hi-md worth it for mac users?

[folax]

so i'm going to go get a rh1, but my question is, is it worth it as a mac user?? can you still make uploads from you hi-md?? do you need a certain type of software??? or can you pop it in and it'll act as a hd??

dave

[A440]

Yes, you can upload. You need Sony software.

http://home.earthlink.net/~mac-minidisc/pd...TransferMac.pdf

There's a 2.0 version, but that will give you the idea.

The unit will be detected as a hard drive via USB, but recordings have to be uploaded through the Music Transfer software if you want to play them.

[1kyle]

Yes, you can upload. You need Sony software.

http://home.earthlink.net/~mac-minidisc/pd...TransferMac.pdf

There's a 2.0 version, but that will give you the idea.

The unit will be detected as a hard drive via USB, but recordings have to be uploaded through the Music Transfer software if you want to play them.

If you have an Intel mac you can run Parallels and set up a Virtual Windows VM on your Mac under OS X. No dual booting required.

Then you can run SS just as windows users. Parallels works great.

http://www.parallels.com

personally IMO this is a much easier and neater solution than trying to find specific Mac software which may or may not work and even if it does work it will probably not work 100% the same as it did in Windows.

Once you've got your Windows upload to MP3 /WAV you can of course share these with your Mac. You can do it by "Host Only Networking". The Parallels documentation is quite good.

Cheers

-K

[The Low Volta]

1kyle, while I do agree that the mac software isn't 100% yet, it does what it says (uploading of HiMD recordings made with a mac-compatible machine and downloading of MP3's) and there really is no need for Windows (emulator/dual boot) etc if this is all one needs... only for uploading of legacy stuff leaving the mac OS could be handy

but really, saying that running awindows emulator + SS (a program that when running natively on windows can hardly be called elegant or efficient but rather irritating and a resource hog) is an easier and neater solution than running the quite light native mac app... that kinda stumps me

[1kyle]

1kyle, while I do agree that the mac software isn't 100% yet, it does what it says (uploading of HiMD recordings made with a mac-compatible machine and downloading of MP3's) and there really is no need for Windows (emulator/dual boot) etc if this is all one needs... only for uploading of legacy stuff leaving the mac OS could be handy

but really, saying that running awindows emulator + SS (a program that when running natively on windows can hardly be called elegant or efficient but rather irritating and a resource hog) is an easier and neater solution than running the quite light native mac app... that kinda stumps me

Hi Volta -- running a VM is NOT emulation and it will run at nearly Native Speed. The overhead these days is relatively minimal.

There are many cases where for various reasons one will have to use Windows --particularly if you have to connect to a load of corporate apps that are windows based such as SAP etc.

If you are (and a lot of people on the road most certainly are) in the position where you have to logon to a Windows corporate application then the VM approach IMO works wonders.

Note a VM (Virtual Machine) is NOT the same as emulation or dual booting. You can Instantly switch between your VM and the native OS for example OSX.

For example have a look at this screenshot.

http://www.1kyle.com/rdesk.jpg

Cheers

-K

(edited --can't spell my own name properly after drinking that DUVEL strong Belgian Beer --great stuff though).

Edited September 4, 2006 by 1kyle

[folax]

where can i get the version 2 of this software???

dave

Yes, you can upload. You need Sony software.

http://home.earthlink.net/~mac-minidisc/pd...TransferMac.pdf

There's a 2.0 version, but that will give you the idea.

The unit will be detected as a hard drive via USB, but recordings have to be uploaded through the Music Transfer software if you want to play them.

[A440]

http://forums.minidisc.org/downloads/details.php?file=95

[garyaj]

I bought an MZ-NH700 last year because I wanted to record my choir's live performances and the NH700 was real cheap. It just never occurred to me that Sony wouldn't make a Mac version of Sonic Stage (nor did it occur to me they would attempt to add DRM to my own live recordings). I've used a MacBook almost from when they became available. I use it at work and at home and the thought of having to have a separate computer just to extract recordings from my MD seemed absurd (but there doesn't seem to be limits to Sony's stupidity).

Almost simultaneously, a couple of months ago, Apple and Parallels announced two different ways to allow Windows to run on a MacBook. The Apple method, using (free) Boot Camp requires me to set aside a (min. 5GB) Windows partition on my hard disk for WinXP and then shutdown Mac OS X and restart the machine in WinXP every time I want to extract tracks from my MD. Thankfully I don't make lots of recordings and it was bearable but annoying. The Parallels approach allows me to start up WinXP inside MacOS X. It's just another window on the desktop and is much more usable.

The problem was that Parallels simply refused to recognise the MD. I was able to plug in other USB devices but not the MD.

Yesterday Parallels released a version (1884) which *does* support the NH700. I have a CD of the tracks I extracted in my hand to prove it.

So in reply to the original question, if you are a Mac addict like me and you live on your MacBook, then the USS$79.99 for Parallels plus the AUD$149 (~USD$115) for the NH700 is worth it.

Hi Volta -- running a VM is NOT emulation and it will run at nearly Native Speed. The overhead these days is relatively minimal.

There are many cases where for various reasons one will have to use Windows --particularly if you have to connect to a load of corporate apps that are windows based such as SAP etc.

If you are (and a lot of people on the road most certainly are) in the position where you have to logon to a Windows corporate application then the VM approach IMO works wonders.

Note a VM (Virtual Machine) is NOT the same as emulation or dual booting. You can Instantly switch between your VM and the native OS for example OSX.

For example have a look at this screenshot.

http://www.1kyle.com/rdesk.jpg

Cheers

-K

(edited --can't spell my own name properly after drinking that DUVEL strong Belgian Beer --great stuff though).

[The Low Volta]

still... if you are a mac-fan and you get an RH1, there is no need for windows in what form whatsoever...isn't that nice?

I do agree with GaryAJ and 1kyle that parallels offers a great service for ppl with non-mac-compatible Hi-MD's and intel-macs already...but

- as I said, full use of the RH1 (and M10,M100,M200) requires no windows anymore, so why spend extra?

- parallels as with all dual boot systems or the like (so anything but the old, slow emulation to run windows) require an intel mac... so your idea still is pretty limited (I for one still use a 12" powerbook G4 = non-intel for work and personal use, so am I out of the mac-community now 'cause I don't have an intel-mac?)

- and last but not least! we have been begging for mac-compatibility with Sony for so long... now we finally have got two-way mac compatibility... and now ppl start advising usage of windows-on-mac... this really says to Sony: "thanks but no thanks, simply forget about us mac'ers again. We will run windows rather than using your mac software"

Well, I am glad that they added mac-compatibility and I will use and promote it whenever I can but if someone has a non-mac-compat Hi-MD and a version of windows (otherwise this will add to the price as well) and an intel-mac (and only in this particular case) I will recommend the parallels way

PS: Duvel is great indeed... but dangerous!