Can a Mac help boost productivity?

[will.i.earn]

Hello there, I've been a PC user all my life. Never actually used a Mac other than in demos. I just want to throw this question out there for those who were PC users before, but now uses Macs as their daily driver. Is the difference great enough that you've actually noticed an increase in your productivity?

[webdesignphx]

Although I am well versed at both. I definitely prefer newer macs. They are so nice and OSX has come along way. I don't know if it will improve your business in anyway in particular. But I believe using a mac is like driving a Mercedes. :D

[Brian Altenhofel]

A Mac is a PC. Same hardware. Unix-based OS.

I'm a Linux user. I've been using Linux daily as my desktop OS since 1998.

I use OS X on the weekends. I find the interface hard to use and their cute tiny keyboards painful.

Productivity will depend on how you leverage tools - the OS doesn't really make that much of a difference.

Besides, Macs are extremely overpriced. A while back I was thinking I should get back into the market for a new computer since my desktop was nearing 18 months. For giggles, I decide to look at what Apple offers. The $4K Mac Pro barely touches the desktop I built for under $1K over 18 months ago. I'd compare it more to a Fiero Ferrari.

[Wozcreative]

For a graphic and web designer the answer is: Yes.

Why?

- The software just works.
- It's difficult to break/mess with the OS as it was built mainly for software to run.. and not for hacking so theres little viruses available for it.
- It's a lot more organized
- If you're going for an iMac.. the screens are beautiful and very minimal.
- The way the interface works is a lot more intuitive than in a PC. I do things with 1 click on a mac where as it took 2 - 3 on a pc
- I never had to format my mac since owning one in 2006


I have been raised on PC and do believe that PC is the way to go if you're a developer/programmer. But if you're a business and you're going to be running up to date software then you will love your mac. All depends on the type of business though!

But as Brian said... they ARE "overpriced".. but I will pay more gladly for software that works and a computer that doesn't lag... with better design, nicer materials AND that I can STILL SELL for $500+ 5 years down the road. So if you think you're over paying now.. you can think of it as the money you're overpaying coming back if you choose to sell it and get a better one years down the road.

Your other option would be to get a refurbished one. Or install certain things on your own and save $200 - $500, depending. For example you can get ram for $100's cheaper than what apple offers it for.

[Harold Mansfield]

A Mac is a PC. Same hardware. Unix-based OS.

Productivity will depend on how you leverage tools - the OS doesn't really make that much of a difference.

Besides, Macs are extremely overpriced. A while back I was thinking I should get back into the market for a new computer since my desktop was nearing 18 months. For giggles, I decide to look at what Apple offers. The $4K Mac Pro barely touches the desktop I built for under $1K over 18 months ago. I'd compare it more to a Fiero Ferrari.

I totally agree 100%. You can have a great Mac or a great PC and still suck, or the other way around.
It's really personal choice for most people. However, I do believe that print publishers prefer Mac as do people who do Audio and Video production and post production. In those professions it's kind of an industry standard. But that's not to say that you can't do the same work on a PC. You can.


For a graphic and web designer the answer is: Yes.

Why?

- The software just works.
- It's difficult to break/mess with the OS as it was built mainly for software to run.. and not for hacking so theres little viruses available for it.
- It's a lot more organized
- If you're going for an iMac.. the screens are beautiful and very minimal.
- The way the interface works is a lot more intuitive than in a PC. I do things with 1 click on a mac where as it took 2 - 3 on a pc
- I never had to format my mac since owning one in 2006


I have been raised on PC and do believe that PC is the way to go if you're a developer/programmer. But if you're a business and you're going to be running up to date software then you will love your mac. All depends on the type of business though!

But as Brian said... they ARE "overpriced".. but I will pay more gladly for software that works and a computer that doesn't lag... with better design, nicer materials AND that I can STILL SELL for $500+ 5 years down the road. So if you think you're over paying now.. you can think of it as the money you're overpaying coming back if you choose to sell it and get a better one years down the road.

Your other option would be to get a refurbished one. Or install certain things on your own and save $200 - $500, depending. For example you can get ram for $100's cheaper than what apple offers it for.

I agree and disagree. MACs don't just work all of the time, and when there is a problem you are SOL until you get it to an Apple service store which from what I've seen can be a pain in the butt.

I have nothing against MACs, but I can buy or configure 5x's the PC for the price of a MAC ( and probably get a laptop and tablet), and can service it myself unless something catastrophic happens, which I've only had happen once back when I didn't know anything about computers. I've never had to format or reformat a hard drive. EVER.



As for 1 click vs. two...not really a game changer in my book. There's no function that I know of that takes 3 clicks.
The interface? You get used to which ever you are using and organize it how you want.
I have 3 beautiful screens that are pretty minimal. Again, not really a game changer for me. I'm not really into the design of the box, I'm more into what's inside of it. Not a whole lot of things are bulky anymore these days.
I run all up to date software, but I understand what you're saying. There are a lot of older Windows users out there.
I'm not really interested in selling my computer 5 years down the line. It's a tool, not a collectors item. 5 years from now I want what's new. Tech items do not hold value. 5 years from now we could all be using holograms like Minority Report. Also, I don't want my old computer out there no matter how well it's cleaned.


I work with people on MACs all of the time and I run circles around them. Admittedly it's not solely because of what OS I'm using, it's because of how I have my workstation as a whole set up, and probably the fact that I'm on my computer 8-10 hours a day and have set up a ton of shortcuts and know where everything is for quick access.

So I know I'm not the average user nor a first timer. I had to learn how to fix, configure, upgrade, and troubleshoot out of necessity.

The bottom line is, know what you need. One over the other isn't going to make you more productive, it's all in how you work and use the tools that you have. You can buy a $10k MAC and still not know how to use it efficiently and you'll have the attitude that MACs suck and are too complicated. You can also cheap out on a PC and not have enough to do what you need to efficiently and have the attitude that PC's suck because you didn't by the right tool for the job.

In my view neither is better than the other performance one platform alone. At least not anymore. 5 years ago I may have thought differently. For any PC it's all about the specs. How much RAM. Chip Speed. Video and Graphics Cards. Sound. Memory. Peripherals like monitors and keyboards are not a reason to buy a work computer and usually the first 2 things I change.

The big difference to me is that there are many Windows computer makers and they come in varying qualities, speeds, and performance so you have to know what you're shopping for. Where as MACs all come from the same house with the same specs so it's harder to make a mistake buying the wrong configuration.

Which ever you get, know how to use it and take care of it. Nothing is foolproof.

And as you can see, which people use they take personally. Like Coke vs Pepsi or Ford vs. Chevy.

[Brian Altenhofel]

MACs don't just work all of the time, and when there is a problem you are SOL until you get it to an Apple service store which from what I've seen can be a pain in the butt.

I have nothing against MACs, but I can buy or configure 5x's the PC for the price of a MAC ( and probably get a laptop and tablet), and can service it myself unless something catastrophic happens, which I've only had happen once back when I didn't know anything about computers. I've never had to format or reformat a hard drive. EVER.

When I worked in support on an educational campus, the Apple PCs had a far higher failure rate than the Dell PCs. Typical turn around for Apple repair was 5 weeks, even for simple things like a failed RAM module or power supply. With the non-Apples, we kept spares of everything on-hand and could have most failures fixed within 15 minutes - parts we didn't have could be sent to us by Dell as a warrantied item. My favorite Apple repair was a hard drive replacement on a student's MacBook. Took 5 weeks, and didn't even bother to transfer old data. Good thing I'd copied it off before shipping.

As someone who requires their computer as an income source, I can't afford that sort of downtime. In the event of catastrophic failure, I'm much better off overnighting 2 or 3 replacements for non-Apple PCs.

(By the way, a login screen should not be used to measure time to boot. In Windows and Linux, a login screen typically appears after everything has bootstrapped. In Mac, a login screen appears well before everything has finished bootstrapping. When working in an environment with centralized credentials, our most common call was "I can't login" and the response was "wait another 60-90 seconds". It took between 60 and 75 seconds after the login screen for the Apple to tell the network that it existed.)

Formatting is just a tech support cop out. It's usually step 4 or 5 in the book. It's rarely ever necessary. When I offered support services as a teenager, I got called if you couldn't afford to lose your data. I can remember the three times I've formatted a Windows computer out of the 100's I've repaired, supported, or owned, and each time it was because I intentionally did a total nuke before formatting and re-installing the OS to give the computer to someone else.

I had a pro photographer friend tell it to me like this: "look around in your field - the Apple users are always complaining about being broke or not having enough money for the other things they want". He was specifically referring to his own field of photography, but I've also noticed it among developers.

[Freelancier]

A computer is a tool. Pick the right one for your needs. Often what you are looking to use is not the operating system or the hardware -- although both facilitate what you're using -- it's the software you want on it.

My parents had a Mac because it was easier for them to learn to use the software they wanted to use on it. Now that they aren't doing more than checking e-mail, browsing the internet, and such, they're down to a tablet. And that's the right "tool" for the job they want to do.

I do development for corporate customers, and that means a PC (or lots of PCs in my case). My wife works with a lot of designers, and most of them use Macs, because it works the way they want it to work and has the software they want to use. But some use PCs. The difference between computers in some markets is less than imagined. I do have one customer with a Mac laptop... and he has to run Parallels to be able to use the software his company develops (as well as running the latest Microsoft Office)... and I think this is the worst possible outcome for choosing a computer.

[vangogh]

First I'll echo the sentiment that your computer is a tool. I happen to use Macs now. I used Windows based machines before that. I know some Linux, though I've never really worked on a Linux machine. You can be productive on all of them. Your productive is going to come down to how well you know the operating system, keyboard shortcuts, etc. It'll also come down to how well you choose software and how well you know that software.

If you use a Windows machine now and switch to a Mac, you probably won't be as productive on day one. It took me about a week to feel as productive. That's how long it took for my fingers to relearn some keyboard shortcuts and to get used to a new keyboard. In that time I'd replaced all the software I needed with new software.

As for those who think Macs are way too expensive, Apple only serves the high end of any market it enters. You can certainly buy a cheaper computer, but it will be cheaper in quality as opposed to price. When you compare Macs to non Apple machines with similar specs the prices are similar. I've actually paid less for every Mac I've owned than the how much I would have had to spend on am equivalent Windows machine. Software for the Mac is often less expensive by an order or magnitude. The OS itself is now free as are the office apps and some other general use apps.

As far as them breaking down more, that's new to me. In 6 years of owning a Mac I had to take one in once and once only. It was a pain free experience and for what I thought I reasonably price Apple repaired a handful of things that needed fixing. Both of my MacBooks are currently working fine. Not one of my Windows machines functions. Each was my primary computer for the same amount of time and got the same use.

None of the above is meant to say Macs are better than Windows or Linux machines. They're better for me, but that doesn't make them better for everyone. All 3 operating systems are just different at this point. They all work and they all work well. And they seem to please different kinds of people. C'mon if you're over 30, you probably carry a computer in your pocket that far exceeds the first computer you ever owned.

All the my computer is better than your computer crap really needs to stop. Hopefully you chose a computer that's better for you, but that doesn't make it better. Every one of us can probably point to a few stories of good and bad computers. None of that translates across the board to everyone.

Pick a computer that works for you, but allow that others might have different requirements for what's best for them. Whatever computer you get you can be productive using.

[Harold Mansfield]

Today is a perfect example of my problem with Apple products and the company. They're having a live event announcing new products today, but you can only view it if you have Safari 5.1.10, which isn't available for Windows.

Now I ask you, what other tech company would have a new product launch and restrict possible new buyers from seeing it? It's things like this that make me think that they really need to get over themselves.

It was the same thing when the iPhone was announced. For years it was only available on AT&T. So I have to change phone companies just to be able to spend my money on your product? Deal breaker.

One phone is not more important than the service provider when there are so many phones to choose from and new ones coming out every month. I do understand the platform thing and that every company wasn't compatible at the time, but AT&T wasn't the only game in town, and at the time were the WORST rated phone company in the field. Even when other companies transformed, they still didn't make it available to everyone, so people moved on and that's a big reason why they failed to control the market like they should have been able to to.

They are innovators, no doubt. But they shoot themselves in the foot every time and give away market share. Every single time. They did get smart with the iPod and iTunes so I can appreciate that, but why does it have to be like pulling teeth to make your products available to all buyers? It's not like they are a charity, they're selling stuff. They want our money. Just make a good product and sell it. Period.

OnePlus is doing the same thing with their new phone. On the surface it looks like a cool device and priced right. But I have to be invited to purchase one from an existing owner, or jump through a bunch of hoops on Social Media and hope to be chosen to spend my money with them.

I didn't stand in line to get into night clubs when I was 21, and I'm certainly not going to start doing it now.

I mean c'mon! Seriously? Every other company makes it easy for me to do business with them. Why would I wait on you?

[vangogh]

Today is a perfect example of my problem with Apple products and the company..

No matter what Apple did today you were going to find an example of why you don't like them. That's why I think discussions like this are so pointless. The facts became irrelevant long ago. People chose sides and threw rationality away. You don't like Apple or their products. That's fine. We all don't have to like the same things. Who cares, though? The company seems to be doing well with or without your liking them. Other companies are doing fine with or without me liking them too.

Given Apple has built the most valuable company on the planet, I'd say they're doing something right when it comes to running their business. Not everyone is going to like their products or them, but I'm not sure why anything thinks they should do something different, when what their doing now seems to work better than anything any other company is doing.

Why do basic business principles go out the window when talking about Apple (or tech in general really). Smart advice for any business is to identify enough people who will buy their products, services, whatever, to sustain the business and then grow it. The smart way to start doing that is to identify segments of a market and appeal only to those segments. You aren't trying to please everyone with your business. You're trying to please your customers or people you think are likely to become your customers.

Apple chooses to serve a specific segment of the overall market. It's a business decision. That's it. They happen to have chosen to serve the part of the market where most of the money is. Maybe I'm crazy, but that sounds like the best part of the market to target. Every company doesn't have to serve 100% of every market. Most would go out of business if they tried.

In your case I suspect no matter what Apple does the odds of you buying from them is 0. You made up your mind about the company, already and I doubt anything is going to change how you feel any time soon. Again, that's fine. But why should Apple make things easier for you given that? Maybe some companies are making things harder for you personally, but it doesn't mean they're making things harder for most of their customers. There's nothing wrong for a business turning away some people in order to please others.

Back to the original question in this thread. Use whatever computer and operating system you want to use. They all work. You can be productive with any of them. Your choice is more about your personal preferences than anything else at this point.

[Harold Mansfield]

No matter what Apple did today you were going to find an example of why you don't like them.
That's not true. I've given a specific example of what I don't like about how they operate and what has always kept me from making the leap.
I do like some Apple products, and it wouldn't be honest to not praise them as an innovator and how they've changed the device market. They basically changed the world. I just don't like the whole "exclusivity" marketing thing, nor do I want to use their computer operating system, or be locked into only being able to deal with them for service, support and additional products. I don't really love any company that much. I like to have options.

But you're correct, those are my reasons and they are personal to me and the way I like things. Other people have to decide for themselves what they want. We could have a "Which search engine is better, Bing or Google" discussion that would go much the same way. It's pretty much personal choice or one that your specific business may dictate.

[vangogh]

My bad, if I'm assuming some things. It's just that I can't recall you ever talking positively about Apple in these debates. It seems to me your mind is essentially made up unless Apple does a 180 on some things. However, that's me reading into things so my apologies if I implied something about you that isn't true.

My main point though is we all choose which OS, which phone, which browser, etc. based a lot more on emotional and subjective things. We choose based on a preference. Most of what I see in regards to my (fill in your favorite tech thing here) is better than yours aren't really facts. You say you don't want to be locked into things. Good luck with that. I assume you don't buy books from Amazon then, since you're locked into the very unopen .mobi files and DRM protection.

All the big companies that currently rule the world are trying to lock you in to their ecosystems. The word open is thrown around as a marketing tactic more than anything. It's not like you can switch from Android to Windows or iOS without losing the native Android apps you bought. Same for switching from any of these companies. What's the difference? Or do you expect your Android apps to work on another operating system that wasn't developed by Google.

It's not nearly as big of a deal as it's made out to be though. We've all purchased things more than once because technology changes. I've purchased most of the music I listen to at least twice and more likely three times since I first bought it on vinyl. I've bought cassettes, CDs, and now I directly buy the digital file online.

I don't feel locked into Apple at all. It would suck to have to buy apps again, but it wasn't any different than when I moved from Windows to Apple. I'm aware that switching just my phone would lessen some of the experience I get from my iPad or Apple TV, but I don't consider that lock in. It makes me more likely to buy another Apple device, but it doesn't require me to.

Most of the arguments that go back and forth with technology lost logic years ago. So much of the shouting is from people who've never used the other companies products or are just repeating what others are saying online. So much of what's said about any tech company and their products simply isn't true. It's more often distortions of half truths that nobody really cares about except the person arguing in favor of their favorite company.

[will.i.earn]

This thread has sold me on what my next computer should be. I'm really impressed with the quality of the responses you guys have left. I felt that everyone was trying to be objective and kept their emotions out of the way - hence, no flamewar started. I actually posted the same question in another forum (a tech blog) and lets just say it's not very fun to read.

My key takeaways are:
-The resale value of macbooks helps justify the initial investment
-If you have the time and skill, you can have a cheaper computer with more muscle by building one yourself
-Macs typically break down less
-Productivity boils down to a user's level of mastery of his machine

[Harold Mansfield]

My main point though is we all choose which OS, which phone, which browser, etc. based a lot more on emotional and subjective things. We choose based on a preference. Most of what I see in regards to my (fill in your favorite tech thing here) is better than yours aren't really facts. You say you don't want to be locked into things. Good luck with that. I assume you don't buy books from Amazon then, since you're locked into the very unopen .mobi files and DRM protection.

All the big companies that currently rule the world are trying to lock you in to their ecosystems.

It's not nearly as big of a deal as it's made out to be though. We've all purchased things more than once because technology changes. I've purchased most of the music I listen to at least twice and more likely three times since I first bought it on vinyl. I've bought cassettes, CDs, and now I directly buy the digital file online.
.
That is true and you made a good point that is right on the money. I swear by Amazon over all other online retailers, and I purchase 90% of my music from iTunes now that you can transfer them to any device and platform. I know people who don't like iTunes, and are scared to order anything online.

It is more personal than a technical decision. If you're in music or print publishing, or designing iPad apps...then you probably definitely want to get a Mac because your industry dictates it more than anything.



-Productivity boils down to a user's level of mastery of his machine

This is the big takeaway. If you have this your technical issues (which are mostly user error anyway) will be very infrequent no matter which you use, and you'll have a better idea of exactly what you want and need when buying future computers.

In my opinion how you have your computer configured matters more when it comes to productivity, than which OS you use although some desired configurations, and budget may dictate it.

[shrinkme]

I use a new HP laptop for consulting but the rest of my family has Macs. I bought the Macs. I can control myself and not destroy my PC. My family on the other hand... I do not have to deal with spyware and viruses, reinstalling a computer over an entire weekend, and so forth. Macs slow down at about 4 years but are very easy to reinstall... then they are good as new for another 4. I put the shelf life of any PC at about 6 months before I have to reinstall.

Something else I wanted to say is that Macs are extremely user friendly. If you are going from a PC, there is a learning curve; but once you are beyond that your users will definitely like the Mac better. There are (little) features you will miss if you need to switch back (i.e. when using somebody else's computer). Too numerous to mention.

[Harold Mansfield]

I put the shelf life of any PC at about 6 months before I have to reinstall.

6 months to reinstall what?

[shrinkme]

The whole hard drive. The kids would find all the web sites that download spyware. The virus scanning software didn't help... ok, helped somewhat but the computer would get slower and slower until I had to do something. The only sure way to get rid of it all was to reinstall the hard drive from the reset disks or from the hard drive partition. My HP also has a reset partition that you can use to start from scratch.

I do know other ways to remove viruses and spyware from a hard drive but for non-tech people it is very intrusive. Our help desk people would use symantec to scan somebody's hard drive from another computer. That worked pretty well.

[Harold Mansfield]

Yeah, you should probably stick with a Mac.

On a side note ( and my friend does it all of the time), if you let young kids use your computer like it's a toy you deserve what you get. Computers are not toys I don't care what they do on TV commercials or in the movies. Kids have no concept of harmful things online or what kind of damage they can do no matter how many times you tell them.

My friend's kid can be playing minecraft one minute and have downloaded 2 viruses, 3 toolbars, and run 4 fake scans that lock up the computer the next. Kids are magnets for bad things getting into your computer. They click every flashy thing. They are easily duped. They don't know that one seemingly harmless click can take them down a rabbit hole that they can't get out of.

They do make computers for kids and that's why.

I've always had HP's and I've never had to format a hard drive, or reinstall Windows or any of that crap no matter how long I've had them. On the other hand I have friends that seem to crash a hard drive every year and still never learn how to stop doing it, mainly because they refuse to stop trying to download free music, free software, free games free movies and porn. So they keep ruining computers.

Treating a computer properly is not rocket science.

[billbenson]

Do a disk image.One click more ore less and you can restore the computer to a particular point in time

[Freelancier]

I've always had HP's and I've never had to format a hard drive, or reinstall Windows or any of that crap no matter how long I've had them.I have, but it's about year 4 or so when I notice that drivers are freaking out or some piece of software is conflicting with another and triggering a BSOD. What I do now is when we get to that point, re-load the basic OS and Office and give the computer to a family member who doesn't have a faster computer and buy a new one. It helps to own a business willing to do this for me. :)

[shrinkme]

Today each of us have our own computers, mainly because my kids are grown. Back in the early 2000's, we had one computer my family would use and one I would use for work... and I would never let my family use it. That doesn't mean that I don't have to fix the other one...

We bought our first iMac in 2008 and I can't say we've never had a problem with it, but small problems that aren't time consuming. We still have it, still use it daily nearly 7 years later. Again, I also have an HP for consulting that I use myself; grown kids have macbooks.

[Harold Mansfield]

OK I get that. Things are much better today than the early 2000's. It was a little easier for a novice user to catch a virus or spyware mainly because we didn't know as much as we do now.

[billbenson]

I'm a fan of cloning a hard drive after the initial installation and periodically after that. I always did that to an external drive when I helped friends or family with their computers. I try not to do that anymore. In any case, I think it's good to do a reinstall once a year. You never know what's on your system. I also like to keep documents on a second drive in case one fails. Of course also an external backup of some sort.

[Blessed]

I'm a Mac Girl myself - but then again, I'm a graphic designer and I've used nothing but Mac's since 1994ish... :)

I won't debate what is better for productivity - I think it's simply in knowing how to use what you've got!

[Brian Altenhofel]

You never know what's on your system.

I know what's on my system, and the entire thing is under version control.

[Harold Mansfield]

I have, but it's about year 4 or so when I notice that drivers are freaking out or some piece of software is conflicting with another and triggering a BSOD. What I do now is when we get to that point, re-load the basic OS and Office and give the computer to a family member who doesn't have a faster computer and buy a new one. It helps to own a business willing to do this for me. :)
I figure year 4 is a good run with a computer whether it be Mac or Windows. Especially if you are getting 4 years of updates on it.
If you can extend it's life, even better, but I wouldn't get mad at a computer that started acting up after 4 years. I usually want a new one far before that anyway.

Other than a TV that I just got rid of, I actually don't think I have any tech that is 4 years old that I still use.

[Freelancier]

I figure year 4 is a good run with a computer
I have a server on year 5 running Hyper-V with a Minecraft server for my son. Already had to replace all the disk drives in it, but figure that the dual Xeons are still humming along it's worth keeping up for low-impact stuff. But I replaced it as my primary server with something faster last year, so yeah, my target on workstations is 3 years and servers is 4-5 years. But, then again, my whole business is about doing stuff on computers, so it makes sense that I keep upgrading every few years. I have clients though who will try to keep their computers going for 6-7 years... and I warn them that they're being stupid by doing that with their servers, but they keep doing it anyway.

[billbenson]

Other than a TV that I just got rid of, I actually don't think I have any tech that is 4 years old that I still use.

Well IMO Microsoft controls the market. You could probably say that about Apple, but I'm not as familiar with Apple. MS comes out with a new operating system and eventually obsoletes older versions. This puts the software vendors in a position where they need to support the latest MS OS. They frequently stop support of the older systems. Often all of this entails getting a more current and powerful machine.

All of this forces hardware and software upgrades. This is a sound business plan but sucks for the computer user. Particularly those of us who use computers professionally. The upgrades can be a fact of life for MS and Apple users and can be expensive.

I use Linux. One advantage is it uses open source software, and there is a lot of it out there. Yes, you still need to upgrade, but at least the software is free. You still may need to upgrade to more powerful PC's though. I think Harolds 4 year rule of thumb is a good one.

I switched to Linux as a rebellion against MS. I'm glad I did though. Every time I turn on my windows machine (yes I have one) it spends a bunch of time doing updates. I don't do email or surfing on the windows machine. It's more susceptible to viruses.

[Harold Mansfield]

Every time I turn on my windows machine (yes I have one) it spends a bunch of time doing updates. I don't do email or surfing on the windows machine. It's more susceptible to viruses.
That's just because you don't use it that much so they build up. My laptop is like that because I can go a couple of months without turning it on. And to be fair they aren't all Windows updates..it's Adobe updates, iTunes, Browser updates and what ever other software is on it.

If you set up the basic protections, and don't frequent a bunch of free music/movie sites there's no reason you should feel that way. It's 2014, not 1990. Most of the world uses Windows and we aren't all getting viruses everyday. I actually haven't had one in years, and the last one I got I know exactly where it came from and it was my fault.

You don't get a virus mysteriously. You let it in. And these days you have to try really hard to let one in.

Like I keep saying, it's not rocket science. Windows already has a firewall, toss Avast on it for free, don't download files from P2P sites, don't open suspicious emails, and clean up old registry files every now and then. What's so hard about that?

Regardless of which OS you're using, we all know that there are some people who always have problems with their computer and some people who never seem to have problems. My contention is that this user related, not OS related. Some people just don't know what they are doing and they're going to screw up a computer whether it's a MAC, Windows, Ubuntu, Linux or whatever else.

[billbenson]

That's just because you don't use it that much so they build up. My laptop is like that because I can go a couple of months without turning it on. And to be fair they aren't all Windows updates..it's Adobe updates, iTunes, Browser updates and what ever other software is on it.

If you set up the basic protections, and don't frequent a bunch of free music/movie sites there's no reason you should feel that way. It's 2014, not 1990. Most of the world uses Windows and we aren't all getting viruses everyday. I actually haven't had one in years, and the last one I got I know exactly where it came from and it was my fault.

You don't get a virus mysteriously. You let it in. And these days you have to try really hard to let one in.

Like I keep saying, it's not rocket science. Windows already has a firewall, toss Avast on it for free, don't download files from P2P sites, don't open suspicious emails, and clean up old registry files every now and then. What's so hard about that?

Regardless of which OS you're using, we all know that there are some people who always have problems with their computer and some people who never seem to have problems. My contention is that this user related, not OS related. Some people just don't know what they are doing and they're going to screw up a computer whether it's a MAC, Windows, Ubuntu, Linux or whatever else.

I'd agree with that. Linux provides security because so few people are using it as their OS. And I do believe that people that really know Linux can better protect themselves. I'm not one of those people. I started using it as my own rebellion to MS. I just think MS's business model is heavily skewed in their direction. One day I may be forced to go back to windows, but not yet.

[NorCal]

Hello there, I've been a PC user all my life. Never actually used a Mac other than in demos. I just want to throw this question out there for those who were PC users before, but now uses Macs as their daily driver. Is the difference great enough that you've actually noticed an increase in your productivity?

IF you have the time to relearn the wheel, I've heard its advantageous . . . but as a PC user who switched to a Mac, I find the process to involved and if it wasn't for the vulnerabilities associated with PC use, I'd switch back in an instant.

[JonV6]

I don't know whether you have or not but I think a better place to start would be increasing your personal productivity using practical methods to reduce planning time or maybe streamline your design/writing process. That's where you'll make the most gains. After that I think it's an even split between whichever is quickest. I don't really think OS can have that much of an impact on productivity.