Mac VS. PC

[mdaniel73]

What about people on that say Macs can do anything a PC can? Do they spend all day and all night searching for shareware or are they just defending their platform?

 

[imported_Lucifer]

Originally posted by: mdaniel73
What about people on that say Macs can do anything a PC can? Do they spend all day and all night searching for shareware or are they just defending their platform?

Uhh, no. A Mac can do pretty much anything a PC can. Gaming however, is better on a PC.

 

[thirdlegstump]

Gameboys are better than everything!

 

[dgevert]

Just a quick note...I use Windows XP SP2 on my personal computer...along with an IE-engine browser (Avant Browser). I do not run a virus scanner. I do occasionally run Ad-Aware, and I do have a careful security setup. I am behind a firewall (router).

It has been years - from using Windows 98 to Windows XP SP2 since I have been infected with a virus. Actually, my last computer virus was Michaelangelo, that I got infected with from an infected floppy on an 8086. I also have never been infected with adware or spyware, despite having used freeware quite a bit in the past.

Is XP SP2 the most secure environment? Hardly. However, it can be plenty safe if the user knows what he/she is doing.

 

[Sunner]

Originally posted by: homercles337

Originally posted by: CraigRT

reasons to use MAC? operating system. but that's it.

Hardly. THe mac OSX is shite. I have to use macs at work and from a usability perspective (worked in usability for a while) OSX is simply a nightmare.

The best thing about macs? FreeBSD kernel.

I'm not entirely sure if you're qualified to comment on the OS when you're getting such basics as which kernel it's based on entirely wrong.

 

[amol]

I wish they still made the G4 tower . . .

I wanna buy an add-on mac, but the mini mac is too weak . . .

so i have to go for a $1500 G5 =/

that is, if i get it now

i think soon, g5 COULD be $1k

 

[imported_Lucifer]

Just buy a used G4 tower. I bought mine recently from a friend. This month, they are coming out with Dual 1.7GHz G4 upgrades. Gettin my hands on one of those! I might buy the Radeon 9800 Pro too.

 

[ViRGE]

Originally posted by: Eug
I think we should start a new thread like this every week. Once every 2 weeks is just not enough.

I thought we were already up to every few days?

 

[hopejr]

Originally posted by: dgevert
Just a quick note...I use Windows XP SP2 on my personal computer...along with an IE-engine browser (Avant Browser). I do not run a virus scanner. I do occasionally run Ad-Aware, and I do have a careful security setup. I am behind a firewall (router).

It has been years - from using Windows 98 to Windows XP SP2 since I have been infected with a virus. Actually, my last computer virus was Michaelangelo, that I got infected with from an infected floppy on an 8086. I also have never been infected with adware or spyware, despite having used freeware quite a bit in the past.

Is XP SP2 the most secure environment? Hardly. However, it can be plenty safe if the user knows what he/she is doing.

I never get viruses on my Windows boxes either (well, the one only I use, the others are used by family members too, who download viruses without realising it, even on XPSP2 - complete noobs). I'm very careful. But the thing to remember that not every user knows what they're doing to avoid it. In fact, a vast majority of computers don't have a clue. So I don't think that argument is really worth it, unless you're talking in a non-noob context
Other things that macs are good at are development of unix and linux software (and of course OS X software). I would recommend a Com Sci student get an iBook or something so they can do development on a good stable system, especially with the good education discounts. I know lots of students (including myself) who've done that and never regretted it. I'm not saying linux isn't stable, just instead of buying a PC laptop and bunging Linux on it which can be a pain - I've gone through that experience and hated it.
On that point, much of the teaching staff in the com sci dept at my university are considering switching to macs (quite a few already have) - the labs run linux. In fact, the entire teaching staff in the elec and com eng dept have switched already, but the labs all have PC's - again, the *slight* lack of software issue.

 

[Cerb]

Originally posted by: deathkoba
Gameboys are better than everything!

Have you used the GB DS? You're not far off--it is awesome.

 

[Cerb]

Originally posted by: mdaniel73
What about people on that say Macs can do anything a PC can? Do they spend all day and all night searching for shareware or are they just defending their platform?

No. I'm a Windows user right now, and here's a list of what won't work on ANY other hardware/OS:
[*]Paint Shop Pro 6, had forever...should be a FOSS replacement easier than the GIMP. I really haven't looked (after all, I still don't need anything better than the ancient PSP 6!).
[*]Litestep...I'd probably use Fluxbox and/or Gnome. No FOSS for other OSes quite like it, but the main environments still beat Explorer, and both KDE and Gnome are working on stealing OS X features, with KDE being faster, as usual.
[*]Visio works w/ Crossover Office. Dunno about getting it to work on a PPC.
[*]Foobar2000. Someone needs to make a *n*x clone, badly. I could deal w/ xmms. There has been some success with Crossover Office and WINE here, but not staggeringly good.
[*]EAC. This is really the big one. I've gotten tired of all the BS, and now do EAC secure mode -> FLAC, with the proper offset. As close to bit-perfect copies as possible, save maybe with Plextools Pro.
[*]Games (oddly enough, I'm going through Myst IV right now, which works on OS X ).
[*]Sound card (Philips PSC805/17). If I could afford a Mac, I could probably afford to replace it with a nice M-Audio, Terratec, or Prodigy card. I got this one partly because it was cheap, anyway.

I can't think of anything else for which there are not quality FOSS replacements, and I already use windows ports of FOSS alternatives now (GAIM, PAN, OpenOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird). I use a little-F free AV now (Avast!), 7zip for archives (big F), Deepburner for CD/DVD writing (and would be plenty happy w/ K3b), etc. If you want simple, speedy apps that do just what they should and aren't loaded down with crap that isn't needed, FOSS stuff is fantastic, and often-times, of much higher quality (check out tvtime, FI, vs. most TV tuner apps).

 

[biostud]

I don't know what's so fancy about OS X, I've had it hardlock and crashing just as often as WinXP, which is in both cases very seldom. Maybe WinXP is more vulnerable but I haven't had any vira and only very few spyware infections, so if you know just a little about computers I don't see it as a problem. Maybe for people who knows nothing about computers Mac's are better. And AFAIK the browsers runs slower on Mac's neither FF, IE or Safari runs these forums as well as on a PC.

I don't know if it's just because I haven't found a way and because I'm to used to windows, but not beeing able to tab between windows is very annoying.

The only place where macs truely ownz is the design, it maek an office look much more snazzy. I wonder why no PC producers actually tro to make a designed PC case.

 

[PezRadar]

Macs OS's in the past were meh.. now there good and clean and actually fun to use

I personally like macs for multimedia (photoshop etc) but when it comes down to software and games.. I use a PC all the way..

Mac Software is so freakign expensive

 

[Dennis Travis]

Amol, If you check Ebay sometimes you can get a G4 Tower cheep and later expand it a bit but it would get you started trying OSX.

Thin Lizzy, Is your 400Mhz G4 the Sawtooth model with the AGP Slot? If so I just wanted to warn you, it's an AGP 2x slot so whatever card you do get be sure it will work with AGP 2x. Most of the higher Radeons are AGP 4 and even 8 and will not work in an AGP2x slot due to different AGP voitages. Just wanted to be sure you were aware of that as you can take out the card and or the motherboard! They say an 8500 Radeon works well and would give the 400 quite a boost.

 

[Dijital]

mac is good for media editing and ease of use.

pc better variety of programs to use.

i've got both a pc and a powerbook. no preference, but depends on what you are using it for.

 

[Oyeve]

OK. I love both mac and PC but will take PC over mac anyday. Why? I'll tell ya why.


1. Games. Best on PC.
2. Speed. PCs will always beat the mac, yes, even you diehard mac fans who say Photoshop, quark, et al...all run WAY faster on a PC.
3. Addons. Cant get the latest vid card for a mac.
4. PC are, IMO, easier to trouble shoot than a mac.


In my PC vs Mac testing the MAC BLOWS away the PC in finalcut Pro HD, only because the SW aint for PC

Seriously tho, the mac does DV editing much better than a pc, primarily because the video software kicks a$$ for macs and the PC really has nothing SW wise that the mac has. Peak Audio on a mac rocks. If these apps were made for PC it would be a different story.

 

[Lyfer]

StooooooooooooooPid!

 

[Philippine Mango]

Originally posted by: Oyeve
OK. I love both mac and PC but will take PC over mac anyday. Why? I'll tell ya why.


1. Games. Best on PC.
2. Speed. PCs will always beat the mac, yes, even you diehard mac fans who say Photoshop, quark, et al...all run WAY faster on a PC.
3. Addons. Cant get the latest vid card for a mac.
4. PC are, IMO, easier to trouble shoot than a mac.


In my PC vs Mac testing the MAC BLOWS away the PC in finalcut Pro HD, only because the SW aint for PC

Seriously tho, the mac does DV editing much better than a pc, primarily because the video software kicks a$$ for macs and the PC really has nothing SW wise that the mac has. Peak Audio on a mac rocks. If these apps were made for PC it would be a different story.

It's really your preference. I mean I'm a diehard PC fan and I can't stand apple computers despite people telling me that if I "used it more" I would like it more. I've been using computers since the 486, then 8088 then used the apple II. So the apple II was the third computer I've ever used and those first two PCs I actually own. I first used the apple II in kindergarden and we used some games on it "educational" that supposedly taught us something. From apple II on, that was my mac experience all the way up to OS X AND still I hate the apple/mac platform. If the mac suits your needs and you don't mind the price increase/lower performance then go ahead. But if you want more performance for less money and more compatibility, I would go with a pc. I'm that last person that can be told that "I've never used a mac". In 5th grade I tried getting a mac with OS 7 online (or was it OS5?) no idea but anyways it was practically impossible because lack of everything needed to get the mac online (no DUN!) yet it had netscrape.

This is all my opinion of macs and should be taken with a grain of salt if your easily offended.

 

[Malak]

I'd put it this way. If a mac can be better than my PC in any way, it's nothing important to me. In every way I use my PC, it's faster and better than a mac.

 

[Dennis Travis]

Philippine Mango, I had the same problems with the Mac till I found out the Dialer was MacTCP. You set up your ISP in that and it dialed it. Took me a while as I was on my own with no help and no internet to check on back then. If Netscape was there it was probably OS7 at least. Either that or MACTCP was not installed on the machine you were working with! Drove me up the wall till I figured it out!

 

[barnett25]

I hated all of the Mac OS's until OS X. To me OS X is to Windows XP what Windows XP is to Windows 95. Add the iLife apps and current lack of viruses or spyware, and you can't really compare it to any PC. I don't upgrade my PCs, I think it's a waste of money, so the difficulty in upgrading a Mac doesn't bother me at all. Really it depends on what you want to do with your computer, but I think there is a very large percentage of PC users that would be better served using a Mac.

 

[Philippine Mango]

Originally posted by: Dennis Travis
Philippine Mango, I had the same problems with the Mac till I found out the Dialer was MacTCP. You set up your ISP in that and it dialed it. Took me a while as I was on my own with no help and no internet to check on back then. If Netscape was there it was probably OS7 at least. Either that or MACTCP was not installed on the machine you were working with! Drove me up the wall till I figured it out!

Yea I know I needed a TCP dialer but the problem was I needed to get on the internet first catch 22... Needed to get online but to get online you need the MacTCP dialer but to get that, you need to be online so I just gaveup. The teacher was very thankful that atleast I setup the macs but I felt sad I wasn't able to get them online (would have been easier had it been 3.1 in a way).

 

[Philippine Mango]

Ah, IIRC two machines had OS 7 and two other machines had OS 5. The OS7 machine had a colored menu but the OS5 machine had a B/W "menu" (apple icon was B/W). I vaguely remember because agian this was when I was in the 5th grade.

 

[Malak]

Originally posted by: barnett25
I hated all of the Mac OS's until OS X. To me OS X is to Windows XP what Windows XP is to Windows 95. Add the iLife apps and current lack of viruses or spyware, and you can't really compare it to any PC. I don't upgrade my PCs, I think it's a waste of money, so the difficulty in upgrading a Mac doesn't bother me at all. Really it depends on what you want to do with your computer, but I think there is a very large percentage of PC users that would be better served using a Mac.

I don't think that's a good comparison. A user can easily go from windows 95 to windows XP, the biggest change is how stable it is. Going from windows xp to OS X is completely different. Also, lack of virii or spyware isn't an issue for people who know what they are doing, like myself. I get no virii or spyware ever on my machines. I don't do anything special, don't even regularly run spybot, adaware, or even an AV. Every now and then(like once every 3 weeks) I scan, but it's always clean. Using windows doesn't make me vulnerable, improper computer usage makes people vulnerable. There are still virii for anything from phones to macs. Just a matter of going out of your way to be vulnerable. Ignorant people do this all the time!

I have seen many OS's freeze, from novell to windows. But XP is extremely stable, I haven't gotten a BSOD yet, not even a freeze up.

 

[Dennis Travis]

Malak, You are lucky but XP is a very stable OS but as even Anand says, it does lock from time to time. Anand also stated OSX locks less. I have never had OSX Lock. Never. XP a very few times. Very Few. When I say LOCK I mean totally frozen and it will not after say 1-2 minutes come out of it.

His compairson was not compairing OSX to XP. He was saying OSX to OS9 is like the switch from 95/98 to XP. I agree as I have gone both routes. OS9 and below were like 95 with no flat page memory, all shared memory, Non Premptive Multitasking. I can not go back to 95/98 on the PC and can't go back to OS9 on the Mac either!

Oh, I can go back to windows 2k. It's still as good as ever. In fact for some usage I prefer 2k.