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Having used Windows until 2 years ago and a Mac since, I favour the Mac.
The things I remember from windows days that are but dim memories as they no longer apply now are:
- No blue screen of death
- No cryptic error messages "There has been a command exception module configuration error in the file dll..."
- No viruses. Ever. No need for a virus checker unless you are regularly receiving files from Windows PCs and passing them on to other PC users. In other words, you may inadvertently become a carrier, but the chances of your Mac getting infected are pretty small. I've had zero incidents in 2.5 years of net use here, and do not run (and never have) any virus software.
- No spyware
- No Micro$oft (unless you really need all the stuff that Office does (there are alternatives if you just need to do basic Office stuff and now most .doc files are openable by any stock Mac using the 'Text Edit' application). The original version of Office was actually created for the Mac and only later ported to Windows. Apple are unlikely to ever produce an 'Office-Killer' application as they do maintain a few ties to MS and don't want to totally poiss them off.)
Other points
- A Unix underpinning to Mac OS X, which makes for a very stable user experience. And a very good looking one too. Smooth and intuitive.
- Built in Apache web server software. Most web servers are still run on Unix systems
- It works out of the box, like has been said
- Most major software now has a Mac version, except some games. (If you run games more than anything else even the most die-hard Mac user will agree Windows is still the best choice).
- There is only one manufacturer of Macs. So when you buy one you know it is genuine and contains certified hardware. Apple only design and assemble the Mac though - many of the components are made by 3rd party maufacturers. e.g., My iBook has a Toshiba combo drive and Hitachi HD
- Design. When I bought my iBook (here, in May 2002) it was just about the cheapest laptop on offer that did what I wanted it to do, and was smaller, lighter, had longer battery life and looked much better than anything else I could see. No contest, which is why I bought a Mac then, having never even touched one before.
Now I'm on the lookout for a new computer and given the improvement in PC laptops I will still buy another Mac. Nothing I see comes close to the iBook and Powerbook. Some of the Sony Vaio ones are nice, but as a whole package with the OS, no.
And the Mac desktops on offer now I find much more appealing than PCs.
What Windows wins on:
Yes, most PCs are more customizable, allowing you to remove, replace and upgrade hardware components. Apples do tend to be a bit fixed in that respect, but I did replace my iBook combo drive with a faster one last year.
PCs have more software choices, but so far I have only found one thing that I cannot do with the software I have on my Mac, which is to convert a /lit file into a more uniform format. )And since Macs can run Windows via emulation, I could use the Windows progs to do that on my Mac anyway).
- Basic spped. Yes, the numbers do look better on the PC side, but again as stated, if your PC is being slowed by viruses, mis-behaving software and stuff, you may not see all of that speed. Plus, comparing quoted CPU speed between PCs and Macs is not a fair comparison. a 1Ghz Mac way well outperform a 2Ghz PC. The proof of the pudding must be in the eating, not on the tech spec.
So, yes I am biased, but with good reason I believe.
Hope some of this helps anyone considering getting a Mac, or just interested in the differences.
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The first 10 million years were the worst
And the next
After that I went into a bit of a decline
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