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MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

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Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#981

Post by bartread »

cerberusss wrote: post #936
bartread wrote: post #730

The bump in specs is very much welcome, but I'm considerably irked by the continuation of USB-C only connectivity. I'm not joking with this. I would like, at least on the 15-inch model: - An HDMI port - Two mini-display ports - At least two standard USB 3 compatible ports - A mag-safe power connector to avoid damage to the machine, and the connector itself, if somebody (like me!) trips over the power cable - At least…

Do you travel so much then? I travel between my customer, my workplace and home. I don't have a single dongle -- I just replaced the cables or bought a dock.

Yes: enough for it to be bothersome. Different customer sites, different offices, different meeting rooms with differing AV connectivity, the occasional conference in venues with a range of connectivity. I commonly encounter HDMI, Mini DisplayPort, and DisplayPort cables. I still occasionally encounter DVI and even VGA. Obviously I don't expect support for all of those but HDMI and Mini DisplayPort are extremely common so it's wearing having to have at least two dongles all of the time[1]. It's just extra crap to get lost.

[1] I also have a Microsoft Surface Pro/SurfaceBook Pro (I still can't remember which is which) that's annoying in that it has a single Mini DisplayPort and no HDMI. Even more galling, the rather expensive dock which is a pain to carry around has two MiniDisplayPorts yet still lacks HDMI.

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#982

Post by sievebrain »

lemming wrote: post #906
yonilevy wrote: post #734

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a heavy IntelliJ user - I use the function keys all the time. Some examples: F1: show file in project view, F2/Shift F2: next/previous error, Ctrl+F2: stop process, F3/Shift F3: find next/previous, F6: move/rename, different F7 variations: find usages, F9/F10: run/debug options, also F8-F10 - step over/into/out/continue, F12 - toggle maximize editor, etc. I don't understand what I'm supposed to do with a touchbar,…

FWIW they're adding support: https://twitter.com/bulenkov/status/984476361699069952 - it was supposed to be in 2018.2 but I haven't checked whether it made it or not. I agree though, IntelliJ is my biggest worry when it comes to the Touch Bar.

I use it, it made it, but I'd still prefer the old function keys back

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#983

Post by jonplackett »

intopieces wrote: post #821
reificator wrote: post #644

Biggest new feature they could add would be to not have an additional screen taking up battery life and shining in my face, unable to be dimmed with f.lux. Maybe instead we could have a row of keys that provide some sort of function, and maybe a key that allows the user to escape. That would be a pretty useful feature that I can guarantee I would use dozens or hundreds of times a day. I'm considering replacing my Mac…

Re: the function row, I wish instead of the OLED strip they would have implemented something like the Optimus Popularis: https://store.artlebedev.com/electronics/devices/optimus-pop... To me, this is the best of both worlds. Just put the default keys to start and then let your users pick if they want to. I prefer individual keys to tapping a screen, which is why I use a laptop and not an iPad.

yes - this is a damn fine idea. i'm always accidentally resting my finger on the down brightness key and only notice when the screen suddenly goes dark. keys that press = good idea.

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#984

Post by jonplackett »

dbg31415 wrote: post #745
reificator wrote: post #644

Biggest new feature they could add would be to not have an additional screen taking up battery life and shining in my face, unable to be dimmed with f.lux. Maybe instead we could have a row of keys that provide some sort of function, and maybe a key that allows the user to escape. That would be a pretty useful feature that I can guarantee I would use dozens or hundreds of times a day. I'm considering replacing my Mac…

Job gave me a MBP with a touch bar. In the past I've been able to grab an older MBP 15" but they were out of them. So... a small slice of electrical tape solved the issue. Ugh, it's ghetto. It's the worst invention. Anyone who worked on it should feel bad about their existence -- like drawing mustaches on the Mona Lisa. The 2013 MBP was a perfect laptop (for the time). It's nice they finally got around to adding more…

agreed. happily typing on my 2013 now. best laptop in existence. and it cost half as much.

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#987

Post by carlob »

EatYourGreens wrote: post #958
patte wrote: post #826

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I turned away from the mac, first because the HW, second because prop. software is creaping me out more and more. I bought a lenovo T480 (big battery, higres screen, good keyboard, only the trackpad is shitty) and I installed the shiny ubuntu 18.04 and I have to say, it's the best setup I ever used. It's super stable, with some tweeking( https://github.com/erpalma/lenovo-throttling-fix ) it's crazy fast, 7h+ battery…

> I bought a lenovo T480 (big battery, higres screen, good keyboard, only the trackpad is shitty) and I installed the shiny ubuntu 18.04 and I have to say, it's the best setup I ever used. If by hires screen you mean WQHD, I am wondering what you do with absence of proper fractional scaling support by desktop environments (and how workarounds interact with external monitors).

KDE supports fractional scaling

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#988

Post by i6Respawns »

reificator wrote: post #674
tjohns wrote: post #651

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know it's trendy to hate on the touchbar... but for what it's worth, I personally find it more useful than the old function keys. Most mac apps don't use function keys as shortcuts, so the old keyboard ended up being used for media keys (volume, brightness, play/pause, etc.). The touch bar gives me a better version of that (I actually get a volume slider ), plus more apps actually make use of that space to provide…

My pie-in-the-sky idealized computer experience is a color e-ink display with a decent framerate. Replacing tactile buttons with a second blinding photon emitter is not progress as far as I'm concerned. I understand all the benefits you quote, and I'm not just complaining because it's "trendy". If it was eink, I wouldn't care at all. But it's another backlit screen shining in my face. No thanks.

Marry me

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#989

Post by roryisok »

Eric_WVGG wrote: post #696
roryisok wrote: post #684

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe I'm a backwards person but I barely use escape at all. I do however use the function keys, all day, every day. I have them mapped to various apps for screengrabbing, batch copy and paste of files, rename etc. Apps like keymaestro let me add extra functionality to these "spare" keys and I don't want then replaced by any damn touchbar

In my experience, adding those functions to the Touch Bar via Better Touch Tool was just as easy as making f-key bindings, plus I get easy and visibly-distinguishable per-app bindings. The Touch Bar is great, Apple just isn't going far enough.

visibly distinguishable is great but IMO tactilely distinguishable is more important

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#990

Post by dbbk »

schappim wrote: post #602
rconti wrote: post #554

This seems like a pretty unusual/rare step of releasing an upgrade with just a press release; they clearly wanted to get this machine out before some part of the buying cycle rather than waiting for a press event. I know it's still just a spec bump, but it's different enough that it would normally appear at an event. I don't need to rehash all of the 2015 vs touchbar arguments, the touchbar machine is "good enough" t…

It is not unusual or rare for Apple to announce (what they consider) mere spec bump releases via press release. Apple has a long history of doing this.

I don't even think the MacBook has had a keynote reveal since the first one right? Every update has been a small press gathering and press release.
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