Low End Mac Reader Specials

TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com

OWC: We Make DIY Upgrading Easy! Maximize your Apple MacBook / MacBook Pro. Up to 8.0GB Memory, up to 1.0TB HD & More. Easy Guide + Free, Detailed Installation Videos. Click here

Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker application such as Full Tilt Poker Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, apple laptops, apple macs, and LCD Monitors side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for new mobile phones, sat nav systems, or MP3 players. The Ciao online shopping community makes searching products easy for you.

Mac Fallout Shelter

Preparing Yourself and Your 'Book for Time in the Field

- 2006.01.31 - Tip Jar

I just got back from "the field" today. In the Army, "the field" is going on a field exercise located in a remote wilderness area. Its mostly just grown-up Army camping. Being there gave me a great idea about writing this article on what you should bring with you when you venture into the "field" (a campout in civilian terms).

The first thing you need is a nice solid computer case or pack. There are hundreds available in all price ranges. Cases are very good because they are made of hard metal alloys or hard plastic and keep you laptop from getting crushed, smashed, or otherwise broken after a drop.

Another important factor is that some cases are watertight, so they are guaranteed to keep your laptop dry even if you drop the sealed case in water. Examples are the expensive Pelican cases that are used by the military, the SKB case (it's like the Pelican), and the Vanguard case, which is the one I own. It survived Iraq and keeps on going.

The other option is a soft case, such as a carrying case or backpack. These are a lot more mobile and comfortable to use, and they hold all your accessories and documents. I don't recommend taking your expensive laptop to the woods with a soft case due to the fact that if there is a rain storm your laptop will get wet. If you choose a soft case, you must try to keep it in your car or near the center of your tent and elevated from the ground.

Examples are Booq bags, which are very stylish, and tons of other brands - too many to mention.

Now that you have your laptop protected, there are a few things you would like to have on hand:

Boot disk - for fixing you Mac in critical moments
Backup media - always back up your data
Security lock - uses the security slot on your Mac so no one can run off with it while you sleep
Ethernet cable - a long one for when you must be wired
Ethernet crossover cable - for quick data transfers between 2 computers
Extra cables - FireWire and USB
Extension cords - get power closer to you comfortably
Mouse - a whole lot more productive than a trackpad
Cleaning supplies - always keep your equipment clean
Headphones - hear your music without disturbing nature
Media card reader - helps save camera battery life and fast transfers

This is the essential stuff you should bring. Extras might be speakers for sharing your movies or music with friends and a wireless access point.

You should feel almost at home with all this stuff and can enjoy a nice week or two in the field with friends watching movies and playing games.

If you find Joe's articles helpful, please consider making a donation to his tip jar.

Recent Mac Fallout Shelter articles

My Newton: Why I won't buy an iPhone or iPod touch, 09.07. The iPod touch and iPhone sound wonderful, but I love the handwriting recognition, fax support, and email abilities of my Newton MessagePad.
Network administration tools for Mac OS X users, 06.25. Thanks to Mac OS X, today's Macs are great network citizens and excellent tools for doing network administration.
Apple's secret battery reset utility for WallSteet and Clamshell iBooks, 07.05. If your old 'Books battery isn't taking a charge like it used to, Battery Reset 2.0 could help recover its useful life.
Replacing Lombard with a TiBook: Which one is enough?, 04.19. Nice as the Lombard was, it has a new owner. The new 'Book should have FireWire, G4 power, and run Tiger nicely. How much TiBook is enough?
More in the Mac Fallout Shelter index.

Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: 15" MacBook Pro Core Duo, Jan. 2006 - The first Intel-based MacBook launched at 1.83-2.0 GHz, had several teething problems.
Group of the Day: System 6 is the email list for those who choose System 6.
November 21 in LEM history: 00: OS upgrades, downgrades - AltiVec vs. Pentium III - 01: Saved by the clones - Computer of the future - 02: Apple Education: Let's get to it - 03: Panther lets Macs and PCs work together, - Lombard SCSI bug - 05: 3 survivors from the 1970s - Real world battery life inadequate - Windows to Mac file transfer with Zip disks - $99 alternative to Microsoft Office - 06: Parallels 1.0 far more polished than beta
Support Low End Mac

Recent Deals

Best eMac Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz Combo, $100; SuperDrive, $269; 1.25 GHz Combo, $119; SD, $319; 1.42 GHz Combo, $289; SD, $498.
Best Mac OS X 10.6 and Mac Box Set Deals, 11.18. "Snow Leopard", single user, $25; 5 users, $45; Mac Box Set, single user, $139; 5 users, $180; Server, $414. Shipping included.
Best Xserve Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz dual G4, $649; 2.3 dual G5, $795; 3.0 4-core Xeon, $1,899; refurb 2.26 4-core, $2,499; new, $2,888; refurb 8-core, $2,999; new, $3,449; more.
Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 11.17. Used 1.83 GHz, $750; 2.16, $800; 2.33, $900; refurb 2.4, $1,299; 2.53, $1,449; 2.66, $1,699; 2.8, $1,899; new 2.53, $1,579; 2.66, $1,799; more.
Best Power Mac G4 and AGP Video Card Deals, 11.17. Used 400 MHz, $50; 933 MHz, $80; 500 dual, $60; 867 dual, $90; 1 GHz dual, $150; 1.25 GHz dual, $225; 1.42 GHz, $499.
Best Mac OS X 10.5 Deals, 11.17. "Leopard" upgrade, $80; single user license, $135; 5 users, $173; Mac Box Set, 5 users, $230; Server, 10 users, $340; unlimited, $850. Shipping included.
Best Mac mini Deals, 11.16. Used 1.42 GHz G4 mini, $379; 1.66 GHz Core Solo, $419; 2.0 Core 2, $450; new 2.26 GHz nVidia, $580; 2.53 GHz, $769; Server, $990.
Best iBook G4 Deals, 11.16. Used 12" 1.07 GHz Combo, $210; 1.33 GHz, $298; 14" 1.33 GHz, $398; 1.42 GHz, $479; SuperDrive, $498.
Best iPod shuffle Deals, 11.16. Used 1 GB, $35; 4 GB, $65; refurb 1 GB, $39; 2 GB, $59; new 2 GB, $55, 4 GB, $75. New and refurb prices include shipping.
More deals in our archive.

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

Mac Fallout Shelter articles copyright ©2005-07 by Joe Rivera. Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2009 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.