Posted on 12/18/2006 8:54:10 PM PST by Swordmaker
I started working on PCs back in 1983, I think. Floppy Disks were still big enough to actually flop, and "disk" still had a "k" in it. I began learning on IBM 5150s that were given to my school. My first personal computer at home was what would be credited as being the first "portable" computer. It was made by IBM deserters calling themselves Compaq and was only half jokingly called a "luggable". The size of large suitcase, the small monitor came in any color you wanted, as long as one of them was orange or green. DOS was still in version 1.0 and BASIC was the language du jour. If you wanted to dig deep, you had to use ASCII. LANs were Token Ring. I remember when the computer lab upgraded to a 1200 Baud modem and we smugly knew we were on the cutting edge of technology.
All in all, it was a heady time for a 12 year old kid who had learned how to solder when he was around 8 years old and could decode diode color bands by memory. Any budding programmers out there could pick up one of any number of spiral bound books filled with programs to do nifty things for you if you were willing to spend hours and hours typing hundreds upon thousands of lines of BASIC code.
All of this just to demonstrate to you that I am not exactly lost in the realm of things computer related, whether they be software or hardware. I was never a “Mac basher”. I knew it was simply a different system that was better in some respects, and maybe not as good in others. Tools are tools. You choose the best tool for your job that is available to you at any given time.
I didn’t end up working in the computer industry. Instead, I ended up in going through a somewhat typical progression of Military, Security, and Law Enforcement. However, I worked with technology, computers, and electronics in all of those endeavors. Other than brief dabbles in HTML and SQL, I don’t write code. I’m what might be called a “super user”.
I found myself transitioning from law enforcement to start my own business designing and installing electronic security and video surveillance systems. As any sole proprietor will attest, the process of working with market prices, profit margins, billable hours, and business plans makes one acutely aware of exactly how much one’s time is worth.
As I made the transition, I knew I would need a new laptop to run my business on. Knowing more than your average person about computers, I began researching who was making good laptops. All laptops are not created equal. I knew enough to know that one BIOS is not the same as another BIOS. One processor is not the same as another processor. One line made by one manufacturer is not the same at all as another line, possibly even bearing a similar name.
While doing this, I also had it in my head to collect and keep current something like an article for my prospective clients regarding keeping their computer up and running. Having had some experience being the unofficial PC support guy for various coworkers, I knew that casual users sometimes needed some help with maintenance issues.
I was going to collect a series of helpful sources such as free virus scans and removal tools, as well as tips on how often to run them, keep the definitions updated, etc. I was going to provide handy tips about not leaving your computer on for months at a time without ever turning it off; how to set your connection preferences, etc.
So, with all of these things converging at once, I found myself thinking “Who has time for all of this? Do I have time for all of this?” I began to realize that to keep a PC up and running, I spent an average of 4 to 8 hours a month just for preventive maintenance, checks, and services.
If I was having a hard time choosing a system, and if I was having a hard time keeping up with security and system maintenance, then what kind of trouble is the average person having who may not even know for sure what a USB drive is?
Being a security professional, I was also looking at computer security issues from a risk management perspective. Many of these maintenance issues were directly related to software vulnerabilities in things like Internet Explorer and Outlook. Viruses, worms, browser hi-jackers, memory hogging scripts that crash your system; all of these things were things that I realized I had incrementally accepted as a fact of life.
It reminded me of the story about boiling a frog by raising the temperature of the water by only one degree an hour. Supposedly, a frog will just sit there and slowly boil to death since the change was so slow, it never realizes what is happening. I say “supposedly” because I haven’t tested it out myself.
I looked upon the horizon at the new Vista OS from Windows, and the outlook didn’t look good from what little I could find out. It seemed like the water was about to get a little hotter.
I started to wonder about alternatives and remembered those really cool “switch to mac” commercials. I know good marketing does not a solution make, so I dug deeper. Having a computer background that tracked right along with the development of both Apple and Windows, I was aware of the fundamental differences between them.
Windows is a software company. PCs are made of parts made by lots of different people and put together by lots of other different people. Then they run software made by a bunch of yet other different people. The engineer in me knew that that kind of development process was going to be bereft with challenges.
On the other hand, I was aware that Apple was a hardware company. Their designs have always been superior from an engineering perspective. Apple also develops their own operating system (OS). Any third-party software developers that design for Apple machines have a much better idea of what equipment and operating environment to design their software for. Generally, the development line was much straighter which could, at least in theory, produce a superior product.
I was also aware that the current Mac OS X was built on a very stable, solid, and inherently more secure foundation than Windows.
I had heard good things about the very nice software suite that comes with a Mac in their iLife package. I suspected, and learned, that any software I would need would be available on the Mac.
While doing my research, I ran across an series of articles from another security professional, Winn Schwartau, who was going through a very similar thought process. His background is computer security, but the foundation of looking at things from a time and risk management perspective were basically the same. Throughout his series he makes reference to the line “I’m Mad as Hell and I’m Not Gong to Take It Anymore!” from the classic scene in the movie “Network”.
MacIntosh vs. Windows: Choosing to take a bite of the Apple?http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/gener...1094430,00.html
He made good points. He made the switch. He reported back that the switch was going so well that there basically wasn’t much for him to report back on. (Although I highly recommend reading the series of articles!)
I crunched the numbers.The costs when compared to truly comparable Windows machines wasn’t really much more. When anticipating a reduction in TOTAL cost of ownership in not having to spend time dealing with security issues, buggy software, and system recoveries, then the Mac might even come out ahead.
I decided to make the switch. I ordered a 13” MacBook with 2.0Ghz Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB RAM, 200GB hard drive, and a Superdrive. I also included the iWork suite, Freeway Pro 4, and Quickbooks 2007. It also came with the iLife suite.
I’m writing this on my new MacBook that is only about two weeks old. So far, everything has held true.
Everything DOES just work.
In fact, it all works well together. Web addresses entered into my contacts show up in my bookmarks list. The iSync software integrates all of my info easily from my Treo 650 running on a Palm OS. I’ve already set up a wireless network and firewall, which took mere minutes. I’ve already set up my email with four different addresses. I’ve already made a DVD movie. I’ve already designed and published a website. I’ve already imported all of my family photos. All of my old MS Word documents open up and work fine in Pages. Keynote is, so far, far superior to PowerPoint. All of my important stuff is backed up using the .Mac service, even though there is much less risk of actually needing that backup.
I initially got everything running in less than a half hour. I didn’t have to download a bunch of drivers. There were only a couple of software upgrades that I needed to install. I never needed to look at a manual to get things running. Everything just seemed to be where it should be. An hour later, I had the printer up and running on a wireless network and had already installed all of my additional software. In less than two hours, everything was set up, registered, and working well with everything else.
The only time I’ve come anywhere close to making this thing stall out was while encoding a DVD, downloading a streaming video file, and keeping four different other applications open all at once just to put it through it’s paces. The DVD application slowed for a little bit, but it kept working. I could click over to the other applications and there was no difference in performance.
All of this without the enormous security issues that come with Windows, Internet Explorer, or Outlook. Yes, you could accomplish all of these things on a PC, but you’d have to hunt for additional software and it would take hours of troubleshooting before is all came together, and how long it stayed together would be another matter.
If working with a PC is like supervising rowdy kids high on candy canes riding on a school bus screaming “B-I-N-G-O”, then working with a Mac has so far been like a well rehearsed school choir singing Beethoven’s 9th with orchestral accompaniment.
Since I switched, my wife has had the usual problems with her work laptop forgetting network settings, locking up, losing unsaved data, needing hard reboots, and generally just being a typical Windows PC. So, my advice for the general public on securing and maintaining their home computer just got much shorter. Now it consists of only this:
“Get a Mac.”
And the Internet!
The article was printed ON a Mac? Really? Did he have to use stencils, or was it printed by hand? Did he use paint, or some type of proprietary ink (you know, those supposed Mac proprietary issues)...
[/sarcasm]
Mark for reading
You are sadly misled. First - what makes you think "double the cost"? Comparing as like as possible models, the prices are relatively close.
Integrating MacOS in a Windows world just may be easier than adding additional Windows machines. First time I took my iBook to my school and hopped on the network, I was fully set-up in less than 3 minutes. The last Windows machine we added too 20 minutes by the tech person...
Do what I did: sign up for an account at GoToMyPC.com. You can take over your Windows desktop remotely from your Mac and do whatever work you need to from any place with a broadband connection.
It turns out there is no real need to have your work software on your home machine as long as you can take it over by remote control.
As for the cost issue since you have 9 kids you're undoubtedly entitled to Apple's education discount which is 10%. I don't have a big family like you but my home is the local teen central. When I had Windows desktop machines the kids were constantly choking them with spyware, viruses etc. despite my best efforts to prevent this. I spent hours every month cleaning the machines up. Now that we're a pure Mac household (an Imac in addition to laptops) I literally spend no time whatsoever on computer maintenance. Factoring in the value of my time (and the scarcity of my leisure time) the cost of Mac ownership is less than Windows. At least for me.
Oh, and my Powerbook plugs right into my office network, which is otherwise all Dell. Our IT guy got me up and running in like five minutes.
Bad boys rape our young girls but Violet gives willingly.
Thanks for the addtional info, Jalisco.
I was NOT aware that the interaction between Mac and Windows office products was seamless.
Neither was I aware that Mac has a 10% educational discount. Since we are home-schoolers, I am certain we would qualify.
However, I do have a rather large investment in WINtel hardware. We have five desktops and two laptops, all WINtel.
But I am near the end of my rope with Windows' endless patches, and with anti-virus/anti-spyware software that acts like viruses and spyware by hijacking system resources and compromising performance.
At least once a week, we have to endure a Windows update/reboot cycle for ALL our systems, here at home AND at the office.
What a fantastic WASTE OF TIME!!!
.
It's a great feeling to have no antivirus or antispyware software choking the processor and taking up RAM. And the ILife software that comes with every Mac is amazingly powerful and easy to use.
ping
What you should do is go to your nearest Apple store and talk to the sales people there (probably wait until after the holidays). I've found them to be uniformly friendly, well-informed and eager to help someone in your situation. I'm sure they could answer all your questions, especially if you have some specialized needs. They won't try to sell you something that isn't right for you.
With 9 kids, you may be stuck with the company machine though.
Office for Mac is pretty seamless with the PC.
and connectivity utilities that allow the Mac to join a Windows "Workgroup"
I have no problems connecting to the Windows machines on my network.
~What~ Anomalies and difficulties? Seriously? I am running a PC that started out with Win 98 when that was new, upgraded to XP several years ago now, have kept it up to date automatically. I never have to do a thing, and I've never had a bit of Windows trouble with it.
The only people I know who have Windows issues are those who are running pirated copies, never update them, and run all kinds of questionable freeware crap on them. Well, you get what you pay for, I'm afraid. Pay nothing, expect no value.
I was wondering if anyone else thought the guy jumped the tranzorb shark there! ;-P
I am a software professional and I am FASTIDIOUS about intellectual property rights. Please do not even obliquely accuse me of such criminality.
As a software professional, my considered assessment of Windows is that it is a piece of junk, crippled by bloatware and riddled with security holes, many of which were placed there by design to give developers a "back door" into the hideous convolution glommed around what is an otherwise respectable OS kernel (NT).
At this very moment, I have Zone Alarm, Bit Defender, and Pest Patrol running in order to intercept third-party attempts at exploiting the system's security holes.
I update regularly, which takes time on 5 desktops and 2 laptops, not including my office equipment, and is disruptive in the all-too-often case where a reboot is required.
I've had to boot in "safe mode" on more than a few occasions to sweep the registry by hand to remove malicious exploits that somehow evaded detection by the resource hungry sentinels aforementioned.
This in spite of having the strictest controls on web-site access and an utterly paranoid spam filtering scheme.
I am NOT a happy Windows user.
I am a CAPTIVE one.
.
Do these developers fly black helicopters? ;~)
At this very moment, I have Zone Alarm, Bit Defender, and Pest Patrol running in order to intercept third-party attempts at exploiting the system's security holes.
I can see why you're annoyed, with all that crap running on it. I briefly had Zone Alarm, and it annoyed me too.
I currently use PC-Cillan, it's all I've ever used for virus. I'm not quite as happy with this year's version, it's a little buggy and it's trying to do too much new stuff with this release, taking on Spyware and Adware protection, which I've never really needed, and firewall, which I didn't need either, Windows' own always worked perfectly well, but overall I recommend it.
I've had to boot in "safe mode" on more than a few occasions to sweep the registry by hand to remove malicious exploits that somehow evaded detection by the resource hungry sentinels aforementioned.
I've never booted in "safe" mode. I don't even know how. The only things I've ever had to clean out of the registry is stuff I had installed myself at some point. I'm a driver, not a mechanic, and Windows was built for people like me. I don't want to know what a kernel is, I want a machine that's easy to use that has the power and compatibility to do whatever I want to do, and I have that.
The only thing I know about current Macs is that every time I've tried to talk people through how to run movies or other types of media on them people can't figure out how to make it work. They just aren't compatible with the rest of the world.
I update regularly, which takes time on 5 desktops and 2 laptops, not including my office equipment, and is disruptive in the all-too-often case where a reboot is required.
Why does updating take time, and what does it disrupt? Mine updates by itself, I don't have to ~do~ anything, nor do I have to stop working while it's updating... once in a blue moon I have to reboot (boo hoo) or I wake up and it's done so all by itself overnight. Cry me a river. ;~)
No matter how much you complain, I'll just never believe Microsoft is the problem. Microsoft is what has made home computing as powerful and accessible to the masses as it is today. Period.
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