No doubt I will be posting quite a bit about the mac at the moment, ideally looking for advice from long-time mac users on various aspects.

 

I will be posting this on multiple forums as each forum has a different userbase and I'm looking for as wider range of responses as possible.

 

First thing, can I, and should I leave the machine powered up overnight, ie let it go it go in to sleep mode. Is this the done thing? Lots of conflicting answers on Google.

 

If the answer is yes, is it fine to allow updates to continue overnight, and will they even work when in sleep mode? I have found the energy saving options and, at present, both computer and display sleep are set to 15mins. For updates/downloads to continue overnight, what should these settings be? Obviously, i dont need the display to stay on 24/7.

 

Thanks in advance.

I really think it's up to you. I always turn my iMac of when I'm not using it. I think it just comes down to how much money you want to spend on electricity.

I really think it's up to you. I always turn my iMac of when I'm not using it. I think it just comes down to how much money you want to spend on electricity.

If it is in sleep mode, the amount of electricity used is minute.

Recommendations for ftp client? Used to use coffeecup on pc...

Another..

 

Should I enable the mac firewall and/or install some kind of anti-virus? Again, there seems to be so many conflicting comments floating about...

If it is in sleep mode, the amount of electricity used is minute.

 

I leave my iMacs/MacBooks on for months at a time, leaving them to sleep overnight or even days at a time. I use 10 minutes for 'computer sleep' and 5 minutes for display sleep. Leave the rest as they are.

 

Recommendations for ftp client? Used to use coffeecup on pc...

 

I used to use Cyberduck, but I started using Coda (and Coda 2) several years ago so haven't really used a standalone FTP since.

 

Another..

 

Should I enable the mac firewall and/or install some kind of anti-virus? Again, there seems to be so many conflicting comments floating about...

 

You, a tech-savvy person, will not get infections on your Mac. It simply does not happen. There are, to my knowledge, no viruses for Mac OS X. I highlighted the term viruses for a reason – malware/adware/etc. will exist. A virus is a very specific type of infection, and after some lengthy discussions with some very technical people it is my understanding that due to the permissions architecture of *nix, it's incredibly hard to create one for any *nix OS.

 

I've been using Macs for 10 years now and not once had any firewall/anti-virus turned on – never had a single problem. Of course, there's always 'risk' involved – but it's a risk getting out of bed in the mornings. You are not exposed to the silently installed mal/ad/bloat-ware or viruses you get on Windows.

 

Short answer: You do not need anti-virus for a Mac in 2013.

 

 

Hope the above helps you.

Edited October 5, 201312 yr by andy9l
Formatting

I leave my iMacs/MacBooks on for months at a time, leaving them to sleep overnight or even days at a time. I use 10 minutes for 'computer sleep' and 5 minutes for display sleep. Leave the rest as they are.

 

 

I used to use Cyberduck, but I started using Coda (and Coda 2) several years ago so haven't really used a standalone FTP since.

 

 

You, a tech-savvy person, will not get infections on your Mac. It simply does not happen. There are, to my knowledge, no viruses for Mac OS X. I highlighted the term viruses for a reason – malware/adware/etc. will exist. A virus is a very specific type of infection, and after some lengthy discussions with some very technical people it is my understanding that due to the permissions architecture of *nix, it's incredibly hard to create one for any *nix OS.

 

I've been using Macs for 10 years now and not once had any firewall/anti-virus turned on – never had a single problem. Of course, there's always 'risk' involved – but it's a risk getting out of bed in the mornings. You are not exposed to the silently installed mal/ad/bloat-ware or viruses you get on Windows.

 

Short answer: You do not need anti-virus for a Mac in 2013.

 

 

Hope the above helps you.

 

Thanks for your reply Andy. It was always a concern of mine moving over from Windows to mac, the fact it is like starting over again. So far though, I have been pleasantly surprised at how easy it is to get used to, I suppose that comes with spending 20+ years working on a PC...

 

So, you say you leave yours to sleep when you are not using them. How does this affect software updates etc? Can they be done overnight whilst in sleep mode? Might sound like a silly question but after spending the amount I have on this mac I don't really want to kill it just yet lol!

 

I looked at Cyberduck, along with Filezilla but ended up downloading the mac app 'Flow' last night. I do tend to use a standalone ftp client quite a bit for various clients so it is a much needed bit of software. Would still welcome any other suggestions on that.

 

You pretty much echo what most people have said to me regarding viruses and macs, which is good to hear! With regards to malware and adware, anything I can do to prevent that/clean it up? On a PC I have always used Spybot.

 

Thanks again.

 

Thanks for your reply Andy. It was always a concern of mine moving over from Windows to mac, the fact it is like starting over again. So far though, I have been pleasantly surprised at how easy it is to get used to, I suppose that comes with spending 20+ years working on a PC...

 

So, you say you leave yours to sleep when you are not using them. How does this affect software updates etc? Can they be done overnight whilst in sleep mode? Might sound like a silly question but after spending the amount I have on this mac I don't really want to kill it just yet lol!

 

I looked at Cyberduck, along with Filezilla but ended up downloading the mac app 'Flow' last night. I do tend to use a standalone ftp client quite a bit for various clients so it is a much needed bit of software. Would still welcome any other suggestions on that.

 

You pretty much echo what most people have said to me regarding viruses and macs, which is good to hear! With regards to malware and adware, anything I can do to prevent that/clean it up? On a PC I have always used Spybot.

 

Thanks again.

 

No problem. Ha, I'm on 10 years Mac with almost no Windows so we can learn from each other

 

Regarding software updates – they work differently on OS X. You manually decide when to install them, rather than them being forced on you. Restarting your Mac (using  > Restart) will never automatically update for you. That's an irritation, and Apple's UX don't do irritations. You're simply notified of updates (top-right of screen & notification centre), and you decide when you want to apply them. When you apply them, it will restart your iMac and handle them for you.

 

I tend not to update immediately, out of laziness, and update when it suits me. One thing you'll notice, after having come from Windows, is the immense drop in OS update frequency. OS X is updated maybe once every 1-2 months – Windows is daily. One of the primary reasons I dislike the Windows experience.

 

In short: don't worry about software updates – do them whenever you have the time, or ASAP if you have a bug in the OS that you're hoping will be fixed.

 

Haven't used Flow before, but I'm sure it's great!

 

Installing any kind of anti-mal/spy/ad-ware software is honestly a waste of time. I realise this may seem odd to you coming from Windows, but I would put fairly hefty sums of money on you keeping safe for the next 3 years without using any anti-xxxxx bloatware. You've just spent a hell of a lot on a Mac, it has absolutely no bloatware like Windows – keep it that way! Don't fall for anti-virus software packages.

 

My primary, absolutely honest, recommendation to you is to just use your Mac.

 

- Do not worry about maintenance stuff, it happens for you.

- You never need to defragment a Mac.

- You have no registry so your Mac will never slow down at start-up.

- The list goes on. Don't worry about maintaining your OS. Keep your files neat though - always helps when you get a new Mac

 

Just use your common sense if you install anything outside of the App Store. Do not install anything you've not researched, just as you would on Android/Windows. Oh, and never install 'MacKeeper' – it's a PITA.

Edited October 6, 201312 yr by andy9l
Formatting

Thanks for your great advice Andy.

 

Thats great about the updates. Windows normally choses the most inappropriate times to start updates (normally when I was trying to run Photoshop!) so it's nice to know I can choose...

 

It is very strange with regards to the anti virus/spyware as I have always run them on a Windows machine without fail. Not that I don't believe you, but I would like other opinions on this from other mac users.

On another note. Is there a simple way to have a certain folder sync automatically in real-time to an external hard drive?

 

I have one folder that everything business related is stored in (client work, templates, scripts etc). Now that folder is synced with Google Drive, which I pretty much run the business through (Google Apps). So it makes sense to also have this same folder synced to an external hard drive as that one last measure of backup security.

It is very strange with regards to the anti virus/spyware as I have always run them on a Windows machine without fail. Not that I don't believe you, but I would like other opinions on this from other mac users.

I'm going without, 10 years strong!

 

I'm sure there will be an app to sync a folder to an external drive, but I don't use one myself. I use Dropbox – I have 77.9GB free space

I'm a Mac whore but also come from a Windows background (Windows 3.1 and the floppy - fnar fnar ). Personally I'm happy to use Windows but OSX suits my needs perfectly. Actually, I installed Windows 7 via Virtual Box today for work related shenanigans. As for leaving them switched on, my iMac is literally on all the time, as is my MBP. The Mac Mini is mostly used for watching films and listening to music with the odd bit of testing.

 

My only real issue with Mac's is not being able to configure the hardware much as a PC (which reminds me, I'm really going to need to invest in an SSD for my MBP - as per Andy9I's recommendation). I like Mac's because they works and I can get on with what I should be doing. My Mac Mini decided to 'break' a couple of days ago and it proved to be a bit of a nightmare as it looked like an Apple store trip. Regardless who the provider is, I don't want people taking my hard drives and replacing with a refurb only to keep the original (have had someone try that before on an old PC and an acquaintance who experienced through Apple). Thankfully I was able to to retrieve my data through a data retrieval program.

 

As for FTP, I use Filezilla. In the past I've used Cyberduck and Transit/Transmit (forget which one). I'm not fussed about Filezilla. Clients use it, so it's easier for me to have on my system to do walkthroughs. I used to use Coda and have to admit, I liked the simplicity of an all in one. If it wasn't for Sublime Text, I'd still be using it.

 

Regarding Virus software, I've used them in the past but without starting a new debate on viruses and their history, I find it all to be superfluos. There are some freebies through the App store that I've entertained but never found anything. I do run a few other programs to monitor connections etc, but nothing major. For my Windows virtual setup it's a different scenario and I wouldn't use them without protection.