2002, 10:24 AM
Originally posted by chadlnc
You can still use the airport card without any problems. The airport card is compatible with all 802.11b wireless gear. So if there is a 802.11b wireless hub (Apple or not) somewhere in the office it will work fine. Right now we have a Dlink wireless hub in our office that PCs and Macs share without any problems.

:stupid:

Not using the Airport card would be a crime. My wife's iBook gets better reception with the built in antenna than any of my friends' PC laptops do. And it'll work fine with other 802.11b base stations. Similarly, PC users have no trouble connecting to our Airport base station. It follows the standard.
chadlnc
11-26-2002, 10:28 AM
Originally posted by seqiro
Not using the Airport card would be a crime. My wife's iBook gets better reception with the built in antenna than any of my friends' PC laptops do. And it'll work fine with other 802.11b base stations. Similarly, PC users have no trouble connecting to our Airport base station. It follows the standard.

I have noticed that by far iBooks get the best wireless reception, better than PC's and better than the Titanium Powerbook.
seqiro
11-26-2002, 10:33 AM
There is actually a known issue with Powerbooks having poor reception due to a part getting jostled during shipping. If you remove the battery and press firmly on a certain area (i think there's a label there), it can actually fix it, oddly enough.

But yeah, the iBook's reception is just outstanding.
spigidygak
11-26-2002, 12:24 PM
Yep my ibook is quite the unit for war driving without any other additional antenna. The additional problem to less range on the powerbooks is the metal casing. But supposedly the newest line improved the range more.