Stop me buying a Macbook Pro
Discussion
One effect of the ubiquity of Windows is that people tend to think that the way Apple does things is "wrong" when it's really just "different".
I've got a Mac laptop and a Windows desktop at home. Both are good machines, but the Mac is far less likely to need rebooting or to crash or hang while thinking about doing something.
Like any big(ish) purchase, it's all very well being entirely rational about it but if you want a Mac then go for it.
I've got a Mac laptop and a Windows desktop at home. Both are good machines, but the Mac is far less likely to need rebooting or to crash or hang while thinking about doing something.
Like any big(ish) purchase, it's all very well being entirely rational about it but if you want a Mac then go for it.
If you're used to MS or Linux then OSX takes a little getting used to, once done I think they're much less hassle.
personally I find it the best of both worlds, you have access to commercial apps and still have a proper x server and access to all the Linux/BSD open source stuff.
Windows to me is very long winded and cumbersome, you don't notice it so much at the time but after you've gotten used to OSX and have to use someone's PC it becomes very apparent. Not used Windows 7 so can't comment on that, still has the virus problem though.
My only gripe with OSX is the file management is over simplified and a bit limiting but there are various apps you can install to add that functionality.
personally I find it the best of both worlds, you have access to commercial apps and still have a proper x server and access to all the Linux/BSD open source stuff.
Windows to me is very long winded and cumbersome, you don't notice it so much at the time but after you've gotten used to OSX and have to use someone's PC it becomes very apparent. Not used Windows 7 so can't comment on that, still has the virus problem though.
My only gripe with OSX is the file management is over simplified and a bit limiting but there are various apps you can install to add that functionality.
Torquemada said:
jamieboy said:
but it has some fairly basic design faults
Care to elaborate?The battery life (and health) dropped significantly at less than 200 cycles.
When closed the screen bends away from the body at the corners, only the latch area is still flush.
I'm a Windows server techie. I've got a mixture of PC's/linux/Mac's.
Windows is often the most suitable solution for the user, however I don't honestly believe anyone makes laptops anywhere near as good as Apple do.
The Mac Pro is a awesome bit of design and as long as you are aware you're paying a large premium for design and name I still think it's a good buy.
Be careful to make sure there is a VPN client for the Mac for whatever type of VPN it is. Running a Mac Pro on Windows to accomodate work I feel is daft unless its for very rare occassions.
Windows is often the most suitable solution for the user, however I don't honestly believe anyone makes laptops anywhere near as good as Apple do.
The Mac Pro is a awesome bit of design and as long as you are aware you're paying a large premium for design and name I still think it's a good buy.
Be careful to make sure there is a VPN client for the Mac for whatever type of VPN it is. Running a Mac Pro on Windows to accomodate work I feel is daft unless its for very rare occassions.
Definitely get the Mac, it's what it was designed for.
I've had my Macbook Black since November 2006, 2gb ram/160 gb hard drive - it still works as well as the day i bought it, I can dual boot into Windows if needed and it has never slowed down or crashed.
I appreciate if you housekeep in Windows it will stay pretty steady but for someone like me who wants it to turn on, do its stuff, turn off and not have to worry... its perfect.
I've had my Macbook Black since November 2006, 2gb ram/160 gb hard drive - it still works as well as the day i bought it, I can dual boot into Windows if needed and it has never slowed down or crashed.
I appreciate if you housekeep in Windows it will stay pretty steady but for someone like me who wants it to turn on, do its stuff, turn off and not have to worry... its perfect.
Unless someone knows how.... for instance cutting and pasting a file is not possible. Instead you have to move it.
I write in Unix most days, so for many files I jump under the hood.
Find the NAS connectivity can be flakey compared with windows.
Also... I find I open multiple files now and again due to dragging a finger. A stupid thing but very very annoying.
I write in Unix most days, so for many files I jump under the hood.
Find the NAS connectivity can be flakey compared with windows.
Also... I find I open multiple files now and again due to dragging a finger. A stupid thing but very very annoying.
BigJonMcQuimm said:
Unless someone knows how.... for instance cutting and pasting a file is not possible. Instead you have to move it.
Cutting and pasting a file is a Windows weirdness.In the Finder, dragging a file will move it; option-dragging (or alt-dragging) a file will put a "plus" sign on the cursor and it will copy it.
BigJonMcQuimm said:
A stupid thing but very very annoying.
On that (and I know this a 'me' problem rather than an 'it' problem) - let's say I've got 100 files showing in a Finder window in alphabetical order, and I want to select from "C" through to "F". I highlight the first file starting with "C" and shift-cursor-key down to the "F"s. Except I go one file too far, and highlight the first "G". No problem, just shift-cursor-up. Except that doesn't move the bottom of the selection up, it moves the top of it up. So I've got a "G" I didn't want and now a "B" I didn't want too... 
Edited by jamieboy on Thursday 6th August 11:28
Strangely Brown said:
BigJonMcQuimm said:
Unless someone knows how.... for instance cutting and pasting a file is not possible. Instead you have to move it.
Cutting and pasting a file is a Windows weirdness.In the Finder, dragging a file will move it; option-dragging (or alt-dragging) a file will put a "plus" sign on the cursor and it will copy it.
Personally I prefer keyboard shortcuts for that sort of thing. Dragging and dropping seems a bit primary school to me
(and it means you have to have 2 Finder windows open)mouseymousey said:
It's nice weirdness though. Not sure why Apple allow you to copy and paste a file but don't allow you to cut and paste it.
I hadn't even realise that they made that distinction. I never use it.mouseymousey said:
Personally I prefer keyboard shortcuts for that sort of thing. Dragging and dropping seems a bit primary school to me (and it means you have to have 2 Finder windows open)
Why? You know that you can drill-down through the folder structure whilst dragging, right? If the folders don't "spring open" quickly enough, just tap the space bar. (and it means you have to have 2 Finder windows open)Edited by Strangely Brown on Thursday 6th August 11:34
Strangely Brown said:
BigJonMcQuimm said:
Unless someone knows how.... for instance cutting and pasting a file is not possible. Instead you have to move it.
Cutting and pasting a file is a Windows weirdness.In the Finder, dragging a file will move it; option-dragging (or alt-dragging) a file will put a "plus" sign on the cursor and it will copy it.
If you were coming from just Windows, I'd probably recommend OSX, but coming from using Linux I think you'll probably be disappointed. Once you get past the shiny new toy syndrome it's just a little bit fisher-price my first *nix. It might be a bit different if you go completely into getting an iPhone, Apple TV, etc.
Perhaps spend the cash on a mini to try it out first.
Perhaps spend the cash on a mini to try it out first.
Strangely Brown said:
mouseymousey said:
Personally I prefer keyboard shortcuts for that sort of thing. Dragging and dropping seems a bit primary school to me (and it means you have to have 2 Finder windows open)
Why? You know that you can drill-down through the folder structure whilst dragging, right? If the folders don't "spring open" quickly enough, just tap the space bar. (and it means you have to have 2 Finder windows open)Edited by Strangely Brown on Thursday 6th August 11:34
sebo said:
I like Ctrl C and then Ctrl V.
Surely you can do that on a Mac?
With regards to the comments about the WiFi card - what's inferior about it? It seems to be an A,B,G,N card.
You can Ctrl C then Ctrl V (or Apple C then Apple V) on a file, but you cannot do Ctrl X then Ctrl V on a file, although you can do on text etc.Surely you can do that on a Mac?
With regards to the comments about the WiFi card - what's inferior about it? It seems to be an A,B,G,N card.
AB said:
Definitely get the Mac, it's what it was designed for.
I've had my Macbook Black since November 2006, 2gb ram/160 gb hard drive - it still works as well as the day i bought it, I can dual boot into Windows if needed and it has never slowed down or crashed.
I appreciate if you housekeep in Windows it will stay pretty steady but for someone like me who wants it to turn on, do its stuff, turn off and not have to worry... its perfect.
That's rather strange in my experience. I had an IBM Thinkpad A30p that I bought in 2002 and used it without problem until January this year. That's 7 years. Sure I upgraded the original RAM from 512mb to 2Gb and also the drivers etc over this time. It only had a 60Gb drive but that was the largest available on that model in 2002. It probably hung about 5 times in 7 years and I regularly used it in standby mode over several weeks at a time with daily wake-ups, again no problems. It had a 2Ghz CPU and ran everything up until this year until I had to install a business application that required 35Gb of data. I've had my Macbook Black since November 2006, 2gb ram/160 gb hard drive - it still works as well as the day i bought it, I can dual boot into Windows if needed and it has never slowed down or crashed.
I appreciate if you housekeep in Windows it will stay pretty steady but for someone like me who wants it to turn on, do its stuff, turn off and not have to worry... its perfect.
That's when I bought a Lenovo W500 with 500Gb of internal hd capacity. This laptop is very fast and has a fantastic screen (1900x1200). A colleague has a Macbook pro and we 'benchmarked' our the same business application (he with XP on the MAC) and my Lenovo thinkpad was around 30% faster. In real terms, the application ran in 10mins on the MAc and around 7mins on my Thinkpad. That's a very significant difference when you're giving a demo in front of a client that's considering spending £500k. SUre my Thinkpad is black so not so trendy but hey, when you're using these things for business who cares.
Edited by Silver993tt on Thursday 6th August 11:55
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