I will be majoring in Civil Engineering, should I buy a MacBook Pro or a Windows based laptop to run drafting apps? I really love Macs but I am not really sure if the new ones will work with Windows through the Bootcamp app, plus if I buy a Mac, I guess I have to pay for a Windows Original License or download an illegal version and I don’t know exactly how to do it + I am scared to be caught for downloading illegally in the university’s wifi
Buy a PC, Autodesk 360 and Windows Microstation are the two leading Drafting Programs. Both are made for PC. As far as I know, Mac doesn’t have any good, compatible drafting softwares. Also, don’t buy a touchscreen PC, I’ve tried running Autodesk on a Microsoft Surface, it is a pain in the neck. You should also buy a hard mouse to plug into your PC. Your best options would be Dell, HP, or Toshiba. I personally prefer Dell.
I wouldn’t take advice from someone recommending Dell or HP. Steer clear of those brands; they’ll give you more problems than the computer’s worth.
I really prefer a Macbook, but do you know if thw new ones will work with windows through bootcamp? If so, how should I download Windows for free and not be caught by the university? Do any of you have a good experience with bootcamp and drafting apps?
It doesn’t matter, a Mac will run PC programs with bootcamp or parallels/fusion. You can buy a licensed copy of windows 8.x , and usually office from your campus bookstore very cheaply too. I think I paid about $30 for windows and $50 for office for mac. Just make sure to get 16Gb (preferably) memory and sufficient disk space to run 2 operating systems (usually at least 512GB). That usually means the Macbook pro laptops. I run windows for work and ubutu for school with both parallels and virtualbox.
Another option, which some colleges offer, is to use a campus virtual machine with remote desktop. You can use your campus VPN to login to it. I’d check with your school. I used it extensively when I used ArcGIS and Matlab on campus. You could get access to machines with 32-128Gb of memory and quad/octo CPU’s, while doing your other work.
I like apple because the support is very good. Apple usually fixes a broken laptop within a week, and you get very good call-in tech support. If you don’t have on-site service from Dell, it can take several weeks for repair… Other brands are worse. I would also check out external monitor support and consider a quad-core unit. You can get a 37" 4K monitor for about $400, an enormous help when using CAD, scientific, software development (e.g. matlab), stress analysis etc, or other programs you are likely to use in engineering. Just make sure that whatever you get supports at least one 4K monitor.
Currently, I have a Lenovo which runs very smoothly, and Autodesk works great as well.
Son was a dedicated Mac user through high school. Made a very painful switch to PC in college for Civil E and wouldn’t go back to Apple now. Quite happy with the productivity of the PC environment. If you go the bootcamp route you’re likely on your own if you run into problems at any point. And believe me, having significant computer problems in college can make you SOL, which is far worse than any computer problems in HS. Quite simply, for en engineering student it’s your lifeline, something you can’t live without. (true for most college students but especially for engineering)
Check the computer requirements for the colleges you’re applying to. In most cases, the engineering department will have very specific minimum requirements. Take those seriously.
Apple guarantees that all modern Macs support Windows via Boot Camp, and will provide the Windows drivers needed for your specific model. One downside is that you will have to buy and install your own copy of Windows (extra $$); Macs don’t come with Windows pre-installed (as it is on PCs). It isn’t difficult to install Windows on a Mac, but if you have trouble, you can go to an Apple Store for assistance with setup (although once Windows is running, they won’t help you any further with it).
Another downside is that you won’t have as much free storage, since you will be partitioning your drive and installing two operating systems (not just one). So you may need to pay for more storage than you would ordinarily need (more $$ on an already expensive computer).
In terms of the hardware, a Mac is basically no different from a PC (except that the average Mac has better components, for significantly more $$, than the average PC). So if you boot into Windows on a Mac, it’s no different from booting into Windows on a Dell or Lenovo. OK, there is one difference: Mac users typically buy a copy of Windows as distributed by Microsoft, and so they get a “clean” install of Windows as per Microsoft’s design, without any of the “crapware” and “bloatware” that PC manufacturers like to add.
If you use Boot Camp, you will need to reboot in order to switch between the Mac and Windows environments. If you use virtualization software like Parallels or Fusion (more $$, including annual upgrades), you can run both operating systems simultaneously (assuming you have sufficient RAM, more $$). In my experience, the virtualization software is slower and not as bulletproof as running Windows via Boot Camp, so I would go with the latter, especially for engineering software. Mac laptops all have solid-state drives and reboot quickly.
All Macs have decent GPUs, but they rarely have outstanding GPUs. If you want to run graphics-intensive software, like for 3D modeling or the latest games, you might want to look for a PC with a good graphics card instead of a Mac. Graphics-intensive Windows software will run on a Mac with Boot Camp, but it won’t necessarily run well, because the Mac probably won’t have a great GPU.