Gaming aside... What would you say the benifits of having a PC are over the Mac?

Originally posted by Lickable
Gaming aside... What would you say the benifits of having a PC are over the Mac?
I've never been the most computer literate of folks, and it seems that as a result I always end up with a PC running Windows...I'm very interested to hear the advantages of a Mac over the spawn of Bill Gates.

Macs are supposed to be better for design type applications, but beyond that I don't know what advantage they have over any other OS or hardware, they certainly arn't cheaper.

Originally posted by nick2
Macs are supposed to be better for design type applications, but beyond that I don't know what advantage they have over any other OS or hardware, they certainly arn't cheaper.
They always seem to make it into Hollywood films, whereas you'd be forgiven for thinking that Microsoft didn't exist from watching the same!

I think Macs are aimed at people who want something to look nice in the living "space" of their loft apartment but who actually don't do much in the way of using a computer beyond the odd e-mail or sufing the net.

They are in films beacause its easier to advertise the 'Giant Apple' of the back of them, as apposed to the tiny little windows logo on the start bar.

They are better for graphics beacuse of they way they handle fonts.

I need to know what i would be missing out on if i left the PC behind, which i am seriously thinking of doing.

I am thinking of swapping my 17" laptop for a 17" powerbook.

At the mo my laptop in terms of spec outdoes the powerbooks by a long shot, but i am not sure thats really a problem with Macs as they handle the hardware better...

Its a toughy!

There's not much to choose between them

The main difference is that with Apple, you get the software and the hardware from the same supplier.

Depending on which benchmarks you run, there isn't much to separate a top end PC from a top end Mac.

For my money, the interface design (except for the dock) is quantum leaps better on mac. Just simple obvious interface design flaws, that make working on a PC slower and working on a mac faster.

Also macs running OSX are basically running an x20 compatible *nix system, which means there is a whole host on LInux software you can run on them too. In fact OSX represents the largest sector of desktop *nix installations.

Macs are more expensive to buy, but in my experience, you spend a lot less time faffing with all the components trying to get them to work, so the total cost of ownership (including time wasted) is lower. I have a 6 year old iMac that is still fully functional, running Mac OS8.6 and crashes once a year or so.

Also Macs use motorola RISC processors, and not INtel/AMD/Transmeta - so clock speeds are not comparable. i.e theres a gulf of difference bewteen a 1ghz Mac and a 1ghz PC (the mac is wayyyy faster in normal use).

If you are an avid gamer, get a PC. Macs just aren't ever going o be gaming machines, so the range of games available is smaller.

On the plus side, only the good games really make it over, and all t he dross is left for the PC market to look at (j/k)

I like macs, but I am PC based, predominantly at the moment.

Ultimately it is just a tool, and a measure of its worth is whether it performs the tasks you require of it. I have found windows XP to be good, if sluggish (its a miracle that it boots up at all), and Mac OSX to be the same.

Swings and Roundabouts I reckon.

Originally posted by nick2
I think Macs are aimed at people who want something to look nice in the living "space" of their loft apartment but who actually don't do much in the way of using a computer beyond the odd e-mail or sufing the net.

Or laying up a national newspaper.

Macs have a far smaller user base and so are not targetted by viruses and hackers in the same ways as windows is. So your life is easier in that respect.

Also you can do anything (except gaming) in mac os x that you can in windows. Furthermore because os x is unix based you have a proper command line interface (unlike dos which is a complete load of dross) and you can use open source (i.e usually free of charge) software. e.g. the gimp graphics packages (which can be obtained free of charge) is far superior to many commercial products in windows.

Of course there is also linux to bring into the equation to. in which you can even modify the source code for operating system which is very very handy...

Originally posted by nightrider
Furthermore because os x is unix based you have a proper command line interface (unlike dos which is a complete load of dross)

Not sure if that is an advantage to the average user.

better is such a subjective term, you really need to define your terms to allow the question to be answered in a way other than subjectively.

the 'So which is better?' in the titles is meaningless. it just kept saying 'title too short' grrrrrrr!

Originally posted by Lickable
the 'So which is better?' in the titles is meaningless. it just kept saying 'title too short' grrrrrrr!

but your first post asks the same question phrased differently.
The benefits of one over the other depend on what you want to get out of it, what your requirements are etc...

Like cyclone said you need to be specific as to the area we are comparing, bast for games, best for word processing, best for running a web server, best for design tasks, best for 3D modeling etc. etc. etc.
Different OS's, languages and hardware have different advantages for certain tasks.

Thats really difficult.

I require my PC/MAC for Graphic Design Purposes mostly, but i also would like some 3D design, Music Composition & Web Design.

I Am not really intrested in Games, just the odd FPS, which i know the MAC has.

I am pretty much decided on the swap to mac, but just need to be sure i am not going to leave things behind...

I love Macs for their sheer quality and style.

Originally posted by Lickable
Thats really difficult.

I require my PC/MAC for Graphic Design Purposes mostly, but i also would like some 3D design, Music Composition & Web Design.

I Am not really intrested in Games, just the odd FPS, which i know the MAC has.

I am pretty much decided on the swap to mac, but just need to be sure i am not going to leave things behind...

As far as I know you will be leaving behind all software that only works with Windows, which is a considerable amount, but if there are Mac programs that do what you want to do that isn't a problem. I think most top of the line designers use *nix and stuff like Sun graphic workstations, but I think were talking megga bucks for that kit.

Originally posted by Lickable
Thats really difficult.

I require my PC/MAC for Graphic Design Purposes mostly, but i also would like some 3D design, Music Composition & Web Design.

I Am not really intrested in Games, just the odd FPS, which i know the MAC has.

I am pretty much decided on the swap to mac, but just need to be sure i am not going to leave things behind...

Then you will be a very happy person.

If you are working for print, then the built in color-sync software and hardware profiles is going to make your life a lot easier. All major DTP, design, vector and bitmap editing, web editing, typesetting, preflighting and proofing tools are available on the mac.

A quick look in the back of Mac User will reveal that the mac community is a very design oriented community indeed, as Macs have led the field in DTP for years and years.

I know that the Guardian is produced on Macs, as are millions of magazines worldwide. You will not be short of
a)software
b)support
c)a very well educated and knowledgeable user base

Make the switch!

Originally posted by nick2
As far as I know you will be leaving behind all software that only works with Windows, which is a considerable amount, but if there are Mac programs that do what you want to do that isn't a problem. I think most top of the line designers use *nix and stuff like Sun graphic workstations, but I think were talking megga bucks for that kit.


While it's true that you'll be leaving behind "all the software that only works with Windows", it's only a negative if you actually need any of it. Most of it is worthless dross. At least on the Mac it is distilled to get rid of most of the cruft to just leave the good stuff.

Are you thinking of SGI (Silicon Graphics) workstations? Yeah, cost megabucks but not really a problem. Most hollywood studios use Linux nowadays (Pixar et al) with a combination of open source and in house software. Cinepaint (based on the Gimp) uses a true 24 bit colourspace and runs on Mac, although for 3D I guess the OP has a preference already.

Originally posted by nick2
As far as I know you will be leaving behind all software that only works with Windows, which is a considerable amount, but if there are Mac programs that do what you want to do that isn't a problem. I think most top of the line designers use *nix and stuff like Sun graphic workstations, but I think were talking megga bucks for that kit.

You can now get Microsoft Office:mac for Mac OS X so you dont even have to give up Word etc. now.
I have both Mac & PC at home and work.
The network is PC based but my Mac is fully compatable the only problem that I tend to get is opening attachments sent via email from a Mac user to my PC.

It also depends on whether you already have all the software you need on the PC, and how much of it is dual platform compatible (some things are). In the worst case scenario you may have to shell out hundreds of quid for Mac versions of software that you already own for the PC.

If you'd asked me this question four or five years ago I'd have said a Mac was better without any shadow of a doubt, on things like ease of use, workflow, generally getting things done. Now I'm not so sure; I'm not keen on the interface of Mac OSX and like quite a few people I've never switched over to it, though admittedly most people who have done, love it. Instead I seem to be migrating the other way and to be honest I don't think there's a great deal of difference between them any more. Windows still irritates the hell out of me now and again, and so does the fact that transferring things between Windows and Macs is rarely straightforward. If you really want the best of both worlds (and can afford it), do what I do: have both, and use whichever one happens to have the best piece of software for the job.

To be honest I don't think theres an awfull lot in it. You probably get slightly more bang for your buck with a PC due to simple supply and demand pushing prices down. Macs are supposed to be more intuative with a designed rather than cobbled together interface - though being predominantly a *nix user I have to say I have found my couple of forrays into macdom intensely frustrating (that being said I haven't used macosX which is basically nicely wrapped free BSD). Basically Macs are highly geared towards design, typesetting and related activities - if this is what you want to do then go with a mac as a specific tool is almost always more usefull than a general one. If, however you want something that will do everything I would stick with a PC for it's breadth (if not depth!) of available software.

If you do dicide to change then this (http://www.apple.com/switch/) could be usefull to you :)

You can always use VirtualPC to run your Window$ applications. Im not sure what the speed penalty is or whatever infact its shipped free with the MacOS but back in the day I use to use it and it was great!

I once saw a programme about this with Jason Bradbury - aside from the gaming and cost side, the other benefit in a PC's favour was that it was easier and cheaper to repair follwing the tower being dropped 20 foot or so!!

I see both apple & wintel on a daily basis and there is nothing much in it as far as performance goes, especially in human terms.

Support is probably easier to find with PC's but is not needed as much with a mac so you pays your money and take your chance.

Those new mini Mac’s look nice though and are cheap!

Originally posted by coopster1974
I once saw a programme about this with Jason Bradbury - aside from the gaming and cost side, the other benefit in a PC's favour was that it was easier and cheaper to repair follwing the tower being dropped 20 foot or so!!

Yes I can see why you would want to launch a PC out the window. I want to launch mine three or four times most days, my Mac on the other hand behaves its self much more and I only want to launch that maybe once or twice a week.
I have found kicking the machine slightly satisfying too, which im sure doesnt do them much good.

Virus are much worse on PC than Mac not one occurance in two years on my Mac, but a weekly dose of at least one on PC's sneak in even with firewalls, mail monitors and anti virus software.

Hi,

I bought my first mac about 6 months ago having extensively used various versions of Windows for about 14 years (both at home and work). I am now a totally switched over to the mac and short of something very special coming out of Microsoft, I doubt I shall go back.

When I got my mac the thing that struck me was the amount of software you get with them. Have a look on the apple site for the details but there's a lot, and its all quality stuff - not demos and cut down versions! You probably could get by on just the software it comes with.

Ok, games are better on Windows, but then again, all the good ones get ported, and I bought an XBox for that!

Best thing to do is ask yourself what you want a computer for. If games aren't your thing, without hesitation get a mac, no crashes, you can surf the net with impunity (even the dodgy sites ;-) ) no spyware, no viruses and no popups (all without buying/installing extra software).

I cringe when I look back at all the time I've spent trying to get hardware and software working with my PCs! Its been said before, but on macs things "just work".

The macs are more expensive debate - you can buy a PC for less, but these often have cheaper/inferior components. When you compare like with like the difference disappears. Also, the useful life of a mac is much longer than a PC.

Take care.

PS, the resale value of macs is incredible, so buy one, give it six months then if its not for you stick it on eBay and you'll get most of your money back on it!

My take on the Mac vs PC debate:

PCs - Cheap and infinitely configurable

Macs - Best OS out there

Basically the Mac OS is a pleasure to use. It always has been. I never curse / fight my Mac when trying to do things, the design of the GUI is always intuitive.

I do curse Windows XP and all previous versions, they want me to conform to them rather than the otherway around and it does seem that quite a few things seem to take a lot longer to do than on the Mac.

Similarly, maintenance on the Mac is a doddle, nasty on the PC (regedit... arrrrghhh).

On the flip side, there is the cost of the machine and the configurability. The PCs can be cheaper (in all senses of the word) and there is no doubt that the range of hardware and software options is enough to boggle the mind. If you want to fiddle with your machine, you'll get bored of the Mac fairly quickly.

My advice is... buy a Mac if you want a computer to do a task and the software is available on the Mac.

Buy a PC if you want a computer because you want to fiddle with a computer, or because the software is not available on the Mac.