Detto Technologies’ long-awaited Move2Mac software, first unveiled at Macworld Expo in New York this past July, is now shipping. MacCentral spoke with Detto’s Vice President of Marketing, Frank Coyle, to find out more.
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Move2Mac is a product designed from the ground up to complement Apple’s “Switch” advertising campaign, which emphasizes the ease of use of the Macintosh compared to PC ownership by offering user testimonials of people who have made the switch themselves. Move2Mac helps do exactly that by providing users with a way of moving their data and settings files from a Windows PC to the Macintosh.
Coyle confirmed that shipments of the US$59 Mac to PC conversion product are now shipping to distributors. Coyle said that Detto anticipates seeing the product on store shelves — including the Apple Store and Comp USA — within two weeks at the latest. It’ll also be available from major online resellers and is already available for order and delivery from Detto’s own online e-store.
Move2Mac includes a single CD-ROM with software for Mac OS X and Windows, and a special custom designed USB cable that facilitates the transfer of data. Users connect the cable between the PC and Mac, install the software on both machines, select a few settings on the Windows PC, click a transfer button and the transfer begins. The software tells you how long the transfer will take.
The software handles the transfer of your data files from various applications to their corresponding documents folder on the Mac, and also handles the conversion of application-specific settings files, including dialup settings, Internet Explorer Web page favorites, and more. It’ll also transfer data from Outlook Express’ address book to the Mac OS X 10.2 Address Book.
On the Windows side, Move2Mac requires Windows 98 through XP (excluding Windows NT), and a PC with a USB interface. The Mac end of it requires a Mac running Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar. If you’re running Windows 95 on your PC, fear not, said Coyle.
“Windows 95 will be addressed later this quarter when we ship a version of Move2Mac which includes a Parallel to USB conversion cable,” said Coyle. Coyle explained that USB ports are rare on PCs running Windows 95.
Coyle said that about 80 percent of the code that was used to develop Move2Mac is actually from the company’s IntelliMover product, which provides a way to exchange data between Windows computers. Unlike IntelliMover, though, Move2Mac has been optimized for data transfer in one direction only. “This is a one-way migration,” said Coyle.
Move2Mac requires that both the Windows PC and the Mac be in close proximity to each other, because it’s dependent on data transfer through a proprietary USB cable designed for high-speed exchange. Coyle noted that Detto is considering producing a version that could also function through TCP/IP over a network.
“This product is really oriented to consumers or small businesses,” said Coyle. For small businesses with several PCs they want to transfer Mac data to, or for service providers looking to do the same, Detto offers multi-user license packs.