Daily Idea

By tarmo on May 16, 2008

three Must See videos before buying
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hnOCUkbix0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3ZTCZW_cRw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBJQ5085kSo

By Brad on May 16, 2008

Lenovo X300 vs MacBook Air
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/lenovo-x300-macbook,1917.html

By Ryan Kempf on May 16, 2008

Hey Jason choosing between a Mac or PC is simple first you have to decide what will be the pimary thing that you will be doing if its video editing then I suggest a MAC even though I’m a PC guy I have heard good things about MAC as far as that goes another point about mac its more stable and I would suggest if you want a PC to get it before JUNE 30TH 2008 because VISTA is coming and I’m not knocking them yet I have to tell you VISA IS AWFUL AWFUL AWFUL because they are CLEARLY NOT READY TO BRING IT OUT ON THE MARKET ESPECALLY THOSE WHO NEED TO UPGRADE AND HAVE A LOT OF DEVICES FROM THEIR PREVIOUS COMPUTER so if you have a lot of Devices get A PC WITH WINDOWS XP PLEASE IF YOU GET VISTA YOU WILL HAVE GAURENTEED HEART ACHE I ASSURE YOU

By Matt on May 16, 2008

MAC is good for all things. It is not just a computer for video or graphics. I and tons of others run business using macs.

The only time you can’t really use a mac is when crappy software and web designers make their applications dependent on internet explorer. Real estate applications are a perfect example

Windows is outdated and offers you nothing but headache and heartbreak. Get with the future. The future is with mac osx.

If you want to get work done, get a mac. If you want to spend time worrying about viruses and spyware, get a windows machine.

This has been rehashed over and over.

By Jordan on May 16, 2008

I’m with Ryan. Except that I would add that most if not all of your peripherals would work with Mac, too.

By Desiree on May 16, 2008

Hey there!

I’m a Macbook convert for the last 18 months and I will not turn back. My reasons are as follows:

Stability: although my computer has frozen a couple of times, I don’t get the scary blue screen and it’s really intuitive to use. My PC laptop forever crashes and is subject to so many annoying downloads, pop-ups and software plugins for activation that I’m just not interested anymore. Grrr!

Viruses: yep I hear what you’re saying about that, however right now, it’something that I don’t panic about compared to my fellow PC user friends

Customer Support: if I have a problem I head on down to the Genius Bar to get everything sorted. Great guys who really know their stuff and are cool and friendly.

Design; ergonomic, stylish, lightweight, cool, desirable - yep fits in with my checklist

Interface: I love the layout and speed of my Mac. I’m forever frustrated at the slow loading process of my PC machine.

Software: this is where I have my only ‘con’ amongst all the ‘pros’. I too have high end design software on my PC laptop. I think it’s worth the investment getting the Mac version and moving over. Your machine would be able to handle several memory hungry applications open at the same time very easily too. However things like Ilife are really cheap compared with the Windows equivalent. Depending on what you’re doing with your Macbook.

OS: I love the intuitiveness, layout, functionality of the applications: there’s no guessing on my part.

Cost: yep Macs may appear more pricey than a similar spec PC but it’s a worthwhile investment and so worth it. It balances out in the end.

PCs are okay, but for me my Macbook is so trusty that it goes whereever I go, it’s almost like an oversized smart (cell)phone! I agree with Matt: If you want a workhorse - get a Mac. I will never use a PC laptop as a main machine again!

By Jason Falls on May 17, 2008

Tarmo - Great videos. Gracias.

Brad - Good article, though I wouldn’t do the Air at all. Need larger screen, something that I can’t break when I sneeze. But good comparison piece. Thanks.

Ryan - You should call the local crisis hotline in your area, dude.

Matt - The only thing that has been rehashed over and over is invalid arguments with no support from Mac heads. Bad answer.

Jordan - Thanks for pointing that out.

By Jason Falls on May 17, 2008

Desiree - Closest thing to a thorough argument I’ve seen yet. Thanks for that. Not 100-percent convinced, but I appreciate the personal take, not the Mac-dictate.

By Martin on May 19, 2008

The only thing i can say is that i can use windows xp or vista on my mac using paralles or boot camp (sofware). This can not be done on a PC. So to make things easy you can have the best of both worlds in a single laptop. A MAC.

Paralles http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/system_disk_utilities/parallelsdesktopformac.html

Boot camp
http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/bootcamp.html

Trust me i use these for work.

By Ryan Kempf on May 19, 2008

Hey Jason I was only telling the TRUTH VISTA IS NOT READY FOR THE MARKET AND YOU THINK I NEED HELP FOR SAYING THAT GET REAL!!!!!!

By W on May 24, 2008

Jason, I had the same thoughts you did. I now have a personal Macbook Pro and love it. (Bought it used on eBay and upgraded HD and OS for a decent price) Overall, I spent money comparable to a decent Windows machine - but got a Mac. But, I am a bit unusual as I don’t mind doing some self-upgrading/ maintenance on it.

Some thoughts to help you out, from my experience:

Software: Some software licenses can be “converted” from Windows to Mac for a small fee. So, before decide Mac vs Win, contact the company and see if they will switch the license to mac. I got my Dreamweaver switched from Win to Mac liscence for like $7. You have to call them or check their websites. I don’t think they advertise this too much.

I bought a used Mac on eBay, upgraded the hard drive (standard hard drive, it is not a special Mac hard drive, so great price) and bought the latest Mac OS for about $110.

But, Mac has a lot less software available (both free and not-free software) than Windows. And, a lot of sites like netflix have download-able software - and do not support Mac - so some sites that come out with cool new services usually go with Windows (makes sense for them).

For creative software, the Mac is usually a preference. I do some music recording/ editing, and found for basic music editing use, the Mac was better as far as “everything working”.

For backing up your Mac, I recommend Mozy. Mozy works well for both Windows and Mac machines. They are a great online backup service to keep your stuff safe.

User Experience: I like all the same stuff you like. I like the wide screen where I feel like I can work across software better. The deep keyboard and form factor I prefer. Also on the MacBook Pro, the speakers are located on either side of the keyboard, providing decent sound for background music from iTunes, or Slacker.

Boot-up/ shut down time on my Mac has been great, which I like. Less than 60 second boot, and less than 30 seconds shut down. (Mac still hangs sometimes, with the “rainbow cursor of death” so that can be annoying sometimes.

Maintenance: Upgrading the MacBook Pro’s hard drive was ridiculous. Thought went into cool design for day to day use - NOT upgrade ability. There are about 30 tiny screws to take out and put back in to upgrade internal parts.

The genius bar people were nice, but they have a week long waiting list. Just be aware that they are nice and helpful, but busy and expensive. But, I don’t mind doing a lot of computer things myself anyway. Check to see if there is a 3rd party computer shop that works on Mac close to you. They are popping up to compete with Apple’s genius bars - and are a lot cheaper. Or, you can also buy the maintenance insurance package from Appple, too. Just be warned, they overcharge on the maintenance (in my opinion) due to the lack of much competition.

Overall, this is what I have found, good and bad. Overall, I prefer the Mac.

By Rick Johnson on May 25, 2008

Well I am PC user and I believe that PC’s are much better and I have also tried a Mac too though and half the stuff on there is unethical or even useful at that matter, and if you’re alreay use to using a PC then don’t get a Mac because everything is backwards.

By Jason Falls on May 25, 2008

Ryan - You’re YELLING it. Implying you have issues and need help. No computer software is worth yelling about.

And I use Vista at home and have no issues with it. For all the XP geeks out there, you can even change the view to the XP environment. Relax, Holmes.

By Tim on May 29, 2008

Ryan -

I have felt the same way you do for years. The 50/50 toss up is really how it is. No one is going to provide you with a deal breaker either way. You have to provide the answer on your own.

Stability (for PCs) is only an issue if you are not taking care of the management of your system. If you don’t install every piece of junk software passed at you, you’ll be okay. Macs on the other hand CAN BE just as unstable when put into the right hands. And, the more software that gets developed and released for it, the worse it will get; it’s just a matter of time.

Just about all of the other issues people like to debate about anre not even worth mentioning for the fact that they are equal systems in just about every regard.

What function will you be using your system for, what devices will use with it (in regards to connections available), and what software will you need to be using. In all my years as a tech, these are really the only areas of concern. It is like the saying, “you can’t please everyone”, no matter what you will find someone who doesn’t like what you have. If the system does what you will be using it for, then you will be happy.

This is what I recommend:

1. Figure out what software you need. I my personal opinion, there are versions for both MAC and PC available for just about every major application, and even if not, there are alternatives. My second opinion, which you may consider important. Every app I have used on both Mac and PC (equally capable systems) start faster, and run nicer on the Mac. If you are a die hard user of a particular app though that is only available on on system, then you should really look into whether they will be putting a compatible version out soon or ever, and are there ways of getting it to work on your chosen system (i.e. using a virtual machine or dual booting). If not, and you REALLY have to have that app, then stay on the supported system.

If you still have a choice to make then:

2. Built in devices and connections for external devices is one of the areas that will actually put weight in the decision process. Not being able to connect a frequently used device readily to our system gets really annoying. So look at what you use now (i.e. Bluetooth (more than likely), firewire 400-if your seriously into video 800, or better yet, eSATA-external video connections, etc., etc.), and make a list of what you connections you should find on the system of choice.

Beyond that, in reality, it really doesn’t matter.

Oh, wait… Like others have said, you can run Windows on a Mac, but you can’t run OS X on a PC. Which, by the way, is the one thing that I don’t understand why all the coders out there don’t work on that since OS X is running on Intel chips now anyway.

Have a good one.

By Mike Williams on May 30, 2008

It all depends on what you are doing with the laptop. I don’t recall you giving us a really clear use for it. Without that information, I can’t really give you a good sound recommendation. I might just have missed you saying it. Oops.

I will add that Intel Macs are the only computer that I know of that can run every operating system out there. Mac OS X, Windows (Vista Included), and Linux. For me, I might not need those abilities right now but maybe down the road? It’s nice to know you could run those things if you wanted to.

I love Macs but they are not for everyone. I think PCs offer a better gaming platform. I really don’t know if they work well on the Intel Macs.

I know this probably didn’t help you much but I felt the need to pass along my two cents anyway. Good luck with your decision and your new laptop.

By martin on Jun 3, 2008

@ mike,
games work great on mac’s (intel based)and/but if you really want to play a good game buy a console.

By Rob on Jun 12, 2008

I work on Macs in a professional video editing environment, and they have their share of issues and problems. That being said, I love them for all of the reasons listed above but there are some important things to consider before you take the plunge:

Macs are a lot different on the inside than a PC. Taking one apart and tinkering with it (if that is your thing) can be difficult.

Despite all of the great innovations in both Windows and OS X - it can be a pain to network a Mac and a PC. The latest Mac OS, Leopard, addresses this problem very well and Leopard and Vista seem to play well together so I think this will be a non issue soon.

I crash Macs all day - big, powerful, $8,000 macs. They are more stable with consumer level software, but they have just as many issues as a PC when it comes to wrangling huge files or running professional applications (in my case, Final Cut).

The user experience on a mac is bar none. This is what will turn you into a convert. Sometimes things are so easy - drag and drop to do whatever - that it takes a while to figure it out. Also, there are tons of shortcuts, tricks, key commands, and tips that can really help you customize your mac. If you do get a mac, I really suggest that you sit down at the Apple store and do some 1 on 1 training. I have using Macs for years, and I still learn some new trick every week.

Here is my tip: Learn Automator and learn to love it! It will make computing a new experience for you.