Mac versus PC

[Leigh]

I would have to say the same to you with apples multibillion ad budget...

I'm not advocating Macs. I'm just saying that you're comments about them are nonsense.
You have absolutely no understanding of what makes a computer or a computer system work.

As to your benchmarks... they're not worth the electrons they're printed with.
It's trivially easy to create a benchmark to promote or discredit any platform or hardware configuration.

- Leigh

[Leigh]

I can guarantee that no one will change systems based on the arguments you've made, or I'll eat my hat.

Your hat is safe...absolutely.

I too am done with this insanity.

- Leigh

[Jess C]

I have built several fairly high end PC's over the last several years but no more. Two years ago I purchased a glossy 27" iMac with an i7 processor and since that day I have never looked back. I got tired of spending more and more time getting rid of and protecting against malware, viruses, etc. that I finally decided enough was enough. Yeah, I know, Macs are not completely immune to such things but I have never had any down time on my Mac in the two plus years because of the crap a windows based machine is a constant target of.

When and if my Mac ever craps out I will happily go back to the Apple store and buy a new Mac.

[Larry Gebhardt]

I have had a really bad experience with apple's G5 quad core computer and it has turned me into a hardcore PC enthusiast. I don't know why people buy mac computers. They are overpriced and you can build a much higher quality PC on your own. I know there are a lot of Mac users in this forum and I just don't get it. What is so great about a mac?

Inside it is just a regular nothing special PC, at best it is only slightly better then the very worse prebuilt PC's. There are much much better parts out there to build your own PC, and some companies actually sell prebuilt PC's with top tier parts.

For example there are dozens of companies always competing to produce the best possible cooling systems. Every year new innovative CPU coolers are brought to the market that surpass last years best. There are plenty of review sites that show actual benchmarks proving which CPU cooler is the best. It is said that a reduction of 1 degree Celsius increases the life of a CPU by 10%. Wouldn't you want the most efficient highest quality CPU cooler in your system? The stuff apple uses is no where near competitive with whats on the market. Why use a stock CPU cooler when a high end one might run your system 20 degrees cooler?

I just don't get it. Is it that the buyers of apple computers just don't know better or that they don't want to do any research into quality PC options?

I have not read the previous posts, but I buy Macs because I need a good operating system for both development and photo editing. I need to use a unix based system for the development, but Photoshop and Lightroom don't run on Linux. Mac OS-X fits the bill.

Also, the hardware is generally fairly well made and lasts quite well. It also holds it's value better than PCs so if you upgrade every 2 years it's actually as cheap, or probably cheaper to buy Macs.

And yes, I have built PCs in the past. It easy to put together a really nice desktop computer. If you can run linux it can even have a decent operating system. But I'm not very happy with the laptops from most of the manufacturers. The ones that are decent cost as much as a Mac. The rest are mostly plastic feeling pieces of crap. So why not buy a Mac?

The last servers I bought were Dells and ran Linux. So I'm not anti PC. I do not like Windows and every time I need to support someone running it I feel much better about buying a Mac.

[Jeff Dexheimer]

haha, I can't believe this! I'll bite too.

I was a PC (read linux) user to my core. I swore by it until and loved using it. I built my own computers and had several laptops. I usually ran dual systems of Linux and Windows., but sometimes one or the other, depending on need

Then, my work gave me a macbook. At first is was awkward and uncomfortable. In short time I learned the system. It was easy. The computer simply works. No more BSOD, no frozen programs, no more control+alt+delete. THe mouse pad is smooth and works like a dream. The screen quality is incredible, its fast, the battery lasts forever, file and folder navigation is simple, the computer fit and finish is second to none. In other words I am converted to mac after years of using windows.

Of course I still recognize that many people enjoy their Windows computers and so they should. That's what market selection is all about. Thank God neither company has a monopoly on the OS market.

[Mike Anderson]

Is Mach a form of unix? I'm not sure but I thought OS X was based on unix.

Mach is one of many Unix-like systems.

[MisterPrinter]

Apple have made some dogs over the years, powerbooks with kamikazi screen hinges and LCD panels that popped regularly, "Intelligent" batteries that decided they were dead and needed an app to revive them, sealed water-cooling systems that unsealed themselves in a cloud of anti-freeze, CR-ROM slots that got bent so easily and jammed CDs inside, macs that lose the time and date randomly even with brand new batteries, models that sucked every bit of dust out of a room and choked themselves to death, processors that were so power-hungry the cooling fans sound like a jump-jet. And remember the horrible iBook clamshell, all curved edges but containing industry standard square components so in fact it ended up with spacewasting empty parts.

Then there's backwards compatibility, or rather there isn't.

On the other hand, the "Bowling Ball" and "Quicksilver" G4s were the most reliable machines I have ever maintained, some I know of ran for many many years without a hiccup except for battery replacements. And OSX, it just works ( as long as you have the right hardware for the version ).

I currently use 2 x G5 DP2.7 to run my scanners ( stitching is done in the mac so needs a bit of power ), and I must admit that I am moving towards using those machines for general use too if I can afford the electricity bill.

[Rick A]

Dear 8x10user
After reading this entire thread I have come to the conclusion that you have "opened mouth A, and inserted foot B-and C" not to mention every one elses feet into your yap. Why do you insist your Honda loaded with every bolt on aftermarket accessory is better than my Porsch 911? I bought my first Mac in the 80's and have owned several. Now I own a PC and want to beat it with a BFH on a regular basis, and have ordered a new G5 quad.

[Ari]

Yawn...
Mac>PC
Film>digital
Coke>Pepsi
...and so forth...or maybe I have them all backwards.

Now, where were we?

[CP Goerz]

You forgot tastes great>less filling.....;-)