I am going to be majoring in computer science and I have already started to learn some coding on my 2012 macbook pro just for fun and maybe to get a bit of a jump start when I start school. However I am a big gamer and macs are not the best for gaming. Would it make sense to use my macbook pro for school work and coding and getting a second gaming window’s laptop just to play games? I heard one person who did it but I never got a chance to ask them how it worked out.
Sure. My daughter’s roommate had a laptop for her school work and a desktop for her gaming activities. More than one computer is fine.
Does your school and/or major have computer requirements? Do you know what programs you will need to run and are they supported by the school on Macs? Many schools have such requirements, and I do know of some that highly discourage Mac use because of the programs being run. In some cases you can get around if with Boot Camp/dual boot but in others that’s not a good work around. Suggest doing a little digging before spending $ on a new laptop to make sure your needs are met.
My nephew is a cs major who just finished his junior year. I don’t know technicalities but I know he has two large monitors. I think he has one desktop that he uses for gaming and a laptop for most other things but it is also connected to a giant monitor when he wants. I know he built his own gaming computer. He consulted with the school before purchasing the laptop. I don’t think he has ever owned a mac.
If you’re majoring in CS, definitely check which operating system the coding you’ll be doing is more compatible with (a project partner in my CS class had issues with Python on his Mac, whereas I was fine on my Windows machine). It’s fairly common at my college (which is very techie/nerdy/high number of gamers) to have a “school” computer and a “gaming” computer, which is often a desktop with upgraded graphics cards, etc., even if both are Windows. This has the added bonus of being a safety net if you accidentally corrupt the operating system on your school computer while doing a CS assignment. Also be sure to check on the number of devices you can hook up to the ethernet at school; sometimes they will charge you if you have two separate devices.
Our kids really liked having a small, lightweight netbook that they took to and from classes while they had a bigger desktop and 2 monitors where they lived. The netbook was handy for classes and study groups but they could buy a much more robust desktop and monitors for very little money. The netbook was like a portable hard drive that could be used as a computer as well.
Wouldn’t it make more sense to have a gaming desktop?
I used a 17 inch laptop as my gaming/study laptop which I most left home or took to the library. I also used an 11 inch laptop as my note-taking laptop which is what I carried in my backpack to class.
I don’t Game so maybe this won’t apply but I just used a MacBook Pro. Works great for coding and web surfing
I don’t see why you would get a MAC for coding. Most commercial software is going to be written for Windows OS or some Linux variant.
My daughter’s college has very specific guidelines on what type of computer they suggest. I think both macs and a window’s machines are acceptable, but they do not allow desktops - I guess for space reasons - all students are required to live on campus for all four years. The school also provides several programs for free for all students like MS Office. I think they also might have suggested two monitors for one laptop (or maybe I read that somewhere else), but wherever that advice came from, it sounded pretty practical to me. I use a behemoth gaming laptop, not because I game (lol), but because I do a lot of work with Adobe Illustrator and I needed a powerful machine. I like it better than the gaming desktop that I had before because of it’s size. In any case, OP, with your current laptop being a 2012 model, I bet you’re going to need a new machine before long anyway unless Macs are known to last longer than other brands.
I am a little old lady who finds the concept of owning too many computers totally strange I love my large screen Acer desktop for writing and creating and/or maintaining articles, websites and storing documents like transcripts. The screen on the desktop makes writing and editing a dream and even the screen savers are gorgeous. I have multiple Kindles—one for downloaded books, one for movies and television from Amazon Prime Video, and a third to carry with me for fun and waiting for car repairs and such. Plus a couple others. I distinguish them by the colors of their backs and snazzy cases. If I gamed beyond solitary and sudoku, I would have a computer dedicated to that too.
My first computer was an Apple with giant, heavy black and white monitor, keyboard and very heavy cpu. One external hard drive was perched on the cpu with books on the other side to precariously balance the monitor. I was thrilled to buy a second hard drive. The cats found the set up dangerous,but loved skidding across the floor on large floppies. When asked why I’ve wasn’t using email, I explained the computer only had enough memory for space invaders.
Now thirty years later, I enjoy multiple cheap computers. It is truly a wonderful world. I find a really nice desktop and designated Kindles satisfy my computer needs. Today you can buy a computer for every need cheaper than one computer in the dark ages.
Sure that makes sense, although as others have suggested I might invest in a gaming desktop instead (or build your own). Although I agree that I don’t necessarily think a Mac is the best choice for a programming student…but, I am admittedly very biased! (I work for Microsoft.)
Current CS major here, going to be a senior in the fall. Most CS students at my U, including me, have MacBooks/MacBook pros. They work really well for programming! At my school, most of our coding is done by remotely logging into our schools Linux boxes (the physical Linux machines are in a major only lab, that we can get to) anyways. A big benefit of a Mac is since most programmers use Linux, and at my U at least, we are taught Linux commands extensively, Macs are easier to use, since they are also UNIX based. The Linux command line skills directly transfer over to a mac, while on Windows, command prompt is quite different.
Also, at my internships, while the computers have usually been windows, we never actually program on the windows side. Our running joke is that Windows’ sole purpose is to boot up your Linux VM (no offense, juillet).
Another CS student here - Mac or Linux is the best for a CS student these days and is by far the most common, even with Windows trying to make it easier to do UNIX type stuff with a real command line. If the OP wants a gaming computer as well, that works if they can afford it.
Not really true in my experience - very dated info. Times are changing. Linux dominates the modern server world outside of the big old companies, and Mac’s are preferred for development because they’re UNIX. Even those big companies are switching to Mac. I interned at a company that was all Windows - they gave every intern a Mac and made it the start of their switch over. At my latest job, everything is Mac/Linux, and its one of the bigger tech companies around.
If you want to program for Linux, why not install Linux? A dual boot Windows machine makes more sense than having a gaming Windows laptop and a Mac coding laptop.
It’s not programming for Linux, its because they are both UNIX systems. It’s so that the code you write in one place works anywhere and you don’t have to focus on compatibility. The reality is that for personal use, Linux flavors still have lots of instability, driver compatibility issues, and lack of software support that it’s still only really the best option for power users of Linux and those who care about free software. Mac is the most stable UNIX experience out there, and it comes with a great UI and ecosystem with iPhones.
Coding on Linux is much better than coding on Windows, but Mac is a step above both. If you can afford the best for each, it’s Mac for programming, Windows for gaming. It’s not the cheapest option, you’re correct there. However, the OP has seemed to imply that they are asking more about the experience of having the setup, not for the most economical option. Sometimes paying for quality is well worth it when you interact with something as much as a CS student who games will interact with computers.
The OP also already has a Mac - if they want to get the top gaming choice, they get Windows, and also already have the Mac.
I missed the part about the OP already having a Mac, so that will work for coding. However, the OP would learn a lot more as a CS student having a machine running Linux. MacOS may be distantly descended from Unix, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get far greater control in a Linux environment.
@roethlisburger I agree completely with @PengsPhils. Macs are the best for coding+daily use. Linux is much better than windows for coding, but it isn’t really that great for personal use (Microsoft office isn’t supported, neither is chrome as far as I’m aware). You miss out on a lot of functionality- which is fine if you’re using it for servers and other power uses, but not for the college student that also has to write papers, do research online, etc. Someone mentioned above having issues running python on a mac… personally haven’t had that issue. Most things are supported now days for mac.
However, neither Macs or Linux machines are good for gaming. You want a specially designed windows machine for that (with an upgraded graphics card). If the OP can afford it, having both as a gamer is the way to go. Dual boots in my opinion have a whole host of problems that make using them not very optimal.
There is also an added benefit (albeit niche) of if you have a gaming laptop, you can as a coder learn more about parallel programming and getting really good at it by learning how to program the GPU. Lots of applications there (industry, research, gov’t, etc) … Most CPUs can only handle 16 threads or so from one program (before time multiplexing has to be used, or other creative techniques), but a very good GPU (which a gaming laptop would have, since that’s what the good ones are designed for) will have support for upwards of 10,000 threads at once. So you can massively parallel your algorithms and run things much faster.
You can use open office on Linux though that’s what I did back when I had Ubuntu studio