Advice req PC Vs MAC (laymans terms)

[tom]

Originally Posted by Diving Dude

Not a clue. Its a standard e-mac, how do l find out how much ram it has? and how do l increase it?

Memory upgrades, flash media, and usb storage at Crucial.com

click on 'mac system scanner'. it's safe to download and run the app.

[Silent Diver]

Originally Posted by DougA

With Apple your buying into a fashionable brand - they do look very nice though.

Fashionable --> maybe
Functional --> DEFINITELY

I got my I-mac form PC World about a month or so ago and it came with a free version of MS Office for Mac but if you need to run other windows based software then you can either run an emulator which although not ideal will work or better still set it up as a dual boot system with Mac OS and MS Windows XP on the same system.

But to do this you need to buy a Intel based Mac which is what all the newer systems are anyway.

[MattS]

Originally Posted by Whistler

Thanks for all replies.

Just to add a bit of weight. As a techie geek nerd that has his fingers in both Microsoft and Apple pies, as far as I am concerned, the one (legitimate) thing Windows does better than Mac OSX is business class networking. Windows PCs also have the advantage of supporting a great many low volume niche applications. From what you say neither of these is a purchasing concern for you.

Oh and their is a lot more pirate software available for Windows of course.

The bit about Mac's that techie types just don't understand is that unsupported users (those without a dedicated support department to sort out the technicalities) are generally more productive with them. They spend their time using the productivity tools rather than trying to get the productivity tools to work.

So for home users doing general home things, who have no burning need or desire to run a niche application that only works on Windows, I have no hesitation recommending a Mac.

As a total Mac novice, what is the entry model

The main choice is between desktop (iMac) or laptop (Mac Book). The Mini Mac is in a no-man's land. It looks cheap, but by the time you add on a decent monitor and keyboard you might as well buy an iMac and be done with it. You coul duse an existing PC monitor but you lose one of the big advantages of a Mac - the colour on the screen is accurate and not the lurid misrepresentation you get with a typical Windows and cheap monitor combination.

and what soort of price am I looking at.

An iMac starts at about £800. Mac books about £100 less. All the new crop are well specified as they ship but allowing for a memory upgrade above the base spec is always a good idea.

You might pick up a bargain by keeping your eye on this page

Mac's tend to persist longer than PCs and they hold a resale value. Users get more from them for longer and recover more of the cost when they upgrade. So in real terms over the useful life, they are not as expensive as they might first appear.

As regards software, I presume I would have to replace all my current programs

Nero - there is a perfectly good burning utility included in OSX that just works. You don't need a Nero replacement but Toast is pretty good if you really want one.

Adobe - Adobe what? Adobe is a software house that publishes many products.

Word, Excel - Open Office is free, or you can buy Microsoft Office for Mac and have Word and Excel.

Norton - you don't need anything like Norton.

Does Suunto Dive Manager still work ok?

Not really. What you can do is buy a product called Parallels and install a version of Windows onto into OSX. For something like Suunto Dive Manager you could install an old copy of Windows 9x. You can use XP but it is an expensive way to go legitimately thanks to XPs stupid licensing. This is known as Virtual computing - running multiple virtual operating systems on one bit of physical hardware. It is the next big thing in the server room, and consumes vast amounts of my time at the moment. In typical Mac style Parallels is very straightforward.




Did I mention they look nice

[Garf]

Originally Posted by MattS

It is the next big thing in the server room, and consumes vast amounts of my time at the moment.

and mine. Id say its the current big thing in the server room.

[Whistler]

Thanks MattS, Just the sort of answer I needed. I will need to go window shopping and actually try a Mac. My thanks to everyone else who replied.

[StephM]

What MattS says.

I spend all day fixing PC's. On a Mac you don't have the same security /virus concerns you have on Microsoft products. For large networks/ office use PC's are better, for home use Macs excel.

Vista is VERY BAD. If you do go the PC route, get XP.

If you do go the MAC route then you'll live a longer more contented life, with Boot Camp you can trash your old PC, repartition the hard drive of the Mac and install the copy of windows from your old pc onto the Mac and have it dual boot between the 2 Op Systems.. That way you get the best (and worst) of both worlds.

[danphilly1984]

There are a lot of people on here that like Macs, i'm not one of them though! I do find them more expensive than PC's, they load up quicker because there aren't as many programs made for them, games are basically unplayable on them, they are really only made for Photoshop and Itunes, they dont get viruses because virus makers think its a waste of time. They are expensive to repair when they go wrong (Apple G4 ibook - £590 for a mainboard or logic board). They are being used less and less for graphics and video editing because they aren't powerful enough anymore, when opening different desktops like on the new ones, so many processes gets used and the whole thing slows down sooooo much!!

Really sorry if I offend any Mac users, the OS is quite nice and they look quite nice but unfortunately the whole system is not. If you need a cheap PC or laptop they are inexpensive for pretty good systems and will always run more programs, and do it better.

There are a few OS for you to use now as well if you don't like Windows

[Jeremy H]

Originally Posted by danphilly1984

They are being used less and less for graphics and video editing because they aren't powerful enough anymore,

Err, you sure or have you just made that up?

I'm writing this on my new Mac (2x quad 2.8 Xeons, tons of ram etc... etc...), why don't you check the cost of this sort of spec on the Dell site...

Also - Have you heard of Final Cut Pro?

[BJ]

It's true that Macs are not so good for kiddy's games but then they are not intended for kiddies!

Most feature films are now cut on Macs...but then they are for people with a job to do. My little laptop can be used to retouch big picture files on CS3, burn discs, keep tabs on incoming e-mails and still let me see what's happening on YD, all at the same time on two different of board monitors -
as it is now!
But as I said before, I know nothing about computers. For example, I don't know what a virus is.

[MattS]

Originally Posted by danphilly1984

Really sorry if I offend any Mac users, the OS is quite nice and they look quite nice but unfortunately the whole system is not.

Well I am neither a Mac user nor a Windows user. Arranging computers so they do things and fixing them so they keep on doing things, is just the source of my revenue. I don't really care what flavour they are.

I am offended by the sheer inaccuracy of your post though