You mean like that?
I use PC's because that's what I know, the software selection is much larger, and the price/performance is better. OTOH, with all the fans in my PC, it sounds like a small fridge running, and it's far from being a small footprint.
If I was pointing my mother towards a machine to use for email, browsing and the odd other use, I'd probably point her towards a hassle-free no-technical-knowledge-required Mac. Or maybe just a webtv box or something like that.