Mac vs. PC

[So-Keher]

oh. well if you mean desktop customization (graphics) then I admit windowblinds is far more varied than, for example, shapeshifter could ever be.

[Stargate525]

I'm actually talking about swapping out hardware, customizing it like that.

[SDragon]

*PC: not enough memory? pop in a new card, just like that!

*mac: not enough memory? uhh.... call tech support, cross your fingers, ans say a hail mary?

edit- given my lack of experience with macs, this may be an exaggeration, but i do know installing memory really is that easy for PCs.

[So-Keher]

It may be a little exagurrated but for a while you are right. I spent a whole weekedn once just swapping dozens of parts in my PC around (i think i put 3 hardrives in, all with different versions of the OS, what a pain). Now I think mac is getting smarter, at least with the newest models. I think I can just remove the battery to get to my memory but beyond that I don't think there is much you can do.

[snakefing]

Part of Apple's strategy here is to keep a tight rein on the number of variations. No third party drivers causing compatibility problems, everything thoroughly tested in every available configuration, etc.

That means that you don't have the endless options, aftermarket additions, and stuff; plus you have to buy everything from Apple. Lower effective competition also means higher prices. The upside is that everything always works right out of the box, patches are always seamless, nothing ever breaks.

[SDragon]

Word of advice:

AVOID WINDOWS VISTA AT ALL COSTS!!!

[Higgs Boson]

I have Vista, and honestly, its not that bad.

[Nomadic]

And what happens when the mac becomes obsolete? You can't upgrade it, pirate out the parts that still work, or simply upgrade it.

I know this is fairly old but I still felt a need to respond.

Macs go obsolete just like any other computer. Windows machines don't miss upgrades as long as you allow them to do their normal update but they still get older. It isn't the software, it's the hardware. Over time it gets older and newer things come out and your computer isn't compatible and you need to upgrade it's hardware. With a PC that's easy, it's just a shell with interlocking pieces inside. So you go and buy new pieces and stick them in. A mac though is a solid system. If you want to upgrade it without buying a new mac you have to be extremely knowledgeable with computer internals (or find someone willing to crack it open for you and risk breaking it to add in parts off a newer one that you somehow got ahold of).

This goes back to the customization issue. Macs are great for people who aren't well versed with computers. They are stable, straight forward, and easy to use. Anybody can very quickly pick up how to use a mac to do what they want. Not so with a PC. A PC was and still is a computer persons computer. It is complex, stubborn, and confusing. But it is also widely customizable. There are things you can do with a PC both hardware-wise and software-wise that you can't or shouldn't do to a mac. They also offer a much wider range of things to work with. This comes together as a platform that requires alot of care... but gives back alot for the care provided.

I have experience with both and I will say that I prefer the PC. I am however a computer person and I enjoy that freedom they give. If you are fairly new to computers and just want something straightforward that will do your work and do it good, then I would suggest a Macintosh. If you have been around the block with computing and want a bit of freedom to make your computer work like you want it to, get a PC. Oh and if you get a PC... forget the free norton/mcafee junk it comes with, get AVG (much more robust and uses far less system resources for less slowdown).

So to put it simply. Macs are Lawful Neutral and PCs are Chaotic Good (though installing windows may or may not make it Chaotic Evil :P ). If you get a mac under the right circumstances, then good it should do what you want it to. If you get a PC I would suggest XP Pro with the latest service pack. It is much more stable then vista is right now (give vista a few years and they should have it stable enough to switch over).

[SDragon]

I have Vista, and honestly, its not that bad.

I'll be perfectly fair, it added my printer/scanner seamlessly. It doesn't seem to work with my video card, it definitely doesn't work with my webcam, it took a lot of work to get it to work with my wireless card, it took a download before it could work with help files designed for XP, and it asks me to make sure I want to do what I'm attempting, almost every time I attempt to do anything.


But, like I said, it added my printer/scanner seamlessly.

[Higgs Boson]

I haven't had to search for drivers or downloads to fix anything at all. I guess one of the bad things about Vista is that it varies from install to install. Out of curiosity, what video card are you using.

[SDragon]

Surprisingly, an NVidia GeForce 6200. It's certainly capable of handling Vista, but the drivers don't seem to work, regardless of whether I use the disc or or I download the driver straight from the NVidia website.

[Higgs Boson]

That's odd. Well, a tip to anyone who gets Vista. Turn User Account Control OFF ASAP.

[SDragon]

Agreed.

Anyways, right now I'm running a vista-only machine. With any luck, I'll hopefully have it as an XP-only machine within a month, and from there, it shouldn't be too hard to get back to an XP/Linux dual-boot system, just the way I want it.

[limetom]

I also have Vista, and have had no problems thusfar.  While I would have liked to get the 64-bit version, my computer came with the 32-bit version, and due to the price and the stability issues (which, at this point only apply to the 64-bit version of Vista), I have no real intention of upgrading.

Hardware is:

*2 GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 (64-bit; dual cores)
*4 GB RAM (only 2 GB are available due to a 32-bit OS)
*ATI Radeon HD 2600 (512 MB)
*150 GB HDD, 1/2 TB External HDD

Thinking about partitioning and installing Linux on the external HDD.

[Gamer Printshop]

I heard rumors that Microsoft is working on the next OS after Vista, which really won't be Windows at all, but much closer to DOS, instead of long chains of DOS code, it will use scripts and work in a GUI enviroment, so Windows like, but going back to something they've been running away from for 10 years.

I'm a graphic designer, but outside of school, I've always worked with PC not Mac. Mac, PC, their just tool boxes to get things done, use whichever you're more comfortable with. I've always been as much a techie as an artist, so I'm more comfortable with PC.