Thread: iMac?

and not-so-small

the majority of digital TV's run Linux
last page in the user manual is often the GPL license

anyway,
what the hell was this topic supposed to be about....?

I should make an OS discussion sticky.

Originally Posted by Ynot

and not-so-small

the majority of digital TV's run Linux
last page in the user manual is often the GPL license

anyway,
what the hell was this topic supposed to be about....?

About the pros and cons of an iMac, in terms of user experience.

If you guys only could stop getting in such pointless discussions. It annoys me, I'm subscribed to this thread, so I can check on any good advice, and every single day I get a mail, and then I read all your posts which don't have a single freaking thing to do with the topic.
So shut the hell up and get out of here if you can't keep on topic. >.>

Ok

Pros:
More stable than a PC, about the same as Linux
iWork uses the LaTeX engine, which is has been the standard for 30 years
Keynote is the standard in presentation tools
iLife is far superior to anything on either Windows or Linux
Hardware is top of the line for the price
10+ hour laptop battery
Never have to clean a registry
Never have to defragment the hard drive
Immune to viruses
UNIX security
Time machines backs up all of your files on a daily basis
Universal spelling and grammar checking (adding a word in one program, adds it to everything)
Compatible with Office / Windows
100% compatible drivers, Windows and Linux's biggest problem is that it has to run on thousands of configurations, whereas there are only 6 or 7 types of Mac)
All programs are integrated, making them faster and more reliable
XCode, software engineers make better programs for OSX because they have a better environment, engineers hate .NET
Been 64 bit for years, Windows requires you buy separate version of software for their 32 and 64 bit platforms, Apple migrated to 64 bit when the rest of them did.

Cons:
Fewer games than PC (though catching up for most major releases)
Fewer programs than Windows (but everything on Windows does have an OSX equivalent, you just get less choice)
More expensive (Apple only sells top of the line products, so even though you can get a Mac for 599, the average is over 1000)
Windows has solitaire and freecell, OSX only comes with Chess

Macs are not immune to virsues, actually. There is a huge Mac botnet going around right now, and users are unable to defend themselves against it due to most Mac users not having an anti-virus.
The hardware isn't really "top of the line", it's not much different from PC hardware at all. If you're buying a PC, drivers are never an issue. That's only rarely an issue when building a computer yourself, and that's much more common in hackintoshes than PCs. Also, if you're buying a computer with 4+ GB of RAM, it will always ship with 64 bit versions. Apple does the same, putting 32 bit versions on computers with less than 3 GB of RAM, and 64 bit on ones with more. iLife being better is just your opinion, I prefer Office over OpenOffice or iLife, and there are better alternatives to things like iMovie and Garage Band anyway.

The concept of more stable isn't always true. Honestly, you have to make Windows crash yourself, it hardly ever happens on its own. Like I said, I used Windows for 3 years and only got one crash, and that was because I fucked something up when putting in new memory.

Originally Posted by Demon Parasite

Apple does the same, putting 32 bit versions on computers with less than 3 GB of RAM, and 64 bit on ones with more.

Apples has one version of OSX. There is more of a difference than how much RAM it can use. OSX is 64 bit, ALWAYS. It has a backwards compatibility layer to run 32-bit programs, but the OS is 64.

Windows is either 64 or 32, but the 64 bit version has no backwards compatibility layer, so it's not the OS that you have to watch, it's buying new software.

If you're refering to the botnet that broke out in April, Apple fixed that security hole a few days after it was discovered. There have been thousands of Mac viruses written, currently, not one of them is a threat, the security holes that they took advantage of have all been fixed.

Originally Posted by ninja9578

Apples has one version of OSX. There is more of a difference than how much RAM it can use. OSX is 64 bit, ALWAYS. It has a backwards compatibility layer to run 32-bit programs, but the OS is 64.

Windows is either 64 or 32, but the 64 bit version has no backwards compatibility layer, so it's not the OS that you have to watch, it's buying new software.

Every program that I have used on Windows has a 64 bit version, it isn't a problem. There is no need for a backwards compatibility layer.

I got an iMac early this year, and it has been such a great purchase - especially for someone like me, who does a lot of programming and computer-geek stuff. It's also great, though, for any normal computer user. I have no regrets whatsoever about my switch.

I actually went through a slow upgrade towards awesomeness: I first used Windows XP, then installed Ubuntu, then bought a Mac. But seriously. Compare it to any other OS and it wins.

(I'm a Mac fanboy, if you can't tell.)

Originally Posted by ninja9578

Apples has one version of OSX. There is more of a difference than how much RAM it can use. OSX is 64 bit, ALWAYS. It has a backwards compatibility layer to run 32-bit programs, but the OS is 64.

I hear this backwards-compatibility will end with Snow Leopard, however.. getting rid of all of the PowerPC remains I guess

Originally Posted by Demon Parasite

Macs are not immune to virsues, actually.

When comparing the few thousand viruses written for Macs to the endless supply of Windows viruses, it relatively is. Seriously, compare the statistics to each other, and tell me that Windows is more secure. Look at its structure and tell me the same.

The biggest difference is that Apple fixes the security holes that allow the viruses to function. There are zero viruses that will work on Mac right now. On Windows, the anti-virus blocks the virus, the hole isn't fixed. If you don't have the latest virus definitions, you're fucked.