[Fabs] Mac Computer

Mon Aug 10 23:20:29 UTC 2015

Greetings all,
First, I see no need to be this discouraging as far as macs are
concerned, as I have a friend who recently completed an internship at
apple, and is graduating in computer science with a mac as the
computer she does most of her things on. However, Jorge's message
serves as a reminder that there is a learning curve with the mac, and
if one thinks it can be learned in a day or two, unless technology is
what they breath this is not going to happen. Also, while I have not
seen any professors this harsh and avoid generalizing especially using
extreme situations as Law school, as we do not know what the
difficulty of the student was and or what their technology
experience/whillingness to adapt was, I will say that there might be
situations where windows is the preferred system, and because there
are less people using mac than windows, it might be easier to get help
for it. However, so long as the user understands the learning curve of
the mac and finds it worth dealing with it can certainly be a great
system.

Cheers,
Mauricio

On 8/10/15, Esmarten via Fabs <fabs at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Sorry, forgot to add that last rely was from Eric Marten. My bad!
>
>
>> On Aug 10, 2015, at 4:25 PM, Esmarten via Fabs <fabs at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>
>> I will disagree and agree with Jorge on what he said.
>>
>> When it comes to using Voice Over and JAWS, I cannot say much as they are
>> not part of my daily life.
>>
>> When it comes to document compatibility, you can get MS Office for mac
>> which from my experience works just as well as the standard windows
>> version once you get used to where all the settings are, as more than half
>> of the settings are not on the ribbon itself, but through a task bar. Hard
>> to explain with typing, but OSX has a task bar at the top of the screen
>> that holds drop down menus for the selected application as well as many
>> system functions such as date and time, battery, internet, etc.
>>
>> I personally have never seen a part of a syllabus that says a teacher will
>> not accept work produced on a mac just because of the brand of computer.
>> Not saying it does not happen and for Jorge to say that he must have seen
>> it many times, just personally I have not.
>>
>> I have also done many online courses and never seen that part of a
>> syllabus.
>>
>> Also, I have had my mac boot camped for 2 of the 3 years under apple care,
>> and they did not seem to even notice, or care.
>>
>> As I said above, I have no idea how Voice Over / JAWS affects any of this
>> but  my experience is this.
>>
>> In the grand scheme of things, if you are already familiar with JAWS and
>> Windows then why switch in the middle of college? Also, keep in mind that
>> Apple's IOS system is completely different that OSX ( the computers ). If
>> you want to get one to play with or even to learn on in case you feel like
>> transitioning, or your job in the future uses macs then that does not
>> hurt. I would recommend buying a older mac for that purpose though. As
>> long as it is at least 2011 model year or newer I think it would do that
>> service.
>>
>>
>>
>> Sent from my iPad
>>
>>> On Aug 10, 2015, at 4:01 PM, Jorge Hernandez via Fabs <fabs at nfbnet.org>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> FYI
>>>
>>> As a Computer Science /Information Technology  graduate, I will advise
>>> you
>>> not to purchase a MAC  computer just because you can use an IPhone
>>> fluently.
>>>
>>> A MAC notebook is a totally different device from an IPhone.  Let me
>>> give
>>> you a heads-up.
>>>
>>> I have worked with adaptive technology for over 20 years and I can
>>> assure
>>> you that you will be asking for trouble if you are thinking to use this
>>> notebook for College.  For starters, you will depend on your Windows
>>> platform to do most of your College work because voice-over will not work
>>> as
>>> well as JAWS will when it comes in creating any type of document on
>>> word,
>>> excel, access, and even power point.  I worked with a graduate student
>>> who
>>> is in her second year of law school at the University  of Miami and she
>>> is a
>>> fluent IPhone user.  She was advised by an individual who did not know
>>> what
>>> adaptive technology is and told her to purchase a MAC notebook.  She
>>> faced
>>> very difficult times in her first year of law school because her MAC
>>> notebook would not read 90% of the assignments her professors would
>>> provide.
>>> She had to purchase a Windows platform notebook again so she can
>>> continue
>>> with her law degree.
>>>
>>> If you are thinking of installing Windows in the MAC notebook using boot
>>> camp, you will void the warranty and no Apple store will provide
>>> technical
>>> support on the Windows side of the device and they will not even look at
>>> the
>>> MAC OX side of the device either.
>>>
>>> Moreover, most College / University professors will have a note on their
>>> syllabus  that if you have a MAC notebook, that they will not accept
>>> your
>>> work and if you will need assistance with online courses, that you are
>>> on
>>> your own.  Again, be advised, you will be spending  money on  a device
>>> that
>>> will not be of use to you.  Do not purchase a device just because it is
>>> pretty, it is what everyone else is using, or just because you think
>>> that
>>> you can use an IPhone fluently.
>>>
>>> Good luck
>>>
>>> Jorge Hernandez
>>> Vice-President
>>> Miami-Dade Chapter
>>> Board of Directors
>>> National Federation of the Blind of Florida
>>> Board of Directors
>>> Florida Association of Blind Students
>>> Fundraiser Co-Chair
>>> National Federation of the Blind of Florida
>>> Fundraiser Chair
>>> Florida Association of Blind Students
>>>
>>> " live the life you want "
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: Fabs [mailto:fabs-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Helga Schreiber
>>> via
>>> Fabs
>>> Sent: Monday, August 10, 2015 2:38 PM
>>> To: Florida Association of Blind Students
>>> Cc: Helga Schreiber
>>> Subject: [Fabs] Mac Computer
>>>
>>> Hi all! How are you all? I just wanted to ask you, do any of you here a
>>> Mac
>>> computer user? And if so,  would  you be able to teach me how to use it
>>> step
>>> by step? I'm just wondering since tomorrow I'm planning to buy a Mac
>>> computer in order to use it for school guys! And i actually find some
>>> instructions in how to use it in the applvist website, and also a video
>>> in
>>> youtube with a few minutes in how to use a Mac with Voiceover. however,
>>> I
>>> would like to have a one to one instructor, who will be able to walk me
>>> through walk me through th e process in how to use a Mac computer. Just
>>> to
>>> let you know, I'm an iphone user and i use a bluetooth keyboard. And I'm
>>> definitely a quick learner and after lerning the commands of the
>>> Keyboard,
>>> I'm able to apply it! Feel free to contact me off list regarding this
>>> matter
>>> since I don't want to clutter the list ok? I look forward in hearing
>>> from
>>> you soon. Thanks so much and God bless!
>>>
>>> Helga Schreiber
>>>
>>> Fundraiser Coordinator for Phi Theta Kappa, Alpha Delta Iota chapter.
>>> Member of National Federation of the Blind and Florida Association of
>>> Blind
>>> Students.
>>> Member of the International Networkers Team (INT).
>>> Independent Entrepreneur of the Company 4Life Research.
>>> Phone:  (561) 706-5950
>>> Email: helga.schreiber26 at gmail.com
>>> Skype: helga.schreiber26
>>> 4Life Website: http://helgaschreiber.my4life.com/1/default.aspx
>>> INT Website: http://int4life.com/
>>>
>>> "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that
>>> whoever
>>> believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16
>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Fabs mailing list
>>> Fabs at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/fabs_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>> Fabs:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/fabs_nfbnet.org/jeh1065%40comcast.net
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Fabs mailing list
>>> Fabs at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/fabs_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>> Fabs:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/fabs_nfbnet.org/esmarten%40aol.com
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Fabs mailing list
>> Fabs at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/fabs_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> Fabs:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/fabs_nfbnet.org/esmarten%40aol.com
>
> _______________________________________________
> Fabs mailing list
> Fabs at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/fabs_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for Fabs:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/fabs_nfbnet.org/mauriciopmalmeida%40gmail.com
>