Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users
February 3rd, 2006
The Unofficial Apple Weblog has posted a short story on the top five mistakes made by new mac users. It includes closing an application window, thinking it has quit, downloading software and then running it from the disk image (runs slowly, can’t eject disk image), Windows .EXE files littered around the desktop after they’ve tried to download software and install it.
The comments attached to the article are entertaining, and pick up many other common mistakes.
The thing that strikes me is that most of these problems could be resolved by Apple. For example, when a user downloads an EXE file, Safari could easily give the user a quick warning that it’s a Windows program and won’t install on Mac. (Before you say, “ha! What if it’s in a ZIP file?” Safari already checks inside ZIP files to see if something is a “program” that Safari should give a security warning about.)
Here’s a precis list of things that TUAW and its users said in comments, and a few of my own:
1. Closing an application window, thinking it has quit.
2. Downloading an app and running it from the disk image.
3. Creating endless untitled folders
4. Using Safari’s Google search to get to a website
5. Confusing the concept of wallpaper with screensaver
6. Double-clicking a window thinking it will maximise it, but instead sending it to the dock
7. Not understanding the usefulness of column view and leaving everything in icon view
8. Not using any keyboard shortcuts
9. Thinking that now they’ve got rid of Windows they won’t have problems of _any_ sort on their Mac
10. Renaming desktop icons to random characters because they don’t understand the difference between the enter and the return key on Mac. (Enter puts an icon into rename mode).
11. People trying to find the menus on a window, not realising they’re always at the top of the screen
12. Trying to resize windows from the edge rather than the drag area on the corner
13. Trying to use the CTRL key rather than CMD key for shortcuts.
14. Thinking it’ll be easy to get a stuck CD out.
15. Installing a program every time they want to run it because they think the installer _is_ the program.
16. Where’s “the internet”? (looking for the Windows Internet Explorer “e” icon)
17. Repeatedly hitting the Apple key expecting the Apple menu to pop up (confused with Windows Key and Start Menu concept)
18. Thinking the green “+” button maximises a window to full screen (not realising that Apple’s maximise philosophy is to only make a window as big as it needs to be to comfortably fit the width of content currently being displayed)
19. Looking in vain for an uninstaller app, because they don’t realise that uninstalling an application on Mac is as easy as dragging the program icon into the trash.
20. Minimising windows all the time rather than using “hide”, leaving the document section of the doc littered with forgotten minimised windows (that are quietly occupying system resources).
21. Double-clicking dock icons.
22. Inadvertant click-drags and removing programs from the dock in the process.
23. Saving everything to the desktop or somewhere on the hard drive other than their home folder
24. Trying to load documents or programs multiple times because they don’t recognise the progress indicators (sound of hard drive grinding, CD spinning, Mac spinning beachball, browser status bar)
25. Not understanding that the dock is used to both launch and return to a program …
26. Inability to work with multiple documents on-screen at the same time, because they have only ever learned to use Windows’ maximise mode which always makes everything full-screen
27. Confusing “delete” with “backspace” (because Apple has two keys named “delete” on the keyboard, one of which does forward delete and the other backward delete. Way to go, usability geniuses).
28. Expecting “home” and “end” keys to go the beginning and end of a line, rather than beginning and end of a document.
29. Not realising that when you copy a folder over an existing one, OS X -replaces- the destination folder rather than merging the contents, which is what Windows does.
30. Looking for the “complicated” way of doing everything. For example, trying to go into system preferences and right-clicking on the networking icon in order to find available wireless networks, rather than just clicking on the Airport icon in the menu bar and selecting the relevant wireless network.
104 Responses to “Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users”
01
[…] Bouncing off a TUAW post about the five most common mistakes made by beginning Mac users, Dan Warne wonders why Apple doesn’t make it easier for newcomers. […]
02
Is there no UNDO feature?
03
[…] read more | digg story […]
04
#31 - buying Norton Anti-Virus for Mac
05
Good list, it pretty much sums up all the annoyances I’ve run into running a mac for the first time. As to number 23, it drives me insane that if I just want to “open” a document from the web rather than download it, my Mac insist on saving a copy to the desktop and I have to do regular cleanups to get rid of them. Have these idiots ever heard of a temp folder that gets emptied on a regular basis?
06
Please. The vast majority of these are Windows problems that the Mac doesn’t have, but switchers are used to dealing with; others I’m unconvinced that they apply. How many non-power-users make frequent use of the forward delete in any OS? Still others are not even Mac-specific, but simply non-power-user errors: not using key shortcuts, misnaming icons (enter AND return initiate renaming), and so on.
07
You do realize that these mistakes are because of Windows
08
Buying a MAC J/K
09
I would guess that people who confuse wallpaper and screensaver do so cross platform.
10
The #1 mistake all new Mac users make is to fail to turn off the “leave messages on server for one week” option in Mac mail so their pop mailbox goes over quota after their friends send them a bunch of forwards with videos of people getting hit in the crotch with footballs.
11
you forget the alt+q closing effect for a @ :)
12
Uhh… these are hardly “usability” problems with OS X.
OS X is NOT WINDOWS, and should not be expected to behave like it (since a lot of these “complaints” are more Windows usability-isms than Mac)
1. Closing an application window, thinking it has quit.
>> Thats not how Macs work, its document focused not App focused… most Mac users leave programs running because they do things while not “open” and also it starts up faster, why close iTunes? Browser? etc. Closing a Window doesn’t mean you are done with the program
2. Downloading an app and running it from the disk image.
>> maybe, although many programs say “drag into apps” or whatnot… I never had this problem when I was a new user (this year, after 19 years of PCs)
3. Creating endless untitled folders
>> huh?
4. Using Safari’s Google search to get to a website
>> again? what? not exclusive to OS X
5. Confusing the concept of wallpaper with screensaver
>> umm… come on. again not just OS X
6. Double-clicking a window thinking it will maximise it, but instead sending it to the dock
>> Mac desktop paradigm is not one with fullscreen apps. As resolutions rise, it both makes more sense to have multiple apps showing at all times, and more convenient. Apps that have true fullscreen modes are usually command + F or have a button for it. “maximizing” is usually done by the + button to size the window to the most the content inside requires if the resolution can accomodate it, but this is not something that is at fault for OSX. OS X has the dock + expose to efficiently handle multiple open programs, where Windows and Linux do not have such an efficient way to handle so many open programs, thus fullscreen for Windows, and not for Mac
7. Not understanding the usefulness of column view and leaving everything in icon view
>> I guess…
8. Not using any keyboard shortcuts
>> again, not an OSX flaw.
9. Thinking that now they’ve got rid of Windows they won’t have problems of _any_ sort on their Mac
>> well, they’ll have less ;)
10. Renaming desktop icons to random characters because they don’t understand the difference between the enter and the return key on Mac. (Enter puts an icon into rename mode).
>> who presses enter to open an app?
11. People trying to find the menus on a window, not realising they’re always at the top of the screen
>> again, Windows-ism doesn’t mean OS X flaw.
12. Trying to resize windows from the edge rather than the drag area on the corner
>> maybe, but since most windows don’t have hard grippable edges not really a big deal I don’t think
13. Trying to use the CTRL key rather than CMD key for shortcuts.
>> another Windows-ism… a bad one, CMD is much easier to hit when you are typing already and don’t have to move your whole hand… I can’t stand going back to ctrl on Linux now.
14. Thinking it’ll be easy to get a stuck CD out.
>> er, depends on your drive?
15. Installing a program every time they want to run it because they think the installer _is_ the program.
>> I don’t understand this at all
16. Where’s “the internet”? (looking for the Windows Internet Explorer “e” icon)
>> E != Internet, nuff said.
17. Repeatedly hitting the Apple key expecting the Apple menu to pop up (confused with Windows Key and Start Menu concept)
>> again OS X not Windows
18. Thinking the green “+” button maximises a window to full screen (not realising that Apple’s maximise philosophy is to only make a window as big as it needs to be to comfortably fit the width of content currently being displayed)
>> err yeah
19. Looking in vain for an uninstaller app, because they don’t realise that uninstalling an application on Mac is as easy as dragging the program icon into the trash.
>> …
20. Minimising windows all the time rather than using “hide”, leaving the document section of the doc littered with forgotten minimised windows (that are quietly occupying system resources).
>> haha, I notice people doing this too, just shows they have to learn the system
21. Double-clicking dock icons.
>> I know people who double click web links..
22. Inadvertant click-drags and removing programs from the dock in the process.
>> uh
23. Saving everything to the desktop or somewhere on the hard drive other than their home folder
>> well, finder opens to your home folder, its not OS X’s fault that Windows doesn’t have such an ingrained way of managing your files like unix/linux home folders
24. Trying to load documents or programs multiple times because they don’t recognise the progress indicators (sound of hard drive grinding, CD spinning, Mac spinning beachball, browser status bar)
25. Not understanding that the dock is used to both launch and return to a program …
26. Inability to work with multiple documents on-screen at the same time, because they have only ever learned to use Windows’ maximise mode which always makes everything full-screen
27. Confusing “delete” with “backspace” (because Apple has two keys named “delete” on the keyboard, one of which does forward delete and the other backward delete. Way to go, usability geniuses).
>> I guess
28. Expecting “home” and “end” keys to go the beginning and end of a line, rather than beginning and end of a document.
29. Not realising that when you copy a folder over an existing one, OS X -replaces- the destination folder rather than merging the contents, which is what Windows does.
30. Looking for the “complicated” way of doing everything. For example, trying to go into system preferences and right-clicking on the networking icon in order to find available wireless networks, rather than just clicking on the Airport icon in the menu bar and selecting the relevant wireless network.
>> Windows problem not OS X
I mean… I guess these can be mistakes, but I don’t think they are usability issues (don’t know exactly if you said that but DIGG did I believe) I was quite the Windows power user, and after a year on a Mac now, I really appreciate these differences in usability. It just makes more sense when you use it fulltime vs most people who use a Mac once in a blue moon and assume its crap when its not the same Windows way of doing things.
13
> 4. Using Safari’s Google search to get to a website
Bah, I do that all the time in (my preferred) browser, and it is good that way. And I have my special reasons for doing it. I consider it advanced usage. This is not a fault. I think this should be removed from the list.
14
“Uhh… these are hardly “usability” problems with OS X.
OS X is NOT WINDOWS, and should not be expected to behave like it (since a lot of these “complaints” are more Windows usability-isms than Mac)”
hey jerk! read the title! this isnt a bash on OSX, so put your swords and shields away. this article points out the mistakes that users make, not flaws of the OS necessarily.
15
Yes, almost every one of these is completely bogus and ridiculous. I won’t waste time showing how they’re all invalid; others have done a fairly good job. This is a completely ridiculous posting.
16
Wow, some of you mac fanatics can be vicious…
The point of this article is not to point out flaws in OSX, necessarily, it’s just to point out the ways that it differs from windows(/gnome/kde) that might confuse mac newcomers.
The real flaws in OSX are the ones that you can’t really see just from looking at the ui… for instance. My main gripe about OSX is that they don’t even bother to use /etc (along with parting from almost everything else that makes unix ‘unix’). And to that I say, what a waste.
17
I think #25 should be in the top 5. Very common for just about everyone who is adjusting to the Mac. And #20 is up there too.
On #27, Apple does mark the right-delete key with a directional arrow. They are right to call both left and right-delete as “delete” because they both remove things. Whereas “backspace” is somewhat of a misnomer.
Items 22 and 23 are really Windows problems also.
If I could have Apple change anything, it would be to group folders at the top of every column-view in Finder. Otherwise the “app shelf” at the top and the “folder shelf” at the left allow me to do whatever fancy stuff I was used to under Windows or KDE.
That, and I would have Expose deal with minimized windows.
Finally…. I think ALL desktops should adopt a special icon overlay for the display of all executables. If its an executable, the user should be able to discern it immediately (superimpose the icon with a red circle, say).
Trojan viruses would become an endangered species as they could no longer pose as jpg files.
18
I’ve seen almost all of these when ever a member of my family or a friends tries to use my Mac.
19
Yeah, that’s probably because they’re used to PCs. If you get used to an illogical, a logical one will seem weird. End of story.
20
I didn’t have much trouble with the switch and I think a number of your problems are problems that newbie users of any OS will have (e.g., “Not using keyboard shortcuts”, “Thinking the internet is the ‘e’”).
Mind you, the maximising thing and closing windows instead of apps puzzled me for a bit, as did getting used to CMD instead of CTRL. One you missed which I had trouble with is CMD-Tab switches apps in OS X whereas in Windows it will cycle through all windows regardless of which app it is for. I subsequently found out that CMD-` (just above Tab) will cycle through windows within an app which is very handy.
21
I got my first mac (mini 1.42) in about april 2005
I’ve been a windows user since 1997, and a linux user since 2000 and consider myself a fairly proficient computer user.
when I first got the mac I did 6, 7, 10 (I hit enter, but noticed and hit escape), 12, 13, 19, 20, 28, 30. but most of these I figured out pretty quick and only did once or twice, so I was past the really arkward stage in probably about a week.
unfortunately, because I am still going between windows, linux, and mac all the time there are still some mistakes on the list that I make… 10 (see above), 13, and 28.
but conversely I now find myself trying to use winkey+c to copy on windows machines from time to time, also alt+left/right for jumping around a word at a time instead of ctrl+left and right on windows
as to number 1, that’s my biggest gripe with the mac.
not that it doesn’t quit, rather that some apps DO quit. iPhoto 05 for example. also the azureus bittorrent client, and the xchat-aqua irc client
22
I’m sure that most of these tips are valid IF you are coming from another OS. Double clicking to maximize, E for internet, menubar etc..
But if your a new user to computers not OSX you wouldn’t even know about these “details”. This is NOT a mistake for new users to OSX but new users migrating to OSX.
I think easly half of the 30 items are OS vs OS issues and not new users to computer “world”.
The title of this document should be Top 30 mistakes made by new migrated users to MAC.
23
Although I’m not too pleased with some of the Mac users’ ferocity, The article *does* indeed suggest that these are MacOS X problems when it includes the following line: “The thing that strikes me is that most of these problems could be resolved by Apple.”
On the other hand, I agree with this sentence, except with one key word: “MOST.” No, Mr. Warne, certainly not “most” of the problems are OS X problems. Actually, the only problem I see where Apple has blatantly messed up is the one you mention right after that sentence: “For example, when a user downloads an EXE file, Safari could easily give the user a quick warning that it’s a Windows program and won’t install on Mac.” Other than that, the rest are mere differences in behavior that any computer user will have to deal with when using an OS (s)he isn’t familiarized with, as more than enough people have already mentioned.
I think these lists are good for recent switchers who are still adapting to their new environment. Nothing wrong with a little education, guys, so there’s no need for these Mac-(overly)enthusiasts to get all fired up. If you’re gonna insist that new users simply need to get accustomed to the OS X environment and behaviors, then don’t go around making a big fuss every time someone makes a list of this nature (ie. not making OS X sound like something perfect).
24
Really good stuff!
25
[…] Dan Warne a publié dans son blog ce qu’il pense être les 30 erreurs les plus fréquentes d’un switcheur. Je ne vais pas toutes vous les traduire mais voici les 5 premières : […]
26
Just a tad bit of an elitist. Keep in mind that every platform has its very own idiosyncrasies.
5. Confusing the concept of wallpaper with screensaver
uhhhh, right…..
7. Not understanding the usefulness of column view and leaving everything in icon view.
Now, sometimes people need their Crayola’s; windows user too.
8. Not using any keyboard shortcuts.
Hmmm… the one button mouse must have inspired that choice.
14. Thinking it’ll be easy to get a stuck CD out.
Surprised that their is no comment about it being a cup holder. You must be holding back. Tisk, tisk.
16. Where’s “the internet”? (looking for the Windows Internet Explorer “e” icon)… Now come on; ya missed the cup holder; now the E is the Net…. Lets be a little consistant…
29. Not realising that when you copy a folder over an existing one, OS X -replaces- the destination folder rather than merging the contents, which is what Windows does.
Well actually the same thing happens in Windows or Linux or BSD… You replace the folder. Now, copying the contents will merge the two.
“I mean… I guess these can be mistakes, but I don’t think they are usability issues (don’t know exactly if you said that but DIGG did I believe) I was quite the Windows power user, and after a year on a Mac now, I really appreciate these differences in usability.”
Power user? You must be joking…… How would you harden windows TCP/IP stack against a DDOS attack? O’ Please, power user my sweet hard drive. You guess these can be mistakes… such an elitist….
27
[…] Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users. Yeah, I made a few of these. […]
28
Gotta love the Ellen Feiss picture. I’d switch anytime for her, if I would have been a PC user in the first place. Great internet saga. Hehehe, sorry if that was off topic.
29
Your list is fucking stupid and so typical of Mac people. Hardly any of those items are mistakes. Just different ways of doing things on Microsoft Windows. Mac computer users are the ones who make the mistake of allowing Steve Jobs to control their computing life. I would suggest that you take a look at Linux and you will see that it is better in every way. Steve Jobs and his merry band of Lemmings like the Blogger at this site should all just jump off a fucking cliff and die.
30
I would kind of like to see a list of common mistakes by new Mac-to-Windows users:
1. Click “Start” to shut down (!)
2. Untrusted programs install themselves over the internet
3. You *can’t* run a program from a disk image; you have to install it with a 15-step ‘wizard’
4. Talking paper-clip knows more about document creation than you do
5. Ctrl-Q only works in some programs, as do Ctrl-W, Ctrl-Tab, et. al.
6. Windows Media Player only has a menu bar when you mouse certain parts of it
7. Wireless networking? BWWAAAAAHHHAAAHAHAHAHA!!!!
8. Bluetooth? BWWAAAAAHHHAAAHAHAHAHA!!!!
9. Nvidia drivers worthless after 3 weeks
10. Computer infected immediately without costly add-on software
11. Random programs hijack autoplay functionality
12. Audio-CDs install rootkits
13. What’s a ‘backslash’ again?
14. Program requires DirectX 9c, is it already installed?
Man, that list could go on for quite a while.
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[…] The top 30 mistake listed out here, there might be one or two that you are experiencing on using Mac if you are a new Mac User. Mistakes can be easyly made as long as you learn from your mistake. Here’s a list of the Mistake Made by New Mac User that is credited to Warne Account for listing it out on their weblog. Most of the listed are precis base on Warne, TUAW and their user comments on. […]
32
Wow.. more tips and guide should learn more here.
33
If the posting is “top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users WHO’VE SWITCHED AFTER YEARS ON ANOTHER PLATFORM” then it should say so. Otherwise, it’s just rubbish.
Some of them aren’t even fair. Windows “merges” folders when you copy a folder on top of another? That’s one way to put it. It does something confusing and illogical, which requires a sixty-word dialog with four buttons, I’ll grant you that.
I think over-writing the destination object with the same name, just like what happens with any other file, is actually more sensible. Plus the warning required is very very simple.
How long has Windows been doing that anyway?
34
When I Switched from system 7 to Windows, Double clicking the title bar annoyed me because I expected the window to shade, even though I knew it would not. switching from Be OS to windows Was annoying because I expected the window to minimize on double - Click. for some reason, the Switch from Windows to Be OS was not very bad.
35
I seem to recall that OS 7 was pretty easy to use. Apple has always been very righteous about how they design their UI, and unfortunately, OS X is so often “bitched at” by linux admins (like my manager) and windows users (my CTO who just needs to use quick books), that you’d think that they’d put some of that brain power in Cupertino (the heart of Narcissism.com(tm)(r)(c)(p)) to work adding some “migration features” for Windows users. Like a “Windows mode” (alt-tab!) and a “Windows transistion mode” that will operate the maximize buttons but nag with help bubbles that it will only do that 1 more time the Windows way….
My CTO was ordered to use a new 21″ iMac and he calls it a piece of crap because he can’t operate his bank IE-only websites on it, he can’t use Quickbooks PRO on it, and it crashes for mysterious reasons. He’s going back to his Windows XP desktop which (surprisingly) isn’t crashing, and runs his business apps without problems. (No–OmniWeb doesn’t cut it.)
My CTO hates Macs, too. He likes that they detect printers quite well. But that plus button and double-click-title-bar behavior just makes him loose his patience. He’s never going to buy a Mac. His muscle memory is overdeveloped with the Windows clicks and shortcuts.
I HATE the lack of windows-ish shortcuts on the MAC. How the “home”, “end” keys work–SUCKS. I *know* how to use the keyboard, why make me waste my time with a mouse to get the the start of the line? The only thing I like about OS X is that at least you can run vi. I have similar complaints about KDE (and why I use Gnome)–the keyboard shortcuts SUCK. It’s a waste of time. I don’t have time to learn 30 new keyboard shortcuts…just make the damned computer operate the way *I* want it to. Not so darned hard to have keystroke themes, is it? It becomes important when you switch between three computers all day long. Every missed keystroke is a BIG waste of time. Every mouse gesture I make which I want a keystroke for is a BIG waste of time.
36
> How the “home”, “end” keys work–SUCKS.
> I *know* how to use the keyboard, why
> make me waste my time with a mouse to get the the start of the line?
Command + right/left arrow?
37
26. Inability to work with multiple documents on-screen at the same time, because they have only ever learned to use Windows’ maximise mode which always makes everything full-screen
the only good thing about windows. I hate floating windows on the Mac.
38
Most of these “mistakes” are simply results of the differences between Windows and Mac OS X, not necessarily problems with Mac OS X (or Windows). I could write a list of mistakes new Windows users make by taking many of these and reversing them.
39
I think the best part of this list is how people become stuck in their ways and expect everything to be the same as what they’re used to. This is human nature.
However 99% of the people who have commented on this page are complete morons. Honestly, you can navigate your way to someone’s blog, read something, and type a response, but you can’t understand the author’s humor at ALL because you’re too busy complaining about “windoze” and how there is nothing wrong with OSX.
To the author I say, “Good list, man”. I bought a Powerbook about 8 months ago and I experienced about 1/2 of these, like when I found out about Command-H to hide instead of minimizing, or #29 about copying subfolders (oh man was I pissed).
40
underestimate the power of drag&drop
(which works much better on Macs than on Windows)
41
all of them are normal… people learn to adapt.
but #29. Not realising that when you copy a folder over an existing one, OS X -replaces- the destination folder rather than merging the contents, which is what Windows does….
this should really be strongly emphasized to new mac converts. i did that constantly in windows… that’s how i backed up for a long time… but doing that on a mac… people could lose a lot of data that way before they figured out what was happening. fortunately for me, mucommander (a 2 pane file manager) on the mac merges the contents, so i was spared from a painful lesson.
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[…] Dan Warne - Top-30-Fehler […]
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“10. Renaming desktop icons to random characters because they don’t understand the difference between the enter and the return key on Mac. (Enter puts an icon into rename mode).”
Both enter and return put an icon in rename mode.
To open an app, its Command-O or Command-Down Arrow.
44
[…] Be prepared. […]
45
What about the number one mistake for the new Windows user: switching.
46
You Mac power users need to relax. The author did make a comment that sound like apple is the culprit who led people to make these mistakes. I would probably rename the topic to something like common errors new users make when switching platforms. Apple just went about doing things deferent from Microsoft.
It’s somewhat like driving an automatic car for the first time after driver standard for many yrs. you will try pressing that invisible clutch to start the car. I work in a multi platform environment and I still make many of these little mistakes because I’m so used to working with Microsoft windows.
Let it go it’s not that serious.
47
[…] read more | digg story […]
48
Just in case you imagine all Mac users go off the deep end at the slightest whiff of a hint of any criticism of their platform, please know that many of us have more important things to do. You guys just embarrass me! There are loads of things that could deal with a rethink in OSX, such as the Finder, and the poor use it makes of the Address Book, but this harmless article only refers to very minor temporary difficulties experienced by people switching from Windows.
Cult members please rearrange the following words to form a sentence .life a Get.
49
Wow, I really enjoy the folks getting bent out of shape thinking their precious OSX is being attacked! As for folks saying that most of these are just mistakes Windows users do I disagree; my two kids, 3 and 5, have made many of these mistakes, and haven’t been exposed to Winows.
As for Brandon’s comment:
The real flaws in OSX are the ones that you can’t really see just from looking at the ui… for instance. My main gripe about OSX is that they don’t even bother to use /etc (along with parting from almost everything else that makes unix ‘unix’). And to that I say, what a waste.
Right on - /Library? /Users? While I think OSX is very good, they just killed it for me with the sanitizing of Unix there; give me Linux on the desk or give me death!
50
I’m sad of the reaction of mac zealots. You guys/girls should learn to keep cool. There is no perfect OS and each OS has its own habits.
As a side note what annoys me the most on OS X (among other things) is the copy/paste. I constantly highlight/mouse click like under linux. :) Well, i don’t use OS X that often, just to help some friends about X11 and unix.
51
you mac fanboys crack me the f*&k up. I love watching you squirm
52
I don’t think that this article was an attack to MAC, but more a study, it’s good that users could pay atention to this mistakes. I haven’t used mac before (I wish I would), but from what I have read, it does have to big usability problems: two delete keys and the folder copy option. Way less than M$ Windows has.
53
All i can say is lol, noobs ;)
54
what part of “new mac users” did you not understand when reading this piece? these are mistakes that new mac users make when they first start using a mac, not flaws in the way a mac operates. as usual, taking the time to digest information gets skipped … go directly to angrily generating crap on a blog.
personally, i appreciate the list of pitfalls so i can better evaluate my move to a mac. i have windows habits that need to be broken to use a mac, and this list was a good help. thank you.
55
It is amazing how people can get so sensitive/personal about an operating system. Some people aren’t even this sensitive about their pets and they are alive! ITS A THING!!! and will most likely be gone before you die. You are only try to inform with humour and I think its a good post.
56
[…] The Warne Account » Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users […]
57
Thanks for the list man - I made a lot of those mistakes myself when I swiched over a few months back, and I even learned a few things here.
The one and only thing I dislike about switching over to the Mac is coming across those Mac zealots in all the newsgroups/forums taking every comment as a personal insult. It’s such an over-protective small-town mentality and wastes everybodys time. It’s just a computer guys, who cares?
58
I’ve done so many of these! Find mac easier to use overall than any other operating system though.
59
[…] This list is a must read for every new Mac user, or PC user switching to a Mac: 1. Closing an application window, thinking it has quit. […]
60
31: Thinking your USB disk will work.
61
32: Thinking an avi you have spent days downloading will work.
62
[…] Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users - I made way more than 30 when I first switched. When you come from Windows you have release yourself from thinking of doing things the hard way, just think logically - and you’ll be fine. […]
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It seems that most of these people here just regret that they are using stupid mac’s. Hey guys you should not be embarassed to go back to Windows :)
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I don’t get why wouldn’t someone use the Google search bar in Safari.
Here’s one for Windows:
112. Trying to memorize when the ALT and the CTRL key are used for shortcuts.
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Thinking, when a window has inexplicably expanded so its top is touching the menu bar and its bottom is off the bottom of the screen, that you will be able to drag something other than the now (inaccessible) bottom right corner to restore control over the window, and wondering why anyone would design in such an infuriatingly arbitrary limitation.
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[…] http://danwarne.com/?p=20 […]
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Interesting info, I can relate.
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[…] Every day, there are thousands of new converts to the cult of the Mac. Most of these would come from the Windows world, where things are … different. Dan Warne takes us through the Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users. It’s a good read, even for Mac veterans - inevitably one of the newbies will ask you one of these questions! […]
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[…] Haz click aqui. […]
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“I don’t get why wouldn’t someone use the Google search bar in Safari.”
The problem is not actually using Google search bar in Safari, but using it for the obvious… The example used was hotmail.com which should just go straight in the URL address line. It’s like typing in Google in the Google search. If you already have the address, use it.
I take issue not with the list, but with the title of the list. These are not really mistakes on the part of the new Mac user. They’re just old habits on an old system that don’t work on a new one. Apple doesn’t do everything perfectly (2 Delete buttons is a Doh! if there ever was one).
Doing what’s familiar to a persona is not a mistake on their part, nor is it a mistake on Apple’s part. It should be expected that a new user will continue to do on his new Mac what he did in Windows.
FYI: Switchers from Mac OS 9 to Mac OS X also have to deal with some of the same “habit” unlearning issues.
The most important habit for a Windows switcher to remember is that 9 times out of 10, Apple makes things easier. The Windows habit is to expect things to be more complicated instead of simpler.
Keep in mind there are millions of Mac users who are forced to use Windows at work, and the switch from work to home is not as difficult as you migh think.
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[…] Dan Warne stellt auf seinem Blog die 30 häufigsten Fehler von MAC-Anwendern vor. Diese beziehen sich nicht nur auf das Betriebssystem an sich, sondern auch an einige Programme. Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users […]
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[…] Read all 30 of them on Dan’s site. […]
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[…] Following up from my “Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users” post (which has received a rather staggering 25143 views thanks to news/link aggregators like digg.com and del.icio.us) comes the Top 10 things all ’switchers’ should know. […]
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This might be true for a person tht has just swtitched to the good side. But for thoes of us who have used apples os’s for a while now get the hang of it. Windoes has its shares of quarks also.
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[…] After grabbing my MacMini, I’ve been aggravated by some of my habits when navigating around my desktop. Home/End don’t move to the ends of the line, but of the viewport. All sorts of problems when I’m messing arround in Terminal, etc. Saw this article and suddenly, I was no longer alone… […]
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Count me as one of the people who don’t see what the fuss on either side is about… if you can’t appreciate the power of today’s personal computers, maybe you’re a little spoiled. Computers of any platform are tools, and to expect that you won’t experience a learning curve with a new tool is a misguided (and perhaps uniquely American) mistake. Sure, there are things that are (very) frustrating about using computers, but compare the productivity and efficiency to the days of the typewriter, snail mail, and print-only information. It’d be nice if I could use the same platform everywhere I go… just like it’d be nice if beer was free, my car didn’t need refueling, and I knew every spoken language intuitively.
For the record, I own a Mac– and love it–but like everyone who has a job or goes to school, I live in a PC world. I appreciate those machines too.
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Hardest things to get used to when switching to mac OSX:
Why doesn’t my computer or browser crash all the time?
Why don’t I have to battle virii and adware all the time?
All the rest is just ‘window’ dressing
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Besides that I’m getting the feeling my windows works better then most others:
7. Not understanding the usefulness of column view and leaving everything in icon view
Umh.. could s/o please explain the mac connection of this?
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[…] The Warne Account » Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users […]
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I find the article very interesting, cause I will be forced to use a Mac in the future. I have used it a couple of times and experienced a lot of the issues described here, but was able to complete the most tasks.
I’m a pro win user (3-d artist, PC experience since MS-DOS 3 or so). I dislike windows, linux and osx/macs. I dislike all the modern OSes/OS-UIs I’ve ever seen. I just like PCs a little bit, because they’re often a bunch of good hardware with an open system alowing installation of several OSes…
All the OSes I have ever seen are still not user friendly. It’s a long way to build OSes able to comunicate with the user in an understandable manner (forget speech-engines). There’s a lot of things which can be done without entering science fiction - I just wonder why programmers can’t overcome their egos and empathize with an unexperienced user, who does not have the wish to spend much time on understanding an UI. I really believe that a big part of the issues described here and similar ones in other OSes can be eliminated by OS-makers.
Just an opinion:
-Linux is made for programmers or at least for very technicly skilled people willing to confront highly complicated technical issues.
-Windows is for people who want a fast workflow, but are willing to fight against the constant f*ck in the ass by Microsoft, the Virii-scene and able to confront technical issues.
-Mac is for people, who do like a nice looking UI, but don’t want to be confronted with complicated technical issues.
Please don’t believe that some of this is meant as an unsult, not wanting to be confronted with technical issues is understandable :]
Nature is much more interesting than any kind of technical devices. Peace :]
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My Top #1: Alt-Q is on a german PC-keyboad the ‘@’ symbol. Fast typing people can imagine how much data I lost in the process of abandoning old habits. It was very frustrating.
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OMG did you have to put such a pretty picture at the top of the page? It is soooo /distracting/… no idea if that is you but either way can you please remove the picture, I can’t read any of the text with that there. :-D
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Er, the picture of me is the dorky looking bloke on the top right of the page. The chick is Ellen Feiss, a Mac user featured in Apple’s infamous ’switcher’ campaign and renowned for appearing to be stoned on the ads.
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[…] Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users. […]
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[…] Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users (tags: mac apple osx howto list) […]
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The #1 mistake made by new macs users
1. buying a mac.
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[…] …Stephen Green offers the reasons he's planning on making his next computer a Mac. As long as he avoids the top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users, I guess. […]
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29. Not realising that when you copy a folder over an existing one, OS X -replaces- the destination folder rather than merging the contents, which is what Windows does.
Oy! Yeah, my co-workers (all native Mac users) weren’t too happy with me when I made this mistake! (I think it was about a week after files on the Network drive began “mysteriously disappearing” that we realized what was going on.) The other differences I could deal with; this one could get a guy fired!
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> 8. Not using any keyboard shortcuts
That’s mostly because the information about the keyboard shortcuts on screen hardly corresponds to the labels on the keyboard. Apple is extremely inconsequent: The Alt/Option key has two names (why isn’t it either just “Alt” or just “Option”) but on the screen, none of them is used but some strange staircase symbol instead — which conversely does not appear on the keyboard. Simiilarly, on the screen, two symbols (very much alike) are used for Shift and Ctrl but these symbols do not appear on the keyboard. To use keyboard shortcuts one would first need to know which keys to press, and that’s not something that Apple makes easy to figure out.
> 19. Looking in vain for an uninstaller app, because they don’t realise
> that uninstalling an application on Mac is as easy as dragging the
> program icon into the trash.
Except in about 40% of the cases where uninstalling *is* necessary because in addition to the program icon, applications may have installed some stuff in the Library folder.
> 29. Not realising that when you copy a folder over an existing one,
> OS X -replaces- the destination folder rather than merging the
> contents, which is what Windows does.
Which is one of the reasons why I often access my shared Apple harddrive from a PC and do file management there.
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haha.. I started using macs little over a year ago after having been a pc user for some 15 years..
1, 6, 12 & 18 were “quirks” that took me some time getting used too :)
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>29. Not realising that when you copy a folder over an >existing one, OS X -replaces- the destination folder >rather than merging the contents, which is what Windows >does.
I hate this “feature” :-(
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This replace “feature” is actually a characteristic of all UNIX-based systems, not just Mac OS X.
Almost a year ago, there was a raging discussion going on about the replace=merge controversy:
“It Depends on What the Meaning of the Word ‘Replace’ Is”
daringfireball.net/2005/04/r...
which was ignited by a post on Matthew Mullenweg’s blog about losing some photos because of his confusion over Microsoft’s REPLACING the MEANING of the word replace with merge:
photomatt.net/2005/04/06/bra...
#comment-19179
Aside from the fact that Matt’s Pentax folder would have remained intact and his existing photos would have been saved without his even thinking about it by offloading his new photos directly into iPhoto (which only adds photos… deletes only at will of the user), the reason why any switcher would have any confusion here is the fault of Microsoft for REPLACING the word REPLACE with MERGE in it’s own proprietary dictionary. Look in any non-MS dictionary of the English language , and you will find that not a single one will define replace as merge. If MS had stuck with conventional English nomenclature, there would be no such accidents waiting to happen.
Here’s my own contribution to the dialog on Matt’s blog (comment#155):
“NEVER HEARD OF THIS PROBLEM UNTIL NOW… 155 comments and counting!!! ???
I’ve been working on Windows 98/2000 Pro for 5 years at my office, however, the OS is locked tight with restrictions. After seeing this string of comments, I now see why restrictions in Windows are likely a very good thing. Therefore, I was never previously exposed to the Windows “definition” of Replace = some kind of merging of files and/or folders. In fact, until I ran into John Gruber’s article mentioning this site, I didn’t even know such a “problem” existed. So much for Mac users being “brainwashed”… It seems my brain never got sullied in the first place.
Therefore, when I bought my very first home computer (iMac running Jaguar OS X 10.2), I had no preconceptions about the meaning of the word Replace when it showed up in the dialogs. I’ve never confused the word Replace to mean anything but “Get rid of the old item and put the new one in its place instead”. Linguistically, it’s Microsoft that has been counter-intuitive. Evidently, in a 1984 newspeak way, Windows has conditioned people to believe that 2 + 2 = 5.
The idea that Apple should do things in the Windows fashion just because it’s more familiar to millions of Windows users & switchers is just plain ludicrous. Be thankful that Unix is not Windows. Besides, if Apple did everything the Microsoft way, there would BE no point in switching in the first place:
“Some switchers just want to see how much they can get away with NOT relearning. If you can do everything that you did before, the same way that you did before, then why switch?”
– “From GUI-Avoider to Mac OS X” by Mary Stamper — Unix geek and CLI enthusiast
maccompanion.com/archives/ma...
Remember, it’s the differences between Mac OS X/Unix and Windows which make Apple’s OS less liable to the onslaught of viruses, worms, & spyware driving so many to switch to Mac at this point in time. Besides, the Replace = Merge/Copy/Move scenario contributes to so much of Microsoft’s Bloatware.
That being said, I agree with John Gruber that Apple should break with Unix tradition here, arrange for the deleted files & folders to move to the Trash, then submit the code to the Open Source community. See John Siracusa’s commentary about Apple’s Unix innovations at the bottom of this page:
arstechnica.com/reviews/os/m...
Just my 2 cents”
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Great article. Sorry about all the idiot comments by people who think new users don’t make mistakes or that you’re somehow commenting on OS X itself.
I’ve taught lots of classes to people who’ve never used a Mac before and these are ALL very common mistakes! Geez, who can have a problem with pointing that out? It’s funny because it’s true! Heck, besides being funny I bet it can even help people learn quicker.
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[…] i’ve found plasticbug’s and dan warne’s comments invaluable in this process, and really on the button. […]
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[…] The Warne Account » Top 30 mistakes made by new Mac users (tags: mistake osx mac) […]
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I concur that the information in the article is valuable, well-written commonsense advice. The quibble some have is with the connotion of the word mistake versus, say, adaptation to a higher plane of existence. I mean, we are not talking about the “Any Key” conundrum here.
Disagreeing about the #8 about Keyboard Shortcuts is a valid point, because how many Windows users actually *use* keyboard shortcuts on their PCs? Nobody in my office even knows what the Windows button does.
I would have preferred the term Switcher Snafus to mistakes, but then the title should be argued over at TUAW.com, where Dan got his original inspiration.
I think I’ll un-check the “Notify me” box so I can stop replying to Warne-ings about new posts.
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“Disagreeing about the #8 about Keyboard Shortcuts is a valid point, because how many Windows users actually *use* keyboard shortcuts on their PCs?”
::raises hand:: I do! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to use the Tab key to cycle through options in a dialogue box (save, cancel, replace). And if you’re going to use a program like Photoshop for any considerable length of time, keyboard shortcuts are a must!
At least Alt-Tab works the same! I just wish I could get Ctrl-H to do something useful on my PC! ;)
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Right now I am in the process of restoring 8 DVDs worth of data to my MAC (I have used a MAC since 1988) and the whole folders OVERWRITING instead of MERGING files IS a major pain in the ass! Especially when you are putting all of your music and audio books back into iTunes. What kind of sense does that make?
I love my MAC as much as any anyone but this is just plain dumb.
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[…] Well no duh. This post explains some of the problems people have switching from mac to windows. […]
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Even after 1 1/2 years of Mac, I’ve screwed up with th copying thing.. lost a couple of files that way, yup.
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Thanks man, you probably saved my life. I switched from Windows 6 weeks ago, and #29 would have hit me in the face if I would have not read about it here first.
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They main think I have learned from this post is that there are as many fanatical, breain dead, illiterate users on Windows as there are on Mac. Seriously - those posters above who had frantic insecurity attacks obviously either did not read the post, or did not have enough neurons left after years of drug abuse to understand it…
And yet, at the same time, I am happy to observe that a great majority of people here are capable of independant thought and critical analysis; refreshing from other blogs where that’s more the exception than the norm…
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I find it funny that many people see the post as an attack on osX, and their response? trashing windows, what kind of sence does that make?
“-Yes there are problems in osX, But windows has bigger ones.”
Great argument, really.
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I was a Mac user for about 3 months. All I have to say is that the Mac was a better choice for computing than Windows but I did commit MANY of the mistakes mentioned here.
I am now an Ubuntu 6.06 user. It works like a charm to me!
But I DO HATE this sort of high moral/computing ground Macsters feel they are on. The fact that Windows/Linux users expect to have a maximized window then they press that button on the window and that on the Mac this behaves differently DOES NOT MEAN THAT Mac does it right. Sometimes I DO WANT THE DAMN window maximized. Deal with it.
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