M1 Mac mini for LC: First Impressions

[Ralph DiMola]

Curry,

Thanks for the benchmark/compatibility report. I just updated my early 2015
15" MacBook to Catalina. It's an unsupported upgrade(using dosdude's
patcher). It works but is dog slow. There will be no going to Big Sur so I
have to make a decision on what Mac to get. I don't need a laptop so a Mac
mini is definitely a lower cost option for me.

Keep us updated...
Thanks!

Ralph DiMola
IT Director
Evergreen Information Services
rdimola at evergreeninfo.net

-----Original Message-----
From: use-livecode [mailto:use-livecode-bounces at lists.runrev.com] On Behalf
Of Curry Kenworthy via use-livecode
Sent: Sunday, August 01, 2021 4:28 PM
To: use-livecode at lists.runrev.com
Cc: Curry Kenworthy
Subject: M1 Mac mini for LC: First Impressions


I'm finally getting a chance to post this, after setting up a brand new Mac
mini recently to replace my old 2012 Mac mini.
It's all about LC work, of course....

Origin: Made in Malaysia.
If you need a Mac Not-Made-in-China,
and can't afford Mac Pro, this is it!
(Ethically sourcing my hardware now.)

Hardware Design: Compact but roomy.
Ports are sufficient and easy to access.
Allows the standard PC peripherals:
good options, ergonomics, and reliability.

Packaging Design: Ergonomically Retarded.
Perfectly flush square shrinkwrapped box, sans grips, sans gaps, sans common
sense.
Careful not to drop your new investment!

Hardware Setup: Smooth and painless.
Accepted my old USB and HDMI connections.
Had me press 2 keys to identify keyboard.

System Software Setup: Not bad; about 15 minutes.
Wifi on first try. Set up without an Apple account!
Disabled most privacy/performance concerns easily, so running fairly
optimized and safe from Day One.

Big Sur System Software Design: We'll see.
I've been a critic of Apple's hypocrisy
(violating their own previous HIG principles) so I'll save that for Second
Impressions.
Hoping their UI has improved a bit finally.

Livecode: Big download! (LC is always chubby on Mac.) Licensed on first try.
First run installed Rosetta, which went smoothly, and is seamless so far.

M1 Chip with LC: Snappy but not amazing.
In fact, my i5 budget Windows laptop
was faster on the only task I've timed.
(Factoring in Rosetta, probably similar.) But I already had modest
expectations.
No additional glitches so far versus Intel.

Overall: Solid "budget-ish" machine for LC Mac dev.
Happy to be running Apple's latest HW/SW for a change; it will have a good
impact on addons and client projects.
(Including new WordLib and WordReport updates.)

I'll post again on M1 and Big Sur with LC after more use.
Hope this is helpful for anyone in the same boat I was. :)

Best wishes,

Curry Kenworthy

Custom Software Development
"Better Methods, Better Results"
LiveCode Training and Consulting
http://livecodeconsulting.com/

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