Mac vs Windows [Merged]

[2nd_Serve]

Which one would you get and why?

I'm a high school student taking Computer Science 1 AP, and plan on taking Computer Science 2 AP.

I also plan on using it on college.

So .... It's for a student. Which is better?

And btw, I've never tried a mac before.

[Feña14]

Well, is there anything you don't like about Windows?

I got tired of the maintenance and things misbehaving so switched to a Mac, it probably took me a bit longer than most to get used to, but now I can't imagine using anything else.

Go down to the Apple store and have a little play around, you could probably get a nice student discount too.

[abenguyen]

honestly pc's have so many issues it really gonna either be the same or a little more in keeping them working 'well'. though honestly i just got a new laptop that i'm using now for $650(split 1/2 with parents) and its been working great.

its got 3gb ram, 250gb hard drive, nvidia graphics 7150, 15.4 in screen, vista 32-bit home premium and its been working extremely well.

though MAC's are just plain awesome, if i could have the option of either, i'd have both

[mucat]

If it is for computer science, PC is the way to go. There are so many software tools and hardwares to play with, you will forget about getting a girlfriend in no time.

[mucat]

Originally Posted by abenguyen

honestly pc's have so many issues it really gonna either be the same or a little more in keeping them working 'well'. though honestly i just got a new laptop that i'm using now for $650(split 1/2 with parents) and its been working great.

its got 3gb ram, 250gb hard drive, nvidia graphics 7150, 15.4 in screen, vista 32-bit home premium and its been working extremely well.

though MAC's are just plain awesome, if i could have the option of either, i'd have both

"PC" does not have issues. PC is the hardware. Heck, Mac uses PC hardwares nowaday.

[sawedust]

CSCI majors are better suited to work with PC.

Anything on the technical side, PC is preferred.

Anything on the creative side, Mac is preferred.

Ultimately, it's up to personal preference. I use a PC at home and a Mac at work.

[movdqa]

Many better universities teach with Unix (or a variant). Some college professors will flunk your program submissions if there is any sign that it was done on a Windows system.

I see a lot of professional software engineers using Macs today - especially in the open source world.

[superstition]

Originally Posted by sawedust

CSCI majors are better suited to work with PC.

Anything on the technical side, PC is preferred.

Anything on the creative side, Mac is preferred.

Ultimately, it's up to personal preference. I use a PC at home and a Mac at work.

No, Macs run Windows natively now. In fact, if you use Apple's Boot Camp software (an idiotic name, btw), you get a screen with two nice boxes that let you choose Windows or OS X at log-in.

Is OS X better than Vista? Yes. Will you need to have Windows installed for many games? Yes. (Stick with XP.)

[abenguyen]

Originally Posted by mucat

"PC" does not have issues. PC is the hardware. Heck, Mac uses PC hardwares nowaday.

sorry let me rephrase what i said.

microsoft pc's occasionally have issues but not anything big.

like a previous poster said, Mac is on the creative side, anything photoshop, movie maker all that stuff, but microsoft pc's can do that too if you get programs. pc's also work better for videogames if you are a gamer. you can play games on mac's too but you just have too look a little for them

[Hot Sauce]

PC, baby. Much cheaper, and they have better programming/customization software.

[superstition]

Originally Posted by Hot Sauce

Much cheaper

This is debatable. I personally feel the solid metal case, which acts like a heat sink and protects the motherboard from plastic case flex, the LED backlighting, high-quality keyboard and trackpad, and other features of my MacBook Pro are worth what I paid for it. Plus, the ability to run OS X as well as Windows is worth some additional cost. Given that "PCs" can't run OS X without significant hacking (and then usually have problems like lack of sleep mode), there is a steep additional cost involved in buying a "PC" if you want to run OS X, eh?

, and they have better programming/customization software.

Macs run Windows natively, but OS X is a better general-purpose OS than Vista.

[LanEvo]

PC, because its easier to use, Apple sux, i hate the mouse also one button click, wth 2 buttons is so much better also Windows format is easier to use

[superstition]

Originally Posted by LanEvo

i hate the mouse also one button click, wth 2 buttons is so much better also Windows format is easier to use

All Macs come two two-button trackpads and mice. My MacBook Pro even has a three finger control trackpad. Try again.

[superstition]

The "Mac vs. PC" debate is dead. Macs are PCs, only with the ability to run OS X without hacking.

That's it. That's the only difference, aside from the feature set of the hardware.

Is it worth it to pay a bit extra to get native OS X? Absolutely it my opinion. If all you're going to do is play games, though, it's not worth it.

[0range]

Competition for market/user base will only make both better.

[Hot Sauce]

Originally Posted by superstition

This is debatable. I personally feel the solid metal case, which acts like a heat sink and protects the motherboard from plastic case flex, the LED backlighting, high-quality keyboard and trackpad, and other features of my MacBook Pro are worth what I paid for it. Plus, the ability to run OS X as well as Windows is worth some additional cost. Given that "PCs" can't run OS X without significant hacking (and then usually have problems like lack of sleep mode), there is a steep additional cost involved in buying a "PC" if you want to run OS X, eh?


Macs run Windows natively, but OS X is a better general-purpose OS than Vista.

The price isn't really debatable. PC's are generally much cheaper than Macs. Macs are probably built better (with the features you have listed), but as far as I know, they don't have the option of cheaper notebooks that college and university students could be looking for. In my opinion, it really comes down to preference of the user when choosing between a Mac or PC notebook in the same price range. I don't know why anyone would want to run OS X on a PC, though. XP or Vista do just fine.

[Hot Sauce]

Originally Posted by superstition

All Macs come two two-button trackpads and mice. My MacBook Pro even has a three finger control trackpad. Try again.

Can Macs use any mice or does it have to be exclusively the Apple ones?

[shavenyak]

I was a PC user since DOS. When I went back to school I bought a Mac and I'm happy as a clam. I use Boot Camp to run windows XP for gaming, which it does fantastically well (Macbook Pro), and use OSX for anything else. With the ability to run pretty much any OS you want on it's own partition, it's a great machine for Computer Science, IMHO.

[shavenyak]

Originally Posted by Hot Sauce

The price isn't really debatable. PC's are generally much cheaper than Macs. Macs are probably built better (with the features you have listed), but as far as I know, they don't have the option of cheaper notebooks that college and university students could be looking for. In my opinion, it really comes down to preference of the user when choosing between a Mac or PC notebook in the same price range. I don't know why anyone would want to run OS X on a PC, though. XP or Vista do just fine.

It is debatable if you compare quality component specs.

[shavenyak]

Originally Posted by Hot Sauce

Can Macs use any mice or does it have to be exclusively the Apple ones?

OSX has the drivers for evey mouse made built in, so if you want to plug in your 17 button logitec gaming mouse, it will run it just fine.