My new MacBook Core 2 Duo is wonderful.
How wonderful you ask. Well in the article that follows I will contrast the difference between it and my main computer at home which is a PowerMac Dual Processor G5. After that I will contrast my new MacBook with the PC I use at work.
Just a little background:
In my daytime life I am an analyst programmer for a large organisation, I am part of a team that works on a very large and complex web based application that can be described using all manner of jargon filled sentences... The terms XML, XSLT, Java, Server Based Applications and many other high falutin sounding stuff is essence of my day job. The team I work with uses Eclipse to manage and edit the application.
On the PC I use at work Eclipse takes for ever to start (greater than 1 min.), even though it has 2 Gb of RAM. I installed Eclipse on my G5 at home with only 1.5 Gb of RAM and it started and ran much faster.
But, and a short dramatic pause is needed here, on my new MacBook it starts in about 15 seconds.
If you've ever used Eclipse, you must be impressed with it. Anyhow, suffice to say, it is memory intensive BUT on my new MacBook it runs perfectly, even after I added a web project with several thousand files for it to manage. I love it.
If you haven't got the latest MacBook with dual Intel doo dads thingy, then here is an article that may help with speeding up your older MacBook.
6 Ways to Speed Up Your Macbook For Free
By Tao Schencks
We all know that installing 4gb of RAM will speed up a Macbook and make the whole experience that little bit more smoother and quicker - but what can you do NOW for FREE that will help speed your bundle of joy along and keep it's user happier? I will tell you 6 things that will help.
1. Remove files from the desktop
Each time that OS X loads it has to index the contents of the desktop, create thumbnail icons for each file and catalog the contents of each folder there.
Do yourself a favor and move those files to the relevant folders they belong in. This will increase the speed at which your desktop loads and therefore make your Macbook faster.
2. Remove unwanted start up applications
Go into System Preferences and User Accounts. View the list of applications that have been set to start against your user name and remove (untick) any that you don't need any longer.
It's great to have iChat start automatically - but not essential.
You can view a list of applications running in the background by using the top command from the Terminal window or by using the Activity Monitor application.
3. Disable the Dashboard
This is my favorite "speed up" fix for the Macbook and it works wonders each time. The OS X dashboard is great if you use it all the time, but each one of those swish little widgets and web clips is taking up memory - and you can't even see them unless you ask for them!
To disable the dashboard, open Terminal and enter the following command:
defaults write com.apple.dashboard mcx-disabled -boolean YES
You can then either reboot the Macbook or enter the following command into the Terminal window:
killall Dock
If you miss your weather widgets and stocks information, you can reverse the command by entering:
defaults write com.apple.dashboard mcx-disabled -boolean NO
And again either reboot or enter:
killall Dock
4. Clear the PRAM (intel Macbooks only)
Reboot your computer while holding down the command + option + p + r keys together. Don't stop until you have heard the start up chime three or four times.
This is not a real way of speeding up your Macbook, but it will kill any gremlins that have worked their way into the non-volatile RAM settings. I found that it seemed to allow my Macbook to boot faster.
5. Clear the PMU (Macbook, Pro and Air)
You can use this method to clear non-volatile RAM and settings on the Macbook products. Whilst it will not cause your Macbook to suddenly leap into speed mode, it will get rid of any mis-configurations and setting issues.
Macbook, Macbook Pro
- Ensure that the Macbook is turned off.
- Remove the power adapter and remove the battery.
- Press and hold down the power button for 5 seconds and then release.
- Reconnect the battery and power adapter.
- Press the power button to restart the Macbook.
Macbook Air
- Ensure that the Macbook Air is turned off.
- Connect the power adaptor to a working power source.
- On the Macbook Air keyboard, press (left) Shift-Control-Option along with the power button once.
Note: You must use the keys on the left side of the Macbook Air keyboard. - Wait 5 seconds and press the power button to start the Macbook Air.
6. Disable unneeded system options.
If you are not using Wireless, Bluetooth, Speech Recognition or Internet Sharing - then turn them off! Not only will you see a speed increase but you will save battery life too!
Tao Schencks invites you to visit him at his website MacBookUser.com which specializes in providing Macbook and Macbook Pro notebooks to consumers at excellent prices.
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