Apple has changed the terms of its retail store One to One service (via ifoAppleStore), which is a $99 program that gives Apple customers personal training lessons on Mac usage from an Apple employee.
The new terms state that One to One customers must initiate the included Data Migration services within 60 days of purchasing a One to One membership.
One to One members are entitled to Data Migration services for one (1) Mac purchased from an Apple Retail Store, Apple Online Store, or 800-MY-APPLE, if requested within the first sixty (60) days of your membership, including any renewals. Data Migration includes the data transfer of files from your old computer (PC or Mac) to your Mac.
Previously, Data Migration could be requested at any point during the year-long One to One service term, but a late migration can be more complicated than a migration that is initiated directly after purchase.
Completing the data transfer a while after the initial purchase can lead to difficulty and confusion for both the staff doing the transfer and the end user who is still learning to navigate around a Mac computer.
With the shift to digital software distribution, Apple is also now requiring that One to One assistance with software installation occur face-to-face in a Personal Training or Open Training session rather than as part of the Data Migration process.
Top Rated Comments
Enlighten me.
They don't think the customer will notice as well!
Merging the data from 2 separate users into a single user is a pain. Duplicate files (or different versions), duplicate contacts, duplicate locally stored mail... which Music and Photo libraries are primary. If there's already an iTunes library, which one do you keep and which one do you import data from (usually losing or duplicating playlists in the process). A royal pain. I do this in a corporate environment and it stinks. We issue a new machine, move you to it, and the old machine goes away... No straddling old and new... Always leads to headaches.
It's why the Migration fine print states the machine you're moving to will be wiped if there's anything on it, so the data being moved to it is as it was on the old machine at the time of transfer. The exception is if there are separate users to be Migrated. Adding another user (Migrating John and Mary is already using the machine), no sweat.
If all you want is files not based on things in ~/Library, not in apps that use a database to track what's where (iTunes, iPhoto), etc... no problem. Copy it, move on (then listen to complaints about duplicates for an hour). :mad:
Also, hold training sessions and classes in a quiet room or setting. I've had many come back from them stating how difficult it was to hear and learn as the stores are so noisy.