McCartman?

[bp1111]

Nice to see your expertise is still available online! I've got a few questions that I'm sure you'll be able to answer.

My desktop PC crapped again, and I'm just tired of it. Just about convinced to go to a Mac. I think the iMac is what I've got it narrowed down to. I see you can get Microsoft Office for Mac, but there are a few other programs I need that aren't available for Mac. My question is if I run Parallels, do I have to buy a copy of Microsoft 7? And if I have to run Parallels anyway, do I just keep Office for the Windows OS? Will there be any conversions in Office going from the Mac version to the Microsoft OS version?

Also, I see most stock iMac's are generally built with 2-4gb of ram. Does Mac utilize this so much better that the higher numbers aren't necessary, or would you upgrade? (If I were building a new PC, it'd be 8gb minimum) If I chose the 27" screen is there a way to split the screen? As in using half the screen for a spreadsheet, and looking up numbers on the net on the other half. Or will it be a click and drag like on a Microsoft OS?

That's all I can think of right now. TIA

[McCartman]

Yes, you will need to buy a copy of Windows. Since you are running Win, may as well save your money on the Office for Mac and run your current version in Win. There are no differences/conversions between the Mac and Win versions.

Regarding your question about RAM - That is exactly one the questions I had about Macs too when I was researching them back before I switched. I also noticed that all the Mac computers at the time seemed to have a lot less RAM than their PC counterparts. As it turns out, Mac OS is simply much more efficient and doesn't require as much RAM. I would opt for 4 GB minimum though. Lion runs perfectly fine on 2 GB, but may as well have 4 for future needs. Chances are that you will have the new Mac for a number of years before needing to upgrade, so having 4 right off the bat cannot hurt.

Splitting the screen is click and drag. I think there are small utilities out there that can be found to give you a quick way of doing that though. Google will find them.

[Sofakingwhat]

Throwing it in here because i cannot locate a 'new thread' button. Anyone know if it is possible to replace the touch screen on an ipod touch? Mine kinda got broken last night and half is hard to see and use, not to mention the sharp edges.

[swks]

Possible? Probably
Feasible? That would be the question.
Try www.ifixit.com They may have an answer.