Comments on: Mac vs. PC: A fight to the death!

That's right, we're doing Mac vs. PC, Crave UK-style: in tights

[b_baggins]

Give me a freaking break

OS X gets dinged because ecoterrorist organization greenpeace dislikes Apple?

I swear, the sheeple mentality among the media is amazing.

[tornato]

A True Farce

Written in the style of a farce (which was amusing), but the sweeping generalizations (with allusions to outdated and misinformation) made the conclusions that were drawn and the outcome a farce, as well. One example -- unless you're color blind, the buttons to min, max, and close a window are very easy to distinguish, without "mousing" over them in OS X. Yes PC's are everywhere, but only the newest are capable of running Vista. Media Center is nowhere near as elegant or seamlessly useful as Front Row. That observation has been supported by almost every honest review that I've read. I use PC's every day and they have their uses and can be made efficient for user specific tasks (work or play), but Windows is definitely playing catch-up to OS X and will be for quite some time.

[Vegabondmx]

This is supposed to be a fair fight?

After reading through this "comparison" I find it hard to give the writer any
credibility. For example:

"Count OS X, by comparison, is counting on his few enemies to see him
through. His armour is forged from the fires of Linux, which he hopes will
keep him safe from the common viruses that plague the land."

Ok... OS X is not based off Linux, and no, Windows viruses won't affect a Mac.

"Right after they stole everything from Xerox and co."

Xerox gave Apple the technology. Microsoft "stole" it more than Apple.

"it's in no way as efficient as OS X's Exposé feature ... We're calling this one a
draw."

Now that's fair...

"PCs are definitely the place to go if you want the latest technology. PCs were
privileged to the first Intel Core and Core 2 Duo CPU"

Not really. Look at the Mac Pros, Firewire, USB, the Mouse, and the GUI.

"PCs are greener than their Mac brethren. A Mac "scores badly on almost all
criteria", and Apple "fails to embrace the precautionary principle, withholds
its full list of regulated substances and provides no timelines for eliminating
toxics polyvinyl chloride (PVC)"."

Let's pull the Greenpeace card. Because that obviously makes Vista better
than OSX.

There was also a part about the delete key. Does the reviewer not know that
the Backspace key is named "delete" on the Apple Keyboard? Plug in a PC
keyboard and it'll be the same, just named differently.

After reading these things as well as others I have a hard time giving this
writer credibility. The fact that it was depticted "Shakespearean English style"
didn't help. The article in my opinion is an embarrassment.

[tmoynihan]

Vegabondmx is misinforming/misinformed

Not sure what Vegabondmx has to gain from posting things that aren't true. If you have a problem with the article, just say so, but don't post falsehoods to "back up" your case.

And if you don't believe me, I've sourced contradictions to your claims directly from Apple and from Apple fan blogs.

1. The feature doesn't even say "His armour is forged from the fires of Linux." It reads "His armour is forged from the fires of Unix."

I'm assuming the poster cut and pasted the entire passage, changed "Unix" to "Linux," and used this convenient edit to call the article's accuracy into question.

http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/unix/

2. "...and no, Windows viruses won't affect a Mac."

Yes they will. They probably won't affect Mac OS X unless the virus completely wipes your hard drive, but there's a difference between "a Mac" and "Mac OS X." A Windows virus can affect a Mac's performance if you're running Windows with Boot Camp.

Straight from Apple:

"Windows running on a Mac is like Windows running on a PC. That means it?ll be subject to the same attacks that plague the Windows world. So be sure to keep it updated with the latest Microsoft Windows security fixes."

http://www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp/

3. Vegabondmx: "Xerox gave Apple the technology. Microsoft "stole" it more than Apple."

If that's the case, why did Xerox sue Apple over its GUI in 1989? Those aren't the actions of a gift-giver.

http://www.applematters.com/index.php/section/history/2006/12/14/

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE7DE1E39F936A25751C1A96F948260

[eldernorm]

Good idea, bad carry thru.

While I thought the idea of making this a duel was cute, I thought that the author went out of their way to have the PC/windows win. It would have been better to be very honest and show the Apple winning and then have the PC guy stab the Apple guy in the back and drag the lady away.

Now that would have been funny and actually quite accurate. :-)

GreenPeace = a bunch of wankers
Microsoft and PCs being innovative???? yea right on ??? NOT.
etc, etc etc.

en

[Fil0403]

Bad idea, terrible argument.

Of course, who would think an OS that has 85+% of market share is actually better than one that has 10-%. What would have been better to be very honest too would be to show a midget Apple with no clothes and weapons showing off that he is invencible and being knocked out at PC/Windows first attack.

Not that would have been funny and actually quite accurate. :)

Microsoft and PC'S being innovative is a "not" for you? Well that feature called TimeMachine (yeah, the one with the childish GUI) is ripped from a feature implemented in Windows Server 2003 and present in Vista called ShadowCopy (without the childish GUI, of course, Microsoft develops OS's for people who know how to work with computers, not for kids). Now, Apple being better than PC/Windows? Maybe in gaving to reboot every 15 minutes every time you want to play a game or run Windows specific software or in baing hacked every month or even in getting 25 patches/month for security vulnerabilities.

[dlastovka]

I thought the author had some good points.

I own and work with both platforms, and I prefer Windows. I know that is hard for you Mac users to swallow, but not everyone is in love with Steve Jobs. The author has a right to his opinion just as you are. By the way, my OSX computer sits in a corner collecting dust. Anyone need a doorstop or a boat anchor?

[bobmarksdale]

Fair??? hardly.

Several points:
Games is under the category of usability and also in performance?
Hardware for Vista is easier? Ask a mac owner how many drivers that he or she has had to download. Ask a PC owner about internal hardware and compatibility. Ask anyone about the system requirements for the two.

If this 'duel' was not fixed as much as WWE, my name is Christopher Columbus. ;)

[Ramiro Orta]

Totally predictable from a Pro PC/WIndoze website

What a bunch of idiotic garble. Why doesn't the writer talk about the lack of
down time a Mac user has over the average PC user who continues to fuss with
his/her computer because of malware, drivers, etc. You don't think a Mac has
the performance capabilities? Try a MacPro quad or 8-core with an x1900
Radeon card and 6 gigs of ram. This Pro Mac will "fry" any capable PC. As far as
the nutcase who has his Mac "sitting in a corner collecting dust", maybe if you
were more productive with your Mac you wouldn't spend all your time keeping
your Windoze machine running and have time to enjoy life like the rest of us.
Nuff said.

[DoctorZoidberg]

You know what? Let Windows have the dude in drag..

There's so many things wrong with this... including the fact that MOST PC
users don't even want Vista, admitting that it's a 98 to ME type upgrade. My
favorite part? "Well, OS X lets you get work done (i.e. video encoding and
image processing), but Windows has games, so yeah it wins in performance."
HA!!! Let's not forget to mention that the pretty features they rave about are
so HEAVY they have to have an 'off' switch, and will slow Vista down to a
drag, whereas OS X.4 runs like a charm on my G3 600Mhz iBook with 256MB
RAM (though, admittedly, it's only used for mobile internet, word, e-mail, and
iPhoto).

Or, how about "Why on earth in OS X is the menu bar for any given
application not attached to the application itself? Why is it fixed to the top of
the screen, detached from the very thing it controls? Why in Vista do you have
to click the 'Start' button when you want to stop using the PC?"

Well, let's see... the OS X menu bar isn't attached to the program so that you
only have to look in ONE place AND so you can have multiple floating
windows! Hmmm... seems logical. Oh, and I hate to give one to Vista, but MS
took a cue from Apple (again) and removed the word "start" (unless you have
it in 'classic' mode), probably just to end that laaaaaame observation.

And what's this about "lack of internet service provide support"??? Doesn't
even MSN provide Mac support? Maybe if you want to go with "Ma and Pop's
33.6 Slow Lane", but any provide with more than 10 customers has "Mac
support".

[Shig2k1]

An unmitigated pile of garbage

Okay... you are offically the most retarded, subjective "journalist" ever to grace digital paper. Your review is a thinly veiled pro-windows diatribe, which tries to suggest that a bloated, memory-hungry, buggy OS is BETTER than an efficient, stable one.

Other people have made the point that OSX will run on older hardware without issues; I have 10.4 running on a 350mhz G3 with NO PROBLEMS... it's not slow, it doesn't feel like a 7 year old machine at all. I can't get Vista to run happily on a 1.2 ghz P4 laptop; I CAN'T GET IT RUNNING AT ALL!

I use both macs and PCs; currently running vista on my dev machine and XP Pro on my primary; I would NOT advise anyone who values their productivity to upgrade from XP; I would also advise anyone who agrees with the article to actually USE vista and then use OSX. If you get frustrated by OSX, just spend 5 minutes playing around with it and see how you feel then. Don't write some retarded ******* article with a bunch of knobs dressed as elizabethans or some other ****.

Cnet - you suck.

[dlastovka]

Nutcase? So now we are down to name calling.

Someone had the nerve to call me a nutcase because I don't like using OSX. I feel much more comfortable in front of a PC. When I sit in front of a mac, I feel very limited. Having a different preference doesn't make me wrong. It seems mac users think that only their opinions count.

[Ramiro Orta]

on being called a Nutcase

You were called a nutcase because you called your dust-collecting Mac a
doorstop not because you prefer Windoze. If you don't want to have someone
criticize you don't make disparaging remarks.

[strongpimphand]

You people are hilarious

Everyone isn't the same. Getting riled up on the internet over which is better is hilarious. Especially seeing how you can run a mac on a pc and vise versa now.

I prefer OSX, but I know there are some things that are just better on a PC. Hell, if it wasn't for apple not offering credit for students, I would have me a macbook and wouldn't have had to sell my iMac to get a laptop.

But I wouldn't dare look like an idiot on a website screaming that one is better than the other, or using extreme examples to justify my claims

[Ramiro Orta]

Mac on a PC?

Just so you know, you cannot run a "Mac" or OS X on a PC (at least not legally or
correctly), but you can run Windoze on a Mac as well as Linux. As a matter of
fact, the Mac is the only CPU that can run ALL operating systems! Talk about
some deal.

[pithenumber]

Hackintosh

You can if you don't care about legal issues

[genotypewriter]

I don't think the following could be said enough..

... this article is pure pus in a bag full of holes! I never intended to reply to such headache-giving retardations of human intelligence when I created an account in CNET. I never knew that any thing that can press keys on a keyboard (monkeys included) could even put together such a thing! I'm only here because I have contributed to conversations that are worthy to be called human, and because there are genuine people here who can hold a conversation.

I can't say enough bad things about the presentation of this article... how on earth can anyone get to the substance of it (if any) when it's covered by endless layers of unpenetratable ...!?

[Fil0403]

I don't think the following could be said enough..

Very good arguments. After reading your comment I really understand why Macs are better than PC/Windows?
Truth hurts, doesn't it?

[Fil0403]

Mac vs. PC: A predictible PC victory!

I don't really think with a market share of 85+% for PC/Windows against 10-% for Macs anyone really needs a fight between the two to know PC/Windows is better, but whatever, LOL.

[eldernorm]

Yep -- simplicity in motion. :-)

"Duh, bigggger is always better. Its simple"
Yep, if your looking for good gas milage, a tank is the best thing to buy. :-)

Microsoft lovers --------> this way.!! LOL

[domerdel]

dear pc fanboy

have you actually used (and understand) a Mac?

[domerdel]

Very Pro PC perspective.

Here's my take. Coming from a guy who spent 10 yrs building PC's from the ground up as a hobby. Here's why PC users are so anti-mac

1. They're ignorant: put them in front of a mac, if it doesnt operate like a PC they resist.

2. They look at numbers: yes windows holds a larger market share. All it really means is, there's a lot of dumb people (and no dont you dare try to tell me 80% is gamers - its mostly business)

So why do I feel strongly about those two points? I use to be "that guy" who was ignorant. I switched for good reasons, being a web/graphic designer, and there's just a certain efficiency the way Mac OS X is built. From my perspective, PCs hardware is kickass, but it will always be bottle-necked by windows. you could load 32 Gigs of memory in an 8-core PC... but you can plague it by adding Windows XP... better yet... Vista.

I could have sworn Microsoft was going to re-write their OS from scratch...

In the meantime, PC hardware is still lightyears ahead of it's own software

[themacdaddy]

I was "that guy" too

Same with me....use to build computers from scratch in my PC days. Finally
gave up on Windows. Just wanted to point out a few things
1. Hardware made for PCs is sometimes (but only sometimes) better than Mac
hardware because the hardware developers can get away with a lot more
when they write WIndows drivers. You can do things with Windows drivers
that you can't on a mac because Mac-OS won't let you get away with it. Since
your Windows drivers can be written more loosely, the hardware can be made
a little more snazzy. Mac-OS demands a higher standard, which is why it
works so well....drivers have to be tight, and conform to the platform,
whereas with Windows the OS conforms to the drivers. The tradeoff is your
hardware works as expected on a Mac. On a PC you have this rockin
hardware that makes your computer cry...right before it locks up or throws a
blue screen in your face. Mac hardware has come a long way though.

2. For those WIndows users reading this....Macs are to the computer industry
what Jaguars are to the audo industry. Just because fewer people use them
doesn't mean they suck.

[bdonohue1]

Like and early round of American Idol

This was easily the dumbest, lamest, most poorly written piece I've seen at C-Net. Like watching one of the opening rounds of American Idol. Geeks can be so pitifully lame when they try too hard to be cute.

[snowman74]

take a chill pill folks

[JimEdwards]

Best is ALWAYS relative

The best operating system is the one that is right for whatever job you need to do. The unfortunate truth in the computer world is that there is no one tool for every job and no one operating system that supports them. If you want a place to put an enterprise database, use Unix, if you want to do video editing and the like, get a Mac, if you want to play the latest games, you gotta have Windows.

There is no spoon....

[themacdaddy]

In a fight to the death...DIE WINDOWS DIE!!!

I worked in Windows since version 3.11, on up to XP SP-1. I know Windows
like I know my name. And I know the x86 PC platform even better. I was
hardly an average computer user and I knew how to take care of my machine
and data. But I still wasted too much time breathing life into my Windows
box with what seemed like endless maintenance. Too much time fixing
problems, working around errors, waiting for my computer to stop freaking
out when I put it through some real work (Sorry, I can't except "out of
memory" errors when I have 4GB of memory in the box!!). A few years ago
my computer screwed me over for the last time. I lost an entire work day
trying to revive my machine and when I finally got it running I found that I
had lost a lot of data; only 60% of which had been backed up because of
another fist-full of Windows stupidity.
I converted to Mac-OS and I never looked back. I get more worke done with
my Mac, I get it done faster, and I get it done better...BETTER because with a
computer that cooperates--rather than fights with you--you're not afraid to
run content through a bunch of different filters to get the exact look you
want. And with added efficiency I'm able to ride my creative train all the way
to town without having to stop.
And the thing is, while my Windows-woes were clear to me, there were also a
bunch of smaller Windows pests that I didn't even realize I was dealing with
because they were so normal with the Windows experience. When I switched
to Mac I started realizing just how many problems I dealt with in Windows
that I hadn't realized until I worked on a system (Mac) where those problems
didn't exist. Life is a lot better since I ditched Windows. I work the heck out
of my machine (not just for work, but for play, too) and I can leave it on for
weeks without feeling the need to reboot. Mac OS is more reliable, more
stable, more sensible, more cooperative, less intrusive, and a lot less retarded
than Windows. I will never use Windows again.

[pithenumber]

I tried switching to Mac

Then I came running back to dual boot Windows/Linux

1. The graphics horsepower of ANY Mac machine is terrible (tried using a classmate's decked out Mac Pro, framerates less than my budget gaming system)

2. Macs are too expensive for my liking (You can say stuff like "in the long run cheaper," but I have never paid a cent in stuff other than WinXP, Games, MS Office, and hardware upgrades, I found everything else for free)

3. Macs aren't as upgradeable as PC's

[eboland]

This is a religious war not a technical one

I have been watching and dealing with this "us vs them" since the introduction of the Apple and the PC (not that I like to date myself) but I find it hilarious. What O/S do I prefer .... what ever is in front of me (actually I loved Digitals' VMS) I work, on a daily basis with MAC 9, OSX10, Linux Win2k, winXP and Win Vista, Win Server2003, Cisco ......etc etc... and they all preform their job. I wear many hats as the "I/T geek" for a complex Gov't installation from network engineer to video production to web development to C# and Data Base development and except for some specific Server tasks I can acomplish my work on any platform available. What do I recomend for the end user? What ever their budget allows and what ever they are more familiar with. Don't forget these PC s and Mac s are usually nothing more than personal workstations and we are finally in an envronment where the all play together. So who is best ---whatever you prefer ! there is no "technically" better only "comfortably" better.