<p>Specifications</p>
<p>2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
1GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x512
120GB Serial ATA drive @ 5400 rpm
Superdrive 6x (DVD+R DL/DVDPLUSMINUSRW/CD-RW)
Keyboard/Mac OS - U.S. English
AirPort Extreme Card & Bluetooth</p>
<p>but, what about those who arent part of the apple developer connection($99/yr- still 2 expensive 4 me)? wouldnt the mac b a lot more expensiver?</p>
<p>uh no. There's about a 10% discount on the macbook pro for students and about a 7% discount on the macbook.</p>
<p>10% isnt actually alot, since macs comparable to my pc r about 2000, so i would get them 4 1800.</p>
<p>The specs for the Macbook I just listed cost around $1400 at the educational store.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that the wireless card supports A, B, G, AND N protocols; I think it is one of the first cards to do that.</p>
<p>There's more than point for point specs to compare, though.</p>
<p>Like, for example, the magsafe power connection. Or the super-thin case. Or the built in iSight. Or the keyboard with more "real" keys (more like a desktop than a laptop). Or the magnetic latch so I can just whip it open and close quickly. Or how quiet it is (never underestimate noise level on a laptop!) And so on.</p>
<p>Those are the features I use all the time, and that I paid the extra $100 premium for over a comparable PC laptop. At the same price I could have gotten, probably, 200Mhz more on the processors and 20GB more disk. Really, stuff I don't miss not having. The only thing I miss is the faster graphics. But not a big deal really, when would I have time to play games anyway :)</p>
<p>Also, nobody has mentioned the major disadvantage of a windows box- the time and money one spends on buying security software and keeping it up to date. When you have a paper due at midnight and your laptop BSODs on you, you'll wish you had a mac. Time Machine is going to be awesome.</p>
<p>Compusa is selling the base macbook for 969.99 its $80 less then the apple store and if go through fatwallet you will get an additional 2% off. </p>
<p>If all you are going to do is general stuff like surfing the internet, word processing, etc then you do not need a comp with all the bells and whistles. Heck like someone said the clamshell ibook would be just fine.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Time Machine is going to be awesome.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Unless ZFS is released with Leopard, you will need an additional hard drive to be able to run Time Machine.</p>
<p>Security on windows is simple. Here's 3 easy steps.</p>
<p>1) Use firefox.
2) Don't be an idiot on the net. Don't click those popups. Don't run porn videos that are .exe files, so on and so forth.
3) Use avast as your antivirus. There ya go. Problem solved.</p>
<p>Mac is just security through obscurity.</p>
<p>I'm surprised some people here are considering a mac just for the security.</p>
<p>gone2gofish,</p>
<p>That's not necessarily true. Back during undergrad, I remember how the sasser virus was able to spread through the network even when people didn't exchange stuff directly. All they had to do was turn their computers on and use the internet.</p>
<p>For Macs, less viruses exist because of how hard it is for the everyday computer user/hacker/programmer to create something that will run correctly. However, the same thing applies to nonmalicious programs. For PCs, users can very easily modify and create new applications...both harmful and safe. You basically have to choose which is more important to you...safety or a wider range of use. I personally choose PCs because Macs are very limited (not in specs, but in what programs are compatible with them), but I can see why other people who are satisfied with the abilities of Macs choose them.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Mac is just security through obscurity.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>That is a cute statement, but whatever it means, it is false.</p>
<p>The reason Macs are more secure is a basic one: a regular user of the Macintosh simply does not have enough privileges to make any changes that could potentially damage the system. This means that any virus or malicious code downloaded from the web only has as much power as the user who is using it, which means that it can "only" delete or make use of programs that are not essential to the functioning of the system (it's still a lot, but at least one significant aspect of viruses and malware has been thwarted).</p>
<p>The only way to put your Mac in real danger is to login as "root." If you login as root, your privileges will be unlimited. Most users are warned from logging in as root, and unless you are a hardcore Mac user, root is unnecessary.</p>
<p>You realize that since XP service pack 2, the same option has been available on PCs, right?</p>
<p>And when I said "pay for a computer, not a name", I was encouraging people to compare specs and functionality, not pop culture trends.</p>
<p>Think about it nspeds, if you were a hacker, which platform would you want to cause the most damage and grief? Windows or Macs? Obviously the one with the largest market share. If I remember correctly, weren't Mac's hacked for every day for one month? Regardless, Macbooks are nice machines, if you don't mind the limited number of apps, overpriced and underpowered hardware.</p>
<p>
[quote]
If I remember correctly, weren't Mac's hacked for every day for one month?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Source?</p>
<p>
[quote]
if you don't mind the limited number of apps
[/quote]
</p>
<p>What do you have on the Windows platform that you can't get on a Mac?</p>
<p>
[quote]
overpriced and underpowered hardware.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Find me a comparably priced system that blows the Mac out of the water. It must also include good support in case something goes wrong.</p>
<p>
[Quote]
If I remember correctly, weren't Mac's hacked for every day for one month?
[/Quote]
I believe he is referring to Bill Gates' erroneous statement about the Mac.</p>
<p>where can i go to get this fixed without paying more than the value of the computer?</p>
<p>I'd like to remind everyone that personal attacks will NOT be tolerated.</p>
<ul>
<li> The Management</li>
</ul>