MAC vs. PC

[aly]

hello all,
i am about to start graduate school this fall and i need to buy a laptop. does anyone have any ideas to share in terms of laptops? all i need to do is word processing and internet stuff. other than that i really dont use computors for anything. a little bit of music storage and picture storage and thats about it.
any advice or ideas would be appriciated.
thanks.
aly
p.s. if you called me about working and i didnt call you back, i apoligise, i lost my phone temporarily and things also got busy for me so im not currently looking for anymore work, but thank you to those who contacted me.

[lilmatty]

Hello Aly. As far as features and price it's hard to top Dell's Inspiron 6000 series. Take a look.

[pexpert6]

It all depends, Aly. It depends on the user and how they expect to use it. Some exotic applications only exist on Windows PCs, some applications are better on Macs, but mostly it's personal preference.

People who have only used a PC tend to only like PCs, same for Mac. Macs cost *slightly* more, but are FAR more user friendly and reliable. This has been true for over 20 years. Also, regarding your need for a laptop that handles music and pix, Apple (Mac) has led in these areas for some time.

Given what you *currently* want to do with a laptop, either will work. ...Except you'll have problems with virii and pop-ups to contend with on the PC laptop that are pretty much non-existant in the Mac world. Keep in mind that you may decide to do more with your laptop in the future, perhaps things you're daydreaming about now.

PC users always talk about more programs (and more peripherals) for the PC, yet you only need one browser, one email program, one word processor, etc. And I've gotten well over 6 years of use out of the Macs I've owned, where PCs need far more frequent updating (costing both money and time).

This brings up an issue about what operating system and software you use: either avoid Microsoft products, or use an older version of them. This automatically protects you from viral problems, for example, without having to constantly update your virus protection.

You'd probably be quite pleased with the 14" iBook. Since it's just recently discontinued, you can find used ones for under $1000, with plenty of memory, Office '04 (for word processing), wireless networking built in, CD & DVD burner (for backups), etc. etc. The recent models ran at 1.42 GHz, plenty fast for your needs.

What are my credentials? I first worked in computer technology in the mid-70's, futzing with both microprocessors and mainframes. I had a Commodore in the early 80's, used Microsoft DOS and Windows PCs since the 80's, owned an Atari ST in the late 80's. I was a field service engineer on UNIX machines from 82-88.

An IBM guy showed me a Mac in the mid-80's, and I instantly recognized it as a machine I could just USE, not have to tinker with, not have to remember lots of technical stuff (like I did on my job). A couple years later, a friend let me use his Mac to create a brochure, and simply showed me how to turn it on and launch PageMaker (desktop publishing software). I had no instructions and no manuals, and I was able to create a sharp brochure that professionals thought was created by a pro. It was at that point I decided to stop messing with various brands, and stick with Mac, and while friends have given me their PCs, and had me help them when their PCs weren't working properly, I've found Macs to be as simple and trouble free as your basic ball point pen: turn it on, and use it.

So, back to your decision. If money is the biggest (or only) concern, you can find cheap PCs. If ease and reliability are your biggest concerns, go with a Mac (and you can save some money by buying a nearly new one). If you think you MIGHT do other things with it someday, explore what's out there that does that especially well.

Good luck to ya!
Ric

[bobafifi]

Buy a Mac.

Awhile back, the PC down at People's Music got so taken over by malware/adware that I ended up having to completely erase the thing and re-install the system to return it to something resembling a computer. Since the point of entry most likely was Internet Explorer and Outlook Express, I disabled both of those Microsoft prducts and installed Firefox (https://www.mozilla.com/) for the browser and set up a GMail (https://mail.google.com/mail/help/intl/en/about.html) account for the email client (Web based vs. desktop - i.e. have GMail remove any viral problem BEFORE it gets to you).

This combination has proved to hold up as there have been no problems with the machine since. If you're going to go with a PC, I'd highly recommend you do in kind.

-Bob

[Enoch]

Mac have issues as well. I have been in the tech industry for years, and no machine is without it's issues.

Spyware can effect both Mac OS, Windows and Linux. Most virus issues are designed for Windows Operating systems, and Ric is correct in Mac being a better choice for this...however, there ARE security threats that Macs are effected by.

"This brings up an issue about what operating system and software you use: either avoid Microsoft products, or use an older version of them. This automatically protects you from viral problems, for example, without having to constantly update your virus protection."

I would not recomend using an older Microsoft operating system. Older OS have vunrabilities that require frequent updates to resolve, and are less stable then the current flavors of Microsoft OS. Windows 2000 or later would be recomended. ALWAYS keep up to date with Virus Definitions and software updates, on either Mac, Windows, or Linux.

[Braggi]

I'm a devoted Macintosh fan (since April 1984) so take my comments with the usual grain of salt. I'm typing on an iBook right now and it's the sweetest computer I've ever used on a day to day basis. The new Intel Mac models are even better. When you're shopping price remember the Mac will come with all the software you'll most likely need which means spend your money on a Mac and you're done. Buy a $495 cheapo PC and you'll spend just as much (or twice as much) on software and then spend just as much paying an "expert" to make it all work. Macs almost never crash and there are no desctuctive Mac only viruses out there I'm aware of. Just stay away from Microsoft software and the bugs should keep away from you.

Check out your college bookstore to see if they sell Macs. There are often substantial discounts available to students.

Whichever way you go, remember the old adage, "buy the best and cry only once."

-Jeff

[kazooboy]

You can get a fine used iBook on CraigsList for $600 or $700 like I did. I've never been happier. You could be too.
-- kazooboy

[sf_nicole]

Since I have served as a Mac to PC interpreter for a few companies and taught on both platforms, I would like to answer this.

It is actually very simple, PC computers were developed by left brained people for other left brained people, Mac's were developed by right brain people for other right brained people.

If you like structure first (Accounting, Computer Programming, Project Management, etc. you are left brained) another hint, if you are an adult and keep your office orderly with a place for everything and everything in it's place, you are left brained.

If you like to think abstractly and work without structure, you are right brained (Artists, Marketing designers, Theoretical Mathmaticians, etc.) Likewise, if you are an adult and it looks like your office was just hit by a tornado - all the time - you are right brained.

Buy the computer that matches how you think and work and you will be happy. If you buy the other one, it is like working with someone who you can never seem to agree with.

Nicole

[sara]

i like both mac and pc equally, i own one of each. i'd reccommend macs for most people though because they are easier to use, even the worst technophobe can figure out how to do all kinds of things on them without too much difficulty, and because of the virus thing. i've owned several macs over the years and have never had a virus on one, while i have had many many viruses on my pcs, and that is in spite of my anti-virus software (which doesn't work as well as advertised, at least now anymore: virus creators are too sophistocated now). if your anti-virus doesn't catch them, and you don't know how to remove them yourself, viruses can be costly to have removed and you can easily lose some or all of your data. just a tip: i worked for apple for a year and if you are looking for a deal that is a little less risky than buying a used machine from a private owner, you can purchase refurbished macs from apple's website (just type "refurbished" in the search field on the website, it's the only way to find them). you can also purchase what are called "refreshed" macs if you go into an apple store. these are simply customer returns that were returned with the box open within the 14 day return period, so they are essentially brand new, but at a discount. they are not defective (they don't ever resell defective returns), they are usually returned because people changed their mind about which model they want. hope that helps.

sara

[AngelaC]

Just saw this on the Apple site:

"Apple today introduced a new $899 configuration of the 17-inch iMac designed specifically for education customers. Available immediately, it features a 1.83GHz Intel Core Duo processor, a built-in iSight video camera, and iLife ’06, providing students and teachers everything they need to learn and create in today’s digital classroom, all in the ultra-efficient iMac design."

No, I have no ties to Apple, except as a loyal user...just thought you might be interested in knowing there IS an affordable Mac.

-Angela

[gorillaman]

From Slashdot today:

Link: https://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/07/05/1318243
Posted by: Hemos, on 2006-07-05 13:45:00

Lord_Slepnir writes "Security firm Sophos Security has released a
[1]report claiming that Macs will be more secure than windows for some
time to come. The report listed the 10 most common kinds of malware,
and noted that they can only infect Windows systems."

References

1. https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5150508.stm