Early adopter issues: MacBook Air and Migration Assistant

February 9th, 2008

Daniel Eran Dilger
Any time a car or computer is released with a significantly new design, there are certain to be issues found with its engineering. The more changes, the more likely there’ll be early adopter problems to manage. With the MacBook Air, Apple traded FireWire, an optical drive, and Gigabit Ethernet to save a few pounds and shed a few millimeters. Here’s a look at problems users face while trying to cope without those once-standard features, and how well the workarounds Apple provided actually work.

Air Migration Assistant Without FireWire.
Perhaps the biggest challenge for Mac users is the lack of FireWire and any strong alternative on the Air. This is particularly an issue for users accustomed to migrating data between their existing Mac and a new system. The lack of Target Mode also means the Air is trickier to boot up and examine or repair using another computer. To help in the grieving process for lost FireWire, Apple includes a new version of Migration Assistant that allows users to transfer user accounts and files to the new Air using the network rather than a FireWire connection. This network option is hampered further by the lack of Gigabit Ethernet, and the optional 10/100 Fast Ethernet that is missing

Continues: AppleInsider | Early adopter issues: MacBook Air and Migration Assistant

Technorati Tags: Apple, Mac, Review, Software

Daniel Eran Dilger is the author of “Snow Leopard Server (Developer Reference),” a new book from Wiley available now for pre-order at a special price from Amazon.

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