Microsoft sucks... time to bail. Advice on switching to Mac?

After using my Dell Dimension Desktop with Windows XP at college for a while, I am throwing in the towel. I'm sick of using a pathetic "bite-off" operating system that's been stuck on the same version since 1995, built on a horribly unreliable platform that's only recently had any sort of improvement, exhibits unstable behavior for no apparent reason sometimes, and just doesn't cut it with video capture and editing. Whenever I get a new computer with a new version of Windows, my enjoyment of computing goes up--for precisely three weeks. Then I'm right back where I started. (You can make fun of me for switching if you like--I won't be offended--but it won't do any good, because my mind's made up.)

So, probably at the end of this school year (since I don't have any intensive film production classes until my sophomore year), I will be purchasing a PowerMac with Macintosh OS X. But first, I need advice on software options (i.e., Jaguar vs. IE, AppleWorks vs. MSWorks). Mac users--especially those that once used Windows--which programs do you find most useable and reliable for essential computing techniques? Also, any advice on video capture devices? I know Final Cut Pro is the best option for editing, but other than that, I can't seem to find much information. If anyone could enlighten me, I'll listen eagerly. TIA

The computer lab at the university which I attend is full of shiny new Macs. I am taking a class that involves heavy use of these computers. So far they have been nothing but trouble. I got so fed up this morning, I left the class early.

Ouch. If you don't mind my asking, though, what kind of trouble? I'd like to know all the ins and outs of everything before I go ahead with this. I'm still going to switch--because 99% of the stuff I've read says that when it comes down to it, Mac is the fundamentally more useable/tolerable platform--but it'd be nice to get some other opinions.

I have an PC running Windows 95 which I use strictly for surfing the web and email. It's located in the living room next to hubby's and we surf together and watch TV. I have never had a virus and never had much trouble with it, but I don't actually do much with it. I've found that when you start loading a bunch of crappy software and downloading a bunch of stuff including shareware from the web is when you start having problems on any computer.

However, when I want to actually do something, I use my little Mac I-Book (laptop), operating system Jaguar, which I keep in my office and use for my accounting programs and take it to work occasionally. Lately I've been hauling it around everywhere because my daughter's wedding pictures are on it so I can just open it up and start the slideshow (with music) and bore people to death with her wedding pictures.

I can plug it into my printer at work and print from there.

The new web browser, Safari, is quite a bit faster than IE which is still on it if I want to use it along with Netscape Navigator which I have only used a couple times. I personally haven't gotten into Appleworks very much. I use MS Word on my Mac for word processing, but the little I've used Appleworks it seems pretty close to Word. I also use Photoshop which runs beautifully on the Mac. Many of my documents are WP for DOS, MS Word for PC, and old versions of MS Word for MAC. I've yet to have any problem converting any of them. They transfer beautifully to my MAC word processing (MS Word).

I can't speak about video programs for the Mac, hopefully someone else will know more about that. I-Movie came loaded, I think it's a video program, and I took a class at the local Apple store which went over I-Movie and a DVD program and they seemed incredibly simple.

Everything is pretty intuitive on the Mac. I recently visited a friend who has one of those Airport systems and tons of Macs all over the house. She did something to my computer, took about two seconds and I literally was up and running on her network, just like that! I could see her harddrive and surf the web in just seconds. I know when we set my MAC up here at home I, myself, put in my numbers (somewhere) and it took about a minute to figure out and I was surfing the web here at home. The IBMs to set up, on the other hand, took hours and a professional computer person.

So, I would say go for a MAC.

The difference, to me, in the two computers is the IBM I use because I have to at work and because it's conveniently located in my living room and I've got very little running on it so not much can go wrong. My Mac I just absolutely love. I have to admit I still don't know the Jaguar sysem very well but I'm working on it. Even so, I'm able to figure out everything I need to do but to really take advantage of all its capabilities, well, I have a long way to go.

I've had a Mac since the old days, with my first being a little Mac Plus. I then graduated to a Quadra 605 and now the I-Book. By the way, the Plus and Quadra both still work just fine.

The Mac is definitely the right platform for you because you'll love Final Cut Pro. Nothing on the PC even comes close. If you're on a budget, they'll sell you Final Cut Express (FCP with all non-DV support removed) for $99 with the system. It does almost everything FCP does as long as you're sticking with the DV format.

Most of the other software is the same as you'll get on a PC, which is why you don't see much specific advice on it. For example, After Effects is the same lovable but incredibly slow program that runs on PCs, and Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator are the same as well.

Jaguar is the name of the operating system currently running on Macs. IE is one of many web browsers that work on the Mac; I recommend Apple's own Safari as a much more modern and sleek experience. Both browsers are included with all new Macs.

All Macintoshes have FireWire built in, which is all you need to capture video from a DV camcorder. If you don't have a DV camcorder, you've just gotten the perfect excuse to buy one :-).

For in-depth advice on Macs, I strongly recommend Apple Retail Stores if there's one in your area. The people are outstandingly helpful, and you can take all the time you like to try out various models. Their ability to help you after the sale, usually at no charge, is an outstanding aspect of using the Mac that should help your experience remain superior to the PC one.

Hope that helps, and let me know if you have more specific questions.

D

Thanks for your suggestions. I'll check out the Apple Store in Miami later on this week, but when I eventually buy the computer I'll do it through my school's web site as I'll get a nice student discount.

Would you say that I more or less need a top-of-the-line G5 processor to get the most out of Final Cut? I mean, if I ordered today, should I DEFINITELY be looking at 2 GHz or would 1.6 or 1.8 cut it for what I need to do? (This is my parents' money I'm spending here, so I need to know whether or not it's worth it to bargain them further up--although a top-of-the-line G5 setup really isn't that much more than a top-of-the-line Dell.)

Also, any books you could recommend for me to get started? Is Mac OS X for Dummies any good or is there something more in-depth--and what about for Final Cut?

It depends on what you're doing - if you're not doing compositing (layering images on top of each other to create interesting effects), any G5 or even any iMac model would work just fine.

But if you want to get heavily into this, you are almost certainly going to want to learn compositing, and the more powerful the machine you have, the better the results.

Even lowendmac.com, a site which normally recommends mid-line or low-end solutions, admits that the PowerMac G5 to buy is the 2ghz dual processor. A dual processor machine lets you do intensive computing in one program while running another, both at full speed. For practical work, it's really worth the extra bucks.

Your real battle is over the display. The Apple Cinema HD Display is one of the world's best displays, and the price is fantastic for what it is, but it's probably a tough sell :-(.

I am getting a PowerMac G5/2ghz for myself as soon as it appears in an Apple store. (They are delayed [sob]).

I learned Final Cut by reading the manual, so I have no good advice there. What I would do is visit a large Borders or Barnes & Noble in your area, pick up the available books, read 'em in the store and buy the best one.

Hope that helps.

D

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