Mac vs. PC: Lawyers spar over which is best

Normally, I wouldn't turn to the American Bar Association to tell me which operating system I should use, but I enjoyed this article in ABA Journal which has two attorneys - one a Mac user and the other a Windows user - sparring over which operating system is best.

It makes for good fun, though if the best the Windows world can come up with is "Use Windows because everyone else does and wouldn't you be frightened to go it alone?" then it needs to ratchet up its ad campaign.

On the Mac side, isn't this a more compelling argument:

If qualities like dependability, security and ease of use are important to you, you should be using a Mac--period.

And the best analogy for the Mac versus PC debate is this: You can buy a Hyundai or a Mercedes. Both of them get you from point A to point B. But which one is more dependable, and which one is more fun to drive?

Indeed. But wait! The PC guy comes up with one killer argument for which I have no response: "[I]f you like WordPerfect--and many of us computing lawyers do--then Windows is what you want."

Um, true. And also true that you could run it on the Mac in Bootcamp or in Parallels (virtualization software). But if you want to run WordPerfect you have problems that no operating system can fix for you.

[pdskep]

Go **** yourself Matt!!!

[Matt Asay]

Well, *that* was a very insightful response. :-)

[Anderson40]

Let's not forget Darwine, that lets you install and run Windows software without the Windows OS install or run overhead and it's under 25 meg! It may not work for all Windows specific software, but it works many of the major ones out there, and it's free to boot!

[mrdeeno]

Wait, so which is the Mercedes and which is the Hyundai?

Because if long term dependability in getting me from point A to point B is all that mattered, coming from an ex-MB owner (several times), I would put my bet on Hyundai being more reliable in the long term since a BRAND NEW and UNDER WARRANTY Hyundai wouldn't suffer as many electrical problems I have had to deal with when driving MBs.

[Igiveup2]

Good point! The analogy is apt, just not in the way its originator intended. Both Mac and Merc are coasting on a reputation for reliability that has little to do with current realities. Fact is, Windows has been at least as stable as OS X since XP SP2. Especially now, since the 10.5 fiasco. No real edge for hardware reliability with Macs either. I'll go with the Hyundai (Windows) against the sexier, overpriced and less reliable alternative.

[ebingert]

Matt, you sound so arrogant. Why are Macs better? They're more secure because they've been so unpopular the last decade that no one wanted to take the time to hack them. Just give it some time. Macs interface is for babies who don't want to take the time to learn how a computer works, they just want flashy graphics and some ****** marketing symbol validating their trend-based choice.

[jk3yboi]

Well I hate to say it but this was not a fair fight at all... It wouldn't matter what either one said, you would go with Mac either way... heh, oh well some people are born apple fanboys I guess.

[MSSlayer]

Since Apple is superior to Windows in every way, A person would have to be an idiot to cheer on windows in a debate like this.

[Matt Asay]

Um, yes I am, having spent 20 years of my life languishing in Microsoft Land. Life is better over here. You really should try it.

[Igiveup2]

But Matt, it seems you want Microsoft to languish. You seem threatened by Microsoft moving beyond XP. Maybe that's the source of the venom that is directed by Mac fanboys against Vista. The threat of Windows progressing as Mac becomes less reliable with 10.5 and Linux struggles to catch up.

[The_Decider]

Give up: The venom directed against Vista comes from the fact it is an expensive mess. A total failure. Win MEv2.

[cyclelogicpress.com]

Some comments against Macs sound at least seven years behind the times. Mac OS X is Unix certified.

[MrSviess]

Ha ha ha, ebingert you are a prime example of an M$ Supremacist, your utterly ignorant childish rant has no more foundation than blatant racism. Tasteless, and worse, useless eyecandy IS Vista. You obviously DON'T know how a computer works, the virusless environment has nothing to do with marketshare, if you understood how they work you would know this. And you would also refuse to believe that you actually get more bang for your buck with Apple's extremely competitive price/feature/performance ratings and the COO (cost of ownership for the clueless) is the lowest for any brand's lifespan. Oh and they have the top customer service rating of any computer manufacturer by a wide margin so, jk3yboi, sometimes the scales tip so far to one side there is no fight, the fanboy comment exposes self image based defensiveness and a closed mind.

[jrepenning]

The "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" argument, in the referenced article ... man alive! Of course it's broke. This is software: we have to choose "which is the less broke." It reminds me of a TV car ad of some years ago (it may have been for Volve, but I'm not sure any more): guy says "Yeah, I love my brand-X cars! I've bough ten of 'em over the last eight years. If I didn't love 'em, why would I buy so many?" You can tell, from his face and his voice, that something about that line of reasoning doesn't sound quite so logical, coming out of his mouth, as it did when he played it over in his head....

[eharrison33]

Was the WordPerfect dig totally necessary? 20 million users can't be wrong. The legal industry and government markets (US DOJ signed a huge deal a few years back) are strong markets for WordPerfect. (Full disclosure: I work for Corel's PR firm)

[The_Decider]

20 million people can be, and often are wrong. Just look at people like Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, and companies like McDonalds. They all have at least 20 million fans. Word Perfect may not be as bad as Matt said, but using sheeple mentality to defend it is silly.

[bigblubox]

ok we know what Matt likes based on the -weak- arguments he picked in favor of Mac.

I find it hilarious when the Mac users speak about "ease of use"! I mean if by "ease of use" they're referring to iPhoto, or iTunes.. that would make sense.

I tried using a Mac, and in order to be able to customize the system the way I like (like I do on my Pc) I would need to learn Unix.. what is the percentage of Mac users who know Unix?! is it more than 5%? try installing drivers on a Mac and see how fun that can be!! lol

The Mac ad campaign is perfect in that it succeeds in reaching its target audience: people who use their computers to chat, browse the web and listen to music..

[illogicaldespair]

I could not agree with you more. I bought a Mac about 2 months ago. I realized within a day or two that I would have to dust off my old Linux knowledge to configure Leopard to my liking. I still use terminal more in a week than I use command prompt in a year. I'm not saying Windows is better by any means, but I wanted to agree with you that a Mac's "ease of use" is very deceptive.

[Sabroson]

It is pathetic to be arguing which OS is better when most people have not tried the "other" OS.
If you use Windows .. before criticizing Macs, why don't you give it a good look? Most Mac users have been on the Windows side at some point so this criticism might not apply to most of them.

I have used Windows and Mac OS X extensively and this is my opinion:

What is good about Windows?
1. It is cheaper to buy a Windows PC.
2. There is more support as more people know about Windows than Mac.
3. People buy Windows PCs because its easier to find illegal copies of software. (let's be honest here!!)
4. You can choose from a variety of hardware vendors and are not locked to just one.
5. It's is comforting to know that 90% of computer users use Windows.
6. Your company's tech guy will likely know more about Windows than Mac.

What is not good about Windows?
1. Too many viruses.
2. Crashes quite often.
3. Is constantly interrupting the user with messages.
4. Applications can't be moved without de-installing and installing again.
5. You might need to edit the System Registry to fix problems.
6. You are stuck with Windows XP as Vista is just not what Microsoft promised.
7. Microsoft takes many years in releasing a new version of the OS.
8. Sleep function, specially on laptops, does not work all the time.

What is good about Mac OS X?
1. It is reliable and based on proven technology (Unix/BSD/Darwin)
2. It is very easy to use.
3. Comes equipped with many useful applications out of the box.
4. Runs on older machines just fine.
5. No Viruses.
6. You can upgrade to a new computer and easily move your whole system including apps.
7. You can move Applications around, even to a different hard drive without breaking them.
8. Runs Windows if you wanted to (Parallels).
9. Apple releases a new version of OS-X almost every year with new features.
10. Sleep on laptops works flawlessly all the time.
11. Comes with an Apple sticker .... Who wants a Microsoft sticker?
12. If you end up hating OS-X after using it for a while you can still install Windows on your Mac and boot ONLY Windows. After all, Macs are PCs.
13. Unix shell scripting, while challenging, could be quite useful.
14. iPods and iPhones work better with Macs (synchronizing pictures, contacts, etc.)

What is bad about Mac OS X?
1. Only runs on computers made by Apple. Not that Apple makes bad computers, but it is nice to have other options. Maybe one of these days Apple will wake up to the idea of releasing OS-X for any PC.
2. If you have a problem, your neighbor might not be able to help you.
3. You will not be able to find pirated copies of software as easily as with Windows.
4. If you own one, you now belong to a new religion and will engage in evangelism of others.
5. You have to reformat new external drives as FAT is extremely slow on OS X.
6. MSN Messenger for the Mac is not as good as the Windows version.
7. Mac Applications take more disk space due to fat binaries (binaries for Intel and PowerPC).
8. Can't use Online Quickbooks or any other Active X website, as Macs do not support it.
9. Safari (the browser) while fast, is somewhat buggy. Fortunately there is Firefox.

My suggestion?

While no OS is perfect, I do believe that OS-X is better than Windows.

Therefore, if I was a lawyer (which I am not .. I am a Computer Engineer) I would buy a Mac and install Parallels with WordPerfect. Backup the "Parallels PC" to a DVD daily (drag just 1 file over to a DVD-RW). This way you have a backup of your virtual "Windows PC" for the last 2 weeks (if you rotate 14 DVD-RW disks).

In case of Windows trouble... or Computer trouble... install Parallels on another computer and copy the one file over (the virtual windows machine) to the new computer and you are back in business. No need to re-install all the Windows Apps and copy over docs.

As time goes on .. migrate from WordPerfect to something else. Try Google Docs for docs available anywhere ... or Microsoft Word on the Mac.

[Igiveup2]

If your Windows is crashing, infected with malware, and has a borked registry, you are doing something wrong. It may be more accurate to say that there is less opportunity to damage OS X with user error or substandard maintenance.

[The_Decider]

"If your Windows is crashing, infected with malware, and has a borked registry, you are doing something wrong. " That is what happens with a default windows install. What happens to a default OSX or Linux install? It works securely. You need to take a clue from your name. It must really suck to be so low that you have to work for MS to spread lies.

[Igiveup2]

The_Troll hath spoken - from his stance of fanboy ignorance. Bolster a weak argument by claiming that everybody who disagrees is part of the big Microsoft conspiracy. Windows works fine if properly maintained and not abused. This is being written on a five year old XP machine that's got all of its original vitality.

[JuggerNaut]

Microsoft can easily be compared to McDonalds (Microsoft Windows = McDonalds Cheeseburger). Most people just go with what they know and most people know both. A lot of people don't care about good quality and user experience these days and will buy whatever junk they can find at your local Walmart, which is part of the reason why Microsoft enjoys the majority share of the desktop computer market today. Public ignorance (in regards to technology) also plays a role and is Microsoft's best weapon when it comes to keeping the Windows/Office monopoly unchallenged currently; but hopefully that will change within the next decade as choice is better for consumers (and beyond) in the long run.