brad's Experience - Mac versus WindowsMay 07 '03 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line The Mac is a great-system for-the most common of computing applications. For power-users and those who like-to multi-task, Windows wins hands-down. In-general, though, the Mac seems to-be more user-friendly.
Hello. I’m back to share more about my “switch” from the Windows world to the Mac world. I have some good news and some bad news. Those of you thinking of switching, please take notes. First off, I originally used the Macintosh operating system (from here, “OS”) when I was in high school. I’m not sure of the version, but the years were 93-95. I didn’t touch the Mac until I decided to switch over in August of last year (2002). At the time, my 17” iMac shipped with Mac OS X 10.1 installed. However, it also included the “Jaguar” update, OS X 10.2. I updated the OS to 10.2. In order to truly reflect my experience, I should note the hardware specifications of my Apple computer: Motorola G4 processor operating at 800 megahertz, front side bus at 100 megahertz 1024 megabytes of SDRAM 80 gigabytes of internal hard drive storage, operating at 7200 RPM So how’s my Mac experience going? It’s going rather well, considering what I use it for. Then again, I could do more, and therein lies the problem. I’m going to compare the usage of this system to that of a Windows computer, of which my family has in our home, in my father’s office. Following are the relevant specifications of that computer: Windows 98SE (updated) Intel Pentium 3 processor operating at 733 megahertz, front side bus at 100 megahertz. 256 megabytes of SDRAM 15 gigabytes of internal hard drive storage, operating at 7200 RPM Another relevant point to arguments: my Internet access speed averages 1400 kbs. I’ll start with simple, regular, typical computing applications. Web surfing. Internet Explorer for the Mac is horrible. It takes, probably, 50 times slower to render (bring up) webpages. This is a very rough estimate, but considering that on the Windows machine, when it brings up webpages almost instantaneously, while on the Mac, I have to wait at least two seconds, I would say the comparison yields an outstanding victory for Windows. Then again, after Apple released its own Web browser, Safari, the results changed. Safari renders webpages just as fast as IE on Windows, and to me that was impressive. However, Safari is only in Beta stage, and the bugs are noticeable. Apple’s Safari needs a lot of work, as it is not compatible with a lot of online services, whereas its OS X counterpart, IE, does work with most online services (although sometimes this is an OS X issue – some services only work with Windows). All in all, the nod goes to Windows. Web surfing is faster, and with the multi-tasking debate on the table, Windows wins hands down (more on the “multi-tasking debate” later). Email. POP3 email performs just as well as the Windows computer. There isn’t a thing to dispute this claim. POP3 is a matter of downloading, and the Mac performs just as well, in downloading or uploading information as a Windows computer, at least for this purpose. As for Webmail, which is more and more becoming the trend, I’ll refer you to the Web surfing points I made earlier. Office applications. Word processing. Absolutely no complaints here. And by the way, I’m comparing Office XP for the Mac to Office 2000 on the Windows computer. As for Excel or PowerPoint, I haven’t used them, so I can’t comment. I imagine the experience is the same as with MS Word, for either platform. Since these are offline applications, if the system has enough power, which both do for these applications, performance isn’t an issue. However, I’ve had problems uploading data from Word on the Mac to the Web, in simple text format. Actually, for every review I write for Epinions, I have to compose it on my Mac, email the document to the Windows computer, and upload the text to Epinions from there. Simple copying and pasting hasn’t worked for me, to Epinions. Doing so results in illiterate characters embedded within the text, and that is embarrassing (and resulting in poor ratings). I’ve tried it three times, and it didn’t work on any attempt. However, composition of any Word document on the Mac, and emailing it to anybody, whether it’s a simple letter, a resume, or a piece or work, I haven’t had any compatibility problems. The text comes out on Windows just as I composed it on the Mac. Strange, but true. Okay, now we get to general performance issues. The Mac is pure and simple, slower than Windows. This is the biggest issue. Reliability comes in a close second. More on that later. If I launch an application, it generally takes two-three seconds, if not more, to open up. This is very disappointing. The same applications, or like applications, on Windows, boot up almost instantaneously. Example: Word on Mac versus Word on Windows. On the Mac, probably three seconds. On Windows, one second. Boom. It’s there. Acceptable, but annoying. Multi-tasking. Phew. Apple made a smart move by implementing the “dock.” The dock contains your most used applications. You can customize the dock to contain whatever you want. In many ways, it is a lot like Windows’ “quick launch” bar (within the task bar). If it weren’t for the dock, multi-tasking on the Mac would be very difficult, compared to Windows. Even as it is, multi-tasking is a major pain. Example: just the other nite, I was playing poker with some people on Yahoo. I had some instant messages coming up, and iTunes playing. Every time I wanted to go back and forth to the instant message windows, I had to minimize, maximize, back and forth, and so on. And of course, in the middle of it, if my play list quit on iTunes, I had to put a virtual halt on whatever I was doing, simply to start up another play list. With Windows, everything is in the taskbar, and that is very convenient. Apple must improve on the dock function to compete with Windows. If you want to get things done, Windows beats OS X every time. The mouse problem. Bundled with any Apple computer is a one-button mouse. I gave up trying to use that thing after six weeks. Spent $20 and bought a Logitech Mac-compatible two button, wheel, optical mouse. The best $20 I ever I spent. Sorry Apple, but right clicking is a must, especially for simple Web surfing. Yikes. Then there is the matter of copying and pasting. In general, with the Mac, it doesn’t work. That’s right; if you want to copy, say, a URL (web address), you have to highlight, go up to Edit, select Copy, select New Window, highlight the open URL, and then paste it in. Phew. With Windows, right-click, copy, go up, double-click on open URL, and paste. The difference? Probably 20 seconds. Sorry, but in my world, that’s a long time for such a simple function. The whole copy and pasting function is a nuisance on the Mac. It takes several more clicks, on average. On Windows, the right-click menu offers far more options than on the Mac. On the Mac, the right-click menu is very limited, and it actually varies, from situation to situation, noticeably. The inconsistencies of this all-important function on today’s applications should not be understated. The “proprietary” problem. Apple doesn’t believe in open standards, this much is obvious. Example: one of my good friends is certified and computer knowledgeable beyond belief, on Windows, Linux, Unix, and Apple. I wanted to upgrade the RAM on my iMac. It was shipped with 512 – two 256 modules. I guess “anybody” can upgrade one of the modules, but the other is buried inside the machine, beneath about three sets of screws. If you go far enough, the warranty is void. To make it short, his know-how aside, I had to take the machine to an Apple dealer to fill out the maximum allowable memory on this machine – 1024 gigs. Another example – the power cord. What happens if that fails? Unlikely, but I would probably have to pay Apple $50 for a replacement, while on Windows PC, I could probably pick one up for $10 (new or used). This machine does not have PS/2 connectors for old mice or keyboards. Everything is USB, as far as the mice and keyboard. About all this machine has on a standard Windows PC is FireWire. Then again, most Windows computers come with USB 2.0 ports these days. That levels the playing field. Apple, has, so far refused to adopt USB 2.0, fearing the loss of market share from its proprietary FireWire port (IEEE 1394). In Apple’s defense, it came out with FireWire 800, a standard port that, by far, exceeds anything else, including USB 2.0. Although, FireWire 800 is not available on iMacs, to date. I suppose I am digressing from the OS X topic at hand. To return to subject, I will note the positives of the system. Reliability. I can’t count on Windows. Can you? How many times have you lost documents, emails, projects, or files, due to Windows-related problems? For me, it’s countless. I’m not even talking about viruses. Windows can be somewhat excused for the virus problems, as those who write viruses generally intend to harm as many people as possible. Since the Windows world has, roughly 94% of the desktop market, it only makes sense for most of the viruses to be left for Windows. If you run a Mac, the chances of you infecting yourself with a virus are incredibly slim, compared to Windows. It’s almost to the point of not worrying about anti-virus software. As for “crashing” problems, well, Windows is the king of the crash. I’ve used almost every version of Windows that is out there, and only Windows 2000 makes me comfortable. If I’m using any other version of Windows, I’m clicking the save icon about every ten minutes. With the Mac, I can leave an unfinished project sitting on a sleeping Mac for days. No worries. Worried about some sudden error message? Hah. Won’t happen on the Mac, at least not worth mentioning, compared to Windows. Even matters of installing software of hardware, the Mac kicks major rear. If you want to install a piece of hardware on a Windows machine, you better have the exact drivers disc ready on demand, right along with the Windows OS disc, just in case. What a nightmare. How many times have I been prompted for “insert Windows 2000…disc?” Too many. It’s ridiculous. If you pop in a CD-ROM application disc, you’ll never need to reach for your old Mac OS discs. If you download something from the Internet, a piece of software, Mac OS will GUIDE YOU THROUGH IT! Windows will sit there and ask you a have a dozen questions, probably give you some sort of error message, ask for an OS disc, tell you something “might be wrong,” or the like. This is where the Mac really is impressive. If it’s installing hardware OR software, the Mac is a cinch. Somebody came up with the phrase “plug-and-play.” I first heard it when USB 1.1. ports arrived for Windows computers. That is the biggest crock I’ve ever heard. FOR Windows. With a Mac, plug-and-play is REAL. This is especially true with FireWire. So far, I’ve connected an obscure branded external hard drive and an iPod to this machine, and in both cases, the installations were as straightforward as I can imagine. The same external drive works with Windows. I’ve had to install, re-install, and re-install that drive every time I’ve used it on the same Windows machine, and I’m using the “unplug” function. I guess this is my rant for Mac OS X. I could go on further, no doubt. You should take from this review the following points: * Windows is faster and better for multi-tasking * Windows computers use “standard” equipment, minimizing costs for repairs, enhancements. * The Mac is better in terms of reliability. Mac OS will not crash, and you will find, by far, fewer error messages in anything that you do. * Gotta say it, Mac OS is “prettier.” Enough with the blah. The graphical interface of the Mac OS simply brightens your day, compared to the stone cold Windows look. Hope this helps. Yours, brad.  |
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