Mac V. Intel/MS: A Little Help Please

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Like Mike, I shall stray from the aviation topics to ask the most computer savvy group of people that I know some advice:

I am about to buy a new PC. I have been a loyal, at least by default, to the Intel/MS platform, but I am willing to give Apple a chance.

I am a fairly typical home and office user of the PC. I mostly use the MS Office suite of software (Word, Excel, PPT), the common add-ons such as Adobe and surf the web, etc. I rarely use highly specific applications nor do I do much gaming or other advanced graphic programs.

My preconceived assessment of the IBM/apple competition is that while Apple is a more stable platform, it is more expensive and has less universally adaptable. Conversely, it is better at graphics and has adapters/emulators which allow it to run most IBM/Windows applications. Many other apps for Apple, are savable in MS compatable formats.

Have I missed anything? Which is better for me?

This is a BIG can of worms, probably bigger than LOP. I use the MS stuff most of the time, I wanted an Apple, that is what I learned on, but couldn’t use it at the office, so no go. This is something only you can decide and much like planes it is based on the mission required.

Marty,

In reply to:


I am willing to give Apple a chance.
I am a fairly typical home and office user of the PC. I mostly use the MS Office suite of software (Word, Excel, PPT), the common add-ons such as Adobe and surf the web, etc. I rarely use highly specific applications nor do I do much gaming or other advanced graphic programs.


A Mac will do fine with MS Office and the common add-ons such as Adobe and with Web surfing. Further the Office files are interchangeable with those of Windows.

Today there is a small gotch-ya involving Acrobat Reader under Mac OS X, reader will not follow links imbedded in a pdf file. The work-around is to use an earlier version of reader under the “classic” environment. Fortunately, following links in pdf’s is rarely needed because use of such links is strongly frowned upon due to compatibility issues even under windows.

In reply to:


My preconceived assessment of the IBM/apple competition is that while Apple is a more stable platform, it is more expensive and has less universally adaptable.


Macs were significantly more expensive to buy. Today they are only slightly more expensive. BUT, every study I’ve seen has shown the life-cycle costs of Macs to be significantly lower due to greater longevity (typing this on a 7 year-old Mac), and to far less need for support.

In reply to:


Which is better for me?


Look at the new, cool, iMacPC->Mac switching information and then decide…[:)]

Next thing you know you’ll be getting a cat.[:)]

Cheers,

I use Mac primarily, though I have a PC too. I’d put it this way. You have to want to put in some effort to switch and accept a few incompatibilities with your Windows friends.

Office:
There is a Mac version every bit as good as the PC version, possibly even better. You’re not going to be able to install the one you have for your PC so add that cost. Office documents are interchangeable, but one caveat is the fonts. Some common PC fonts don’t read the same on Mac and vice-versa.

Email:
Very little trouble here, if you get an EXE file containing a funny video from your friend, you can’t run it. On the other hand you won’t have to worry about viruses. I never had one!

Web:
Macs come with Safari, Apples own browser. There are some sites that don’t work with it. Some banks, online classes to name a few. If there are any sites you must use you should check ahead of time.

Support:
If you have a buddy you always call for PC advice, he won’t be too helpful anymore.

Apple is very well integrated in what they call the “digital lifestyle” and if that appeals to you it’s worth the extra cost. If you have a digital camera or video camera, an iPod, and friends who video conference*, Apple makes all these technologies a pleasure to use right out of the box.

*iSight camera is extra.

Marty:

As a long-time Mac user (probably on my 10th Mac in 20 years), I recently switched BACK to a PowerBook as my primary machine after 5 years of work-induced Windows.

The Mac is just so much less hassle in general it’s not even a contest. I concur with the comments about virus “immunity”, etc.

MS Office Mac is a non-issue, it works great. Fonts are a non-issue unless you are a pre-press production professional…but if you were, you’d already be using a Mac. (All the typical Windows fonts get installed when you install Office.) Files are totally interchangeable - no ‘convertiing’ or anything like that.

One of the best features is the inexpensive Mac application iPhoto - simply the best digital photo management software around. (Plug in the camera. Click one button.)

In reply to:


… and has adapters/emulators which allow it to run most IBM/Windows applications.


Hold the phone. This is not the case. You cannot run ANY Windows application on a Mac without installing Virtual PC which was bought by Microsoft and is currently awaiting a major upgrade. (It literally installs a full copy of Windows on the machine plus the emulator to run it.) I here it works, kind of, for most but not all things. I wouldn’t count on it covering all the bases.

Like some other COPAians, I have an old Windows laptop I use for Jepp updates and Emax stuff. I think this will probably be replaced by a Windows laptop or tablet for in-cockpit weather, charts, etc., in the next 12 months.

Find an Apple store and play with one…you’ll know if it’s right for you.

Regards,

Tim

I have always had both, but much prefer the MAC. Check out the G4 POWERBOOK. Don’t ever take advice from someone who has not used a new MAC.
Denis
P.S…Just waiting for the winds to die down.

I see positives and negatives with each. Mac is more tightly controlled. This means fewer problems, more consistency, and generally a better quality feel. It also means higher prices and less flexibility. If you want the package Apple sells then it is great. If it doesn’t do what you want then it is harder to correct that.

Marty,
Get the Mac. It’s WAY more stable and whatever you’d need to do with Windows, you can do on a Mac. OSX is terrific and I’ve been so much more productive with my computer since I switched to a Mac from a PC. With the PC, I was crashing all the time and had to become way more computer-savvy than I should have just to keep the machine working. The Mac has been trouble free, is rarely susceptible to viruses, and no more expensive than a decent Windows machine.
Buy a Mac. You will not be disappointed; you’ll thank your lucky stars, in fact. For me, Windows was nothing but a headache. The Mac has been a pleasure. FYI, I have, and love my, Titanium Powerbook.

Jeff

Thanks for all of the input. It seems that MACs are “better,” and few seem as devoted to the PC and to the MAC. But there are some compatability issues with some application software and it is more expensive. I guess the next step for me is inventory what specialty appllications we really use and then see if thew will work on OSX.

Any additional insights are still very welcome.

Bottom line:

Macs are better UNLESS you want to use software that is written for PCs and won’t run on virtual PC. (or runs too slowly)

The catch is that today you can look at everything out there and decide that there is no PC software that you need to have, but tomorrow you may find out that there is one.

As of right now, I’m sticking with PCs.

Jerry

I have both too but stray from my mac only when absolutely forced to. For me that is only to program my Garmin-AT GPS card for the GX-50 GPS. Virtual PC on the mac doesn’t support PCMCIA card programming from a PC app.

A good aviation comparison: Macs are to PCs what LOP is to ROP. Better.

Tim,

In reply to:


Safari, Apples own browser. There are some sites that don’t work with it. Some banks, online classes to name a few. If there are any sites you must use you should check ahead of time.


Or alternatively, use Mozilla’s (Netscape’s) Firefox (under both Windows and Mac OS’s and free).

If you are going to use a Mac at the office and you are running MS Exchange Server, make sure the new version on Entourage or Office for the Mac will allow you to log onto the Exchange Server. That has been one clever way MS has kept the Macs from infiltrating their market. They have kept their apps from bridging enterprise services onto the Mac platform.

I needed a new laptop about 3 months ago and decided on a whim to go Mac. Why? I was just sort of fed up
with the weekly windows patch cycle and a feeling that nothing really fit together. I have, for instance, a dell
desktop which has windows as the OS and a ragtag bunch of programs attached to it, some of which seem
to have been written for windows 3.11 (ie the fax program!). When I put a DVD into the machine it asked me
which of 6 programs I wanted to view it on, often the first one I picked, didn’t work.

So I went with a powerbook. It’s built on Unix and I’m a unix head through and through, so this was nothing
but a positive to me. Initially I wanted to get under the covers and see what was going on, after a few
forays into the murk I was satisfied that Mac was just doing the right thing, especially when it comes to
separating user data from system data and I stopped messing with it and just enjoyed it.

OSX is the best Unix front end I have ever seen, and I personally think that Unix rules.

Mostly I can take of leave iLife. I think iPhoto is OK, but breezebrowser was better. Garageband is ok for a
while, iDVD is ok too. Definitely with the Mac I have found that good software costs extra and isn’t just
on the PC or downloaded free from the web. At the same time I’ve found that I go out of my way to find
software that looks and feels “Mac”.

I’m personally not going back.

In reply to:


But there are some compatability issues with some application software


For these concerns, you should pick up a Windows emulator called (I think) Virtual PC. This way, you’d be covered if you need to run a Windows-only program.

Now you have no excuse, Marty. [;)]

Jeff

In reply to:


Thanks for all of the input. It seems that MACs are “better,” and few seem as devoted to the PC and to the MAC. But there are some compatability issues with some application software and it is more expensive. I guess the next step for me is inventory what specialty appllications we really use and then see if thew will work on OSX.
Any additional insights are still very welcome.


Marty,

Few would argue the PC is better than the Mac, but frankly I feel like all this is overblown. I have used a PC, in fact the vast majority do on this forum and in the world. Most of us do not have problems, I know I don’t.

The fact is the PC will run more, it does not have compatibility problems (particularly for some Cirrus important uses) and its cheaper. That is enough for me.

Mac users have long been known for their intense loyalty and pride in their systems (or is it just being different [;)] ). But the silent majority just slogs on using their PC’s to the tune of about 150M new units per year. Consider the source (no offense or flames please), your hearing from the vocal minority, but that does not mean that 95% plus does not get by daily without incident.

In reply to:


For these concerns, you should pick up a Windows emulator called (I think) Virtual PC. This way, you’d be covered if you need to run a Windows-only program. Now you have no excuse, Marty. Jeff


Jeff: Does it really work for everything? I recall reading about MAC users’ gripes about using the Jepp Skybound Datawriter and downloading other data from the airplane.

Marty,
My wife just got a Mac and really enjoys it. She finds it much more user friendly than her old PC.
I’m sticking with the PC because: 1) skybound update, 2) ARNAV engine view software and 3) JeppView, all programs I use on a regular basis are not available on Mac.
I think that before you switch, inventory everything you do on your PC and be sure all the software you use on a regular basis is available for the Mac. For me it wasn’t and therefore the Mac was not a good option.

In reply to:


Does it really work for everything?


Marty,

From what I understand, Virtual PC runs Windows in a window on the Mac, so it should run any Windows program. I’m also sure the speed concerns that some have had are less of a problem with the faster Macs now available.

Jeff

In reply to:


Marty,
From what I understand, Virtual PC runs Windows in a window on the Mac, so it should run any Windows program. I’m also sure the speed concerns that some have had are less of a problem with the faster Macs now available.
Jeff


Depends on the program. Some won’t run at all, some are very slow.

Jerry