----- Original Message ----- > They're not worth anywhere near the price difference; > and they're hard > to upgrade and consequently have short lives (or, more commonly, Mac > users are working with older equipment). > They don't work too well on > networks in my experience. > It's harder to find help on them (and Mac > users seem to need help as often as PC users). > A number of useful > graphics programs don't run on them. > > And, to the perceptions of most users, the interfaces are identical. > Awkward and cumbersome, yes; but the same on both. > -- > David Dyer-Bennet, David, I broke up your reply to answer points individually. 1) I actually agree, when looking merely at hardware comparisons. More later in point 6. 2) They are actually not hard to upgrade, but Apple prefers to have the user bring the machine to one of their stores/resellers for upgrades. Upgrades can be done by the user, and third-party manuals are available online for help doing upgrades or repairs. As for obsolescence, Apple does a very respectable job of keeping the OS backward compatible for many more generations than M$ does. It is recommended, for BOTH PC's and Mac's. to get as much RAM as you can afford and 2-3 times as much hard disk as you think you'll ever use, AT THE TIME YOU BUY THE MACHINE. These two factors alone will keep your machine usable for several years. 3) My experience is that Macs work quite well on networks, if set up by a Mac person. Remember, from almost the very beginning Macs were designed to work with PC's while the reverse is still debatable. 4) Help is readily available for Macs. Apple's website has a VERY good user forum to provide help to people's questions. The frequency of help being needed is a subjective topic. 5) True, some software that you've gotten comfortable with did not run on Macs, without an emulator like MacPC(something like that). Now that Macs are coming with Intel processors, ther are two or three options available to let Mac users choose which OS to boot up to, and even one option to run both OS's simultaneously better than the old emulators did. On the other hand, there is software for the Mac that is not available for the PC, like the Lightshop(?) that Lea has recently been enjoying. 6) To people that only look at the interfaces, without trying them, I imagine they do seem the same. A little bit of usage, usually, relieves them of that opinion. And it is the usage of the OS that has kept me a Mac user for 18 years, even though I have supported PC's at work, and on the side, for the same amount of time. Some people don't like the interface, after using it, while some do. It all depends on how the brain is "wired", in my opinion. Now, I don't want to restart the old Mac vs. PC debate. I'm sure you were just supplying the other side of the question so Marilyn can make an informed decision, which I hope she can, too. I just didn't want her to be making that decision on flawed or outdated information. I know I show my partiality to the one system, but, as you said, both systems can do the job. Stephen greyfell@xxxxxxxxxxx "...decide...whether or not the goal is worth the risks involved. If it is, stop worrying....", and "Worry retards reaction and makes clear-cut decisions impossible." - Amelia Earhart, aviatrix.
