<p>Are they really better or is it because those people just want to click icon -> open application and start designing. They don’t want to deal with the other stuff that Windows offers.</p>
<p>Point is, yes, Mac has an easier GUI to work with so maybe that’s why most people see it as a better computer. But then again, that GUI doesn’t offer the freedom that Windows does.</p>
<p>I don’t see why it’s better either, but I would trust people who are experts in what they do to know what the best tool for them is.</p>
<p>i am still not sure whether to buy a mac or pc, but i’m sure i will decide soon.</p>
<p>If i were to go with a mac, should I buy it through the computer showcase?
the price is not really the big issue with the computer. I was just wondering if I bought it through the university computer showcase, it would include any on-campus IT services. I am worried if it broke down while at school where I would go. I don’t want to pay extra to have someone fix my computer so if I got a mac, I was looking for a package that included that.</p>
<p>If I go the PC route, (i am thinking about the Lenovo Thinkpad but thats a completely separate issue) are there any IT services available? I saw they sold dells through michigan but I have had some extremely bad experiences with dell.</p>
<p>thanks!</p>
<p>The showcase will help you with any Mac (or PC, I think). They have a service where students can just come in and sit down with an employee and they’ll fix whatever is wrong with your computer. They only charge you if you opt for them to keep it over night, which I’ve never had to do.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t recommend to anyone to go buy a Mac just for the sake of it; though it has its benefits (and I actually have one,) it’s an expensive device, so, you should really think it through before actually buying it. Bottom line, if you have the money and consider it a true and good investment, buy it. If not, buy a (good) PC [Dell.]</p>
<p>PC’s: compatibility. There’s almost NO software out there that won’t be compatible with Windows. And that includes all types of viruses, too, to be honest. Buy a good anti-virus and you’ll be alright. Avoid NSFW-content and you’ll be alright. Don’t ever click on those ads that say “Hey! You just won $1,000,000!” and you’ll be alright. </p>
<p>Macs: reliability. You’re not going to find a lot of people that have complained about a Mac’s performance or durability. Its user interface is much… easier, smarter and cleaner. Now, the Mac doesn’t need an anti-virus, it comes with pre-installed software to edit pictures, video, music, etc. (though, compared to the Adobe Suite for example, it’s pretty crappy but it works.) You can install Win software on a Mac, and you can even install Windows on a Mac, so that’s something to consider. And, if I’m not mistaken, U-M offers Microsoft Office for a good price (worth considering, too.) Oh, and those who are wondering why are Macs better for design purposes: font rendering and display. I haven’t seen any other kind of laptop that’s truly better in resolution than a MacBook (Basic/Pro/Air.) Plus, software usually runs much faster. </p>
<p>[Apple</a> - Why You?ll Love a Mac - A Mac is the ultimate upgrade.](<a href=“http://www.apple.com/why-mac/]Apple”>Mac - Apple) - It’ll be an investment if you do buy one.</p>
<p>Truth is, if you think you can keep a PC in good conditions for a long time, just go and buy it. If you buy a Mac you won’t even need to worry about that. A Mac is a “computer for life.” I know of people who’ve had Mac for like 4 years and they still feel like new. You can pretty much take for granted that it will ‘survive’ most of what you can possibly do to it. I’ve had PC’s before and I still recommend them [Win 7 is definitely better than any other previous version of Windows, too.]</p>
<p>This entire discussion has been run by people who know little about what goes into computers, and what the difference between mac’s and pc’s are.</p>
<p>First off, macs and PC (can) have the same “hardware.” Same motherboards, processors, graphics cards, et cetera, go into both. The only difference is in the software installed.</p>
<p>Windows 7 software with an nVidia card is actually very good for ‘artsy’ things. I define ‘artsy’ pretty much as Adobe software, as most art stuff will be done with premiere, photoshop, illustrator, etc. I say this because nVidia and Adobe recently struck a deal which allows increased performance in Adobe software, given a Windows 7 driver and an NV chip card. Am I saying this is the only software artsy people use? No, but it is the most popular.</p>
<p>Apple and Adobe have been having a fight recently - its known adobe software runs very well on Macs, but with the recent Adobe Flash V Iphone 4.0 conflict, I don’t really know if that’s going to last long.</p>
<p>In terms of cost, a $2000 MacBook probably has around $1500 worth of hardware in it, meaning you pay $500 for the OS. In comparison, you can get a similar Windows laptop for around ~$1650.</p>
<p>Another things - viruses. Viruses are made by people - it isn’t the macs are “immune” to them, but rather, there are very few viruses made to target macs. Windows holds well over 80% of the market right now, and a virus programmer wants to get as many victims as possible. It would be stupid to make a virus for only mac or linux and not for Windows, since there’s so many more Windows users.</p>
<p>Also: Dell is NOT a “good” pc. The idea is laughable. Dell has deals with many major computer-part makers where they get cheap, usable pieces for much less than the market price - however, this often comes at the cost of quality. Of course, once you get past $1200 in laptops, whatever you’re going to buy [should be] high quality, regardless of the brand - but Dells aren’t particularly well known for quality among IT specialists, especially their laptop lines.</p>
<p>Macs also have a program known as BootCamp. If you buy a copy of Windows or download a copy of Linux, BootCamp allows you to run Windows or Linux on the computer in addition to the MacOS. It’s well known, legitimate, and nothing the matter with it. Macs are very nice computers, with decent hardware, and pretty great warranty/build quality - but you’re dropping an awful lot on the Mac software and Mac name, along with an issue of comparability.</p>
<p>Bottom line: Macs are good. PCs are good. Get whichever you prefer; PCs, in terms of performance, will be cheaper than an equivalent Mac. Macs have compatibility issues, but this can be worked around using WINE under a Linux boot or BootCamp in the MacOS [assuming you bought a copy of Windows to use]. </p>
<p>PS: The guy that said Windows hold the business marketplace. This isn’t true - it truly depends on the business. Most IT/software companies will use Linux, with a sprinkling of Windows/Mac. The only area where Windows reigns are the areas where people don’t know how to use Linux or mac.</p>
<p>Just a few things:</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I honestly doubt it. As you said, the problem is with the iPhone OS, not Mac OS X. I can’t imagine not having Flash on Safari! lol We still have to see, though.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>By “good,” I meant cheap and usable. I had a Dell for 4 years and never complained. There are definitely better PC’s than Dell.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Agreed. Absolutely.</p>
<p>Most science teachers I know use a mac. Back when I only used a Dell laptop, the conversion & formatting issues sending from a pc (me) to a mac (my research prof) were terrible (basically when mixing chemdraw and word documents for research reports, essays, &c). </p>
<p>Once I bought a macbook pro and ran bootcamp (which, btw, is very easy to do so don’t be intimidated if you aren’t computer-savvy), my compatibility issues disappeared. I would also recommend doing this, particularly if cost isn’t an issue. You do have to buy a mac computer if you want to run a mac operating system, because I think it’s not only difficult but also illegal to install and run mac os on a pc (and you don’t get updates).</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Did anyone say Windows held the marketplace? I think it was only said that PCs hold the marketplace. Does PC = only Windows? I thought PC = Windows or Linux?</p>
<p>Not to get off topic, but is anyone running Windows and Linux on their laptop? I wanted to partition my hard drive and install Linux. Have you noticed any performance decrease?</p>
<p>“Did anyone say Windows held the marketplace? I think it was only said that PCs hold the marketplace. Does PC = only Windows? I thought PC = Windows or Linux?”</p>
<p>The commonly accepted definition has changed a few times since the term was coined. A lot of people just use it to mean Windows… </p>
<p>“Not to get off topic, but is anyone running Windows and Linux on their laptop? I wanted to partition my hard drive and install Linux. Have you noticed any performance decrease?”</p>
<p>Can you really not find a better forum for that? </p>
<p>Anyway, I dual boot two OSs on different partitions of a single HDD, and I haven’t noticed any performance issues. I haven’t done any benchmarking but for general use, no, it’s fine. What exactly were you expecting?</p>
<p>Also, Dell is a brand. They put computer parts together. It’s pretty senseless to call a brand a “good computer” or a “bad computer.” Not only that, it’s also pretty senseless to call a Dell computer “good” or “bad” based on the brand “Dell.”</p>
<p>Note to the person who said Dells are good.
I take really good care of my computers but my dell laptop failed on me about 5 times and had to go to repair around 3-4 times. In 2 years. And its currently broken after warranty. Not saying Dells are bad but they’re not good either. Really depends on the laptop itself. [also mine was business class… shouldve bought 3-yr warranty]</p>
<p>In fact, according to the Squaretrade:
<a href=“http://www.squaretrade.com/htm/pdf/SquareTrade_laptop_reliability_1109.pdf[/url]”>http://www.squaretrade.com/htm/pdf/SquareTrade_laptop_reliability_1109.pdf</a>
Apple is better than Dells when it comes to laptop reliability.</p>
<p>Now I’m not a Mac fan and my next notebook will definitely be a pc (Windows 7 & Linux dual-boot) but I respect Apple and I know that Apple notebooks are generally reliable but not perfect. Its definitely more expensive though and not really worth the price in terms of hardware and the extra money you need to spend on special software (including the crap ms office for macs). However, Macs are quite user friendly and are less prone to viruses which is a bonus to those who aren’t tech savvy. In addition, with the apple hype, it is currently the “popular” product among many home users.</p>
<p>And I should also note that businesses are slowly picking up apple products including Mac OS and leapard servers. This transition is not nearly as fast as the consumer transition but enterprise changes in technology always takes longer.</p>
<p>I agree that dell is pretty cheap but my first laptop was a dell inspiron which I got in 2004 and it still works fine (minus the battery). Its sitting right next to me. Its pretty much dependent on personal experience. I mean I took great care of it and didn’t drop it or anything.</p>
<p>Collegebound_guy,</p>
<p>If your battery isn’t holding a charge than it just needs to be replaced. With Li-ion batteries, they need to be replaced about every year and a half or so.</p>
<p>From what I understand, PCs are Windows, Macs are Apples, and boxes are Unix/Linux, but that may just be around Cambridge (where I go to school). Idk, then, but to me, Personal Computer (PC) has always meant Windows.</p>
<p>Likewise: no, you can rate computers based on brand. Each brand assembles them using their own software and hardware (bought from others, ofc). Dell is known for using cheap parts and having terrible quality laptops and desktops for most rigs under $1000. An ASUS laptop with the same parts as a Dell laptop, I guarantee you the ASUS will be more secure and less flimsy(under 1000). Parts may be what go into it, but each brand is defined by their support and notoriety. Dell is one of the largest, but not very good for low-end budgets.</p>
<p>So does the ross school recommend/require a PC?</p>
<p>I’ll just put this out there.</p>
<p>[U-M</a> Computer Showcase: Computer Systems for Incoming Students](<a href=“http://showcase.itcs.umich.edu/systems/]U-M”>http://showcase.itcs.umich.edu/systems/)</p>
<p>Some of the recommended is probably a bit outdated.</p>
<p>i just wanted to say that i had a dell for 2.5 years. in the first 6 months my charging adaptor broke. luckily, i was under warranty and got another for free. at random times my computer would freeze with blue lines on the screen and i would lose all of my docs that were open at the time(this was running vista btw). I liked vista a lot and thought it was pretty good but the overall build of my computer just wasn’t good. after a year my battery charger broke again and i was able to get another one. At the end of my second year, 2 days after my warranty was up, my battery completely failed, and they would not replace it. It was a pretty old computer, bought 2 years after it was released bc it was on sale on black friday but i moved on to a mb pro and i love it. Its easier to use, my battery lasts 7 hours, my keyboard lights up, and I have had no hardware or software problems yet. Even if I do have one, I have AppleCare which will fix and problem for free for 4 years. That made me want to buy an apple. One more thing though-at the apple store, the warranty does not cover liquids. If you choose to buy a mac, go to bestbuy and get the black tie warranty. If a newer model comes out with better hardware you can go bac and exchange your comp for free. Plus you get lke $100 in rewardzone gift cards so it kinda pays for the warranty. that took a long time to type
EDIT and if you really need a windows computer theres plenty on campus or vice versa</p>
<p>
[No,[/url</a>] [url=<a href=“http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/29/technology/29dell.html]no”>http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/29/technology/29dell.html]no</a> it’s not.](<a href=“http://con.st/10008463]No,[/url”>http://con.st/10008463) Dell has been a scourge for years, and most consumers know it.</p>