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I Have A Dream Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:01 PM
Original message
Do you have a Mac machine rather than a Windows machine?
If so, have you had buyer's remorse or are you happy with your decision? I'm thinking of getting one, but I'm concerned that I'll encounter problems because it's not a Windows system.

(I want to get a Mac because Apple's a blue company.)

I want a lightweight laptop primarily for E-mail and going out on the web.

Any feedback would be appreciated. :)
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benburch Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:02 PM
Response to Original message
1. 100% happy with it.
And I have five macs.
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Southsideirish Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:32 PM
Response to Reply #1
14. Like Al & Tipper, my husband and I have our matching "white boxes" and
sit (or lie down) in the same room clicking away, sending each other articles, etc. We love them and they are wi-fi so we can take them all over the place.

"White box" = Mac G4 and G5.
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GCP Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 03:47 PM
Response to Reply #14
26. That's me and my hubby also
We have a wireless network going and use 2 G4s downstairs and a PowerMac laptop upstairs.
Love our Macs!
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NoQuarter Donating Member (532 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:06 PM
Response to Original message
2. Not a moment of regret
I've got three for at-home and on-the-go.
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cindyw Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:08 PM
Response to Original message
3. You cannot go wrong with a mac. We have 3. 2 laptops and a desktop.
Think ipod, itunes, iphoto, imovie. All of it is massively user friendly. Macs are EASY TO USE. They rarely need complicated installs or patches. Apple sends me the updates to all the programs and all updates to the OS. All I do is say yes install, type password and restart. And as far as programs working on the Mac, Anything that is not made with a Mac version, can work with Virtual PC. I do it all the time.

Best part is that there are no Mac virus! I get viruses and worm e-mails and they have no effect on my machine. Also, Mac's are very difficult to hack. I love it. I should disclose that my husband is a Mac Guru and is the mac guy at the Newspaper. All the more reason to trust my opinion.

Go MAC!
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shugh514 Donating Member (274 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:14 PM
Response to Reply #3
6. All this and more
You not only get all those great programs, you are also getting 2 operating systems in one. Since the Mac OS is now Unix based, you also have access to a world of Unix & Linux software which has been ported to the Mac OS.
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Nomad559 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:41 PM
Response to Reply #3
18. rarely need complicated installs or patches
That's not true, Apple has released many patches for the Mac operating system.

http://www.apple.com/support/downloads

2005 - 13 Secunia Advisories
http://secunia.com/product/96/#advisories_2005
2004 - 15 Secunia Advisories
http://secunia.com/product/96/?period=2004#advisories_2004
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cindyw Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 03:44 PM
Response to Reply #18
25. Easy to install patches for problems that cause slow down and glitches.
Not like PC where the patches can avert computer meltdown and virus/worm takeover. It is the difference between installing a lock on your door in Bel air and needing an armed guard with a gun in Baghdad.
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stopbush Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:09 PM
Response to Original message
4. I've used both for years and much prefer my Mac.
Mac OSX is a very stable and very elegant platform. Windows is DOS with major band aids all over the place. It's ancient, clunky and sucky.

Much prefer Mac.
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jmowreader Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 04:02 PM
Response to Reply #4
30. Newer Windows versions are no longer DOS-based
When everything went to XP and 2000, Windows quit being DOS with a shell on it.

There is a "compatibility layer" in there that allows you to run old software on the new OS--translation: all the viruses that ran on DOS and DOS-based Windows still run on the DOS-free Windows.
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mrdmk Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:10 PM
Response to Original message
5. We have 3 Macs and 2 Windows machines
Edited on Fri Jul-15-05 01:13 PM by mrdmk
Wifey loves her Macs, they are more expensive than the Windows counter parts. What you did not mention is what you are going to be using your machines for?

BTW OS X Tiger (the new Mac OS) may have few bugs and needs the latest software to run properly. The Windows XP OS is very stable on a Dell laptop system and they do run fast.

Edit: Why do these things still have keyboards and cannot put on the screen what I am thinking? On second thought, strike that!
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alpizzy Donating Member (737 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:15 PM
Response to Original message
7. Yes, I have many Macs
We have 3 at home and 6 at work. All terrific.
But I haven't used Windows much so I can't make
any grand comparisons. However my hubby has
to use Windows at work and he loathes it.....he
is very happy to come home to his Mac.

I don't think you'll be disappionted.
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GreenPartyVoter Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:16 PM
Response to Original message
8. We have a mac, a linux, and several windows ones. Hubby just switched
from the linux box to the mac as his mail machine.
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MadHound Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:20 PM
Response to Original message
9. Having owned Macs, and work on Wintel boxes
I have to say that I much prefer my Macs over any Wintel box. Stable, secure, resistant to viri, spyware etc. Plus they are really easy and intuitive to use, and will last forever.
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AlCzervik Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:22 PM
Response to Original message
10. i love my mac, no complaints at all.
waiting to hear how bad they are from the mac haters.
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nine23 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:24 PM
Response to Original message
11. I use both...
I have two big phat G5's for my work (video/sound design; they've never "kissed the internet" and never will...) and I use a Windows/Linux dual boot system for all the pedestrian stuff, such as posting on this virus-infected cesspool called the web.

To be honest, they both do their respective jobs perfectly well, never any problems whatsoever, tho I've been known to get a little poncey and full of myself when discussing Macs (ie. "nah nah, I'm better than you are"...I don't know why Mac owners insist on doing that, but we do.)

My advice is if you're only using a notebook for email/internet, stick with Windows...more bang for the buck.
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Ezlivin Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:26 PM
Response to Original message
12. I have both, but avoid using Windows as much as possible
I've got a home office where I do web development. The only reason I have a Windows machine is so I can preview my websites in Windows IE.

I have spent hours ridding the Windows machines of viruses and spyware; I've got all the tools installed, updated and set to automatically work every time the machine is turned on. The computer requires twice as much work to maintain as my 5 year-old Mac.

The Mac? Never gets a virus, never gets spyware and it simply keeps working, day after day, with problems few and far between.

My 78 year-old father uses an iMac (my suggestion). He iChats with me every Saturday, recently installed (by himself) Tiger, sends me e-mail with photos attached and burns his own CDs. I can't think of a better advertisement for the user-friendly nature of a Mac than that.

I even used my thousandth post for this!
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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:27 PM
Response to Original message
13. I bought a power book this fall
After many years with a PC, I still use the PC for games but
the powerbook is unbelievable in ease of use and speed.
No spyware ever.( no need to buy spyware software)
No viruses ever (no need to buy anti virus programs)
No ad-ware
No crashes
No blue screen
No longtime startup
yes iTunes
yes garageband
yes widgets
yes spotlight
yes tiger




The iBook is a great laptop plus if you have an iPod you can use that for storage
which I think is the only thing lacking in the iBook it is only 30gig but with an iPod
you can expand that.




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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:34 PM
Response to Reply #13
16. For Mac users with Tiger, a major update happened yesterday
from Apple
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AlabamaYankee Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:33 PM
Response to Original message
15. I've used Macs since 1985
Mac at home, Windows at the office, so you can see which one I use by choice. With my latest Mac most of the Win/Mac compatibility issues have been worked out. I can put a MSOffice file on disk or CD on one machine and open it without any problems on the other. Word still does not like AppleWorks (or WordPrefect, for that matter)

For internet security and ease of use Macs are hard to beat.
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REP Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:36 PM
Response to Original message
17. Happy Mac User
I have a 1.25 GHz 512 MB DDR SDRAM G4 with DVD/CD burner, Bluetooth and a bunch of other stuff and I adore it. I also use a 1.67 GHz G4 Powerbook and a slower G4 iBook and they're both pretty damn cool, too.
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emulatorloo Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 01:45 PM
Response to Original message
19. Mostly you will regret that you didn't buy a Mac sooner. . .
or at least that is what my friends who have switched told me.
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I Have A Dream Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 02:39 PM
Response to Original message
20. Thank you all so much for such wonderful feedback!
Based upon what you've all stated, I'm going to go with the Mac. It's worth it just to not have to deal with viruses.

It's very clear that you all are very proud and happy with your machines. (This almost turned into a cat thread -- you're all so proud! We'll do that next -- post a picture of your Mac! :))

I'll be one of you soon. Thanks again!
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RebelOne Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 02:42 PM
Response to Original message
21. I use both. I have an eMac at the office
and a PC at home. Actually, I prefer the Mac, but my PC was a better price. In my opinion, Macs are more user friendly than Windows.
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gmoney Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 02:49 PM
Response to Original message
22. I've been a Mac guy for 20+ years
Wonderful machines... great operating system. Get the iBook with the Airport Extreme wireless connection, and you won't look back. Enjoy!
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Left_Winger Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 03:16 PM
Response to Original message
23. I had a Mac since 1987
I bought a faster, more powerful model in 1993 which died last summer after 12 years of excellent performance. I never had any problems with either machine. In order to work at home and then take the files in to the office with a compatible format, I purchased an HP. So far the hard drive has already crashed once and I regret the decision of not buying another Mac.

Most of the work I do is in German and trying to type in German using the Windows format really sucks! With the Mac it only took two (or three) keystrokes to get the characters I need. With Windows the number of keystrokes (on a laptop, minus an external number pad) comes to six.

I would recommend a Mac. However, this is just my opinion.
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LeftPeopleFinishFirst Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 03:18 PM
Response to Original message
24. I'm happy with my iBook
Edited on Fri Jul-15-05 03:18 PM by LeftPeopleFinishFirs
Right now, I'm using my PC but the I got the Mac laptop for school next year. I don't want to bother hooking it up to the network for only 6 more weeks

Macs are fantastic!
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Initech Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 03:53 PM
Response to Original message
27. I bought my Powerbook last September
And it's the best computer I've ever owned. Really, it is. I can do things way easier than I could do with any PC I've ever owned.
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SarahB Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 03:56 PM
Response to Original message
28. I have a Mac Mini!
Love it! :loveya:
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ralps Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Jul-15-05 03:59 PM
Response to Original message
29. I love my Mac Powerbook and my G3 tower. I have had an Apple
computer since 1984. If I were you I might check out the iBooks. What ever computer you get get it with a writable DVD drive or a Superdrive. :hi: :loveya: :hug: :pals: :woohoo:
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I Have A Dream Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Jul-16-05 11:40 PM
Response to Original message
31. I just bought my Mac today, and I'm so happy.
Edited on Sun Jul-17-05 12:39 AM by I Have A Dream
With all of your help, I supported a blue company and got a wonderful product in the process.

Thank you all so very much!

:toast:

On edit: I got a 12-inch PowerBook G4. (Just about the cutest little thing that I've ever seen!)
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Forever Free Donating Member (542 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 12:15 AM
Response to Reply #31
33. What kind of Mac did you get?
I got my iBook G4 for school last year. I have only one regret: I didn't buy a Mac YEARS ago. Greatest. Computer. Ever. Nuff said.

Enjoy your progressive-friendly and CLEARLY superior operating system! Tiger > Anything Windows can pull out of its ass (EVEN Longhorn)
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I Have A Dream Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 12:38 AM
Response to Reply #33
36. I got a PowerBook G4 12-inch.
It is so light and so cute! I fell in love with this machine when I saw someone in a coffee shop pull one out of his backpack.

I know that I'm going to have loads of fun with it.
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Forever Free Donating Member (542 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 12:50 AM
Response to Reply #36
40. An Excellent Machine
and also quite popular...by far the preferred model for Apple laptops IMO.
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I Have A Dream Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 08:31 AM
Response to Reply #31
43. Kick so morning crowd can get my thanks. n/t
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MrScorpio Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 12:06 AM
Response to Original message
32. I super happy with my iMac
Best computer EVAH!
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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 12:18 AM
Response to Reply #32
34. did you do the new update? With Tiger?
I found great improvement on my PB
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MrScorpio Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 12:20 AM
Response to Reply #34
35. Not yet
I will eventually
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I Have A Dream Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 12:40 AM
Response to Reply #34
37. I wonder if my new machine came with the update.
How would I know?
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IChing Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 12:45 AM
Response to Reply #37
38. go to your apple sign in the top left, click
then click software update
and it will check for you.
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I Have A Dream Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 12:46 AM
Response to Reply #38
39. Thank you for this information, especially since it should really...
speed up my machine from what you said.
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aePrime Donating Member (676 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 01:40 AM
Response to Original message
41. I'm a programmer
I write software all day long for Windows.

I come home to my oasis of Linux and Mac boxen. There's not a single Windows computer in my house.

My wife was skeptical when I bought her a Powerbook, but now she won't go back to Windows.
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driver8 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 01:50 AM
Response to Original message
42. We just replaced our old IMac G3 with an IMac G5! Never a problem
with either one except the G3 giving up the ghost after seven years of faithful service.

I use a PC and a Mac at work; I hate the PC and love the Mac.
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grace0418 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jul-17-05 08:46 AM
Response to Original message
44. I love my mac
Been using them for 10 years and LOVE em.
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