Hmmmm - switch from XP to Apple?

L

Lucky Day

New member
I've about had it with Windows. Some years back I worked in hi-tech, had NT4 training, and have always been using Windows. I'm no techie anymore, though. I'm currently running XP Pro SP3 on a Thinkpad t61 maxed out at 2GB Ram. Very few days go by without issues of some kind - either directly with the OS or, most commonly, glitches with software on the laptop.

I'm thinking new computer and would definitely consider a Mac. My primary hesitation with switching over is having to replace/purchase vital to me software, i.e. SageAct, Quickbooks, etc.

So my question is -

is there any reason to think that the Windows-based software I already have will be more glitch free running on a Mac in a windows emulator? or other tool on a Mac?
 
I switched to a Mac Mini just over two years ago. The Mac has a much more stable operating system and many programs that do the same things as the windows programs.

Since the Mac computers are Intel chip based they can become a windows machine to run windows programs. When running windows, they become a PC and the windows programs are just as unstable as they were on a PC.

Here is a link to a forum for switchers. http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/switcher-hangout/

Go Mac, and you won't go back! No anti-virus needed, very few security updates, very little re-booting needed.
 
When we still had the studio, we had to have a couple Win-Doze machines due to digital printers that ran only on that platform. (Yes, I know - that makes no sense when most of the rest of the graphics industry relies heavily on Macs... probably why Kodak is in the financial situation they now find themselves). We also had a slew of Macs for the real graphics work.

Many software companies offered a "cross platform" discount: i.e. for those of us who had a Mac multi-license for Photoshop, Adobe offered a decent discount for the few Win-Doze versions we needed. You might check with the different software vendors to see if that exists.

That aside, we have dealt with quite a few people who have made the switch from Win-Doze to Macs. While I'm sure there are some out there, I have not run into anyone who was disappointed with that switch... and I've not run into anyone who has switched from Mac to Win-Doze (unless under particular circumstances like ours).

I realize that this is like saying: Honda outboards are better than Suzukis... or GM trucks are better for towing than Dodge. :wink: (trying to stray back ON topic)

There is a LOT of discussion on this (and other boating) forum about using the iPad for navigation. I think the iPad, iPhone, and various iPods have converted a lot of folks to the way that Mac stuff works. At some point, it would be worth it to me to give up the Win-Doze software in favor of a less troublesome operating system.

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
I was an IT guy in health care, programming PCs (C coder) and mini computers, then into management until I retired. One of my management duties was overseeing the team that administered/monitored of all the software that the company used to keep us firewalled from disaster.

I can safely say that when I moved myself to an Apple machine, it was one of the best moves I ever made. Apple's are not perfect, but there sure as hell isn't a security patch coming down the pike every week. The standard joke was that Tuesdays were "Microsoft Tuesday", as that was the day the patches were pushed out. Since most business is done in the PC environment, there is not as much incentive for the black hat guys to try and hack the operating system.

I don't know about running your existing s/w in an Windows environment on the Mac. My suspicion is that it will run at least as good, if not better. I believe that Apple does a better job QAing releases before the product goes out the door. Nothing to prove that, just very few instances of the Blue Screen of Death that was so common in the Windows world.
 
Although early on there were a few disadvantages to Mac's, today, with Parallels, and the ability to run Windows 7 Or XX, allows window full functionality.

I run both windows and Macs, and have for over 30 years--but far prefer the Mac. My most recent is 2011 Mac Air. Based on my experience I am converting my Mac book Pro to solid state drive and upping the RAM to the max (6 gig in this model's instance).

The solid state drives are so fast--so fast on startup that it saves a lot of time. Very rare to freeze--rare file problems--and plenty of soft ware for the Mac.

I am traveling now--and the only computer I have along is a Mac (plus a notebook for the diagnostic soft ware on the Cummins Diesel motor home, which is dedicated to Silver Leaf electronics--no program for the Mac there, and no reason for an expensive Mac to do what a $299 notebook does well.)
 
Also, do yourself a favor and run Windoze under Bootcamp on your Mac, not under Parallels or any other VM. The VMs do work but just don't measure up to running Windoze natively on the Mac's Intel processor.

Bootcamp Assistant is a tool that comes with current versions of OS X. When you start it, it creates a Windoze partition on your Mac HD of whatever size you want (make it plenty big, mine is 80 gb, and I wish it was larger). Then you insert your Windoze installation disk and it installs just the same way it would on a PC. Finally, it boots into Windoze and installs the drivers that are needed to make Windoze able to correctly use the Mac hardware.

You have to reboot to switch systems, but the performance of Windoze on a Mac is equal to (better than actually) performance on a PC.
 
I do not have an opinion here, but I gotta say it sure sounds funny to hear all you guys ranting about how lousy something is and then dedicate your whole thread talking about ways to use it anyway on something you deem better. It's like putting two-stroke oil in your Honda gas tank. Thank you. Carry on.
 
There is no Coastal Explorer for Mac (damn their eyes!), which alone is reason enough for Windoze under Bootcamp. That plus Lazarus/Free Pascal, DVDDecrypter and DVDShrink are all plenty of reason.

TyBoo":1rji7u95 said:
I do not have an opinion here, but I gotta say it sure sounds funny to hear all you guys ranting about how lousy something is and then dedicate your whole thread talking about ways to use it anyway on something you deem better. It's like putting two-stroke oil in your Honda gas tank. Thank you. Carry on.
Click to expand...
:cigar
 
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