posted
I don't pretend to be a haxor or anything, but I did a major facepalm last week when a woman I met started asking me for computer help because she had downloaded an entire season of an HBO show, and was shocked to discover that her "computer was full," and wanted to know how to fix the problem. It sometimes does make me shudder to realize that there are people out there using computers, a lot of people, who are essentially like aircraft pilots who only know how to work the stick, and nothing else. As long as the plane is flying, things are fine, but I don't get how someone could sit around satisfied with the idea that they have no concept of what to do should anything unexpected ever occur.
And no, Tom, this is not an opportunity for you to make a smart remark a Mac user saying such a thing.
Posts: 9912 | Registered: Nov 2005
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quote:I'm sorry, that's rather weak. Are you talking about programming? Are you talking about specific types of work like using a computer at a cash register or a call center or data entry?
I'm talking about the fact that most of the world is using PCs to do, well, anything. They aren't all looking at a blank screen while smoke billows out from under the desk. To claim that if you need your computer to work you should get a Mac is extraordinarily broad.
I've owned Macs and PCs. I currently have two Macs and several PCs and both flavors have had their share of minor and major failures. That's why I recommend getting the one for which you'll be able to get local support. Even if the PC does cause you more problems than your Mac, you'll be in more hurt with a Mac if you don't know anyone that can help you out when the Mac does have a problem.
Posts: 3275 | Registered: May 2007
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quote:I've owned Macs and PCs. I currently have two Macs and several PCs and both flavors have had their share of minor and major failures. That's why I recommend getting the one for which you'll be able to get local support. Even if the PC does cause you more problems than your Mac, you'll be in more hurt with a Mac if you don't know anyone that can help you out when the Mac does have a problem.
Your failure to hate on one side is disturbing.
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I learned to use a PC when I was 5 years old, we learned how to use DOS in school. For four years I learned how to use Apples as a 2nd-5th grader. Since High School I have always used a PC as my primary computer. My father is now an avid Mac user (He likes to do alot of music/movie projects) and hence every single one of my siblings has a Mac laptop and they have a Mac desktop. I am the only PC hold out. From what I have seen from both systems MattP has things exactly right.
If you have good Mac support, and more especially if your school pushes Mac, (my youngest sisters private school is now exclusively Mac), and you care about film, music, animation, security from viruses, and price isn't as much of a concern, a Mac will suit you very well.
As a PC user, my last PC that I had for 5 years never once had a hardware related problem, the PC before that lasted 7 without a problem. My current PC is only a year old and so it's hard to say but so far it's problem free. My older sister, and younger three siblings with Macs have all had to take their computers to the make store to get a total system restart. From what I have seen Macs break down just as often as a comparable PC. Of course you can scrimp and save on individual parts if you go PC but that also ups your chances of having a problem if you don't know what you are doing.
I game quite a bit, and for that reason a Mac would be a drag, I also do not have as much money to budget on a Mac system.
As for operating systems the Mac OS is really good, I'm not as familiar with it as I am with Windows so it's a handicap when it comes to fixing my own problems were a Mac I owned to get buggy. I understand that Windows is an extremely convoluted program that could use some streamlining and some talented programmers, but for my purposes it has done everything I have needed it to do without a problem.
My biggest qualm is Internet Explorer, but Firefox and Chrome are more than enough to replace that head ache.
Posts: 14316 | Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
"They aren't all looking at a blank screen while smoke billows out from under the desk."
That's just funny. Hyperbole...it's the funny! LOL
Seriously, though, it really depends on the type of apps you are using. Although you can sort of separate it into "macs are better for graphics, PCs are better if you have to use a lot of web-based apps", it's really more true that you have to be even more specific than that. And that's just looking at work. For gaming, you've got to look at what types of games you play. If it's only a few, and they're all supported on Macs, get the flippin' Mac already! However, if you just want to be able to game, in a general sense, and you happen to often enjoy obscure titles, you need a PC.
Posts: 3354 | Registered: May 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Rappin' Ronnie Reagan: at all the PC users in this thread who feel the need to put down Mac users.
Good thing none of the Mac users are doing the reverse.
Do point out to me where PC *users* have been disparaged (and not individuals, but users as a group). Because I can point out easily where Mac users have been dissed for no good reason.
Posts: 9912 | Registered: Nov 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Rappin' Ronnie Reagan: at all the PC users in this thread who feel the need to put down Mac users.
Good thing none of the Mac users are doing the reverse.
I chose to focus on the more egregious violators, but, yes, people on both sides in this thread have annoyed me. I don't understand why it has to happen every time there's a computer thread.
Posts: 1658 | Registered: Sep 2003
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And I second (third, fourth?) the notion of getting a computer for which you either know how to troubleshoot or know people who can help you with troubleshooting. I have already spent several hours helping someone clean their PC and making it run smoothly again, but the point is I was *able* to do it. Had it been a Mac, even one that had less frequent problems, it would have probably meant a lot more time spent fixing each problem.
Posts: 4519 | Registered: Sep 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Rappin' Ronnie Reagan: I don't understand why it has to happen every time there's a computer thread.
I completely agree. My point was, that by focusing on just one side, you are actually contributing to the very tendency you are decrying.
You are certainly correct, but its also worth noting that when one side has been far more vituperative than the other, it rarely helps to call them equivalent.
Posts: 12591 | Registered: Jan 2000
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And I second (third, fourth?) the notion of getting a computer for which you either know how to troubleshoot or know people who can help you with troubleshooting. I have already spent several hours helping someone clean their PC and making it run smoothly again, but the point is I was *able* to do it. Had it been a Mac, even one that had less frequent problems, it would have probably meant a lot more time spent fixing each problem.
Honestly, I think this is much less of an issue if you buy a Mac. I own both and have a bootcamp partition on my current mac. And while the Mac's aren't hassle free, they certain are far less hassle than anything running windows (including the my MacBook running under bootcamp). In 20+ years of owning Macs, I've had only one problem I wasn't able to fix myself with relative ease, and that was a logic board failure when the machine was still under warrantee.
The Mac OS does a much better job of managing things like hard disk space so it simply doesn't require a lot of the maintenance that Windows requires. Plus the combination of better native security and being the less popular platform really do mean less trouble with viruses and other types of malware.
I've often joked that sysops prefer windows because it gives them better job security.
Posts: 12591 | Registered: Jan 2000
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posted
When I open up Finder, and try to list my files and folders in descending order alphabetically, it mixes my folders with my files. Windows and Linux usually shows a clear delineation between files and folders. Not so with OS X. When I order by type, Folders are listed in the middle, as if it were any other file type. So, it was impossible for me to get folders listed at the top, without going into my Mac's guts. Eventually, I went into Terminal or edited a preference file, or something, and changed the Folder type from "Folder" to " Folder". Such a hack. Only on a Mac do I have to go to such lengths to get something every other operating system offers by default.
Posts: 339 | Registered: Apr 2008
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posted
Admittedly, I do wear turtlenecks on occasion. It's getting to be that season now, actually.
On the issue at hand, I agree with the "go with whatever you can more easily get support for," provided you have no budget constraints. Budget constraints work against Apple since they have nothing in the lower-cost market segments -- the cheapest Apple laptop is around $1k.
I'm a Mac user, but I stick with them because it's a personal preference, the higher price for comparable hardware isn't a major issue, and I have a substantial investment in software. For example, if I switched to Windows, I'd also have to migrate from Logic to ProTools or Cubase for my musical projects.
For someone with no preexisting investment in either platform, it's roughly a toss-up unless you have specific requirements (e.g. staying current with PC gaming) or constraints (e.g. budget).
Posts: 10886 | Registered: Feb 2000
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quote:Originally posted by twinky: If I switched to Windows, I'd also have to migrate from Logic to ProTools or Cubase for my musical projects.
Have you ever used those? I used Cubase in college and really liked it, but the price tag for migrating from Logic onto a mac version of Cubase was unbelievable, and anyway I had already invested a lot of time learning the Logic tool set (and still haven't learned most of it).
I just found for my money that Cubase had a smoother UI, although once you acclimate, either program is more or less equivalent in power.
Posts: 9912 | Registered: Nov 2005
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posted
Yeah, I've used both Cubase and ProTools -- several versions ago, at this point -- and found them incomprehensible at the time. I dropped down to GarageBand for a while until I started hitting its limitations, by which point Apple had made the Logic UI a bit more similar to GarageBand and dropped the price from $1,300 to $500.
Spread comfortably over two monitors, I've found that once I figure out what I need to do, actually doing it is pretty easy in Logic, provided it's supported.
Posts: 10886 | Registered: Feb 2000
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posted
Logic's UI doesn't compare in versatility to the others, in my estimation. And anyway, even the full version of Logic Pro doesn't have some basic editing tools in the sample window that are in Cubase of several versions ago. I've been watching some tutorial videos to try and see where I'm not utilizing logic, but I find it to be quite frustrating in its lack of comfortable UI in many cases.
I mean, why wouldn't logic include basic stuff like allowing you to handle sample fades within the arrange window? Cubase had a function where you just had to drag down from the corners of the sample, but logic makes you do it in the automation bar, which just makes things needlessly cluttered.
Posts: 9912 | Registered: Nov 2005
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posted
Cubase and ProTools must have come a long way in the last six or seven years, then.
You don't necessarily have to do sample fades manually in the automation bar, by the way. You can configure fade presets that are applied across the board when a crossfade is needed. If you want to do it differently each time, though, I do think you have to expand the automation bar.
Posts: 10886 | Registered: Feb 2000
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