My Final Thread

[coreymcl]

Funny I purchased a PowerBook in Jan 2004 and I never had a problem with it other than the Safari Browser not show all websites right. I too sold my last PowerBook for a loss. I will not make that mistake again.

Good luck with your new laptop but from somebody who did the same thing I will tell you I miss my PowerBook and can't wait to purchase another one.

 

[Cloudane]

Heck, no. There isn't a computer out there that's good at *everything*

I haven't had a Mac for long, but I know they're crap for gaming. I knew this when I bought my PB 12". That's why I have a big, fat, heavy XaserIII sat here with a P4-3GHz HT, 1GB dual channel RAM and FX5900 whirring away. *That* is a gaming computer, not a Mac

Just like everything else, including the tired Windows vs Linux debate that people insist on picking sides with, there is no "good" or "bad" side, no answer to all, just different tools with different advantages and disadvantages. The best way to work with computers or any tools is to pick the best tool for the job. For comfortable, fast gaming I use the PC. For productivity, reliability and generally having an enjoyable working experience however, the Mac wins every time.

The way I see it:
PC with Windows - perfect for gaming, very high compatibility, fairly easy to use but gets "messed up" (clutter, bugs, viruses etc) very easily and is a victim of its own success (prime target for all the scumbags out there on the internet who like to create viruses, spyware, malware, exploits etc). Hardware can have lots of different drivers, and the wrong driver can really screw things up.

PC with Linux - perfect for hacking, programming, tinkering and day-to-day stuff. Free, open source and wonderfully stable. On the negative side, not many games, low compatibility with others, hundreds of tools that do the same thing but are incompatible, and just "getting things working" can take weeks whilst on a Wintel or Mac you just plug and go. Also always the last to fully and *easily* support new technology like Bluetooth, ACPI, USB 2.0, 802.11 et al.

MacOS - bad for gaming. I agree - don't buy one for gaming! It's silly! Bad if you don't like windows bouncing around and doing silly animations (I love it though). Can be slow (presumably unless you get a real high end machine.) Hideously expensive (especially the high end ones). Pros - delightfully well-made and robust (my PB is anyway), pay for quality and get quality (like a BMW? hehe), all the pros of OSX (stability, ability to tap into its Unix backbone and hax0r, great looks, Exposé, tidy file structure and install/uninstall mechanism etc etc etc I could go on for hours) and generally so much nicer to use *for apps*. Things "Just work", yet if they don't (never happened yet) but have a Linux/BSD background you can still tap into a terminal and *make* them work. The 12" powerbook is just sleek as they get and the sleep function works really well. But yeah.... bad for gaming. I don't expect my toaster to play games either, but for what it's designed for... making toast... it works great

 

[iSheep]

Let's turn the tables around - welcome to the other side. I'm on a Windows PC at the moment.

It's a Pentium III 600MHz, 384MB RAM, 32MB nVidia GeForce 2.

It doesn't crash (apart from in Windows Movie Maker), it isn't too slow - but that's how I'm using it. I can't upgrade to Macromedia Studio MX 2004 because it can't take it.
I have all the green/blue Windows XP GUI turned off because: it's ugly and I need the resources.
The top programs I use are:
iTunes
Firefox
Dreamweaver MX
Photoshop Elements
and Word.

All of those work or are avalible for Mac (or a better alternative, Safari).

I'm buying a new computer in September.
I want a notebook. I want it to be really small and light. I want it to have dual screen. I want it to have wireless networking. I want it to have Bluetooth. I want it to have a CD-RW (and maybe DVD-R). I want it to come with some decent software rather than the **** stuff Microsoft give you. I want to do video editing. I want to do photograph editing. I want to beable to take it around with me. I want to have all my music on it. I want it to work with my iPod.

How on earth do I get all that? PowerBook.
There is no company on the planet that does all that for £1300 ($2400). Dell, HP and Acer: the smallest notebook they make is 14.1" and weighs the same as my desktop. The software they provide is pants.

Apple provide a 10% discount because I'm a student! That's a 10% on everything. Dell don't do anything, or HP. Infact, only Office is avalible with a student discount. That's it.

If I buy more than one Mac, then I just have to buy the Family Packs to upgrade. iLife '04 is $49 for one computer, the Family Pack is $79 and works on five computers. Microsoft: I have had to buy three seperate versions of Windows because they don't offer anything. I would have saved about $100 if I was using Mac.

Editing photos on Windows is pants. It has nothing at all. I love iPhoto, I want it.

iTunes - got it and love it

Make music! I love making music, I even play the piano. But somebody wants me to shell out £50 so I can make it. Nope, GarageBand comes on a Mac.

iMovie vs. Windows Movie Maker. No comment required.

iDVD - Windows can't.

Web browser. I hate MSIE. Stupid 3 year old technology. I use Firefox. Only one thing better than Firefox: Safari.


But, don't get me wrong. Windows isn't that bad. My copy is well worn in and hasn't reached its half-life yet.

Windows isn't bad - it can just be 500 times better: Welcome to Mac

 

[iSheep]

Yes I've tried out Macs. I use them in school for video editing. Everything is so logical, it just clicks and works. I remember one of mate's comments, he was trying to do something in iMovie which he thought was really complicated (I think it was adjusting how long the clip was). He was pressing every button on the keyboard and looking through all the menus, when all he had to do was just drag it.

 

[iSheep]

Oh and another thing, I'm tired of getting technology and ideas 3 years after everybody else. Apple bring out Mac OS X, which looks great, then suddenly a few years' later, Microsoft bring out a "pretty" version of Windows (didn't work very well). All these features that have popped up in Panther and in Tiger will appear in Longhorn - but I want them in January, not half way through 2006!

 

[iSheep]

Ohhh yeah, I see there's this Standby problem some people have. Well, on all three of my Windows XP machines, Standby is real clever: IT NEVER WAKES UP. You have to bloody well pull the power out the back of the machine because nothing wakes it up. Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete, move the mouse, press the Space Bar, press the Power button on the computer, turn the monitor on and off, double click, press Enter, press Shift, open the CD drive, give it a coudle. Nothing. Neat hey?

 

[iSheep]

Funny I purchased a PowerBook in Jan 2004 and I never had a problem with it other than the Safari Browser not show all websites right. I too sold my last PowerBook for a loss. I will not make that mistake again.

Good luck with your new laptop but from somebody who did the same thing I will tell you I miss my PowerBook and can't wait to purchase another one.

Generally when you sell something, it is worth less than when you bought it. It's called depriciation.

Are you serious though? Selling a PowerBook because Safari shows Web sites the way they are suppose to be shown?

 

[Cloudane]

Some PC laptops - Thinkpads in particular last time I had one - do energy saving and sleep mode very well and seem to get around XP's sleep problems.

Others, like the clunky AJP (Chicony) beast I currently have as a PC laptop - if you put them to sleep then don't expect them to wake up again

Mac does it flawlessly, and quickly.

 

[IndianPowerbook]

for 1800 u should of gotten the 12inch powerbook. u would of spent no more than $1400 for a pretty good machine and it would of not had any problems what so ever

i am a switcher and **** proud of it

my only gripe with apple is that it is **** near impossible to trade photos with AIM users...the direct connection is garbage!

 

[wickedbusa]

Sorry to hear about your experience. Telling everyone who is considering a switch to forget about it is not fair because you had a bad experience. I made the switch and am on my second Apple. I spent $1800 on my 12 inch iBook with .mac software, additional RAM, and MS Office, and spent $3200 for my 17 inch Powerbook withh an upgraded HD and video card. Neither one has given me any problems. I have had horrible experiences with my past PC laptops and desktops, but I don't tell every one of my friends to not get a PC.

 

[muso]

As for the BWM vs Ford thing. That has to be the biggest bunch of bull i've ever heard. Options? HA. What options? The option of NOT having a mic port?

Uh - If an audio input was a necessary feature, you should have gone for the PowerBook, bought an inexpensive iMic from griffin or looked at the tech specs and realised that (as shocking as this may sound), the iBook is not the best choice if you want to do audio production.

The option of crappy support? Would you buy a BMW without one tail light? Or with a warrenty that only covered the trunk lid, for 90 days? You can't compare macs to bmws and pcs to fords, just b/c there are more pcs that macs floating around doesn't mean that macs must be better or have more "options". Tell me if you would be happy with a bmw that you bought for 45000 dollars. And it didnt' have a radio, the dealer tells you, well bmws just arn't made to have radios. Then you high tail it down to your honda dealer (i hate fords too ) and get a accord DX (low end) and it has a radio, and can drive just as nice as the bmw. Would you want the dealer to be truthful to you, telling you it had to radio in the first place?

Please tell me you realise that this is a weak and invalid argument. Arguments over analogies have to be done right, or not at all. I'll pick on the tail light idea, but all of your other comments are just as bad. A tail light is a key component of a car. Without a tail light your car wouldn't get a warrant (well, here in New Zealand anyway), and hence would be designated not road-worthy. I don't believe any Apple computer is missing a feature that would require you to take it to a repair shop as soon as you bought it. A mic port is hardly necessary for operation - my guess is that very few people actually need to plug in an audio input device unless they have other audio gear (a microphone at the low end, a recording/mixing desk at the other end of the spectrum). Audio gear is expensive. Why not spend a little more to get a 12" powerbook, or $40 to get the iMic and end up with better quality than a built-in audio in port?

You must also realise that Apple computers come with a lot of built-in software that the PC lacks. This software is not necessary, but, like a BMW has extra (maybe not strictly necessary) features, so do macs and this fact merely makes the user experience more pleasing.

I could go on and on about the various points you made, but I have neither the time nor patience. I also realise that you're set in your opinion, and picking your arguments to bits probably won't influence your views at all.

Oh - you mentioned a while back about how if somebody had told you macs weren't good for gaming you wouldn't have considered them so seriously (or something along those lines). I guess now you know. Do not buy a mac if you want a computer mainly for games. It just doesn't make sense. Very few games are made from the ground up to support OpenGL (instead of DirectX) and so mac users are left with a game that requires higher system specs than the PC counterpart and produces lower performance. Graphic design and video editing are completely different. I think (although I'm not completely sure) that the latest version of Photoshop is optimised for the G5.

 

[iSheep]

I think (although I'm not completely sure) that the latest version of Photoshop is optimised for the G5.

 

[lnetubaplyr]

How on earth do I get all that? PowerBook.
There is no company on the planet that does all that for £1300 ($2400). Dell, HP and Acer: the smallest notebook they make is 14.1" and weighs the same as my desktop. The software they provide is pants.

Look at sonys website, they have a 12.1 inch that will do all that and more. Lost that one.

 

[lnetubaplyr]

Sorry to hear about your experience. Telling everyone who is considering a switch to forget about it is not fair because you had a bad experience. .

I didn't tell anyone considering it to forget about it, i said if you have your worries, look at them more closely before spending your money.

 

[lnetubaplyr]

Uh - If an audio input was a necessary feature, you should have gone for the PowerBook, bought an inexpensive iMic from griffin or looked at the tech specs and realised that (as shocking as this may sound), the iBook is not the best choice if you want to do audio production.

Please tell me you realise that this is a weak and invalid argument. Arguments over analogies have to be done right, or not at all. I'll pick on the tail light idea, but all of your other comments are just as bad. A tail light is a key component of a car. Without a tail light your car wouldn't get a warrant (well, here in New Zealand anyway), and hence would be designated not road-worthy. I don't believe any Apple computer is missing a feature that would require you to take it to a repair shop as soon as you bought it. A mic port is hardly necessary for operation - my guess is that very few people actually need to plug in an audio input device unless they have other audio gear (a microphone at the low end, a recording/mixing desk at the other end of the spectrum). Audio gear is expensive. Why not spend a little more to get a 12" powerbook, or $40 to get the iMic and end up with better quality than a built-in audio in port?

You must also realise that Apple computers come with a lot of built-in software that the PC lacks. This software is not necessary, but, like a BMW has extra (maybe not strictly necessary) features, so do macs and this fact merely makes the user experience more pleasing.

I could go on and on about the various points you made, but I have neither the time nor patience. I also realise that you're set in your opinion, and picking your arguments to bits probably won't influence your views at all.

Oh - you mentioned a while back about how if somebody had told you macs weren't good for gaming you wouldn't have considered them so seriously (or something along those lines). I guess now you know. Do not buy a mac if you want a computer mainly for games. It just doesn't make sense. Very few games are made from the ground up to support OpenGL (instead of DirectX) and so mac users are left with a game that requires higher system specs than the PC counterpart and produces lower performance. Graphic design and video editing are completely different. I think (although I'm not completely sure) that the latest version of Photoshop is optimised for the G5.

Well, the anologies were made by someone else, not me, i was just reflecting on them, so rant at them, not me. thanks.

Second, i would assume that if i bought a bmw it would have a tail light, and i would assume if i bought a computer it would have a mic port, just because apple forgot to add that, and thinks i should have to pay extra for their powerbook is insance, to think that something as simple as a mic/in port i should have to upgrade to their "esteme" eddition is ludicris.

Anything else i can help you with, let me know.

 

[trpnmonkey41]

i would assume if i bought a computer it would have a mic port, just because apple forgot to add that

They didn't forget to add anything....You just didn't take the time to research what you were getting...Nobody to blame but yourself

 

[Absolute Zero]

They didn't forget to add anything....You just didn't take the time to research what you were getting...Nobody to blame but yourself

So they DID forget it.

 

[Murlyn]

If they were not in the specs.. then they didn't forget it, right? If I buy and ice cream and it doesnt have chocolate sprinkles and it is advertised that it would have chocolate sprinkles, then yes they forgot it, but if they did not advertise it, but they advertised vanilla ice cream, then why in the world would I expect to get chocolate sprinkles free of charge? There are quite a few things that pc laptops do not have that mac laptops do have automatically installed.. does that mean the PC laptops forgot those things? or that it was designed that way so that you would have to upgrade if you wanted those things? otherwise.. done on purpose? This is quite a rediculous thread.. where is the logic? I do not expect to get an apple cinema display with my laptop just because I like apple cinema display's and there is no mention of it in the specs.. come on.. use that noggin God gave you

 

[lnetubaplyr]

If they were not in the specs.. then they didn't forget it, right? If I buy and ice cream and it doesnt have chocolate sprinkles and it is advertised that it would have chocolate sprinkles, then yes they forgot it, but if they did not advertise it, but they advertised vanilla ice cream, then why in the world would I expect to get chocolate sprinkles free of charge? There are quite a few things that pc laptops do not have that mac laptops do have automatically installed.. does that mean the PC laptops forgot those things? or that it was designed that way so that you would have to upgrade if you wanted those things? otherwise.. done on purpose? This is quite a rediculous thread.. where is the logic? I do not expect to get an apple cinema display with my laptop just because I like apple cinema display's and there is no mention of it in the specs.. come on.. use that noggin God gave you

Well i just bought a house, didn't have any floor...***? I mean, i guess it wasn't advertised with a floor, but i just assumed...stupid me...

 

[Matt]

Is Mac bad for gaming in a performance way or in an availability way????