nkhalidi

My understanding is that Parallels isn't an emulator in that it's not - in the strict definition of the word - "emulating" anything. Windows runs natively on Intel processors; new Macs have Intel processors; Parallels enables Windows to talk to the processors.

My setup:
- black 13" MacBook, 2gb ram, 120gb HD (running Windows XP in boot camp about once a month)
- 20" Apple cinema display
- bluetooth keyboard and mighty mouse

The MacBook is maxed out, but it actually does get a little sluggish when running iTunes, Safari, and Word at the same time. I mean, you would think that Apple's maxed-out small notebook would be adequate for relatively light applications like these.

The Apple switch is a good one if you're willing to spend some time learning a new OS. I've used Macs almost exclusively since '96, and anything I would possibly want to do, I can do on the Mac. That said, I don't know anything even remotely in-depth about Windows.

Coochas

The new Intel chips in Macs run both Mac OS AND Windows. You need to own your own copy of Windows and use the free utility "Boot Camp" from Apple to boot up from Windows instead of Mac OS. I believe the speeds of running Windows are very fast unlike the older emulation software programs which are painful to use.

sullic

I sold for Dell for a number of years. I just couldn't deal with the viruses, adware, spyware, etc.

Mac Mini, MiniStack v2 500 GB external drive, 23" Cinema Display, wireless keyboard and mouse.

MacBook Pro 17", with Lacie External drive

Once you go Mac, you just don't want to go back.

Snoopy

Hmmm. The 13 inch Mac Book is the one I was thinking about, but not liking the idea of maxing it out with just that running. Might have to jump up to the next level (though I prefer the look of the black case and I think that is only in the 13 inch one).

icon

hi dave,
yeah, i knew about boot camp but first i had heard there was emulation software that ran on the intel chip.

texas911

I finally did get the Mac Book Pro, 15. Its plenty fast. Rossetta does slow things up a bit, but nothing unbearable while using the program, you mostly see it when launching an app. Everything else that is native is plenty fast. If you're in the market for any Apple laptop, wait a few weeks, rumor is they are switching the entire line to the Core 2 Duo.

Apples are just better because the same company designed the software and hardware. Does that make too much sense? PC are like kit cars. Sure they are cheap and perform reasonably well, but they don't have that button down feel to it, like a production car has.

OCBen

I'd argue that computers are like disposable appliances that you replace every 3 yrs on average. So why blow your money on overpriced apple computers? Makes absolutely no economic sense at all. And it's precisely because the same company makes the hardware AND the software that the costs are so exorbitant -- there are no competitive forces in their niche market to force them to become more cost efficient.

And because it's a disposable appliance, it makes no sense to throw away the good with the obsolete when you upgrade. You wouldn't throw away a perfectly good lamp just because it's not as bright as it used to be, would you? ... No, you'd simply replace the bulb. But that's what you're forced to do with an apple computer when it's not as bright as a new one. ... Makes no economic sense at all. A computer is simply a collection of distinct, separate components that are plugged together and assembled in a box. I wonder how many apple owners upgrade their individual components, if they can at all.

A PC, on the other hand, makes no pretentions about what it is: a disposable appliance. Unlike an apple computer a PC can be upgraded as easily as replacing a light bulb -- you can pull out the old processor and drop in a new one into the socket, and you essentially have a new, faster performing computer just like that! Without blowing away your hard earned dollars!!! ... Makes perfect sense to me for an appliance.

My upgrade costs are so minimal that I can afford to upgrade quite often to stay on the leading edge of performance. I hand pick all my components including the case, the power supply, the fans to ensure I have the best of the best. When one of them goes out, I simply replace it.

I also "flash" the BIOS on my motherboard when new software is available for it. Sure, I enjoy popping open the hood and making sure everything is running in tip top shape. That's part of the enjoyment of ownership besides simply driving the thing - knowing I can fix it myself for peanuts. ... It's just an appliance to get you from Point A to Point B.

CleanSlate

Well put Ben. Even though we're a mac household, I agree with you 99.9% I replace my Sony laptops (used for work) just as often as our macs. My wife is a designer and swears by the mac, but agrees that it IS overpriced for what you get in comparison to pc software/hardware.

nkhalidi

Ben, I think you're conflating the issues between a "disposable appliance" and the "enjoyment of ownership." For many of us Mac people, the enjoyment of ownership stems from the fact that we DON'T have to pop the hood to keep the machine running properly. We save our "hard-earned dollars" by NOT futzing with the machines. We don't have to perform a huge amount of routine maintenance, 3-year-old machines can still run the newest OS and most of the new software with little performance hit, and Macs have amazing value retention. My 2004 15" aluminum PowerBook is worth today 40% what I paid for it, according to recently closed eBay auctions.

The reason you don't hear about Mac people running out and dropping new chipsets in their machines is because, by-and-large, we aren't gamers and we don't care that our 2.13GHz machine was just overtaken by a 2.5GHz machine. There are, though, a number of companies that specialize in Mac processor upgrades. We can upgrade RAM without tools, and beyond that, if 3 years down the road you decide your processor's too slow, odds are that the rest of your computer's technology has moved along accordingly, and it's more cost-effective to upgrade the whole thing in one shot.

Coochas

I have no problem disposing of my computer every 3 years or so...I've also had about as many monitors as I've had computers over the years...they just get better and flatter every year (and cheaper).
iPods,...I'm not sure, but I think I've had about 8-10 all together.

OT: Here's a great gift idea for your honeys: My wife (like most women in America) loves the series Sex and The City. So, while she was away recently, I got her an 80 GB video iPod and encoded every episode of Sex and The City to iPod format (about 94 epidoses totalling only 15 GB). She totally digs it!
I bring my video iPod to work when I'm on overnight call so I can watch movies and cerebrally stimulating shows like Family Guy.

OCBen

There's no conflict in the conflation. I can enjoy the use of my Treo phone while I own it, even though it happens to be a disposable appliance.

One of the points I was making is that for those of you who own apple computers when you upgrade you essentially have to replace the entire thing, a very expensive proposition, considering they are overpriced to begin with. It's essentially a non-repairable or non-upgradable device like my Treo.

I bought a commercial server case (a full tower) a little over 7 yrs ago that I used for building a new system back then (AMD Athlon, 800MHz). I've gone through a few processors and a few MOBOs since then, but even though it's definitely not the same computer (it's now a dual core 64 bit system), it's still the same computer to me when I see that same tower sitting next to my desk at home that I've come to enjoy and appreciate over the years. I've replaced keyboards at least twice maybe thrice, mouses (don't ask) at least twice and will need to replace again soon, and just replaced the monitor after over 7 yrs with a new LCD flat screen (the wife didn't want me to drag that "old" CRT monitor over to the new house so I gave it away to a neighbor - I was planning on keeping it 'til it died.) About a year ago I replaced the power supply after the built-in, heads-up "dashboard display" of the MOBO indicated abnormally low core voltages (I like having a pop-up control console like that that monitors voltages, temperatures, fan speeds, and sends an alarm when readings fall outside set values.) So I replaced the power supply with a state-of-the-art 500W Antec PS.

So the only thing left from my original system now is the case, which everybody sees and regards as being the same computer. So yeah, for me there's definitely been joy in ownership.And we don't have to perform any at all, so we're one up on you there.
Not true at all. Not all components absolesce at the same rate, and certainly not all within 3 years. Obviously not power supplies, nor video cards, nor many of the other major components in a computer system for that matter, except maybe the processor, where most of the development dollars is spent, giving rise to the current obsolescent rate of computers.

I upgraded my processor once for about a hundred dollars and nearly doubled my computing speed, essentially giving me a new computer that lasted a few years before I upgraded again.

How many new apple computers can you buy for a hundred dollars?

PV

Nothing to do with the P-car. Doesn't matter. I'm using both PC and 20" iMac. It is so much easier with the iMac. I have the new iMac now for about half a year, and only had to re-start it twice, as up-dated OS was installed. For the rest very fast and very stable. the only issue is downloading internet movies, for insatnce via CNN. WiFi works seemless.
I can run Safari, Mail, EyeTV, iPhoto, and iMovie in parallel, and still everything respond pefectly.

MJones

I've never owned a PC.

Got a new 15" MacBook Pro...and it just works so seamless.

iChat is just so cool...
Was on my recent road trip and stoped for the night in Salina,UT and was iChating with a buddy of mine in CA. I had a wireless connection and a door that faced outside. He asks where you at...I walk outside turn the laptop around and show him the vista that surrounded me.
No PC I know of can do that.

For those of you that really can't live without Windows there is Parallels Desktop for Mac, it the first solution for Intel-Macs that give you the flexibility of running Windows on a Mac OS X simultaneously without rebooting.

The Mac is overpriced argument has never really made sense to me for when you equiped a PC equally the way a Mac comes stock, the differance has always been mute.

There are the diehard PC weenies who like to tinker and go to Frys to build their box.

Ben have you seen the AD's???
http://www.apple.com/getamac/ads/

OCBen

Yep, it's obvious you don't know a thing about PCs.

texas911

Oh PCs can do it, its jus that you have to configure everything instead of just pressing "connect" like on the mac.

I make home movies and burn them to DVDs. My PC friends always say, how I did it, what settings, what software, what card, I tell them, I don't know, I just press the "burn" button and the Mac does the rest!

BTW, Macs don't get obsolete as often as Windows machines do. So saying that they are disposable isn't quite true. Up until Apple went Intel, you could run the latest software on 8 year old hardware from Apple. Try that with a PC.

The Mac is just a better platform, just as Porsche is a better sports car.