RRC Archives

Wes wrote:Paul, the price difference for *comparable* Mac and PC are actually really pretty close, no where near the double price that you suggest.

looked into it a bit more and looks like you're closer to the truth, though pcs are still looking generally cheaper. either way, woman check out outlet.us.dell.com. could save you a few.

wes wrote:And that is just talking hardware, not software, ease of use, less up keep, less need for third party apps that slow things down and cost $$$, etc. Plus Vista sucks.

again, i'd say it's depending on what you're looking to use it for. if you're looking for a word processor that's browsing the net, i'd say save the money. if you're looking for graphics and the like, mac might be the right choice. and, personally, i've heard different about vista. but you're going to hear mixed opinions about that anyway.

my opinion, it comes down to two things.. maybe just one: 1) what you're using it for and, 2) what you're wanting/willing to pay. the first is probably the only real issue you should consider, the second being a tie breaker.

If you are going to do art. Go for a Mac.
If you want a spiffy typewritter. Go for a PC.

Although not a lot, when you order a Mac, go to the online store. Hit educational discount. Usually saves you 100$ + they've recently been giving out free Nano's for students with a computer purchase.

(before i get blasted, that's not to say you can't do the same with macs.. it's just that pcs are a lot more accessible for customization and tweaking than macs, ie: you need to be a lot better to get into the guts of a mac. in some ways that's good..)

Sorry Paul, consider yourself blasted.

Corporate Whore wrote: decide what you need first, at least in terms of how you'll be using it. do you need word processing, programming, surfing the net, powerpoints, graphic arts, video processing, etc.? will you be downloading a ton of stuff or are you pretty isolated from downloads and the like?

I agree with paul. think of what you'll be doing and THEN find the least expensive way of doing it.

Thanks for the feedback everyone!

One question: will you have free support? In other words, is there someone who will do things like reinstall the os/applications for free, or root out configuration problems and viruses when you have problems? If you have someone who will provide free tech support, then the pc is an option, but if you have to pay Geek Squad or other tech support, then the pc could get a lot more expensive than a mac to keep it working. (Part of the side effects of the cult of Mac is that most of us will gladly provide free tech support to fellow mac owners, in large part because we know that it will be a fraction of the time that is required to keep pcs running)

Also, a deciding factor may be the fact that when you buy a pc, you're only ever going to have a pc. But with the current macs, you're getting a mac that has pc guts, and thus can run windows. On my macbook pro, I have par of the hard drive partitioned for mac and part with windows. With Apple's free Bootcamp software, you can split the hard drive and install windows, then when you reboot the machine you can choose between mac and windows. I also have a program called Parallels that lets me keep the Mac operating system running, and boot windows and windows programs inside it. I use it to run my CAD software, but the other nice thing is that if the Windows part gets a virus, the Mac part is immune and my computer will keep running.

(It's like the Star Trek where Kirk and Spock are swapped with their evil universe counterparts. Good Kirk and Spock in the evil universe can pretend to be evil, but the evil Kirk and Spock (in addition to having goatees!) can't fake being good, because, well, they're evil. Not that I'm biased or anything...)

Ah, you too can know the bliss of Jobsianism:
http://www.geekculture.com/joyoftech/jo ... /998b.html

What are you guys doing to your computers that it takes so much time to keep them running???


You should surf safer porn sites, or something...

StephyG wrote:Buy a PC. Buying a Mac is the first step into cult-hood.

Proud member since '98...

but I'm a photo and design person...

I'm going through the same debate. Don't really need a Mac, don't really need a new PC. I'd like to work with my digital photos more, but don't really work with them much on my PC. I'd like to explore Final Cut Pro, but am used to editing on software that runs on a Windows NT platform. Guess I just want something to post quickly on Red River Climbing.

meetVA wrote:

If you are going to do art. Go for a Mac.
If you want a spiffy typewritter. Go for a PC.

***********************
For what the original poster wanted, I'd say true. Nevertheless, as far as a work machine, an engineer would laugh at a Mac. Not because of the Mac's hardware capabilities, but because of the severely limited high-end engineering programs for it. Stuff like state-of-the-art Cadence for board layout and signal integrity runs on a PC, not on a Mac. Solid Edge 3-D engineering design software is platformed on a PC. VHDL or Verilog Field Programmable Gate Array Synplicity software runs on a PC. We've got antenna array design software we use. Guess what it runs on?

For an engineer, there is no real choice for a working machine other than a PC.

ZSpiddy