My 2 year experiment with the Mac is over, bought a PC

[NewJeffCT]

too many problems with my iMac and the repair bill was high enough where that money was better spent on a new PC.
And, nobody could ever figure out why my iMac would get hung up on the internets... it's nice to have a mouse where I can just right-click on it right out of the box.

Interestingly, there was a line of people at the store yesterday buying PCs and several others were also converting from Macs to PCs. Yes, I said from Macs to PCs.

[Pierre.Suave]

1. I dont believe you

that would never happen...


You can right click on a mac too, that functionality missing is a myth.

[NewJeffCT]

4. i tried a ton of times

because I've right-clicked tens of thousands of times on PCs over the years, and it never worked on my iMac. I had to click and hit the Control button or the Apple button.

Somebody said you had to program the apple mouse to be able to right click on it.

Additionally, I've never had a problem with a windows mouse, but the Mac mouse was generally pretty poor quality-wise. It lost part of its functionality within a few months.

[Pierre.Suave]

6. I will admit

the "mighty mouse" is not that great, that is precisely why I go get an ergonomic mouse made by Logitech and use it instead. Nowhere is it written that you have to use the mouse apple provides.

It is plug and play, no set up involved. right click until your heart is content.

[NewJeffCT]

10. I must have gotten a defective mouse out of the box then

because mine never worked with right-clicking.

[Pierre.Suave]

19. apparently not

I had no idea that to right-click with the mighty mouse you had to set a preference.

[bikebloke]

22. LogiTech Mouse

I switched to a Mac four years ago, and plugged in the LogiTech mouse that I'd been using with my junky PC. It's still working fine. In four years, I haven't had any problems whatsoever. I've had more time to do my own things.

[Pierre.Suave]

23. this is what I have

it is very comfortable and slightly bigger than others, which is nice for me because I have bigger hands,

http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/mice_pointers/mice/devices/130&cl=us,en

[rug]

2. We're overdue for a shitstorm.

[sarge43]

12. .......

:popcorn:

[derby378]

3. Interesting...

I'm a PC user, but I used to use Amigas back in the 80s and early 90s, so I could get used to Mac.

[NewJeffCT]

5. I had used an old apple in the late 80s/early 90s too

however, after 15 years of PCs at work and at home, it was a very difficult learning curve to switch to Macs, especially since I use PCs at work during the day.

[Deja Q]

8. I went from Amiga to OS/2.

Amazed at those who went Mac; they did not properly multitask back then. OS/2 did.

OS/2 had its quirks like the Amiga, but I supported it anyway.

A shame IBM never fixed the SIQ (but when I went to WinNT, I was overjoyed...)

[seemunkee]

11. Another former Amiga user

Damn but that was a good machine with fantastic graphics for its time. I still have it.

[TommyO]

25. Count me in as one of those that "thought different" before Apple started using that slogan

I had both an Amiga 500 and an Amiga 2000, both of which were sold to an even bigger Amiga fan than I was. She had a bank of Amiga 2000s that she used for rendering and titling.

[derby378]

31. You, too?

I used to have both for a while. Still have the 2000 in storage somewhere. I miss that thing sometimes.

[Deja Q]

30. I still have a 500 and a spare Agnus chip I want to put as a keyring artifact.

I loved the A3000...

[Downtown Hound]

41. I miss Amigas

They were a hell of a computer. Way ahead of their time.

[Deja Q]

7. YOU EVIL HEATHENOUS BEAST!

:rofl:

I saw a mac at BB yesterday. Looked more like a glossy, plastic fischer price toy that would easily scratch.

Amazingly, BB is now doing what compusa always did - sell PC parts and Macs. About time, but I still prefer mail order. Especially when BB/GS staff can't answer a question unless it's written on the back of the box and why ask a question if the answer is ON the box? (They probably can't count to two unless they see a topless waitress in front of them too.)

I can build a quality PC for much less the price of a "Mac" (which is just a PC plus a TPM so nobody can take "OS X" and use it on another brand PC)

[Pierre.Suave]

14. Hey!

Whats wrong with topless waitresses?

[Deja Q]

24. .

:rofl:

Technically nothing, except for when they get dressed...

:hide:

[Pierre.Suave]

28. yeah

they should just stay naked all the time, I agree.

[TommyO]

21. Until I got my Mac, I built my own PCs as well

If I needed a dedicated Windows machine today, I wouldn't hesitate to pull the parts together again., but quite simply I got tired of the care and feeding that Windows required.

[Deja Q]

27. Quite.

I hear ya; Linux and Unix-like OSes don't have the !*@&$%# registry that inevitably mucks up.

Still, when it came to running apps; running vmware just didn't cut it and Adobe could easily port their OS X Photoshop to Linux.

[TommyO]

9. I switched to a Mac for my own use back in January 2006

And will never go back to a Windows-based PC (though I do have to use one for work).

I haven't had any hardware problems with my PowerMac G5, and have used right-clicking from day one (it's a simple preference setting if you're using a Mighty Mouse).

[Pierre.Suave]

13. really? A preference setting?

What a ridiculous thing to do...

I never even plugged the damn thing in, my hand fits much more comfortably on the Logitech mouse. It worked right away, no preference setting needed.

[TommyO]

16. I'm using an older Microsoft mouse, the secondary button worked without settings

It goes back to Apple's original intent with their single button mouse, making it simple for the vast majority of people who hadn't used a mouse up until the original Mac was released.

[Pierre.Suave]

17. yeah, mine worked

no problems, just plugged it in adn it worked.

I started with a $20 microsoft laser mouse before getting the logitech, and both just worked.

[porphyrian]

15. I want both.

I've put too much blood and cussing into keeping my PCs going to abandon them entirely (like most old Harley owners or Han Solo with the Millennium Falcon), but I'd love to have a Mac for my computer art.

[TommyO]

18. With an intel based Mac, you can have the best of both in one box

Using Bootcamp you can restart in either Windows or OS-X; using Parallels or Fusion you can run Windows simultaneously with OS-X apps.

I'm currently using a G5-based Mac so those options aren't available to me.

[Pierre.Suave]

20. bootcamp and parallels

is awesome. Now I only need one comp, a MAC for ALL my computing needs.

[porphyrian]

26. By the time I can afford one, they might even have a working version of Vista available. -n/t

[Deja Q]

32. Vista is a bit overrated, but in ways it's underrated too...

Depends on which area one talks about.

I have no problems on my new machine; I had a couple blips on my previous one (which was still a year old and the issues were not speed-related. Asus never got around to updating the BIOS for their A8N32-SLI Deluxe...)

[porphyrian]

34. I'm sure it's like every other half-baked Microsoft product we pay retail prices for to beta test.

I'm sure they'll work most of the bugs out by the time they stop supporting it and release another half-baked OS.

[Deja Q]

29. But what apps make migrating to an Intel Mac worthwhile?

Apple would sell more licenses of OS X if they ditched the TPM crap... Microsoft found a way to license Windows; Apple does have an opportunity here. But they won't do it. They hated Mac clones too. (during the OS 8 and 9 days)

[Pierre.Suave]

33. for me

it is only gaming that keeps windows on my mac machine.

If that ceased to be a reason, I would ditch it faster than you can say, "You suck Bill Gates!"

Also I should add that having had Power PC Macs in the past that were totally unable to do things such as edit video, my first intel mac (macbook pro) was a revelation in power.

There are no specific apps that will run on intel that wont run on PPC, however the power/speed increase makes it worthwhile by itself.

[backwoodsbob]

35. I honostly dont get the pc problems

Started with a e-machine back in the day to dell's and now have a custom pc...never had a single problem.

I understand some like apple better but all these horror stories with pc's leave me amused.

I'm up to a gaming machine that would make alienware jealous and have never had a problem with my pc's.I could probably make 90% of those here who know crap about comps jealous and it all came from my local comp shop...I don't know crap about building pc's

Why do apple users insist on downgrading pc's?

I don't downgrade your mac so why downgrade my pc?

[TommyO]

37. This is one of the Mac/PC threads that hasn't gone downhill

Quite simply, I use both Macs and PCs, and prefer the Mac for my own personal work.

[CRF450]

46. Its the "in thing" to do here

I built a new gaming system with Vista Ultimate 64bit, its friggin awsome! I'v only had one driver issue but it was easy to fix.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

48. Yup, I'm a staunch Mac user, but one client requires use of their proprietary Windows-only software

The solution, an Intel-based Mac with Boot Camp and Windows XP on the smaller partition of the hard drive.

I would give Windows only one advantage: better games come with the OS.

However, switching between Japanese and English input is much easier on a Mac. Since this project with the Windows-only software requires me to input both languages, I really notice.

For all the people who brag that they could build a high-powered PC for the price of Mac: I don't want to build my own computer any more than I want to sew my own clothes or weave my own carpets. All of these are fine for people who like to make their own stuff, but we have retail stores so that not everyone has to.

[LeftyMom]

36. Like I've said, we've got Macs at work, and I've found them to be unreliable, buggy and overall shit

attractive shit, but shit nonetheless. In the time I've worked there, every once of our macs save mine has died and needed packed off to the repair shop. Our lone office pc, a cheap little Dell, keeps chugging along with narry a hiccup, as have all four of the pcs at home.

I'd take a pc over a mac even if the pricing were equal. With the disparity, a mac is an enormous rip-off.

[NewJeffCT]

39. Nothing is perfect

but, I had at least expected it to last longer

[RedCappedBandit]

38. My mac is simply an overpriced PC

with a different OS. It isn't any better than any PC i've built .. its just more expensive to fix.

[prolesunited]

40. What repair bill?

My husband took my 4-year-old iMac to the Apple store, so it was clearly out of warranty. The tech did a whole bunch of diagnostics and determined in was a software issue. He did a complete rebuild on the drive and I haven't had a problem since.

Previously, I had a Mac monitor blow that recently had gone out of warranty. They sent me a new one for free.

If you look at consumer reports, Macs are always highly rated for reliability and customer service.

Total cost: $0

I have both a Mac and PC on my desk and it's the Mac that always gets turned on.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

42. youre totally like the fat guy in a suit with glasses now.

you sure you dont want to be like a cool guy with longish carefully sculpted mussed up looking hair with carefully beat up designer jeans?

suit yourself. ..square.

;)

[Downtown Hound]

43. I have to admit

Ever since I started going to IT school and learning PC's inside out, the PC has grown on me. This is after years of using Macs and bashing everything Microsoft. I recently built my own and have been enjoying it a lot. I still use my mac laptop for many things and still love it, but I'm not nearly as down on PC's as I used to be. I still believe firmly that OS X is the best operating system on the market. And Vista absolutely sucks ass, but XP has grown on me now that I actually know how to work the damn thing.

Macs and PC's are apples and oranges, different types of people will always have their favorites. Each has their advantages and disadvantages.

[idgiehkt]

44. You'll smoke a turd in hell for that.

Just kidding, I thought I'd take this opportunity to use one of my favorite Robin Williams lines. :)I used to have a mac but it was outdated and I can't afford a new one. I had a PC handed to me so, naturally, I said 'thank-you', and am now a member of the great PC unwashed.

[huskerlaw]

45. Repair bill?

Why do you have a repair bill?

I have a 3+-year-old iBook that is no longer covered by AppleCare, but when I ran over the end of the cord with a rolling chair and completely smashed the prong that goes into the computer, they replaced the cord for free. Also, I stupidly tried to make the busted prong work and consequently screwed up the inside power connection. They replaced that too. No warranty. Clearly my fault. Took it to the genius bar at the Apple store, they looked up my warranty. Saw that it expired. Replaced everything for free anyway.

My roomie has a problem with dropping her iPods. Apple has replaced 2 of them, no warranty, no questions. Again, even though it was entirely her fault.

So...repair bill? I'm confused.

[NewJeffCT]

49. must have been a different genius bar then

[Kutjara]

50. Genius Bars vary widely.

I've got four within driving distance of my home, and my experience has been different at each one of them.

The one closest to home is staffed by the most clueless "geniuses" I've ever met. They really can't help with any problem more complex than a loose power plug, but they are very willing to provide replacements for free (even for products out of warranty). These are the people I go to when I know what the problem is and want to get it fixed for free.

The next closest has some genuinely knowledgeable people, who can diagnose and fix pretty complex problems while I wait. They are not nearly as generous as the first group, though, and stick pretty close to corporate policy. I generally go to them if I think I have a big problem, get them to diagnose it and, if it isn't covered by warranty, take the machine back to the other store where they'll generally do it for free.

The other two stores are a cross between the two I've just mentioned. They have some good, knowledgeable people and some hopeless ones; some very flexible ones and some hardasses.

The rule with Apple Stores and Apple customer service in general is, keep trying till you get what you want. Sooner or later, someone will give it to you.

[huskerlaw]

52. Well, clearly

as we're in California.

Still, I've never heard of anyone having to pay for repairs. Did you have AppleCare?

[Kutjara]

47. I use Macs and PCs.

Since most of my clients use Windows PCs, I have to keep up with the latest M$ technology to support them. For my own use, though, I always use a Mac, and have done since 1985. Sure, both platforms have their strengths and weaknesses, but I've found that the Mac just lets me get on with doing what I want to do, without having to devote significant chunks of time to system maintenance, online security and general tweaking.

Over the years, I've had a few dud Macs and a few with niggling problems, but they've always been repaired or replaced quickly by Apple. My PC experience has been less pleasant. While the failure rate was about the same as for the Macs, the quality of customer service, time taken to repair the problem, and indeed willingness to admit a problem at all were significantly worse in virtually all cases. Sony, Dell, Acer, HP: all have been a shambles at one time or another. Also, there seems to be a tendency in the PC industry to point the finger across the "hardware/software" divide that just doesn't exist in the Mac world. PC hardware companies try to push any problems off on M$, while M$ pushes right back. The user ends up confused and dissatisfied, because neither their hardware vendor nor their OS provider is interested in solving the problem.

With the Mac, both the machine and the OS are made by Apple, so the hardware/software debate doesn't usually arise or, if it does, Apple is happy to resolve the problem itself. I also use Apple software for photo editing (Aperture), video production (Final Cut), and office productivity (iWork), so any problems with these products can also usually be resolved by a quick visit to the "genius" bar.

Now, I know people who have had no end of problems with their Macs, received poor customer service from Apple and have vowed never to allow an Apple product to darken their lives again. That's a shame, and shows that Apple still has room for improvement in certain key areas. But I stand by my assertion that Macs offer significantly better user experiences than PCs. That's been my experience, anyway.

[Writer]

51. I think everyone has bought into this idea that PC's = corporate; Mac's = populist

Actually what they mean is Microsoft = corporate; Mac's = populist.

But the truth is, they're BOTH corporate.

But PC's, when you buy them from a local or online distributor that pieces together the hardware for you, is about as populist as anyone can get in purchasing computers. You can also choose the hardware specifications you want and can opt for Linux-based OS's.

Go PC!

[Robeson]

54. Yep. My PC is local built from the bottom up....

...I picked out all the components, and they put it together. Best PC I've ever had. The thing is a tank.

[MrMickeysMom]

53. How unusual...

Maybe this happens, but never in any place I've ever lived, nor any Mac I've owned!

Oh well, as long as you're happy...