Switch From Microsoft to Apple?
We've been using MS computers for 18 years now, but I'm thinking of switching to Apple. The reason is I get so many confusing software updates & problems. For instance, MS recently wanted to install...
Forum Discussion
Apple computers have two downsides, they are more expensive initially to buy and there are fewer people around to ask for help if you have a problem. The upsides are that you do not need to spend more money for utility software like antivirus and spyware protection and the computer will be much more reliable. The Apple operating system was developed fron scratch originally by NEXT and then converted to the Apple OS X operating system so it is a very secure design from the bottom up. Windows on the other hand is based on circa 1985 Wintows NT and has only had layers added on over the years to add functionality and to limit vulnerabilities but is it still inherently unstable by its very design which has not really changed over the past 25 years. I get security updates weekly from Microsoft but at most twice a year from Apple.
One limitation with Apple is that if you do not want a laptop the only choices are the iMac all in one machines or the very expensive workstations. But for most people's needs this is not a problem.
I have had a mix of PC's and Apple computers over the past 25 years and 99% of my time doing maintenance has been on the Windows PC's. I also get better performance from the Apple operating system than any Windows operating system by a factor of two to three. I have a 2006 Apple workstation that outperforms my 18 month old HP tower computer running Windows 7.
An Apple laptop will cost about $900 which is at least $300 more than a comparable quality Windows PC with near equal support. Apple consistently provides the best customer support of any company and is way ahead of second and third place companies like Lenovo and HP.
Anything you do with the Mac will be much easier compared to Windows whether it is hooking up to a local network or Wifi or connecting to a printer. When Apple released its OS X operating systme I had a much easier time confiring a new computer than I did when I switched my PC's from Windows XP to Windows 64 - and I spent more than 20 years as an IT professional working with Fortune 100 tech companies.
For word processing and spreadsheets there is great software from Openoffice.org. The word processor from them is actually more compatible with Apple's operating system than Microsoft Word for the Mac. Any Adobe licenses for a PC app can be converted for $10 to a license for the Mac version. An Adobe Lightroom license is good for both PC and Macs so no new license is needed if you use it. You can run Thunderbird or Firefox on the Mac or the Apple browser Safari or Google's Chrome.
It is easy to setup a local network with a central NAS storage box for data and access files from both PC's and Mac's seamlessly. I can create a Word doc in Windows and save it to the network storage device and then open it on a Mac with Openoffice's wordprocessor and continue to work on it. Same applies to spreadsheets and image files.
One limitation with Apple is that if you do not want a laptop the only choices are the iMac all in one machines or the very expensive workstations. But for most people's needs this is not a problem.
I have had a mix of PC's and Apple computers over the past 25 years and 99% of my time doing maintenance has been on the Windows PC's. I also get better performance from the Apple operating system than any Windows operating system by a factor of two to three. I have a 2006 Apple workstation that outperforms my 18 month old HP tower computer running Windows 7.
An Apple laptop will cost about $900 which is at least $300 more than a comparable quality Windows PC with near equal support. Apple consistently provides the best customer support of any company and is way ahead of second and third place companies like Lenovo and HP.
Anything you do with the Mac will be much easier compared to Windows whether it is hooking up to a local network or Wifi or connecting to a printer. When Apple released its OS X operating systme I had a much easier time confiring a new computer than I did when I switched my PC's from Windows XP to Windows 64 - and I spent more than 20 years as an IT professional working with Fortune 100 tech companies.
For word processing and spreadsheets there is great software from Openoffice.org. The word processor from them is actually more compatible with Apple's operating system than Microsoft Word for the Mac. Any Adobe licenses for a PC app can be converted for $10 to a license for the Mac version. An Adobe Lightroom license is good for both PC and Macs so no new license is needed if you use it. You can run Thunderbird or Firefox on the Mac or the Apple browser Safari or Google's Chrome.
It is easy to setup a local network with a central NAS storage box for data and access files from both PC's and Mac's seamlessly. I can create a Word doc in Windows and save it to the network storage device and then open it on a Mac with Openoffice's wordprocessor and continue to work on it. Same applies to spreadsheets and image files.
