Tips/advice For First Steps In Osx?, new laptop & OSX, want to start right Options

[scottytown]

Hello,

My new powerbook will be arriving very soon(!) and I'm new to OSX. I'm looking for insight and advice regarding first steps in setting up my machine for audio + midi. I know what software and hardware I will be using for recording and sequencing so no need to help me with those. I will most likely buy a MOTU micro-lite for midi purposes. Regarding audio, I hope to buy a 828mkII (or a QUATA-fire) and a firewire drive but I will have to wait several months before I can buy them. Software-wise I own and will need to install Live, Logic Audio, Absynth 2.0, some downlaoded vst and AU plugs, and I assume a driver for the MOTU interface.

Sooooooo... given a brand new virginal powerbook (15.2" 1 ghz 768 megs ram) and the hardware (just the midi interface for now) and software I mentioned... where do I begin? Tips or advice you can offer? Anything you learned later that would have made your life easier when you started out in OSX? Any special order I should follow in installing the things I mentioned? Any OSX apps that are useful for the OSX newbie? Partition or not to partition? (from what I gathered there's no big need to partition)? And what's this about different "users"? I'll be the only user of this laptop so should I not worry about creating different users? (I read somewhere people creating a user for themselves and one for "audio"... useful? or just asking for trouble?)

I'm TOTALLY new to OSX so I'm very nervous about making a wrong first step. Your wisdom and insight would be greatly appreciated! Please help me avoid the pitfalls.

many many thanks,
scotty