dan_knu wrote:
My wife and I are very new to Mac (we've had it for four months) and we find the transition from pc to Mac being very difficult and filled with fruustration.
Mm, let me guess. You've moved to a new, and different, computer OS, but neither of you has bothered to spend a few hours reading a book about your new OS (eg, David Pogue's "Missing Manual", or Scott Knaster's "Take Control of Switching to the Mac"). Look, I don't mean to scold you; I know, we have busy lives -- mortgages, kids, etc -- but you are simply short-changing yourself if you don't bother to learn how to use it. At the very least, you should check out
Switch 101: On Windows, I used to...
<http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2514>
Mac 101
<http://www.apple.com/support/mac101/>
<http://www.apple.com/support/mac101/work/>
When photos are imported to iPhoto, where are they saved?
iPhoto > Help > iPhoto Help > Browse Help > Import photos > Importing overview
By default, iPhoto copies (duplicates) photos into the iPhoto library, leaving the originals in their current locations. You can modify this behavior in the Advanced pane of iPhoto preferences.
For more details on the iPhoto library (including types of libraries, using multiple libraries, etc), see
… Browse Help > Optimize iPhoto for your work style > Manage your iPhoto library
How do I work with the files then?
You don't. That's the whole point of iPhoto. Once you import photos into the iPhoto library, you manipulate photos in iPhoto.
If we want to move an image over to an other hard drive
If, by "move", you mean copy from source to target and then delete from source, you export from iPhoto and then delete the pic from iPhoto. But that doesn't make sense, because, again, the point of using iPhoto is having your photos consolidated in a library or multiple libraries. You can, of course, change the location of the library or libraries -- it's all covered in Help.
email it
… Browse Help > Share photos digitally > Email your photos
(You even get a movie clip showing how it's done.)
burn it on a CD
… Browse Help > Share photos digitally > Burn CDs and DVDs
WITHOUT using iPhoto, how do we do this?
I'm not sure I see the point -- if you want to do it without iPhoto, why did you start using iPhoto in the first place? -- but it's simple. Either, (a) use the originals (which importing into iPhoto does not touch), or, (b) use iPhoto's pics. If (b), the politically correct way of doing it is to select the pics in iPhoto and export them to whatever location you choose. The naughty way of doing it is to go to your iPhoto library (the default location is <~/Pictures/iPhoto Library>, navigate inside it by using ctrl-click or right click > Show Package Contents, and go to Masters. That's where the originals are; select and copy/burn/email/whatever, just don't move them or edit them in any way if you want to continue to use your iPhoto library.
is there any way to import images to the Mac without having to use an external application like iPhoto
Of course there is. Go to
iPhoto > Preferences > General > Connecting camera opens:
and choose "No application" from the pop-up menu. Quit iPhoto (and consign it to ignominious oblivion). Connect the camera. The rest you know already.
