Should I go Mac - most my apps are windows only?

S

swstacker


Joined
Jan 11, 2011
Messages
43
Reaction score
0
Points
6
I am sure this is asked all the time. I browsed through quite a few threads and did not find an answer. I have a couple year old PC laptop and am looking to replace it. I went into best buy yesterday and the highest spec'd laptop in terms of processor speed they had was the mac book pro.

I have about three programs that I use for work that are mapping/GIS related that only run on windows. I use these daily. Aside from them I do the basic computer stuff word, excel, email, internet, quicken, quickbooks etc.

No games and really nothing much beyond these programs mentioned above.

From what I read my windows programs I can run in Fusion but I wonder how well that will work performance wise. One of the programs in particular takes a couple hours to process files.

I have always thought mac's were kind of cool but ultimately I just want to be able to do my work in an efficient manner. I realize that aside from my three windows only mapping programs my computing needs could probably be met by a 15 year old computer. I mean I am sure a mac or pc could do this with no proble,s but I wonder if the mac will run the mapping programs well in the emulator or would I be better off buying a pc.
 
RavingMac

RavingMac

Well-known member
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jan 7, 2008
Messages
8,303
Reaction score
242
Points
63
Location
In Denial
Your Mac's Specs
16Gb Mac Mini 2018, 15" MacBook Pro 2012 1 TB SSD
swstacker said:
I am sure this is asked all the time. I browsed through quite a few threads and did not find an answer. I have a couple year old PC laptop and am looking to replace it. I went into best buy yesterday and the highest spec'd laptop in terms of processor speed they had was the mac book pro.

I have about three programs that I use for work that are mapping/GIS related that only run on windows. I use these daily. Aside from them I do the basic computer stuff word, excel, email, internet, quicken, quickbooks etc.

No games and really nothing much beyond these programs mentioned above.

From what I read my windows programs I can run in Fusion but I wonder how well that will work performance wise. One of the programs in particular takes a couple hours to process files.

I have always thought mac's were kind of cool but ultimately I just want to be able to do my work in an efficient manner. I realize that aside from my three windows only mapping programs my computing needs could probably be met by a 15 year old computer. I mean I am sure a mac or pc could do this with no proble,s but I wonder if the mac will run the mapping programs well in the emulator or would I be better off buying a pc.
Click to expand...

You can also use Bootcamp (Apple software) to install and dual boot into Windows when you need it.
 
osxx

osxx


Joined
Jan 19, 2008
Messages
4,695
Reaction score
73
Points
48
Location
houston texas
Your Mac's Specs
09 MBP 8GB ram 500GB HD OS 10.9 32B iPad 4 32GB iPhone 5 iOs7 2TB TC Apple TV3
You could just keep the PC for your Windows only apps and get a Mac and use it for everything else and it might make the transition easier.
 
OP
S

swstacker


Joined
Jan 11, 2011
Messages
43
Reaction score
0
Points
6
Razormac said:
You can also use Bootcamp (Apple software) to install and dual boot into Windows when you need it.
Click to expand...

I don't think this would be a good solution for me. I use the windows mapping apps pretty much all day every day. I would't want to be rebooting all the time unless I just ran it in windows all the time? And if that is what I was going to do I wonder if it is even worth it to buy the mac in the first place?
 
OP
S

swstacker


Joined
Jan 11, 2011
Messages
43
Reaction score
0
Points
6
osxx said:
You could just keep the PC for your Windows only apps and get a Mac and use it for everything else and it might make the transition easier.
Click to expand...

Curent machine is a laptop as would be the new one. I travel a lot. Would not want to haul two around.
 
RavingMac

RavingMac

Well-known member
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jan 7, 2008
Messages
8,303
Reaction score
242
Points
63
Location
In Denial
Your Mac's Specs
16Gb Mac Mini 2018, 15" MacBook Pro 2012 1 TB SSD
swstacker said:
Curent machine is a laptop as would be the new one. I travel a lot. Would not want to haul two around.
Click to expand...

I suspect that if you are getting adequate performace from your several years old PC, that a new MBP would do pretty well even running in a VM.
Regardless, Apple has as no questions asked return policy (obviously this wouldn't apply to VM Fusion, but you could download Virtual Box (Free)) so you could try it yourself to see if it worked for you.

14 days to initiate return on eligible products
http://store.apple.com/Catalog/US/Images/salespolicies.html
 
OP
S

swstacker


Joined
Jan 11, 2011
Messages
43
Reaction score
0
Points
6
You bring up an interesting point. My current laptop is about two years old but I guess it was top of the line when I got it. It has 6gb ram and core i7 1.6 ghz

It seems the fastest pc laptops at best buy had 8gb ram and core i7 2.0 ghz which really did not seem that much faster than what I have now. The MBP they had was only 4gb ram (I could add more) but it was i7 2.2 ghz which is almost a 40% improvement over what I have so it seems worthwhile.
 
vansmith

vansmith

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 19, 2008
Messages
19,924
Reaction score
559
Points
113
Location
Queensland
Your Mac's Specs
Mini (2014, 2018, 2020), MBA (2020), iPad Pro (2018), iPhone 13 Pro Max, Watch (S6)
swstacker said:
I have about three programs that I use for work that are mapping/GIS related that only run on windows. [...] I have always thought mac's were kind of cool but ultimately I just want to be able to do my work in an efficient manner.
Click to expand...
Those two sentences answer your question. Use your money and buy a really good Windows machine. Since your job seems to depend on it, you should purchase a notebook that will be better suit to your job related needs - your job should take precedence over your computer related desires.
 
chscag

chscag

Well-known member
Staff member
Admin
Joined
Jan 23, 2008
Messages
65,248
Reaction score
1,833
Points
113
Location
Keller, Texas
Your Mac's Specs
2017 27" iMac, 10.5" iPad Pro, iPhone 8, iPhone 11, iPhone 12 Mini, Numerous iPods, Monterey
swstacker said:
I don't think this would be a good solution for me. I use the windows mapping apps pretty much all day every day. I would't want to be rebooting all the time unless I just ran it in windows all the time? And if that is what I was going to do I wonder if it is even worth it to buy the mac in the first place?
Click to expand...

Above is your answer. Buy a good quality Win machine, one that you can reliably use for your work. I have 2 Macs and also several Win machines but my work can done on either. If your work depends on certain Windows mapping software, and you need to be in that environment most of the time, why waste your money on a Mac because it "looks cool"?

However, if you have the $$ to spend and can afford to buy both a good quality Win machine and a Mac, I suggest taking a serious look at the new MacBook Air.
 
OP
S

swstacker


Joined
Jan 11, 2011
Messages
43
Reaction score
0
Points
6
Good points. Aside from looking cool the macs seem to be better made. Most the time when I upgrade laptops it is because they are falling apart with cracked pieces, loose usb ports, etc. The macs just seem to be better made. I have several other apple products and they all seem quality.

Cost is not really an issue. Realistically I try to budget about $1000 a year for my laptops. I am sure if I got the MBP I could get 2.5 yrs out of it.


I guess what I was wondering was if the MBP would be able to run the windows apps faster than the windows machine since the MBP has a faster processor, or if it just would be a hassle trying to emulate a non native OS.
 
M

MacInWin

Guest
You don't have to emulate. Boot Camp will allow you to run Windows natively, and still have OSX for when you want it. Or you can just totally commit to Windows and install it on apple hardware. Emulators will always be slightly slower than running native.
 
CrimsonRequiem

CrimsonRequiem


Retired Staff
Joined
Jul 24, 2008
Messages
6,003
Reaction score
125
Points
63
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 2.3 Ghz 4GB RAM 860 GB SSD, iMac 3.4 GHz Intel Core i7 32GB RAM, Fusion Drive 1TB
Doesn't seem practical to use a Mac if his work requires him to use Windows.

Just stick with a Windows Machine.
 
JUKE179r

JUKE179r


Joined
Nov 1, 2009
Messages
886
Reaction score
33
Points
28
Location
DohaLondonVegas
Your Mac's Specs
MacBookPro 11,2 <--DAW!!!
IMHO... I'd go with the Bootcamp option if you want the portability in a Mac notebook.
100% of my work needs to be completed with PC only programs and CAC enabled/secured websites that perform better/more stable on a Windows OS. Bootcamp helps me achieve this while still being able to use my Mac for personal use as my Digital Audio Workstation (DAW).
 
M

MacInWin

Guest
CrimsonRequiem said:
Doesn't seem practical to use a Mac if his work requires him to use Windows.

Just stick with a Windows Machine.
Click to expand...
Not sure why you'd think it not practical. He'd get great, reliable hardware and the ability to use Windows for work and OSX for anything else. MBP is a fantastic Windows platform!
 
OP
S

swstacker


Joined
Jan 11, 2011
Messages
43
Reaction score
0
Points
6
jakerich said:
Not sure why you'd think it not practical. He'd get great, reliable hardware and the ability to use Windows for work and OSX for anything else. MBP is a fantastic Windows platform!
Click to expand...

This is kind of what I was thinking but I am worried I am just trying to justify the purchase.
 
M

MacInWin

Guest
Take the specs of a MBP of your choice, then look for the same specs in a quality laptop and compare prices. Yes, you can find laptops with same specs at lower cost, but really consider the quality and construction (which leads to reliability) to make sure you are comparing apples to Apples (sorry, couldn't resist). I think you'll find that you don't spend much, if any, more for a MBP than you would for a similar quality laptop (assuming you can actually find one as well built as a MBP).
 
CrimsonRequiem

CrimsonRequiem


Retired Staff
Joined
Jul 24, 2008
Messages
6,003
Reaction score
125
Points
63
Your Mac's Specs
MBP 2.3 Ghz 4GB RAM 860 GB SSD, iMac 3.4 GHz Intel Core i7 32GB RAM, Fusion Drive 1TB
swstacker said:
I don't think this would be a good solution for me. I use the windows mapping apps pretty much all day every day. I would't want to be rebooting all the time unless I just ran it in windows all the time? And if that is what I was going to do I wonder if it is even worth it to buy the mac in the first place?
Click to expand...

swstacker said:
This is kind of what I was thinking but I am worried I am just trying to justify the purchase.
Click to expand...

jakerich said:
Not sure why you'd think it not practical. He'd get great, reliable hardware and the ability to use Windows for work and OSX for anything else. MBP is a fantastic Windows platform!
Click to expand...

I think that pretty much sums up why it's not practical. I'm all for Mac but everyones computing needs are different, and I'm not here to sell Macs to other people.
 
C

chas_m

Guest
I think if someone is interested in exploring the Mac we should encourage that. Otherwise, why not change the name of this place to "Whatever Dude, It Doesn't Really Matter" Forum?

I don't know about the rest of you guys, but I went Mac a long time ago because it was (and still is) a *CLEARLY SUPERIOR* platform compared to everything else for all but a rather esoteric set of niche needs.

The VirtualBox program will MORE than easily handle any GIS/Mapping software he needs, and he gets all the advantages (and there are MANY) to using Mac OS X for everything else. Money isn't the main issue here -- it's QUALITY OF EXPERIENCE, and Mac simply offers a better one for nearly everything apart from high-end gaming and maybe accounting.

I'd suggest an iMac or Air + VirtualBox (free) + Flip4Mac WMV Player and Perian (both free) + a copy of Windows 7 (not free). I think he will, like the (literally) thousands of switchers who have come to this forum, be tickled pink.
 
vansmith

vansmith

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 19, 2008
Messages
19,924
Reaction score
559
Points
113
Location
Queensland
Your Mac's Specs
Mini (2014, 2018, 2020), MBA (2020), iPad Pro (2018), iPhone 13 Pro Max, Watch (S6)
jakerich said:
Not sure why you'd think it not practical. He'd get great, reliable hardware and the ability to use Windows for work and OSX for anything else. MBP is a fantastic Windows platform!
Click to expand...
You can get good hardware elsewhere - Apple doesn't have a monopoly on quality production processes.

chas_m said:
I think if someone is interested in exploring the Mac we should encourage that. Otherwise, why not change the name of this place to "Whatever Dude, It Doesn't Really Matter" Forum?
Click to expand...
Because Macs aren't the best tool for every job. Thinking that it's the best tool for just about every job is a problem itself. I can't speak for the others but I'd rather attempt to be objective and provide an answer that is independent of my beliefs about computers. I'd like to provide an answer that suits their requirements and not one that starts with buying a Mac and working from there.

chas_m said:
I don't know about the rest of you guys, but I went Mac a long time ago because it was (and still is) a *CLEARLY SUPERIOR* platform compared to everything else for all but a rather esoteric set of niche needs.
Click to expand...
That's fair ("clearly superior" is, without doubt, a subjective belief though) and I don't think any of us would disagree that it's a superior brand...for our needs. He uses Windows specific software that could be easily handled by purchasing a good Windows machine for less money. Why buy a Mac just to use Windows software? That's like buying a 4 door sedan and modifying it so it works off road when many off road vehicles already exist.

And how are non-Macs only superior for "a rather esoteric set of niche needs"? If Macs were better in just about every way, how come their market share isn't 99%? How do you explain Windows' dominance on the personal computer and Linux in the server market?
 
M

MacInWin

Guest
OK, having been told by two members of the so-called staff I'm wrong, I'm done. I've only been in the IT business since 1975, so I guess they must know better. But I would read this survey as a guide. Somebody thinks Apple is doing something right.
 

Shop Amazon


Shop for your Apple, Mac, iPhone and other computer products on Amazon.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Top