Somewhat older than the current crop of Mac bloggers and podcasters, Chris can be found weekly over at the MacReviewCast podcast trying to make sense of his life!

What does your current Mac setup consist of?

I would have to say that my current, as in ‘day to day’ set up, is a Mac mini 1.83 GHz Intel Core Duo (2GB RAM, 120GB HD) hooked up to a LaCie mini Hard Drive & Hub (300GB). I run a 23″ Cinema Display and access the internet through a 8 Port Gigabit Switch connected to an Airport Extreme.

I am also connected to a TVMax which I absolutely adore for getting my satellite (Sky+) films and programs onto the Mac.

Why have you chosen this machine?

To be honest it sort of chose me! Although I loved the 17″ G4 PowerBook I really wanted a desktop and a large display, and at the same time I wanted to look at the Mac mini as a means of driving my digital media around the apartment.

The initial plan was to have the Mac mini in the lounge and run the PowerBook through the 23″ Display in dual screen mode, and hook up with the Mac mini for media. One way or another that didn’t work out so I sort of got left with the Mac mini.

What other Apple gear do you own?

Too much probably!! My wife has a 20″ iMac that I use most days for one thing or another. We have a second Mac mini connected to the TV in the lounge, and I have just go a new 13″ MacBook for the times that I need to work out of the apartment.

Between us we have 9 iPod’s – 2 first generation Shuffles (1GB), 2 second generation Shuffles (1GB), a first generation Nano (2GB), a first generation Mini (4GB), 2 third generation iPods (10GB & 15GB) and a fifth generation iPod with video (60GB).

I have two Airport Express units hooked up to two different audio networks. Last but not least we have two wireless keyboards and three wireless mighty mice.

What is your next planned upgrade to your workstation?

For the foreseeable future, nothing. Longer term I will look at a Mac Pro and a second 23″ display but for now my focus is on getting the most out of what we have. I am a big fan of distributed workflows so I tend to spread my work and play across all the Macs.

They are all connected via ethernet so we have a pretty quick network. I have a reasonable amount of digital media stored across them (80GB of Music, 100+ movies, 20Gb of photographs) and I am always moving stuff around and viewing it on different Macs.

My next project is to get a flat screen TV for my wife’s room so that she can dual screen with the iMac and have a good quality screen for watching (eyeTVHybrid) the movies etc. As a consequence of that her current TV will come into my study and I will use that for my PS2, DVD’S and as the monitor for the Sony Desktop (as I really don’t use it that much). That way the 17″ Sony display can be connected to the MacBook when necessary to give me a dual screen set up.

What do you think of Chris’s setup?

He also maintains a personal website; Blankbaby, and is “Philadelphia’s Most Influential Blogger”, a title which is self-proclaimed and entirely unfounded.

What does your current Mac setup consist of?

I use a trusty MacBook by the name of Janus. It’s a 2.00GHz Intel Core Duo with 2GB of RAM. Hooked up to the portable is a Dell 24″ 2407 LCD display.

Why have you chosen this machine?

Why did I pick a MacBook? Well, for a number of reason. Since I write about Macs for a living (partially) I really needed an Intel Mac for professional reasons (at least that’s what I told myself). Furthermore, since I just generate text most of the time I didn’t have a need for the more powerful MacBook Pro. I haven’t had a desktop machine in awhile, so the choice was obvious: MacBook (first gen).

What other Apple gear do you own?

Other Apple Gear: I have an 80GB iPod video, G4 Powerbook that I don’t use anymore, and a G4 Cube (I bought it the very day that Steve announced it in 2000).

What is your next planned upgrade to your workstation?

I don’t plan on upgrading any time soon. This MacBook is really well suited to what I need to do at this current point in time.

What do you think of Scott’s setup?

What does your current Mac setup consist of?

My Mac setup consists of a MacBook Pro 15″, packing a 2.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 2 GB RAM, and a 160GB Internal HD. I also run a 1.66GHz Intel Core Duo Mac mini with 1GB RAM, and an 80GB Internal HD.

Some of the accessories I have hooked up to my machines are a 23″ Apple Cinema Display, External 160GB LaCie HD, iSight Camera, Apple Wired Keyboard, and a Apple Wired Mighty Mouse.

Why have you chosen this machine?

The MacBook Pro is my main machine. I love notebook computers since they don’t confine me to a desk and I can work wherever is most comfortable. The MacBook Pro is Apple’s only Mac that allows this freedom while still housing plenty of power and a large resolution display.

I bought the Mac mini for testing Universal apps before I had the MacBook Pro, but now I use it mostly as a media center and Subversion server.

What other Apple gear do you own?

I also own a 1st generation black iPod nano (4GB) and an Airport Extreme base station.

What is your next planned upgrade to your workstation?

Eventually I’d love to ditch the Mac mini in favor of a Mac Pro, but I don’t think that is necessary quite yet and won’t happen for at least a few years. As for the MacBook Pro, I’ll most likely be upgrading in a couple years to the latest model, though I’m really starting to wonder if they can get any faster. ;-)

What do you think of Dustin’s setup?

What does your current Mac setup consist of?

My main machine is a basic, no frills 24-inch iMac that I added 2GB of RAM to. It has the standard 7300GT graphics card and a 250GB hard drive. However, I decked it out with a VESA arm. I use the iMac with an Apple bluetooth keyboard and Logitech MX Revolution mouse. I have it setup with Boot Camp for Vista and Parallels for XP.

The next Mac in my arsenal is a Core 2 Duo white MacBook with 1GB of RAM, a 60GB hard drive and superdrive. I originally had an older Core Duo MacBook but after months of problems, Apple finally replaced it for me.

Why have you chosen this machine?

I got the MacBook for mobility – I used to have a 12″ Dell that I took everywhere with me and I wanted the smallest Mac I could find to serve the same purpose. If Apple ever does make a 12″ MacBook Pro like the rumors say, I’d get it instantly.

I actually got the iMac because my MacBook kept failing on me – around the time I had that random shutdown syndrome really bad and Apple had my MacBook in for repairs for over a month. The 24-incher was a mix of great value and performance, so it was an easy decision. Now, my only concern is that it will be outdated very quickly and then I’ll have no use for the 24-inch screen. It’s not like I can just connect another computer to it. =/

What other Apple gear do you own?

I have a White 4GB Nano 1st Generation and an Orange iPod Shuffle with my URL laser etched on the back. I also have an old school FireWire iSight that I love.

What is your next planned upgrade to your workstation?

I don’t have any plans to upgrade my Apple gear for quite some time as I’ve begun saving up for a Lotus Exige S (not anytime soon, 5 years at least) at the moment. I will, of course, upgrade both machines to Leopard when that comes out. Like I mentioned earlier, if some 12-inch MacBook Pro does ever get released, I’ll be selling my MacBook to purchase it.

What do you think of Paul’s setup?

View a zoomed in photo with increased resolution of Derek’s setup.

What does your current Mac setup consist of?

The main machine is a Quad-Core 2.66GHz Mac Pro with 8GB of RAM, one 250GB Seagate HDD, and 3 500GB Seagate HDD’s. The main display is a 30″ Dell (3007WFP-HC). Peripherals include a Apple Pro keyboard and a Logitech MX Revolution.

Why have you chosen this machine?

I wanted power, flexibilty, and virtually limitless configuration options. I also wanted a machine that I knew would be capable of growing with my needs for quite some time. Although the new 8-core machines are out, I’m confident that the quad-core Mac Pro will suffice for both work and play.

The 8GB of RAM is welcomed for Windows XP and Vista running side-by-side. I guess 4GB would suffice. But when the decision between a new display and more memory came up, I decided memory was far more valuable. Not to mention that the real bottle-neck on Mac Pro’s isn’t processing power, it’s memory.

What other Apple gear do you own?

Other Apple machines I have include a Core Duo MacBook, Core Duo Mac Mini, 12″ G4 PowerBook, an Apple TV, Apple Pro Keyboard, and a Mighty Mouse (wired & wireless).

What is your next planned upgrade to your workstation?

Anticipated upgrades will happen whenever Apple decides to come out with a 12.1″ MacBook Pro notebook. The 12″ PowerBook was a hit, it’s time for them to replace that aged machine to give the IBM X-Series users a run.

What do you think of Derek’s setup?

Here we take a look at where he gets his work done. The Mac setup of Adam Betts.

View a zoomed in photo with increased resolution of Adam’s setup.

What does your current Mac setup consist of?

My current workstation is setup with an 8-Core 3Ghz Clovertown Mac Pro, with 2GB of RAM, stock 250GB 7200-rpm HDD, ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB video card, Airport/Bluetooth, running Mac OSX 10.4.9 Tiger.

Hooked up to the Mac Pro are Dual-23″ Apple Cinema Displays.

Why have you chosen this machine?

While the Ghz upgrade is really nice coming off my previous PowerMac G4 tower, multiple cores is exactly what I’ve been needing all along. I love to be able to multi-task without quitting apps or putting other tasks on hold until first task is completed.

As I’m moving into 3D modeling/rendering and video composition departments, this kind of power is absolutely necessary. Slow or non-realtime rendering is my biggest barrier to a smooth creative flow, I need to be able to experiment with many different styles and see which fits the best to a project I’m working on without waiting for my computer to catch up.

What other Apple gear do you own?

I also own a stand alone iSight which is placed between my Dual-23″ Apple Cinema Displays, an Apple TV, AirPort Extreme Base Station 802.11n, and millions of white Apple logo stickers.

A few other third-party accessories I use include the Macally Icekey Keyboard, Logitech MX510 mouse, Wacom Graphite Tablet, Western Digital MyBook 250 GB External Firewire 800, Griffin Technology PowerMate, and Belkin ErgoPADs for my mouse and keyboard.

What is your next planned upgrade to your workstation?

I don’t plan on upgrading for the next 2-3 years. After that I’ll have to see what’s latest on Apple’s menu and see if it’ll be a worthy upgrade. I’ll be upgrading my Mac Pro over the coming months to house more internal hard drives, more RAM, and a better video card.

What do you think of Adam’s setup?

Scott Bourne is widely recognized as a pioneer in the digital audio field. He is known for his work on Netradio, the world’s first internet radio network – O’Reilly Media, writing for their blog Inside Aperture – and Macbreak Weekly, a podcast he logs into on a weekly basis with other big Mac names such as Leo Laporte.

Scott also runs a few other blogs such as Podcasting Tricks, along with running Podango Productions in the commercial district of San Francisco, just off Mission Bay.

Here we take a look at where he gets his work done. The Mac setup of Scott Bourne.

What does your current Mac setup consist of?

My main workstation is a Two 3.0GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon Mac Pro, with 16GB or RAM, stock 250GB 7200-rpm HDD, ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB video card, One 16x SuperDrive, running Mac OSX 10.4.9 Tiger.

Hooked up to the Mac Pro are Dual-23″ Apple Cinema Displays. I also use two of the G-Tech G-RAID2 1500GB TITANIUM external drives for storage

Why have you chosen this machine?

I use this machine because it’s fast and works well in an audio setup.

What other Apple gear do you own?

I also own two MacBook Pro’s, one iMac 24″, and a Dual-Core Mac Pro.

What is your next planned upgrade to your workstation?

I probably won’t buy any new computers until next year when I’ll probably buy whatever new laptop is out.

What do you think of Scott’s setup?

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Related Resources

If you are planning on setting up a work at home business, there are many options that can be considered. Webhosting is one of them. Another is providing wireless internet services; you can either setup your own business or sign up as an affiliate for it. Domain auction can also be turned into a business if you have some key domain name registrations under your belt. If you are new at setting up a site you might want to go through the hosting articles. Also use direct marketing, such as emailing, to let people know about your business.