Answers...

to commonly asked questions.

June 2010

File path of image on web page is wrong

I'm wanting to buy my son a used MAC for his birthday in a few days.  Any suggestions?  Do you have any extra Macs for sell?  Let me know.   Thanks.

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I'd just check the usual suspects:  Craigslist, eBay etc...

I do get requests all the time for used computers.  And people do offer their old ones to me often but at this time it would be way too much for me to undertake refurbishing each computer to resell.

Cloning a user?


If you we were me, how would you customize this for maximum performance?
Apple is replacing by current macbook pro 15in because its having issues.
Sending me a brand new one, and they will let my upgrade that base unit and pay the difference.
What do you think?
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Sorry to hear you've had problems with the MBP.  I would not buy my ram from Apple.  Get it from Crucial.com and save a little money.  But you'd need to look at the price difference if you are only upgrading.  I'd move up to the 7200rpm hard drive for $50 more.  SSD is cool but still way too expensive for the mainstream.  

also what about the upgraded antiglare screen? Will that allow me to work outside better?

Oh yea.  I, along with all my professional video and still image friends, think the matte finish is a must and I'll go with that "anti glare" finish until my dying day.  I hate that Apple wants to charge extra $$$ for a feature that was always there in the past.   The glossy screen is beautiful but a pain for 80% of the enviornments you're in.  Sorry I forgot to mention that.  I usually don't recommend that unless people are interested in it.  Most people fall for the "oh it's so shinny" effect.  

Don't migrate PowerPC apps to an Intel machine


Hi Scotty, I took your survey and added a comment I should have just put
here.  If you do not know about Ibank and want some info..let me know.  This
is my world (finance) and while it is not perfect..it is a very good
replacement for MS Money and far better than Quicken.  And it runs smoothly.

The more I work on the Mac the happier I get ..there are probably a million
things I still do not know about the operating system and the software out
there.. But what I do know.. I love.

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Also check out Mint.com to organize your finances.  It's free and doesn't interfere with other programs doing the same thing.  

Transfering data to a new computer

Scotty, I completed. I am thinking about getting a Wacom wireless tablet for my photography. Will the D-Link work consistently with my Mac Pro 8-core Xeon or should I have bluetooth installed inside the Mac?
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If the D-link your refering to is a bluetooth module then you should be fine without having to buy an internal one.  

Where are the movies on my iPad?

I had someone transfer a wordpress blog to my new site  and I've screwed up the header.  Do you know anyone who can straighten it out.....I got all the files but I just can't seem to make a basic Jpg file show up behind the navigation with the blog below it.

I'm about to cry!


oh ok.  How are you publishing your site?  Are you using and ftp uploader like transmit?  If you are, then you should be able to copy the image into the correct folder. site/blog/images/header.jpg is the address with means it's currently pointing to a sub folder called "images".  You either need to move the "header.jpg" into that folder or move a duplicate copy of that image to that location.  

Yea, that's what I did.

I think there is a bug in the code for the blog.html file, or the header.php




I still think your file path is wrong. Look:


Just tried adding a new folder with copies of the Jpg and php in the New Images folder in the blog folder and "No show"

What web page builder are you using?  You could always just correct the path within the editor.  

I built it in Iweb but am editing code in Dreamweaver.

If you can fix it when ever you get a chance I'd appreciate it.  Id rather have it just pick up the header and footer.  WP is already installed.

solved...next?

Here is the Face book Image
Oh if you see the other headers it is in the right side of the Nav bar witha link to the FB page


 I don't think I can solve this for you with just ftp management.  This would have to be added via your web design tool.  Using Dreamweaver you should be able to drop this line of code into the html body of the /blog.html page. But since the /blog page is based on php, that means that it's not necessarily relying on an index.html or index.php page.  php pages work together to build one view so I have no idea where the facebook code and icon should be placed.  Better to just edit in Dreamweaver.  

Using Home Sharing in iTunes

on a Mac is there a way to clone/copy an entire user account?

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Sort of. You can’t have two users with the same name so a clone is not possible however you can transfer all the data to another user with a different name. it’s not a common thing to do this as there will be permissions issues if not done correctly. it’s not an easy task but can be done. Instructions on how to do it would be too involved for me to get into over text. If you would like that done I will do it for you. Now if you are talking about moving one user to another computer then yes, the migration assistant will do that for you.

Airport express (almost) never fails

A couple of questions (similar topic):

I purchased a new iMac to replace my old Power PC G5 (non-Intel based).  The new PhotoShop and Lightroom upgrades only work on Intel based machines.  Anyway, what are the pros/cons of migrating my old machine to the new on the initial startup of the iMac?  I have done this in the past but wanted to get some input from you first.  Any suggestions on what I can do with the G5 (Dual 2.5 GHz, 6 GB DDR Ram, 1 TB Harddrive)

At work I have an iMac (about a ear old), I purchased a new Mac Book Pro and want to migrate my work iMac to the laptop - same question as above (pros/cons)?  I have VM Ware running Windows XP Pro on my wok iMac and want to do the same with the laptop.

Thanks in advance.

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Normally the migration assistant built into the mac is wonderful however, in your case I would not recommend using it. You’ll really want to install the intel versions of those apps. Your goal will be to allow no PowerPC based processes running. You can always run the migration assistant to move documents and other files but avoid applications transferred.

I’ve moved VMware over to another computer via migration assistant and had no problems. You should be ok. Intel to intel is fine. Just don’t do it with the G5. As far as what to do with it...you could donate it to a needy family. Habitat for Humanity, Salvation Army, or Goodwill would be good choices.

iCal isn't syncing

Do not know if I need a session but i dropped my laptop and 25% of the screen is gone...can still see the other 75% tho. However, I am going to have to get a nice laptop and want to know if I can transfer all my stuff currently on the old laptop to the new laptop relatively easy. The two most expensive things on my old laptop are Photoshop CS5 Extended which I want to make sure transfers to the new laptop and Microsoft Office for Mac. I am in the process of saving alot of stuff to one of the backup drives I have in my office (not the time capsule)...How easy is it to just copy the whole old laptop over to a new laptop. Sorry for rambling. FYI- everything else is working great. Thanks.

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Apple has a great migration assistant that allows you to easily move your data from one computer to the new one. When you boot your new computer for the first time, you’ll be asked if you would like to move data. You’ll then be instructed to boot the older mac into “target disk mode” by holding down the T key at startup. You can then connect the two computers via a firewire cable. (there are other ways but this is the fastest way to transfer info.) You’ll then be given the final steps to start the transfer. It’s fairly easy to do. It will move all applications over including the data you are concerned about. (Office, Photoshop, etc...)

Having damaged your screen, it sounds like your hard drive is still ok. So the transfer should be ok. Sorry to hear of the accident. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Address Book duplicates

Scotty -  I just syncd my IPad with my IMac Desktop and loaded 3 movies.   I do I pull them up on my IPad (which application are they under) and watch them?

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Your videos should be under an app on your iPad called “videos”.

new macbook or macbook pro for high school?

I downloaded a movie for rent to my desktop, but I really need to watch it on my laptop.  Can I transfer it with a wire of some sort or get my money back and re-rent it on the laptop if I haven't yet watched it?  I only have the usual connectors for iphone and ipod, but can't quite seem to determine what I need to put these two together if at all.

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The best way to transfer a movie from your desktop computer to your laptop computer would be to set up home sharing. In the iTunes menu bar, you’ll turn on home sharing via Advanced Menu bar pane. Next, choose an apple ID to log in under both computers. After both computers are registered to share content, go to the laptop and you’ll now see the other itunes library under the shared area in the left hand column of iTunes. Select that icon and you’ll be presented with a list of content from the desktop computer. Now simply drag the movies, movies or applications you’d like to transfer into the music folder on your laptop machine. It will take a while to move that much data (movies are typically a gig or two in size) but that should do it.

Thanks Scotty -- I just tried this and unfortunately, the icon for rented movies doesn't appear in the shared library.  Everything else but that is there -- is there some setting I need to adjust?
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Ah!  Rented movie.  Apple's restrictions via the RIAA currently don't allow for transferring of Rented movies.  You can only move rentals to AppleTV, iphone, iPods, and iPads.  Not computer to computer.  You could try moving the movie over to one of those devices then connecting that device to the next computer then selecting to transfer purchases from the iTunes  "file" menu drop down.  I haven't verified whether this will work but it's possible.  I doubt it though.  Most likely the movie is registered to the computer's ID and will only play on that device for a certain amount of time.  30 days to start, 24 hours after you've started.  They really need to extend that time if they expect more rentals.  

Here’s Apple’s support doc on the issue. How to rent a movie from the iTunes Store on your computer


Any ability to refund and rebuy that you know of?  Thanks so much!

You can try here:
Apple - Support - iTunes Store - Contact Us

Mobileme email path has been changed


Is it possible that an airport express could go out in less than 6 months.
The new airport express I purchased when you were last out does not show on the network after I reset it and try to extend the network.  The light on the express is blinking yellow? Let me know if its something I'm doing or if you think the airport express on out?


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It's extremely unlikely that the airport express has failed.  The failure rate on that hardware is very very low.  So I have a good bit of faith in it.  There must be something else.  If you've done a hard reset on it and had it to rejoin your network and you feel you've done everything correctly then there may be something we're missing.  Luckily the airport utility will tell us what the problem is.  Launch airport utility and double click on the express icon in the left hand column.  When the next window appears, click on the yellow dot next to Status.  That should show you a list of errors the airport express is reporting.  Then we can go from there.  

Adding a printer in OS X

iCal on book isn't matching cloud... how do I resync?  don't want to hit the wrong thing!!

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To be sure the calendars are syncing, and I checked several times, you should go to your mobileme system preferences in system preferences and select the sync tab within mobileme.  Next, be sure that automatic is selected and not manual or every hour etc...There you'll also find the sync button.  Select that and you should see the icon in the menu bar begin to spin.  You can also force sync from the drop down under the circular arrow icon in the menu bar as well.  

Resetting your Gmail password

I have duplicates in my address book and on my phone. Help

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With the address book, all devices should now be syncing.  Since I didn't have your phone I was unable to check its syncing.  If you have duplicates on your phone, it could be because you are syncing over the cloud and via a cable.  Apple turned this ability on last year and it has happened to many people.  It's not a good thing.  If there are just general duplicates in your address book with either computer, then there is a simple way to remove them.  Under "Card" in the menu bar, select "Look for duplicates".  You'll have the ability to also merge cards with the same name but different information.  

Quickbooks on the Mac side? I'd rather have my spleen removed.


Scotty,
I hope all is well with you and I look forward to seeing you soon!  My son will be going off to boarding school in the fall and we need to purchase a new laptop for him.  Do you think he should get the macbook or 13 in macbook pro?  We would like it to make it through his high school career.

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The most popular choice for high school kids is really the macbook.  It has the plastic case which makes it very durable.  A little less investment considering what teenagers can do to computers.  And it's plenty powerful enough for their needs.  The one things I do find that kids like to do that the macbook is a bit less capable of doing is gaming.  Playing video games on a mac laptop is not the most spectacular experience.  Even the macbook pro's are not scream machines in this area but their dedicated graphics cards do a better job.  If you can do without that, then the macbook should be just fine.  

ATT microcell and junk mail



The first thing you could try would be to delete each of the mobileme accounts and then re-add them. Since mobileme is based on IMAP, you won’t be loosing anything. If that does not resolve the problem, the second thing to try would be to navigate down to the file path pointed out in alert window and delete the corresponding folders, then re-add the accounts once again. it could be a bit messy. Let me know if you need any assistance.

Do you do windows?

Question, after you left, family member asked me if I asked you to set laptop up so that he can use our printer. I did not know that it was not set up. He has been e-mailing to the desktop or using his pen drive to download to the desktop in order to print. That is why he is on my computer so much. Is this an easy thing to do and could you give me simple directions or direct me over the phone?

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Adding a printer in OS X is not too difficult.  Just go to the printer settings in System preferences and click the plus button to add the printer.  You’ll be presented with a list of available printers. Directly connected printers show as “USB” printers. Wireless printers show as “Bonjour” printers. Depending on the version of the operating system, you may need to visit the printer manufacturer's website to download the most current driver for that printer.  

iPhone not syncing in Win 7

I am trying to add my Gmail to my Blackberry but it will not let me because I am not entering the right password. I tried everything I know but it will not work. Any suggestions? Thanks.

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You could always reset your gmail password by going here:
I cannot access my account - Gmail Help

iPhone dropping calls? No!!!!!!

I feel I need to get a grasp on the computers and software we are running.
I cannot remember why we are running VM.  Was it because of QuickBooks?  If so, why can we not run
QB for Mac -- is it very different?  Would it interfere with our Accountant since he works from PCs?

Thank you in advance for suggestions/advice.


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Sorry for the delay in responding.  Yes, school is out for me however I'm moving to consulting full time going forward.  You are running VM because QuickBooks for the Mac is horrible.  It is very different.  And almost all clients I work with who try it get rid of it within a week or so.  It's better to endure the pain of VMware than to deal with QB on the mac.  

Chrome or Safari?

Dear Scotty,

I am hoping you might have some time on your calendar to run by and tend to a few Mac issues we're having.  We need to determine if our router is working properly (internet is really slow and has been for weeks), we need to reinstall the security for it (disk got lost in the shuffle and we had to restore it), I have dead spots in my house and want to install a 3G macrocell (assuming it will work), and my emails are recently going to a lot of people's junk folders (if you have an easy fix for this I can do myself, I'd love to know it NOW as it's killing my work).  I'm also getting a new iphone and so there may be issues related to that, but hopefully not!  On the macrocell, I'm happy to pick that up myself unless you think they don't work or can get them cheaper than I can at the At&T store.  Thanks Scotty and just let me know your availability.



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I would be happy to assist.  You can check my calendar of availability at www.sellsconsulting.com/calendar.  Tomorrow and Friday are a bit full but Sat/Sun is looking good and beyond.  I have several clients with the ATT microcell and they've had positive experiences so far.  So I think it will help with your dead zones in the house.  As far as the junk email goes, that's a setting within each of their own email programs.  It really doesn't have anything to do with how you are sending it.  However, we can look at anything that could be strange associated with your email as you've pointed out that several of your clients/friends are seeing it in junk mail.  

Just check the calendar when you're ready to schedule a session.
I'll look forward to working with you again.

Google Earth and Realtors

Thank you! You are a huge help. I have my non-tech husband possibly considering a Mac. If we get one, how do we transfer all our data? Does Mac come with a type of Excel program? We keep a lot of impt info. in Excel and need the data to transfer.  Is that easy? Do you help people set up their new computer and transfer from PC?   Thank you for your continued support!


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Typically the Apple Store will transfer some of the data for you. If you have a more specific need in the transfer then that’s where I come in. The Mac does not come with an excel program however, you can use several applications to create and share word/powerpoint/excel documents. Those include:

iWork: Apple’ own version of Microsoft Office
Microsoft Office
Open Office: a free version of Office
Google Docs: an online web browser based document creator.

Yes, I do assist in transferring data all the time.

iPad does't work without Wi-Fi unless...

Hi Scotty,
I have had many computer problems lately.  installed Windows 7 on my PC and now my iPhone will not sync with iTunes.  I sent you a message of the response I got.  We tried over and over again to sync my phone and keep getting this message.  Do you have any ideas how we can fix this?  Unfortunately, my husband is not ready to buy a new computer, as we just bought a new hard drive.  Everything I do is in my phone and iPad, so I have to be able to sync this computer.  As an aside, how much would a basic Mac cost - for someone like me?  I would love to give the kids the PC and I have a desk-top Mac.  I know you are busy, but I need help. Thank you again!





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I great desktop mac to start with is the 21” iMac. $1199 You can’t go wrong with that machine.

Now on to the problem. Here are a few things you can try:

  • Run all your updates in Windows as well as iTunes, if that doesn’t work...
  • Be sure your music is reachable from within iTunes. If iTunes can’t find certain songs then it may stall when trying to move the songs over the the iphone. You may want to spot check your library. If you get some “exclamation point” songs, then you may either want to repoint iTunes to those songs or delete them entirely. If that doesn’t work....
  • Restore the phone from within iTunes, if that doesn’t work....
  • choose a smaller playlist to isolate whether the problem is with the phone or certain songs within iTunes. If the phone syncs a small playlist then we know the problem is within the large library and certain songs can’t be found. If that’s doesn’t work...
  • try manually syncing instead of automatically. Just drag over the songs/playlists you’d like to move over. If that doesn’t work, it may be a 64 bit Windows issue with iTunes. If that’s the case, you may try downloading virtual pc from Microsoft and then run iTunes in XP mode. I’m not sure how to do this but advanced Windows users should.

Hope this helps.

Website name is being doubled. Why?

FYI, since mobile me off, have never had another issue like b4 & even had everyone I called or was called mimiced & still didn't happen so convinced mobile me, new problem, with this new iPhone, my reception is dramatically worse in same locations, all my friends say they can't hear me & in locations I always used 2 use my iPhone, no coverage at all, I had the iPhone for 6 months & new 1 4  2 weeks & it is nite & day on coverage & dropped calls have increased 75%, could I have an iPhone with a defective  attena or something????

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Unfortunately this would be much more of Apple’s call. They would recommend that you, of course, run all your updates as well as hard reset your phone (holding down both buttons until you see the red slider). They may even recommend that you restore your phone via iTunes. After you’ve tried those options then that may more easily rule out software and leave hardware or the ATT network more to blame. I can not speak for Apple so your best bet would be to take it to the G. Bar and let them resolve the issue.

response:

Hey thanks 4 the quick response, called Apple store & on hold so then called AT&T & they said 2 come in & they would replace Sim card which u did 30 min ago & so far, reception & coverage so much better, they said Sim cards go bad, who would've thunk it. Will let u know, thanks!!!



And they said it could also be my Swarovski metallic case, oh no!!! Have you heard of metallic cases interfering with reception?



Anytime you have metal around electronics, there’s going to be the strong potential for interference. So yes, I would not use a metal case around my phone.

Time Machine failed backup ...MyBook sucks. Time Machine could not complete the backup. FIles cannot be copied onto the backup disk because it appears to be Read Only. You may need to repair or reformat the disk using Disk Utility. If the disk can't be repaired, you must use a different dicks for backups.

Do you use Google Chrome at all or just stick with Safari 5?

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While Safari 5 supports plugins (all-be-it, very scrutinized by apple as to what these plugins will do I’m sure) it does seem very fast and stable. But I have to say that Chrome has come on very strong lately. I find myself using both. With xmarks, I can sync bookmarks between the two in the background. So I don’t think anyone should be a one browser user. That being said, my current browser usage is probably along the lines of 85% Safari and 15% Chrome. Firefox is out of the race right now.

Do I ever sell old macs?

Hey - what application is best to use to open this .kmz file? I don't even know what kind of file that is.

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Google Earth will do the trick.  I you are not using Google Earth, you should be.  That kmz file is a standard file that contains a set of locations that will show in Google Earth.

This should give you an idea.  
Google Earth kmz links/files

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So, do you have Google Earth installed on your MAC? I guess I need to just download it. I thought I had used it in the past...


Yes.  Google Earth is the greatest.  You should definitely have it as a tool as a realtor.  You could get an iPad with 3G and pull up what a lot looks like right while standing on it.  It's very very good.  

Bluetooth module not showing on a G5 tower.

Actually, my Ipad kicked on great once I got home with a proper wi-fi signal! These DON'T work without one??? That's my big question...

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Yes,  If you want internet outside of a wi-fi area, you'd need the 3G version of the iPad and a data subscription with ATT.  Data plans vary depending on how much you feel you'd use it.  

Reseting your password if you've forgotten it.

I made my first website...purchased the domain at go daddy etc, and I think I did ok for a first time, although for a sad reason....
but can you go to it and tell me why it does this???

www.richardwilliamsiowa.com


When you get there it says
www.richardwilliamsiowa.com/richardwilliamsiowa.com/welcome   blah blah blah....

Why does it repeat??  

Thanks Scotty...

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A couple of things to try/consider:

Inside Godaddy's prefs, choose to "mask the url" in the settings.  That may work.  If that does't do the trick then  you may need to rename your file within iWeb.  You don't want to call the file the website name plus the .com suffix.  Just rename it in iWeb and that may do the trick.

Lost Financial data...did she backup?

this is the error I rec'd:

Time Machine could not complete the backup.
FIles cannot be copied onto the backup disk because it appears to be Read Only.
You may need to repair or reformat the disk using Disk Utility.  If the disk can't be repaired, you must use a different dicks for backups.  


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I can't quite recall where the hard drive was used first.  This can occur if the drive has been connected to a windows machine and permissions were changed.  We should be able to solve the issue.  Hopefully the drive is healthy and this is only a software issue.  If you can afford to loose the data on the drive then the best and first option would be to erase the drive using disk utility then reformat it as a Mac OS extended Journaled drive.  Time Machine will need this format to function correctly.  Reformatting the drive will also clean the permissions of the drive and start you back at the beginning.  

If erasing the drive is not an option then there are alternatives.  First, get info on the drive by control + click or right clicking the hard drive icon.  Now, you may be able to select to ignore ownership and permissions on the drive.  It's a little geeky.  I apologize for not recalling exactly your skill level as this is not the easiest thing to ask someone to do.  Also, be sure that the drive is not locked by assuring the "lock" check box is unchecked.  However, if the drive is already formatted for time machine, then these options should not be available anyway and we have to go to the next step.  

The next thing to try would be to go into the backups.backupdb folder on the hard drive and remove the "inprogress" backup file.  That may give you a fresh start at time machine trying to backup.  

Oh but wait, it's all coming back to me now...you are using the Western Digital MyBook.  I recall you have two of them if I'm not mistaken.  Case closed.  Don't trust that drive.  Take the warning's advice and try another drive.  

Now there is always the possibility that some data on the computer is corrupt and time machine is having a difficult time backing up the data but those occurrences are usually few and far between.  Replace the MyBook drive.  

Other consultants in SC?

Hi Scotty,
Do you ever come across any Mac that are in great shape, but someone might be upgading or selling for some reason?

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While I do encounter quite a few macs that other families and businesses are replacing, they usually have other plans to move them down the family tree. Thus, when they’re ready to let go of the machine for good, it’s usually so old that it’s not really worth using. I would suggest Craigslist or eBay but you must be aware of a few things if you’re going to buy online used. Sellers will often raise the price of a machine due to its loaded software. This can be a sticky situation. If they’re providing the actual original install discs of said software then you may be a little more protected but many sellers just advertise the applications on the machine but don’t include the original discs. Then, when you need to reinstall for some reason (say a dead hard drive) you’re out of luck. I would ask the seller if the machine will be wiped before you buy. You also don’t want someone else’s user. Any sold computer should be at the state it was first sold to them.

Good luck.
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