System Requirements

This book is written for iLife '06, which comes free with any new Macintosh computer. If you have an older version of iLife, you will need to upgrade to the current iLife version to follow along with every lesson. The upgrade can be purchased online at www.apple.com and is available from any store that sells Apple software.

Before you begin the lessons in this book, you should have a working knowledge of your Mac and its operating system. You don't need to be an expert, but you do need to know how to use the mouse and standard menus and commands, and how to open, save, and close files. You should have a working understanding of how OS X helps organize files on your computer, and you should also be comfortable launching applications (from the Dock or at least the Applications folder). If you need to review any of these techniques, see the printed or online documentation that came with your computer.

The minimum system requirements for the iLife suite of products are

• Macintosh computer with a PowerPC G4, PowerPC G5, or Intel Core processor plus built-in FireWire and a DVD drive for installation

• 733 MHz G4 or faster for iDVD

• 256 MB of physical RAM (512 MB is recommended)

• Mac OS X 10.3.9 or 10.4.3 or later (Mac OS X 10.4.4 is recommended)

• QuickTime Player 7.0.4 (included with iLife)

• For burning DVDs, an Apple SuperDrive or compatible third-party DVD burner

• 1024 x 768-pixel resolution display

• 10 GB of free disk space to install iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD, iWeb, and GarageBand; 350 MB to install iTunes, iPhoto, and iMovie only; and an additional 4.2 GB to install all projects and media files on the accompanying training-materials DVD