What's better? PC or Mac? I prefer PC, and it's what I use at home, but I also have to use a Mac in my classes at NMSU-A, so I've had experience with them both.

It seems that Macs crash more then PC, despite what the advertisements say...

Hey,
PC are much better in my opinion!!

Kev

Mac is definitely more entertaining but PC is what I am using.

As any of the 2 can run linux, they are equally good.

But if you asked about windows against macosX, I'd say osx, without hesitation.
I have to work with windows xp at work, and it's sooooo a piece of crap...

I want X with E17.
I want to be able to do anything I want without using my mouse.
I want a console that's a real console, and not a dinosaur in phormol.
I want a real file system that allows me to attach FTP like a local directory.
I want a system who allows me to really tune priorities to my programs.

Sigh...

Its all about mac's i pity windows users now! And even bring the mac to work everyday!!

Originally Posted by tripy

As any of the 2 can run linux, they are equally good.

And they both use Intel chips, even though Steve Jobs told everyone the Intel company was started by Adolph, well, you know. They also both use ATI graphics cards. The hardware is identical in every way, except that it costs 2.5x as much for a glow in the dark white apple on the back.

Originally Posted by tripy

I want a system who allows me to really tune priorities to my programs.

You can do that to at least some extent in TaskMan. You can set priority and processor affinity on a process by process basis.

I know...

But on linux, I can tune from -20 (real time) to +19 (stop process if any other process needs cpu power) any process or threads.

For exemple, when I rip a DVD, I put a +10 "nice" to the encoding thread when I work, so it won't affect what I'm doing at that time.
Another "nice" to 0 brings it back to the initial priority.

NICE(1)                          User Commands                         NICE(1)

NAME
       nice - run a program with modified scheduling priority

SYNOPSIS
       nice [OPTION] [COMMAND [ARG]...]

DESCRIPTION
       Run  COMMAND  with an adjusted niceness, which affects process schedul-
       ing.  With no COMMAND, print the current  niceness.   Nicenesses  range
       from -20 (most favorable scheduling) to 19 (least favorable).

I have both a PC and a Mac; the only thing I use my Mac for is audio and video editing (final cut pro). I will have to say the new OS for Mac (leopard) looks pretty nice.

No answer you're going to find in this discussion is going to change anyone's opinions of what is better on this often heated topic but what the heck....I'll give my two cents..... I'm a certified Unix & Windows system engineer who originally learned much about computers on a mac.

The Mac: Designed to be incredibly easy to use and pretty. Most appropriate for the artistic user or the or person who want's to think they are "hip". The hardware is exactly the same so it doesn't matter. Artistic software is the only real advantage but many of these apps are available on a pc as well. The OS is unix now since OSX but Apple has still taken alot of the power away by making it so the masses are limited in what they can screw up. Apple is very good at pushing new, cutting edge technologies. Overpriced!

The PC: By far the greatest software integration for the corporate world. Microsoft is improving in their security practices and XP was the best Windows OS to date. Vista still needs alot of help before it'll be ready. Virtually all the most powerful and industry accepted software runs on Windows. As long as you don't try to by the "bargain" pc that you see in weekend flyers for $399 and actually buy one designed for business users with high performance ratings then you should be good.

Unix/Linux: Very good value in that there is alot of freely available software solutions and by far the most powerful OS for the technically savvy user but still is lacking in mainstream acceptance and ease of use.

What it all means?.... Like I said, the hardware means nothing. I'm glad you just went out and got this great new MacPro with dual processors and all that jazz but you probably just mortgaged your life for it when you could have gotten a Dell business machine with equal power (minus the firewire....just go get an addon card) for 3 times less. If I could pick any OS I would choose Linux but the fact is if you are a business user who needs to collaborate with others then Windows is just the most appropriate. If you believe you're "hip" and have deep pockets and really believe that you're creative/artistic software is soooo much better then by all means go get a mac. To each his own....

Mac definitely. PCs are generally very rubbish. I've used Windows, Mac and Linux but Mac is best for sheer simplicity, speed and stability. I used to love Windows but these days I look at it from a different angle and from a higher benchmark - it simply doesn't cut it in the same way Mac does. Macs aren't quite as compatible as Windows, but they still have thousands of inbuilt drivers (that Windows doesn't have) and they don't have many viruses (one or 2 at the moment). It's a much more pleasurable experience - no more crashing, no worrying too much about viruses or hackers.

I love my PC for software development. I'd prefer a Mac if I was into media.

I've had a mac for 6 months... not one crash or freeze :O

o and it takes only 10 seconds to get going : O

pc but only because of the vast programs there are , to little programs for a mac in my opinion

there is LOADS of programs for mac... and they run better!

There is a cult of people who worship the MAC but the number of PC users will far outnumber them. I will say PC is good

In my opinion, PCs are better. Why?
1) They cost less
2) They can run the same operating systems
3) They often have the same parts
4) You can swap parts and customize easier
5) You are more in control

The only reason I would ever buy a Mac, is if I was loaded ($$$) and I didn't know much about computers so I wanted a simple platform. Macs are just too dumbed down and centralized. Sure, in the short run you get security, but you loose freedom in the end. (I'm sounding a lot like Benjamin Franklin)

PC, for the plethora of reasons mentioned above. It's a very good platform in reality, but the victim of a very effective viral marketing campaign by Apple. A Windows machine is less cool because it's less expensive, but it's more compatible.

As much as people wish it wasn't true, a proper Windows setup does not crash. Mine hasn't seized up in many months. We use XP Pro and Server 2003 at work. It's a very stable platform.

When half the reason to buy a Mac is (unfounded) rumors about PC's crashing, and not some good thing about Mac itself, that tells us something. It's like a negative political campaign, where you attack your opponent when you can't win on your own positive merit. Truth is, Mac computers don't have any kind of monopoly on not crashing. And stability is such a 1990s selling point.

I have to go with Apple. I currently have 3 Macs, all of which have been alive and running for 4 years plus. Before I made the switch, I owned many PC's. After a year or two, everyone of my PC's lagged in a major way. The Macs I own, They've been as strong as the day I purchased them.

Go with the Mac!

Originally Posted by Cheshire_cat

I have both a PC and a Mac; the only thing I use my Mac for is audio and video editing (final cut pro). I will have to say the new OS for Mac (leopard) looks pretty nice.

I do it all on my PC. I can edit videos and audio with free programs like Windows Movie Maker, Audacity, ect. Beware what you download though, some 3rd party software may crash the program and you'll blame windows

Originally Posted by medizac