Q: How can I successfully transfer Notebooks from the Macintosh to Windows and vice versa? A: An easy way to transfer a Notebook between the Macintosh and Windows platforms is through Apple File Exchange, an application available on most Macintosh computers. Apple File Exchange will transfer end of line characters appropriately. When converting a Macintosh Notebook to Windows, select the Text Translation command under the Mac to MS-DOS menu, and turn off the option to convert carriage returns to carriage return-line feed. When converting a Windows Notebook to Macintosh, do the opposite: select the option to convert carriage return/line feeds to carriage returns. All other tab and spacing options should be set to Neither. Besides this, there are a few things you can do to a Macintosh Notebook before transferring to make the transfer come out well. 1. Apply the Uniform Style command under the Style menu to all cells to eliminate font variation within cells. Because the Windows front end supports only one typeface per cell, individual boldface or italicized words will cause the entire cell to be rendered in boldface or italics. 2. Give the Macintosh Notebook a name that conforms to MS-DOS, i.e., eight characters or less and ending in the .ma file extension. (For example, change Favorite Plots to favplots.ma.) The .ma file extension identifies it as a Mathematica Notebook under Windows. Some general facts to keep in mind when transferring Mathematica Notebooks between platforms: - When transferring Notebooks between platforms, transfer the .ma file only. Information contained in .mb files can only be used by the same platform which created the file. Each platform can create a new/appropriate .mb file from a .ma file. - Fonts on individual computers will vary, and a transferred Notebook may be rendered in fonts different from the original. If a computer renders output cells in a proportional-spaced font, such as Times, change the output cell style to a single-spaced font, such as Courier. Also, special characters will not be the same in fonts on different operating systems, and will have to be translated manually. Two common Macintosh symbols you should remove before converting a Notebook are the em-dash (Shift-Option -) and the bullet (Option-8). - Bitmap graphics are not compatible with foreign computer systems. For this reason keep graphics in PostScript form. Bitmap graphics can be converted to PostScript in Mathematica with the Convert to PostScript command. - Transfer duplicate files only. If you have suggestions for improving this article, please email amyy@wri.com.