1) Yes, Mac hardware is proprietary. Not much luck in swapping out hardware from one to another.

2) Yeah, there's a program called Virtual PC that can fully emulate a Windows environment. I think it can even do different OS'es (98, 2k, etc). As with any emulator, it doesn't run at full speed.

now that i think about it...what are all of the advantages of switching to mac? they're supposedly better for graphics and audio...video..etc., but i'm a webdesigner (running on pc) and with the speed of todays computers...is it really that much better to go with a mac for multimedia? i understand that they are a little more user friendly...but now that i have all of this experience with pc's, i got used to installing things and troubleshooting...it really doesn't seem that hard anymore to import video or audio. but i guess it could be tuff for someone thats not very computer savvy.

what are all of the advantages of switching to mac?

- A really really nice user interface. Scads better than Windows.

- The knowledge that you've finally freed yourself from the shackles of Microsoft.

But as far as "what can you get done", well, depends on what you need to do. If all you use is photoshop and a web editor, the Mac isn't going to be THAT much of an advantage.

hahaha shackles of microsoft. it really annoys me when microsoft thinks that they can try to mess with my computer without me knowing just cuz i have some of their software installed. i sure hope apple doesnt treat it's customers the same. so is mac better for programming then?

p.s. - i'm going into my first year in college (information and computer science). i'll be doing programming and much more. right now i'm strictly web programming (javascript, and asp) so i don't know enough about REAL programming.

I didn't realy beleive it until i watched an A-B photoshop test using comon photoshop operations, but a mac is far faster than a windows computer doing the same thing in photoshop. With the same two laptops, the PC was far faster doing 3d modeling, however. (this was a 500mhz mac vs 800mhz PIII laptop...) So, it does all depend on what you're doing, and how the programs are optimized...

Matthew

yeah...its just that i have a AMD 1800XP at home...how much faster can a computer really get? i just don't see how a mac can be that beneficial with the kind of power that is available today. maybe mac's are more reliable...correct? (ps - my computer has never froze)

With the Mac, you're less likely to crash. Admittedly, you could probably configure your Windows machine just right for what you do with it that it probably treats ya pretty well. But, there's those occasional crashes that make ya scream.

I haven't been playing with OS 10.2 too long, but it seems VERY stable.

Now, when it comes to programming, I would probably consider recommending the OS X to you because of the fact that it's built on top of a UNIX kernel. You could actually mess around with programming on your own computer, without having to rely on using your school's servers. Trust me, it's definitely nice to be able to work at home, rather than being cooped up in a computer lab in the school's basement where you don't know if it's night or day.

Macs can crash, too. Assuming you've got your system in a stable configuration, you're using a decent and stable version of Windows (such as Windows 2000), and you don't pile a lot of crap software onto the system, then a Windows box can be just as stable as a Mac.

I've got a close friend who uses and supports both PCs and Macs for his company's high-end audio editing software, and he says that a properly-configured windows computer is no more crash prone than his mac systems in his experience.

Of course, for his main audio-editing work, he uses a Mac by choice...

thanks for all of your input guys...

my conclusion:
a mac would be fun, but the pcs upgradeability (is that a word?) will keep me running windows. maybe when i get money for a venture like that...i'll finally get a mac (they definately look cooler!)

oh yeah...about the audio work...i have been working with audio for a few years and from what i hear...your best bet with audio would be a dual processor pc. it makes perfect sense. i've heard mac's are great too but i've heard the dual processor can get you even further.

from what i understand, macs are not very easily upgradeable

They are in some ways. All recent desktop Macs, (IE the PowerMacs) have had PCI slots allowing migration of your devices that might be there. They use IDE drives now, and used SCSI in the past. (I actually just upgraded a Mac LC computer from a 40meg drive to a 9.1gb drive. Not bad for a 11 year old system) They also use standard PC memory now. And in most cases, 3rd party companies release CPU upgrades, extending the life of many Macs by quite a bit. For example, I can upgrade my G4 Cube running at 450 to a 1ghz machine.

The problem though with the CPU upgrades is that they tend to be pretty expensive because they don't make and sell a ton of them. But overall, a Mac can be as upgradable as a PC. There just aren't as many spare components around since Macs don't have a huge portion of the PC industry.

i see...thanks for all the help. so i guess you can upgrade macs...it's just a lot harder to find parts and they're more expensive. makes sense. thanks again.

I wouldn't say that. I put a 512mb PC133 SODIMM and a 512mb DIMM in my G4 iMac. Nothing special, in fact, I have another one of those 512mb DIMM's in my PIII. The SODIMM and DIMM only cost me $215 together. I took the original 256mb DIMM and put it in one of my other PC's. Mac's have come a long way to become less proprietary. (Mind you, this all coming from someone that would have never even THOUGHT of owning a Mac a little over a year ago.)

what are all of the advantages of switching to mac?

- A really really nice user interface. Scads better than Windows.

I'm sorry, but that's subjective. I used a Mac for a good while, and I simply prefer the Windows UI. I'm one of those multiple mouse button people.

Also, as I've said in another thread, if an OS makes it difficult to install a USB printer (didn't USB start on Macs?), then from my point of view, it's not easy to use. But again, that's how I feel.

I say if you're quite confident about your knowledge of a Windows OS, and the advantages of switching to a new computer are that minimal, don't bother.

But I'd also say that it depends how old, on average, the parts in your current PC are. You say you're doing video capture, so it can't be too old otherwise you'd have crap video. What kind of machine is it?

> I'm one of those multiple mouse button people.

Multi-button mice are fully supported by the OS, they just aren't supplied as standard.


> Also, as I've said in another thread, if an OS makes it difficult to install a USB printer
> (didn't USB start on Macs?), then from my point of view, it's not easy to use.

That was under Mac OS 9, where it won't prompt you to install the driver - you need to do that yourself and for legacy reasons, the approach to managing printers is very different to what you'd be used to under Windows.

Most people here are talking about Mac OS X, which tends to keep a huge set of drivers for USB printers and sets up and configures it without even showing any dialogs.

USB didn't start on Macs, just Apple took up the torch and lead the industry (althogh you could argue they just got into it a couple of months before the rest of the PC industry was due to launch all their USB kit and took the credit for being pioneers).

> from what i understand, macs are not very easily upgradeable.

Also bear in mind that Macs hold their value better than PCs. Whereas even a brand-name PC is just viewed as a box of parts, a Mac is always considered as a whole, so you can sell a two-year old desktop Mac and get around 50% of what you paid for it and for laptops, more like 50-60%.

I've got a PowerBook G4/400. I paid £2000 for it in 2000. It is currently worth about £1000 (any takers?). Few PC laptops would hold their value so well.

That said, it isn't as convienient as being able to just replace the motherboard and processor. But Apple realise that a lot of their customers are non-geeks, who if they were PC users, would just junk their entire PC (monitor, printer, scanner and all) when it gets to three years old and go buy another cheap bundle deal from somewhere dodgy like Gateway.

Multi-button mice are fully supported by the OS, they just aren't supplied as standard.

Well lets just say that they should be. I tried using the one button mouse they supplied my mom with at work. I mean come on, the whole mouse is the one button? talk about carpal tunnel.

That was under Mac OS 9, where it won't prompt you to install the driver - you need to do that yourself and for legacy reasons, the approach to managing printers is very different to what you'd be used to under Windows

Okay, that's probably true. But then setting it up was difficult because the printer setup was buried in an unintuitive location, set apart from the rest of the settings.

I sure hope OSX is all that everyone's saying it is. As far as 9 goes, I disliked it very much.

But I have taken the leap and promoted the ipod, just like most people here. My dad received his this week and can't get over how nice and small it is.

> talk about carpal tunnel.

The idea is that it's designed to prevent that very problem. Since you can click with your palm, one finger or all your fingers, it reduces repetitive strain. RSI is why they haven't put a scroll wheeel in their mice either.

Apple sticks to a single button mouse because in test after test, complete computer illiterates find it easier to grasp the conecpt. Add to that the fact that Mac OS is designed with a single button mouse in mind and it isn't such an issue.

*Goes to apply for marketing job at Apple*

thanks for all the info guys. i think a mac would be a fun and interesting switch, but i've spent too much time on pc. i've learned how to replace everything and have familiarized myself with the OS. sometimes the ease of mac scares me also. they make their things TOO easy and take away all the cool options computer dorks like me want to take advantage of. once you are confident with PC, i see know reason to switch unless your bored...which i could see myself doing

my boss just got an ipod and it's amazing. i give mac 10 pts. for presentation.

That all makes sense, but just because it's designed for use in one way, doesn't always mean it's better that way for everyone. I'm not implying you meant this, I'm just saying. I didn't like it much.

But I can see where you're getting at with the mouse thing. I would argue, however, that being able to click with your palm or your whole hand isn't all that great. it's quite slow.

another question.

let's say i get an ibook. is there a way to network mac and pc? i know that's pretty outrageous but i'm curious...

I think Samba will run on OSX.

wow...i'm impressed. i think when i get a laptop...it will be an ibook

>let's say i get an ibook. is there a way to network mac and >pc? i know that's pretty outrageous but i'm curious...

Is there anyway? yes of course connect the iBook directly to the PC with network cable (patch) give his IP address and they are connected. That's the way I do it. You don't need any extra programs, and OS X 10.2 (Jaguar) has even better support (I have OS X 10.1).

You are able even to plug a Firewire external Hard drive formatted with FAT32 into the iBook and it will read and write on it as it would be his own formatted hard disc. No problem at all. Do you want to plug the ibook in a MS Domain Network? No problem, plug it and you are on the network. My iBook is problably one of the best buys I've ever made. I recomend it to anyone. It work perfectly with the empeg using jemplode. There are really no excuses not to use OS X. Do you want to install an application? no problem just drag and drop the files on the hard disc and the application is installed! no registry, no DLL's! just work. Do you want to uninstall it? no problem just delete the folder, does it! gone! no registry keys problems or old dll's making problems. Do you want to boot from a CD or external hard disk or an iPod! no problem copy the boot files to them and it will boot from them. Guys all your excuses against using a Mac are absolute ridiculous. OS X is just a superior well thought and user friendly OS years light ahead of Windows. There are so many features that I still don't understand why do we have to convince you that OS X is better than windows but it should be the opposite.

Samba is built in.

take away all the cool options computer dorks like me want to take advantage of

<sarcasm>
Boy, yeah, that Unix underpinning really limits the tweaking you can do on the thing.
</sarcasm>

On the other hand, you'll have to actually do more than point-and-click to figure out how to do that stuff. Which makes your argument sound like the argument Unix people have had against Windows. But that's another subject entirely.

Samba is built in.

Yes, and it rocks.

Prior to 10.2, you needed a client like DAVE in order to connect to a PC.

You DON'T need DAVE to connect to a PC. You DON'T need SAMBA either. You don't need absolute anything just the IP address or the PC name and the share name. As opposite to Windows PCs where you need a Microsoft Client to connect to their own MS networks. In OS X you don't need to install any extra client. About the twieking....I really don't know what do you mean with it, maybe you could tell that to the Linux and OS X community, they may laugh in you face.. Guys, I notice here that you really know very very little of how capable and well thought Mac OS X is. Jaguar is even able to connecto to anything without any kind of configuration everything runs automatically and WORKS as opposite to Windows. I don't want to insult anybody here but It's a pitty to see how narrow minded and arrogant some windows users can be when they speak about something as being worst that they don't even know! Many things which are new for windows users now have already been used for years by mac users. Is it so hard to ask you to open your minds a little bit to something new?

There hasn't been any Apple or Mac bashing in this thread. There have been misunderstandings and people not aware of all the features present in various versions of Mac OS, but your comment about Windows needing a separate client to connect to a network is in a similar vein.

I won't defend Mario's bizarre aggression, but you do need to install a client on Windows in order to look at other Windows shares -- the Client for Microsoft Networks, which comes with the OS, but you often have to specifically install it. So there is some extra work involved, even if it's a tiny little bit.