Why did you switch?

I did search this, and there doesn't seem to be a thread.

So, I was wondering what your main reason was for switching to the Mac platform.

Personally, I didn't switch: i never owned a Windows box, and I always wanted a Mac, but had no funds. Stability was my main reason I suppose, and I never liked the Windows GUI.

looking forward to hearing some interesting answers.

I switched because, with the purchase of my first iPod (iPod Nano 3rd Gen), my father became interested in Apple. Before that, he’d never even heard of Apple or Macs.

He demoed one at the local AARS, and bought a 2007 20” iMac on the spot.

I switched because of the following reasons:

1. When I moved into my current apartment, my roommate had a mbp and began showing me all of the things he could do on it - needless to say I was amazed.
2. The ability of all apple products to sync seamlessly together - this was huge for me as I need all of my devices to be on the same page for school and work.
3. The design- this is huge for me...is there any tech family of products that look as nice as apple products? To me, not even close.
4. I was very tired of windows OS.

All in all, the two most important things to be are design and seamless syncing as I have an iPhone, iMac, MBP, and iPad...it is amazing how everything works together to make me extremely efficient

1. UI of OSX
2. Design of the iMac bought me the first second I saw it
3. As I am not 18 any more, I was sick and tired of spending time trying to make Win machine just the way I want it to be. I wanted something that simply...works.

I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.

And like bentharour I was sick of Windows!

It was a long road for me. 16 years as a network engineer with experience on nearly all other operating systems save for Mac and OSX.

My previous laptop's fan died and since it was 4 years old I decided to just go on and get a new one rather than start investing in bandaids. After looking at a $4600 Windows 7 laptop, I thought I would check out the MBPs to see what they were offering. They offered the same stats (CPU, RAM, Video) I was looking for for $1200 less. After I found out I could dual boot to Windows 7 and run all my expensive software without worrying about swapping licenses, it was a no-brainer.

So now, I have a 17" top of the line MBP where I divide my time between OSX and Win7 at about 80%/20%.

I am just happy to be able to render my backlog of videos again without having to pause the action to put the PC to sleep to cool down...

I also never switched. Been using Macs since primary school.

Sick of Windows. Tried Linux and liked it so decided to give Mac a try and me and my wife were hooked.

1. Final Cut Studio
2. Better Machine
3. Better OS

Never switched either.
I have only been using a computer since I bought my first iMac G4 17' (lamp design) back in 2002 (I had one of the first in the UK).

Deckyon said:

...After looking at a $4600 Windows 7 laptop...

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Was it lined with gold?

I have only been using a computer since I bought my first iMac G4 17' (lamp design) back in 2002 (I had one of the first in the UK).

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Have you still got it? I hear these have somewhat of a cult status.

robduckyworth said:

Was it lined with gold?



Have you still got it? I hear these have somewhat of a cult status.

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No I sold it when I upgraded to my current Mac. I was kind of reluctant to let it go really, and wish I'd kept it, as I didn't get as much for it as I'd have liked. Still, thems the breaks!

I actually didn't plan to switch. Years ago I touched Apple briefly because I built an Apple ][ (I got bored, don't ask), but then started with PCs using DoubleDOS, MSDOS 3.2 (I think), Worries for Workgroups and anything following, as well as just about any UNIX going (SunOS, Solaris, AIX, HP UX, SCO, *BSD and Linux) until I sort of settled on a combination of Windows XP and OpenSuSE.

However, I bought a MacbookPro as part of the research for a book I'm writing as the battery life seemed attractive and I needed to work with OSX for the book to be complete. When I started to use it properly (after accepting that Apple doesn't seem to think much about decent keyboard navigation by omitting Home/End/PgUp/PgDn and even Delete keys) I discovered OSX was probably the most productive platform I'd used in a while - no distractions, no endless interruptions for updates patches and virus scans (well, OK; until I mistakenly allowed Adobe products onto the machine), and as a laptop the Macbook beats the bejeezes out of all the other ones I'd used so far - and none of them were exactly cheap either.

In the 6 months following purchase I converted to OSX, with the last vestiges of Windows now hiding in a Parallels partition which I use every 2 weeks or so (and I have to plan for as it takes a good 10 minutes for it to catch up with patching). I sold 2 laptops and one desktop, with one left on standby as standalone Windows/Linux box which holds things I haven't got around to convert. I use OpenOffice and occasionally iWorks (although I still haven't worked out how to do my own templates as a sort of home approach to DTP), and for client compatibility I have MS Office for Mac (thankfully the version before the infamous productivity killer the "ribbon" was introduced). I use Omnigraffle for diagrams and a bunch of other things, and in the background I have compilers installed to use stuff like Wireshark and Etherape if I want to go under the hood to use its BSD origins.

The list of "better than Windows" doesn't end there, but I'm sure you have other things to read.

I have been recommending the silly thing ever since(*) .

Just one thing you will have to pry from my cold dead fingers: for precision work I still prefer my trusty Logitech Anywhere MX mouse over the trackpad or the Apple mouse (which is too flat, and I *like* buttons .

(*) As a matter of fact, especially where security demands are high I see more and more Macs appear because it's simply less work to keep the system contained. I know of a number of Swiss private banks which have switched wholesale, but I don't know how well Apple has developed enterprise management for OSX. The gap here is decent file storage..

We finally made the switch because I was tired of dealing with a glitchy Windows OS. We were always have some sort of issue with it. Everyone I spoke to absolutely loved the Mac OS. I can see why.

One thing I noticed is how nice iTunes runs on a Mac. It's a horrible slow pig on a PC. The cynic in me thinks Microsoft purposely bogs iTunes down to get people to use their Windows Media player.

I am one happy Mac customer!!

I've been a PC user since the DOS days, before Windows was even an OS. I've been teaching computer software at the high school level since then, too. I've owned systems (and upgraded) from the 2400 baud modems and single-speed CD drives up. I'm a long-time Windows user and I know the OS and software well.

When my older two children went to college, I got them Dell systems: one a desktop (which lasted an incredible length of time), and one a laptop, two years in a row. Neither system was cheap. After a mere 18 months, the laptop my daughter had began having multiple problems. No extended warranty and repairs at Dell took forever. In college with no working computer while it was being repaired, she relied on the university computer lab. Three-fourths of the lab were PCs, one-fourth was Macs. All of the PCs seemed to always be taken when she went to the lab, so she went to the Macs and quickly learned to love it. We finally ditched the ever-failing Dell laptop and bought her a MacBook in 2006 (still going and she still loves it). She'd been trying to convert me ever since.

Each year I've been watching as my students migrate to college and they're all buying Macs. Curious. I'm teaching them Windows software, but they're buying Macs. Something has to be up with this phenomenon.

When my youngest son left for college last year, we gave him the option of a computer: PC or Mac. There was no question in his mind: he wanted a Mac. Off to the Apple store we went.

So when my desktop started failing (a 2003 model Dell Dimension), I had to see what this was all about. I knew I wanted to replace it with a laptop for a variety of reasons. Since I do a great deal of graphic and web work, everyone I spoke with told me that a MacBook Pro was the way to go.

Wow. I got my MacBook Pro about a month ago. While there has been a bit of a learning curve, I have absolutely been blown away by the capabilities of this machine. I am able to do things so much more quickly (and in a much more logical manner, truthfully) than I was before. The graphics are stunning. Communication with other devices (my iPod, my iPhone) are perfect. Working with the Adobe suite is remarkable compared with a Win system. I couldn't be happier.

Now I see what it's all about and why my students were taking this route. I'm glad I took their lead and decided to switch. While I continue to teach on Windows software every day, I'm happy to come home to my Mac.

I never cared much for the classic Mac OS. My limited exposure to it in the computer lab in college, back around 1989-1990, didn't impress me that much. Eh… what can I say… I actually liked DOS. My first PC, the only off-the-shelf brand I've ever had, came with a couple different makes of DOS and a GUI called GEM. I made the most of it for a few years and when I was finally on track with my career and able to afford a more current system, I did my research and eventually decided to build my own PCs, an experience I never regretted. Here, I was starting with Windows late in the life of v3.1 and when Windows 95 came out, was pretty enthralled with it and really dug in to make the most of it. I self-taught myself a lot of tricks, and even got handy at manually editing the registry.

Shortly into Windows XP, I became increasingly disenchanted with the bloat and burden of maintaining and securing it. Not to mention the activation scheme, which I absolutely refused to play ball with. I started reading good things about OS X, and being impressed with it being redone on Unix, I decided to pop for a PowerBook about 7 or 8 years ago when I was in the market for a laptop for the first time ever and figured it'd meet my needs. Within weeks, I was absolutely and utterly SOLD on OS X. It took 2-3 more years, but I made the switch entirely and have never looked back. I keep Windows around on my Mac since the switch to Intel, and even tried to like Windows 7, but trying to navigate that just fries my brain. What a chaotic design.

It's a bit ironic actually. I always abhorred the Mac zealots who'd bash Windows and were just generally annoying and obnoxious. They were one of the reasons I frowned on Macs for years. Now I'm one of them.

Hmm - simple question. Do you teach your students Windows, or how to use a computer?

I know Microsoft would want you to consider the two the same, but there are ways in which to teach use that do not tie to a specific system, and I guess you have now experienced why this is. If you teach people the principles of a desktop (windows, movement) and the principles of word processing and spreadsheets you can do this without being specific about the platform - everyone wins.. (just my opinion).

I mainly teach higher-end software: the Adobe suite in conjunction with desktop publishing and web design. Since many of them actually are never formally taught about file structure, folders, storage, maintenance, back-ups, installation of fonts and other elements (like brushes and custom shapes into the Presets folder in Photoshop), I end up teaching them, in a roundabout way, about the operating system. Windows is all I have available, since my school district only uses Windows.

Knowledge is transferable: I've learned this since I've been teaching for so many years. Knowing how to do something on the Windows OS is similar to doing something on a Mac OS, but slightly different. Knowing how to organize files and then find them on either system uses the same concepts. Photoshop behaves slightly differently when used in Windows than when used on a Mac. Now that I myself am using both platforms, I am better able to educate my students about the differences (although subtle) between the two.

I've found recently that even though my current students have literally grown up with computers all of their lives, many really don't know how to effectively operate one. Little things like CRTL + Home (on Windows) gets you to the top of a web browser page (or a three-finger swipe on your Mac touchpad) are things I've always known but they are not aware of.

I also must be very objective in the classroom. What's right for one student in a system choice isn't right for another. My job is to educate them, and I would often get questions about Mac systems. Since I wasn't familiar with the OS, I couldn't answer them. Now I can. I'm better armed, more informed, and more prepared. I can educate them on both sides of the computing world, and they can then make their own decisions. But at least I'll have taught them how to properly name, store, back up, and transfer files to a web server, and how to properly buy and use the software they use in my classroom.

I started on a Windows based PC when I was just a little kid (now I'm a big kid, at 18!) and used it for a few years. I didn't really seem to mind it.

My cousin got a MacBook Pro from his Great Aunt (whom I'm not related to, sadly! ) who is extremely wealthy. Seeing how much of an impact that cousin of mine has had on my life, it wasn't hard to guess that I'd soon want a mac of my own. I got a BlackBook in 2006 and have been using OSX on it ever since. I have Win7 installed, and an Ubuntu server running right now out of a cheap box I've built, but for my main operating system it's OSX.

I love the simplicity of the OS, and don't see why I'd ever switch to anything else for my main use.

lifeisabeach said:

I never cared much for the classic Mac OS. My limited exposure to it in the computer lab in college, back around 1989-1990, didn't impress me that much.

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Grin. I worked at Cable & Wireless in the early 1990s, and they were a Mac house too - I share your lack of enthusiasm for classic Mac OS. DOS and friends had as main advantage the command line - you type and most of the time what you want happens. And if you had a series of commands it was "echo con filename.bat" and you just wrote a batchfile with some conditionals. The first foray into graphics for me was mainly to get more command lines on the screen, something I started with stuff like DoubleDOS.

lifeisabeach said:

Shortly into Windows XP, I became increasingly disenchanted with the bloat and burden of maintaining and securing it. Not to mention the activation scheme, which I absolutely refused to play ball with.

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Ah, WGA. The most irritating thing about WGA wasn't so much that it existed, but the multifaceted way in which they were trying to ram it down your throat. It meant you had to inspect every update to see if they hadn't included it somewhere again as "essential". Ugh. As for the rest, same here. I started to look at just how much time and resources were spent on keeping it *cough* "safe" - to be Windows started to look more like alpha code that should not have left development.

I have a new argument for Windows users: switch off a machine for 2 weeks, and see just how much effort it is to use it again safely when you switch it on after that time. You have no idea just how much patching you are drip feed until you leave it to pile up for two weeks, it's an eye opener.

I switched much later because I simply used Linux instead for more critical work, but the problem there was that I could not advise clients to move because it was too complex to use.

As I needed to be conversant with all platforms for a book I'm writing I bought a Mac with the idea to get used to it, and then use it as travel laptop because it had good battery life. That's not quite how it went - the Mac simplified my whole IT to the point I was annoyed I didn't try this before .

Macs have another advantage: if you recommend it to friends you don't automatically become the car mechanic who has to keep the creaking platform alive as it is with Windows based platforms. First off is it not quite as fragile and virus prone, secondly you can point them at the Apple store if they have problems. Your recommendation no longer becomes a potential risk to your friendship..

lifeisabeach said:

It's a bit ironic actually. I always abhorred the Mac zealots who'd bash Windows and were just generally annoying and obnoxious. They were one of the reasons I frowned on Macs for years. Now I'm one of them.

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One main difference: you have a clear set of arguments for the switch and the preference, as do I now (albeit a tad unexpected).
Zealots don't have arguments, just bulging eyes .