[mics0606]

need some help. i need a new computer...actually 2 a desktop and a laptop. i am familiar with pcs and have built my own. i own my own business and the computer will be running some cad programs and it will def. be a drain on the system. macs seem alot more expensive and i used to hate them. but now im not sure it seems like theyve come along ways from where they used to be. i would be getting a new mac pro 2quad core 3 gigs mem and someother stuff..more top of the line. it hits about 8-9k just not sure if the price tag is worth it. id also have bootcamp and parallels on it. any input/help would be great

[VegasACF]

Originally Posted by mics0606

need some help. i need a new computer...actually 2 a desktop and a laptop. i am familiar with pcs and have built my own. i own my own business and the computer will be running some cad programs and it will def. be a drain on the system. macs seem alot more expensive and i used to hate them. but now im not sure it seems like theyve come along ways from where they used to be. i would be getting a new mac pro 2quad core 3 gigs mem and someother stuff..more top of the line. it hits about 8-9k just not sure if the price tag is worth it. id also have bootcamp and parallels on it. any input/help would be great

You're not going to get a sales pitch out of me. Decide what works best for you, make the decision, make the purchase, and live with the consequences (be they good or bad). It matters little what anyone else says. I've got both, I'm proficient with both, I just choose to use a Mac 9 times out of 10, because it suits my style.

As I mentioned, my experience would lead me towards a Mac (or, in your case, two), because of ease of use, available power, integration with my style of working. Add to that the flexibility of running Windows as well from the same machine and it seems, to me, like a no-brainer.

But I can only speak for myself. The three things that I list as plusses above may be minuses for you. The "ease of use" to which I refer may prove to be frustration on the part of someone who has never experienced the Mac life. The "available power" may not prove sufficient for whatever you're doing (you don't say, so it's impossible to say). The "integration with my style of working" comes from a mostly right-brained sense that has been forced to work in a left-brained world. This may not be easily adaptable to your way of doing things.

More info on what, specifically, you'll be using these computers to do would prove helpful. But, again, you'll get no sales pitch from me. It really makes me no difference what you buy. My Apple stocks are doing fine, and one more or one less user isn't going to affect that. What matters most is what works best for you.

[mics0606]

thanks for the post..... i tried a mac pro for about an hour. (granted thats not much time in the scheme of things) the setup of that part. mac wasnt that great but i could open and close programs, while watching an movie and playing music and nothing skipped or paused and everything went smooth and fast with no lag.
the reasons im leaning more ttowards mac, and please tell me iff im wrong,supposedly anything with a usb pretty much already has the drivers on there, doesnt have driver issues, faily compatable with othe hardware and software. i liked the power i had at my fingertips and it didnt seem to bog down at all, the ability to run microsoft (blah...like linux) is a plus not to mention ive heard rumors of mac comming out with the ability to do a triple boot. as well as it seems alot more stable and resistant to viruses, spyware and malware. as of now im leaning more towards macs. i guess im more looking for a good reason not too buy one. besides some onesided person saying they're "simple" machines or something stupid...i didnt like them 8 yrs ago but it seems like theyre better nnow and ahead of windows by a bit.

[Headrush]

Can you be more specific on the apps you need to run?

Frankly a few hours really isn't an evaluation. Anyone coming from long term use of another OS, whether Windows or Linux is accustomed to that OS and anything in OS X may appear strange/odd wrong initially.

Since you can dual boot Windows even if you decide that you prefer Windows for some things or have a specific Windows only program, you have the option to boot Windows also. In addition there are a couple OS X apps like VMware and Parallels that will lets you run Windows apps directly inside of OS X.

AS to USB, it depends on the device. Most keyboards, mice, flash media, are fairly standard based and work fine, but some devices still need specific OS drivers. (Printers, custom devices) Nothing Apple can do about that, its a manufacturer issue.

The decision to switch is a personal thing, but I think with the switch to intel based system, Apple has taken away many of the possible disadvantages and makes it a win win situation.

I can tell you that of all the customers I have that have made the switch to OS X, not a single one has been disappointed with the decision. (YET) ;-)

[millersandy_sm]

i ve been thinking about getting a mac as well, and been reading a lot about it. Its good post to know what real people (not sales people) think about both systems.

[ferrija1]

You'll probably want to get Windows, if it is for business and if you will be using CAD apps.

[mics0606]

head rush
there will be carlson cad and then one other cad program yet to be named (still narrowing down) accounting software. pic and video editing software (my girlfriends so i dont know the names) thats it in a nutshell... some computer games i hope this helps. i do like how the macs have gone with the intel processors. personally i like the AMD's more and i would have liked those chips.
now when i was "testing" the macpro it great as far as speed goes..faster at opening apps and programs with a dvd playing and music (w/o skipping) than any pc ive seen. if i duel boot with windows can i expect the same "reaction" or is it just OS X is "optimized" for that particular setup and windows will still lag a bit?

[ferrija1]

Originally Posted by mics0606

now when i was "testing" the macpro it great as far as speed goes..faster at opening apps and programs with a dvd playing and music (w/o skipping) than any pc ive seen. if i duel boot with windows can i expect the same "reaction" or is it just OS X is "optimized" for that particular setup and windows will still lag a bit?

If you boot Windows (with Boot Camp) on a Mac with an Intel Xeon processor and 2GB of RAM, if will be pretty much the same as booting Windows on a PC with the same hardware.

[bjking]

I teach "computers" to elementary kids and teachers etc. I also do the maintenance and upkeep on both Mac and PC, so I have both at home. I prefera the Macs at work because I can service a bunch of machines and the time it takes to troubleshoot 1 pc. Also, If the Mac has an operating system problem, I can just install a new operating system and leave the old one in there, so I don'e have to initialize (or format) the hard drive. Neither the kids nor the teachers can screw them up so easily. Mac boots faster and is very user friendly. Doesn't seem to get viruses. Less complicated and more given to the drag and drop approach to doing things.

PCs, on the other hand are much more common, and their initial cost may appear to be slightly higher, but in the long run macs are cheaper because there aren't so many operating problems. Unless you buy a notebook, the pcs take up a lot more room, and the ITs seem to prefer the PC for all the quirks and stuff.

I like both, but I must say that when my pcs won't work with the districts windows based servers and programs, I can always switch to a mac and get done what need to be done and go on with the business of the day.

[ferrija1]

Originally Posted by bjking

PCs, on the other hand are much more common, and their initial cost may appear to be slightly higher,

They actually appear to be cheaper, but then, as you said, there are plenty of other fees.

Originally Posted by bjking

but in the long run macs are cheaper because there aren't so many operating problems. Unless you buy a notebook, the pcs take up a lot more room, and the ITs seem to prefer the PC for all the quirks and stuff.

That's how they keep their jobs.

Originally Posted by bjking

I like both, but I must say that when my pcs won't work with the districts windows based servers and programs, I can always switch to a mac and get done what need to be done and go on with the business of the day.

That's what's so great, they just work.

[exegete]

According to Leland at Musings From Mars has done extended comparisons of actual comparable systems, and generally Macs are cheaper.

[ferrija1]

With just the computer and OS, Windows machines are cheaper since more are sold.

[VegasACF]

In what vacuum does that economics equation exist?

[ferrija1]

When more things are sold, it doesn't cost as much....

[JackAndCoke]

I think he's talking about economies of scale where the cost per unit decreases because of the volume of production. Yes, they do make a lot of PCs, but a PC with comparable hardware components to a Mac costs about the same.