Macbook users: iLife and other Macbook software...

clevebride2006

DH is getting me a Macbook Pro for Christmas this year- I've always been a PC user but I've recently purchased an iPhone 4S and iPad this year and he thought this would be a nice gift.

He mentioned something to me about iLife- is it worth it? Is it user-friendly? Are there any books out there so that I can maximize this program?

Are there any other programs that I should consider getting for my Macbook Pro?

missmis99

I have a Macbook Pro and when I got it, the only program I had to buy was a Microsoft package so I had Word, Excel, etc.

XMrsV2005

I opted for MS Office instead of iLife. At least, I think they are similar programs...

AntiBride07

iWork is the similar programs to MS Office. iLife is Garage Band, iPhoto, iMovie, etc. The last Mac I purchased come with iLife pre-installed.

AKuzReve

My MacBook Pro has ilife already installed on it. I got MS Office to use Word, PP, and Excel for school. 

AugustBrideCO

iLife is awesome! I think it comes already on there. You will definitely want to use it. You store your pics in iPhoto and your music in iTunes. IMovie is my favorite program, and it's so easy because it works seamlessly with iTunes and iPhoto. It is super easy to pull in pictures and songs and import video to make movies, which you burn using iDVD. I loooove Pages, but use Word for simple documents. I hate Numbers. You might want to purchase the Office suite until you get used to Pages.

clevebride2006

Thanks for everyone's input!

I have been uploading my pictures to Picasa... Does Picasa and iPhoto work together? I don't know if I necessarily want to have my photos stored in 2 different "places", kwim?

dutchgrl678

Does Picasa allow you to download the full resolution files if you ever lose them. I always have all my files on my computer and online in case I ever lose them. iPhoto is a great program for organizing your photos, tagging them and doing minor edits if you want that. I don't think there is any integration with Picasa though.

MrsKigerToBe

ilife is included, however I believe you need to download your free copy from the app store. For price I would suggest iWork instead of the microsoft products. They take a little getting used to but are actually more user friendly. Also I would suggest using iCloud and putting your photos in iPhoto so you can push them to all three of your devices if you need to. Its a pretty safe way to keep photos and iPhotos digital editing is pretty simple too!