<p>The big three operating systems in the consumer and server world are
Linux, OSX and Windows in their various flavors. OSX and Windows come
in consumer/business and server variants. If you develop software, you
probably want to target these three operating systems. If you are a
developer and you need to develop and debug on these three platforms,
then you’re best off buying Macs for your developers as they can run
all three operating systems.</p>
<p>Software engineers with a Windows focus tend to develop on Developer
Studio. Software engineers with a focus on portability tend to develop
in a Unix environment using something like CYGWIN to emulate the Unix
environment on Windows so that they can use their Unix build scripts
to build their products on Windows with a common source code base. So
there is a benefit to outfitting software engineers with Linux systems
but then you have to have staff to deal with the typical issues that
you run into with Linux and devices. This is much less of a problem
with Mac OSX because Apple dictates the hardware.</p>
<p>On consumer systems Mac OSX has the advantage in security through
obscurity. One may argue that Windows is more secure or that OSX is
more secure from a software engineering perspective but malware
writers target Windows systems in far greater numbers than they do OSX
systems and there is a large historical base of viruses already out
there in Windows-land. You have to run anti-malware programs on
Windows - you don’t have to with Mac OSX. You can choose to run
anti-malware programs on Mac OSX but their workload should be light as
there is so little out there.</p>
<p>My point about the average user was simply a paraphrasing of the other
dude’s original point for emphasis before I countered it by
questioning his use of the computer scientist example. Finally:</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>No it isn’t. The angle bracket coding was used decades ago in email
and newsgroup quoting. It’s still commonly used on email list servers
today.</p>
<p>Well, I found it ironic that you were questioning my longevity and
experience when the answer was staring you right in the face. You just
lacked the historical perspective to interpret the answer.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>Someday you might be required to learn emacs in one of your classes.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>You questioned my experience. I responded with complex questions
that a professional software engineer would know or would know
how to get the answers to.</p>
<p>Omg, your sheer obstinacy is exasperating. Let me make it very clear so even someone as profoundly intelligent as yourself can understand: you have yet to explain why Mac OSX beats out Windows for the average user. Again, with the right freeware, viruses/malware/spyware can be easily and conveniently defeated on a PC. We agree (or do I need to prove it once more?) that PCs can beat out Macs in terms of hardware and at a reduced cost? Plus, and I failed to point this out before, some of your previous comments truly suggested that to you and your wealthy phd friends, the macbook was more of a status symbol…which goes all the way back to the concept of a fad.</p>
<p>“Again, with the right freeware, viruses/malware/spyware can be easily and conveniently defeated on a PC.”</p>
<p>There’s your answer. How many AVERAGE users are going to go out of their way to search, download and install more programs to fight viruses/malware/spyware? Average user who knows what/how to defrag? Do a system restore? Do a clean install of an OS? Without the help of an outside party (i.e. customer support)?</p>
<p>Be realistic. Not every person who owns a computer has the time or the desire to learn how to do any of the above.</p>
<p>Junior, I hope that you don’t address your professors in the same way.
And I hope that you lose the attitude.</p>
<p>Just read the part that I quoted. And if you care to, read the part on
security.</p>
<p>But to answer your question on the benefits of Mac OSX for the average
user:</p>
<p>1) You can go to the Apple Store for help and training.
2) You do not have to worry about malware.
3) The base is Unix so that Apple can worry more about UI issues to
simplify and enhance the experience. Yes, Microsoft has done a
good job copying some of the good ideas in Mac OSX in Vista.
4) Startup time on comparable hardware.
5) Shutdown time on comparable hardware.</p>
<p>I run into lots of parents with kids that get malware on their systems.
One guy I know threw out all of their Windows systems and bought Macs
for the family. He got tired of reinstalling Windows twice a month on
their Windows laptops.</p>
<p>“Be realistic. Not every person who owns a computer has the time or the desire to learn how to do any of the above.”</p>
<p>What about the poor unlucky folks that bought certain Sony CDs and wound up with a rootkit? None of the anti-malware programs at the time could deal with rootkits. I know a guy that makes a decent living just fixing up PCs and removing malware is just a part of that business.</p>
<p>“some of your previous comments truly suggested that to you and your wealthy phd friends, the macbook was more of a status symbol”</p>
<p>It looks like some of your posts are getting zapped.</p>
<p>I do development work on Windows and Mac OSX in my spare time and having a MacBook Pro makes that possible. One of the other reasons why I bought a Penryn-based MacBook Pro was to play around with the SSE4.1 Vector Instructions. I bought a Nehalem system to play with SSE4.2 and to get an idea of just how fast this new beast from Intel runs. Furthermore both kids have MacBook Pros and mine made for a nice backup system for theirs should anything happen to their systems.</p>
<p>In reality, I’m not nearly as rude as I can sometimes be on these forums. I can’t deny that it’s much easier to insult someone when you’re not conversing with them face to face. On that note, you’ve acted for the most part with gentleman-like conduct and I have to commend you for that. My ill manners were more directed at the other individual who initially resorted to ugly language and you were something of an innocent bystander by comparison. This is my last post as I have finally realized, in retrospect, the utter fruitlessness of a Mac vs. PC argument. Let’s face it, I’m not going to change my mind and neither will you. For that matter, will our futile bickering have any bearing at all on the situation? I have personally never encountered any significant problems with Windows and certainly nothing on the level of what you describe with your friend’s malware issues. My university’s website makes it very clear that it is inadvisable to purchase a Mac with the sole intent of bootcamping to Windows for every session (which I will inevitably do, given the compatibility issues of many of the programs utilized in the curriculum). I’m sure the same goes for many other universities. And, one final question, as I just noticed your most recent post…why did you purchase a nehalem-based system from Apple when you could have easily built your own? The argument about the three major OSs is somewhat insufficient in the long-run, given the enormous market share of the Windows OS. Are you simply coding in OSX for fun or is it somehow profitable to target its small consumer base?</p>
<p>Actually, macbooks are the laptop of choice for the majority of students. I don’t know where you’re going, but most competent institutions are willing to support both.</p>
<p>“For that matter, will our futile arguments have any bearing at all on the situation? I have personally never encountered any significant problems with Windows and certainly nothing on the level of what you describe with your friend’s malware issues.”</p>
<p>You referred to an ad hominem argument in another post. Well, if you know what ad hominem arguments are, then you should know what anecdotal evidence is. Just the fact that there are myriad anti-malware programs out there for Windows should be a sign that there are problems in the Windows ecosystem.</p>
<p>There was a report earlier this year which stated that over one percent of PCs have active infections of ID theft malware. It only takes a little research to find that a lot of people have malware problems.</p>
<p>Congrats on Penn, I just didn’t know that’s where you were going.</p>
<p>Nothing in that document says you shouldn’t use OSX. In fact, it’s among the recommended systems. It simply says you shouldn’t buy a Mac to use Windows… which is a sentiment I agree with.</p>
<p>As for the so-called compatablity issues, I doubt you’d encounter many (you’re not even attending yet!). More and more developers are providing Mac versions, plus Mac software can seamlessly open and save many Windows formats.</p>
<p>
True, but that’s not really building from scratch. I still contend you won’t end up with as well-functioning of a machine, as the hardware and software have not been rigorously tested and integrated.</p>
<p>“As for the university I’ll be attending, it’s called the University of Pennsylvania and you might have heard of it in your history textbook.”</p>
<p>The University of Pennsylvania (commonly referred to as Penn) is a private research university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Penn is the first university[3] and the fourth-oldest institution of higher education[4] in the United States. Penn is a member of the Ivy League and is one of the Colonial Colleges.</p>
<p>I was referring to ENIAC with the history comment…I wasn’t trying to be pretentious…I suppose I should have said “computer history textbook”, assuming such a compendium exists.</p>
<p>“UNIX was literally just introduced to Macs with Leopard…”</p>
<p>I don’t know exactly what nj<em>azn</em>premed meant when he wrote this, but it’s possible that he was alluding to the difference between UNIX and Unix-like. (I’m sure BCEagle91 is well aware of the distinction, but he didn’t explicitly state it in his post #111.)</p>
<p>Until Leopard, all releases of OS X were “Unix-like.” As you can clearly see in [this</a> pdf from Apple](<a href=“http://images.apple.com/macosx/pdf/MacOSX_UNIX_TB_v2.pdf]this”>macOS Sequoia - Apple), Tiger was described as an operating system with a “…UNIX-based” foundation (emphasis mine). It didn’t have UNIX certification, so Apple couldn’t say it was a true UNIX.</p>
<p>Tiger was released in April 2005. I believe that Apple tried to get it certified as a UNIX but failed for some reason. By comparison, IBM got AIX 5L [url=<a href=“http://www.opengroup.org/openbrand/register/brand3463.htm]certified[/url”>Open Brand]certified[/url</a>] in October 2004. So, if Apple didn’t try to certify Tiger, it wasn’t because they didn’t have the time to do so.</p>
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