Apple Mac mini vs. PC

[hamerfan]

Hey,
I sure don't want to start a "My computer can beat up your computer" discussion, but...
We went to an Apple Store today, because I will have to upgrade my computer in the next 6-12 months. Working with Windows for years has has really left a bad taste in my mouth. From the little I've heard about it, I am NOT looking forward to Vista.
So, enter the Mac Mini. It's $600 and change, has dual core processing, and looks very cool.
The problem is, both the wife and I are longtime PC users. My questions are:
1. Anyone care to comment on the learning curve of moving to Apple from Windows?
2. If I decided to buy the Mini, anyone know if there are "Y" adaptors for USB keyboards, mouse and printer? Is there a "Y" adaptor for monitors? I ask because maybe it would be good to have the ability to switch between the Mini and PC using the same periphreals (sp).
3. With Apple products now able to use Word, Excel, etc., would it be hard to move "My Documents", "My Pictures", etc. from the PC to the Mac?
Thanks ahead for any constructive, knowledgable comments; or thoughts about this I have not thought of. I remain,
dumpbush

[onehandle]

1. Take a look here:

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

And folks at the Apple Store should be able to help you with all your questions.

Also:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=233

[Deja Q]

2. Have you considered playing with a Mac at CompUSA or The Apple Store?

You'd get to work with the GUI firsthand... but you wouldn't know how applications install (in theory it'd be easy, but I don't know where FreeBSD ends and Apple's proprietary modifications begin.)

[Lydia Leftcoast]

5. Typical installation process on a Mac:

1. Insert disk

2. Read licensing agreement and click "Accept."

3. Click on the "Install" button when it comes up.

4. Sit back. MAYBE have to Restart before the software can actually be used, maybe not.

[alfredo]

13. The average user won't even see the BSD. If they opened the

terminal or X11, they might be confronted with the BSD side.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

3. Can't answer the first two questions, but

3. As a translator, I exchange MSOffice files with clients all the time, in both English and Japanese, and I don't even KNOW whether they use Macs or PCs in their companies. Until a few years ago, you had to run Word and Excel files through a separate conversion software to exchange them with the other platform, but that has not been true since Office 98.

[Ravenseye]

25. Another thing about moving files and #3

Most files will go back and forth with no problems, but if you're going to have the Apple hooked up to a network with a PC it will only be able to read off of a FAT32 formatted drive, and not an NTFS foramtted one of the PC.

[cheezus]

47. This needs clarification

Over a network, you can read from any drive windows is sharing: it's just windows SMB sharing, which is built into the Mac. The poster is correct however, that a Mac will not properly read and write to a disk you plug into it that is formatted for Windows 2000 or Windows XP (NTFS format). The only way I see this affecting the average user would be with an external hard drive

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. No problem at all with existing Word documents, etc.

I have a PC at work and a Mac at home, and I can move documents back and forth as if they were created on the same system; but I can't answer your question about the peripherals. I learned about computers on PCs, switched to Mac years ago with no difficulty at all (they are much more intuitive to operate than PCs). I LOVE my Mac.

[Me.]

6. As Far As The Learning Curve

None. At least for me the move was seamless and welcome. A friend came by for an hour and showed me the basics and I haven't looked back. Apple also offers free classes.

*shadow government*

[jayctravis]

41. There is a teeny bit if you're a switcher.

I was trying to overthink the tasks, but on Mac it's usually much more easy. I was trying to import pictures into iMovie and I asked on a forum what I was doing wrong. Someone asked, "Have you tried just dragging and dropping the file you want into the program you want?" It's so easy that I couldn't comprehend it at first.

I'm a very satisfied convert. The hardware is good too...when I run my Windows box it's like working aside a lawnmower.

With the new Intel Macs you can partition the drive and run XP with a restart, so converting is a much more painless process than before. As said before, format as FAT instead of NTFS if you want to move the programs back and forth on the drives.

[evlbstrd]

7. Do it.

1. The learning curve will be short and shallow.
2. Get a USB hub and a KVM switch (http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/category/category_slc.asp?CatId=202).
3. Piece of cake; Mac OSX offers Documents, Photos and Music directories, with iPhoto, iMovie, iTunes and iDVD. Just connect them with ethernet or firewire. Office documents will work seamlessly with Office for X.
Enjoy!

[alfredo]

8. With Boot Camp and/or Parallels you can run Windows on

your Mac. Parallels lets you run Windows on top of OSX. http://www.parallels.com/landingpage/mac/?gclid=CMbkltyOiYgCFQQhSwodKETMBQ

Add RAM Go with 1gig RAM

Are you talking about a KVM switch?

[femmocrat]

9. We got Apple/Mac laptops at work... and I really hate them.

I've always been a PC user. PC's just seem easier and more logical to me. The Apple always seems to take several steps to do the simplest of things on a PC.

[we can do it]

14. ?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

15. ??

[alfredo]

17. The same thing happens going in the other direction.

Remember, Windows took the old Mac OS GUI and turned it upside down and backwards. things work in a consistent fashion. Once you understand how things work on one application, you will know how the others work.

The finder has a real neat feature. You have three views, icons, list, and columns. The column view is in my opinion, the best view.

Give it time, it is a very friendly environment.

Go to http://www.macnn.com and look for the forums. Many questions you may have can be answered there.


If you are on a laptop, I highly recommend MacJanitor http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/5856
OSX runs its maintenance late at night and most laptops aren't on late at night. MacJanitor enables you to run the scripts manually. It's a very nice piece of free software.

Now some fun:

Copy this script:

tell application "RealPlayer"
run
open location "http://play.rbn.com/?url=airam/airam/live/live.rm&proto=rtsp"
end tell

Now go to Applications/Applescript and open the script editor.

Paste the script into the window. Hit run. If you have the real audio player it will launch and play Air America.

Save As an application, give it an appropriate name and save it on your desktop.

BTW, if you don't have real player go to http://www.macupdate.com/ and search for Real Audio. Look for the free player. Real is cagy so make sure you get the free player.

[ariellyn]

18. ???

[mondo joe]

33. As a PC adept I initially had a hard time getting used to my Mac -

all the little tricks I knew no longer applied - but after a bit I knew the Mac just as well.

I still use a PC at work, and a Mac at home. I find the Mac much more logical and...direct.

After so many years on a PC I had a hard time on a Mac only because it didn't occur to me that functions could be so simple.

[alfredo]

38. Got this from slashdot.org

http://clintonforbes.blogspot.com/2006/10/10-pros-cons-of-switching-from-windows.html

10 Pros & Cons of switching from Windows to Mac OS X
The Background Story, in case you were interested

(Or just get to the list).

Am I yet another Mac fan-boi? Have I jumped on the Mac band-wagon just because I think my iPod is cool?

I have been using Microsoft software since the days when MS DOS 3.3 seemed like a pretty damn good upgrade. MS DOS 4.0 sucked but version 5 rocked! It took me a long time to be convinced that Windows 3.1 was a better program launcher than X-Tree Gold, but it happened eventually. Since then, I have been a sucker for every upgrade - 95, 98, NT 4.0, 2000, XP. (Notice I didn't mention ME. I'm not that much of a MS fan-boy.)

more at link

Here's the original slashdot discussion. Lots of funny comments.

http://apple.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/10/21/1619253

[proud2BlibKansan]

48. huh?

I am forced to use a PC at work and I just hate it. It is so much more complicated. Just getting started on a PC is ridiculous. You can't just turn it on. You have to turn it on, wait for what seems like forever, then hold down 3 keys, wait a bit more, enter a name and password, wait some more and then you are ready.

With a Mac, you turn it on and voila! It's ready.

[merh]

10. Macs are the original user friendly computers

Windows was developed in an effort to make the PC's as user friendly as the macs.

If you can used windows and window based programs, you can easily use an mac, which is years beyond the PCs, imho.

And their graphics are awesome! :D

[originalpckelly]

11. And if you still need to run something in Windows...

that too can be accomplished with a thing they call boot camp. It makes windows run on a mac. Should you want to torture yourself. :-)

My girlfriend owns a MacBook (the black one) and she loves it. You will be pleasantly surprised.

[madrchsod]

12. i`m going to linux real soon

vista is really really bad...did i say bad? i`d like a mac but i`m broke. nice thing about linux is one can use a old computer and it will work fine...

[jayctravis]

42. Vista, AKA "Microsoft Progress Bar 2006"

[SunDrop23]

16. Lifelong PC user who went Mac earlier this year.

Bought a Macbook earlier this year and I will never go back to PCs (well at home anyway). In my opinion, the Mac is far superior to any PC I have ever used FOR THE PURPOSES IN WHICH I USE A COMPUTER (emphasis added so it doesn't look like a "my computer can beat up our computer..."

I firmly believe if you buy the Mac mini, you'll never regret it.

1. The learning curve is minimal. Sure, there is one and learning your way around a Mac is not osmosis, but it is no more challenging from moving to Windows 95 from 3.11
2. Not sure about all the Y adaptors, but if it were me I would look into a KVM (Keyboard Video Mouse) switch - that's a fancy way to describe a box that allows you to operate two computers with a single keyboard, monitor, and mouse.
3. I have not experienced any problems when migrating the Office files from the PC to my Macbook.

[tularetom]

19. 20 year Mac user here

I had to use PC's at work and I weakened at one point and bought one for my personal use. It was a piece of shit just like the ones at work. I had the "blue screen of death" two months after I bought it. I still have it and it is an excellent doorstop. The Mac is intuitive - from day one you don't have to think about what you're doing and Microsoft now makes an "Office" package for the Mac so you don't even need a windows emulator to open PC generated word or excel documents.

[hamerfan]

22. B.S.O.D.

No kidding. And all the "You have performed an illegal operation" crap.
Thanks for all the replies! They have all been worthwhile and helpful. It's looking like I will be doing some reading, spending some time at the Apple Store, and sooner rather than later, going back there with a fistful of dollars and saying, "Give me a Mini!"
Thanks again to all, this web site is a wondrful resource, as well as a great place to say:
HAD ENOUGH? VOTE DEMOCRAT!
dumpbush
PS... Will have to check out the KVM switch. Learning something new every day....

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

20. I say go for it.

1. I switched from Windows to Apples back before OSX (which is much better than previous versions). I made the switch very easily. No problems at all.

2. I'm sure the periphreals are out there for that. I have no need for it, so I never looked into it.

3. There will be no problem at all with that. I've switched MS Office files between Apples and Windows machines many times with no problem. They are absolutely compatible. If you really need to run Windows for some BIZARRE reason, you can run it on the Intel Macs with no problem.

Honestly, Apples make really good computers. They last forever and installing/deleting programs is very simple. You just insert the disk and install, then to delete a program, you just move it to the trash and empty it.

My stepfather runs his whole company off of Apple computers, so they obviously are fine in the buisiness world, despite what some insist on. On my iBook, I run OSX and Ubuntu Linux, but I just have the Linux there for no real reason at all. I still prefer OSX, but both are a billion times better than Windows.

[Bigmack]

21. Mac mini...

by all means. Happy as a pig with ours.

They also have software ... I think it's "switch to Mac" and it does the whole thing.

[Sadie5]

23. Where are the Mac stores

in Indianapolis? I have never seen any here. I would like a Mac but a bit afraid to switch over.

[Elwood P Dowd]

24. Try this

Several in Indy.

Edit: Problems with the link. There is an Apple Store in Indy along with other dealers.

Go here for the list and locations. Just type in your zip code or city/state.

http://www.apple.com/buy/

[Bigmack]

26. Mac store in Indianapolis..

8702 Keystone Crossing Blvd.
Indianapolis, IN 46240
[phone]

[guyton]

27. support!

I use Macs today, but I've used many Unix systems and a lot of Windows in the past. Macs are generally what I recommend.

But -- it depends! Not on the hardware. Not on the software. But on your support network.

Do you have a Mac-knowledgeable friend to call on when you need help? If so, go for it.

But if all you know are windows people, you'll get frustrated.

Of course, you could go to the effort of joining the nearest Mac users-group and make some new friends :-)

Oh, specific answers ... (1) there's stuff to learn, but after a while it'll seem so much more rational than the windows way of doing things (2) not a Y connector, but you can get a KVM switch to share USB keyboards and printers and VGA monitors (3) almost all docs, but not 100%. check before you leap.

Btw, I have a new Mac-Mini and it's one of my favorite Macs :-)

[zalinda]

28. I bought a Mac once and returned it

I bought a Mac Performa because I needed to use a piece of Mac software. I did not understand that machine at all, and I've used many brands of computers from the Vic 20, Commodore 64 and 128, Amiga, Radio Shack, even a Sinclair. This thing stumped me, I couldn't wrap my head around stacks, and what were these things.

After 3 months of talking to it seemed like everyone, including all the people at the apple store. I found out the Performa, was not totally Mac compatible and so it wouldn't run my software. I returned the machine and have stayed with the PC since. I hate Microsoft, but my experience with apple people left me with a bad taste.

zalinda

[Elwood P Dowd]

29. My God, the Performa was a Road Apple from the early-mid 1990's

Comparing the current Apple company with OS X to the Performa years with OS 7.5 is like comparing a Ford Model T to a 2006 Formula 1 racing machine.

[leftofthedial]

30. Macs are much simpler

1. My sister has struggled moving from PCs (at work) to Macs (at home) because she expectws it to be as stupid as a Windows machine. She invariably overcomplicates things.

2. Yes (yes) (yes) and yes. I don't know about switching between the Mac and the PC, but you can "Y" all your USB devices. You can also set up a simple network and share peripherals like printers between the Mac and a PC.

3. I've never had any problem taking PC-based Office Documents and using them on a Mac. From time to time, I've had issues going the other way. I have not shared files from all versions of Windows.

[1932]

31. You should get a blue tooth keyboard.

[Irreverend IX]

32. I like Macs.

Inaccurate but fun to fire.

As for the computers, they're indeed simple, and you can learn the workings of the GUI very quickly. Unfortunately, the simple controls you learn early on are all there is to the Mac GUI, and you'll have trouble when you want to, for example, have many programs open at the same time or quickly shuffle many files from place to place because the simple interface requires you to take many steps and make lots of clicks when doing such things. If you want to change to another computer system I recommend Ubuntu Linux; it's free, runs on most any hardware, and it has an online repository of thousands of free programs you can download--movie and music players, office apps, CD burning tools, unzippers, etc. Stuff you often have to pay money for in the PC and Mac world. The only real hurdle to using it is that you usually have to install it on your computer; it doesn't come pre-installed like Mac and Windows do. But if you have a little extra money, there are companies that sell machines with pre-installed Linux.

[jayctravis]

44. I'm not sure what you're talking about.

As for the computers, they're indeed simple, and you can learn the workings of the GUI very quickly. Unfortunately, the simple controls you learn early on are all there is to the Mac GUI, and you'll have trouble when you want to, for example, have many programs open at the same time or quickly shuffle many files from place to place because the simple interface requires you to take many steps and make lots of clicks when doing such things.

What? I frequently have four programs open at once. To switch between them there's a process called Expose' which can be customized as to how it's activated (mine's when I move the mouse to the lower right corner of the screen) that spreads out all the active windows on the monitor, arranging them and making them smaller so you can see all of them. You click the one you want to be on top and everything shuffles back into the new order.

As far as moving files, you just apple/click all the ones you want and then drag them where they go. You can also shift/click a consecutive list exactly like in windows. You can also apple/tab just as you can alt/tab in windows, or drag a selection box around what you want.

In fact, drag and drop works even better on the Mac than on windows. I can highlight any piece of text on any webpage, drag it onto the desktop and it turns into a text file with that content. You can drag any picture off a website and drop it onto the desktop and it becomes a .jpg file or whatever it is.

It's even cooler when word processing because when you drag and drop text *you actually see the text you're moving* as you're doing it.

With screenshots, you can drag a box around just the part of the screen you want a capture of.

I do recommend if you're used to Windows that you make sure the mouse you get includes a right button. It works almost exactly the same way as windows.

[ChaoticSilly]

55. That's so cool about highlighting & dropping text into a file

That's so cool about highlighting & dropping text into a file, I didn't know you could do that. I'm a new Macbook Pro owner and I must say I'm seriously impressed by it. I thought the dashboard was just the coolest thing ever and installing programs was far easier than on any OS I've ever used before. My only disappointments have been no linux style multiple desktops and a few of the apps I use didn't have a precompiled universal binary. Neither are that big of a deal though - windows doesn't have multiple desktops either and most of the apps I use are open source so, in most cases, I can just recompile them. I did find a UB for Wings3D and MegaPov bit I'm still looking to get PoseRay running on it (not open source, might be able to run it with Darwine though). I don't think this would be a problem at all for most people - I'm just a open source junkie, lol.

Everything considered, I wouldn't trade it for a windows laptop for anything. Actually, unless things change drastically in the next few years, I'll probably replace my desktop with a mac when the time comes (maybe 2 or 3 more years).

[Irreverend IX]

56. At the basic level you describe, it's easy...

"What? I frequently have four programs open at once."

I frequently have 40. At that point it's a little hard to tell them apart in Expose. I usually wouldn't get that many when working with a Mac, more like 8-12, but the lack of a taskbar/multiple desktops still made it a pain to switch between windows, since using Expose and the old method of dragging the top window out of the way both take more time than clicking a taskbar button. Expose isn't much good for text editor windows; the documents all look the same when shrunken down.

File drag and drop is easy, but dragging those files to where you want them is where it can get to be a pain. One of my cameras starts a new folder of images every hundredth shot I take, and whenever I'm editing photos I like to have all my photos in a single folder. In Linux, I can have the Finder-equivalent tool display a directory tree in the left-hand side of the window. This makes it easy to drag files from one picture folder into another without having to copy-paste or open another file browser window. With OSX Finder, I can't display a directory tree in Finder so I have to pull up a window for the picture directory, and then make another window for the root directory that shows all the little picture subdirectories. This requires many more clicks and is just one of the aggravating wastes of time OSX forces the user to drudge through.

[jayctravis]

61. Column view is better than directory tree.

I frequently have 40. At that point it's a little hard to tell them apart in Expose. I usually wouldn't get that many when working with a Mac, more like 8-12, but the lack of a taskbar/multiple desktops still made it a pain to switch between windows, since using Expose and the old method of dragging the top window out of the way both take more time than clicking a taskbar button. Expose isn't much good for text editor windows; the documents all look the same when shrunken down.

Apple-tab dude. Works just like windows...and if you release tab and keep apple held down you can mouse over the programs to get what you want.

Also, if you'll notice in expose' you can mouse over all the files to see the name. In windows you mouse down to a tab bar, since I have expose' set to bottom right corner, it's exactly the same thing.

File drag and drop is easy, but dragging those files to where you want them is where it can get to be a pain. One of my cameras starts a new folder of images every hundredth shot I take, and whenever I'm editing photos I like to have all my photos in a single folder. In Linux, I can have the Finder-equivalent tool display a directory tree in the left-hand side of the window. This makes it easy to drag files from one picture folder into another without having to copy-paste or open another file browser window. With OSX Finder, I can't display a directory tree in Finder so I have to pull up a window for the picture directory, and then make another window for the root directory that shows all the little picture subdirectories. This requires many more clicks and is just one of the aggravating wastes of time OSX forces the user to drudge through.

You have tried column view, right? Select everything in the folder you want, then drag them to the folder you're looking for. As you're dragging the folders, you'll notice they are spring-loaded so you just hover where you need to go, after a moment the folder opens and you can drop, or hover a new folder.

What program are you using for photos? If you're using iPhoto your point is moot, as everything is imported to library and you don't *need* folders.

[Irreverend IX]

62. Column view is counterintuitive.

In a few situations it's very efficient, but outside those it's annoying. In column view, it takes longer to select all files in a directory than it does in an icon view with a tree sidebar. Click... scroll down... control-click.

"Apple-tab dude. Works just like windows...and if you release tab and keep apple held down you can mouse over the programs to get what you want."

Again, works well with a few windows, badly with many. It's like having to flip between different spots in a book with no page numbers to reference. And the little cluster of icons in the center isn't much help if you have several windows of the same program open and their icons all look the same. Yeah you can mouse over and see the names... but playing Memory like that is inefficient and annoying.

iPhoto is for amateurs; it has no advanced photo management functions. I used to use iView (terrible but not as bad as iPhoto) when I was working up photos in an all-Mac office, and it deals with photos folder-by-folder. Dumping them all into a database iPhoto-style doesn't work for professional applications. The most efficient app I've ever used (and currently use) for photos is GQView for Linux. It starts instantly even on a slow machine and has a simple, intuitive interface and a very useful set of keyboard shortcuts.

[pinniped]

34. I used winblows from 1994-2005.

Every CD I burned on win containing .doc files, picture files (jpgs, psd, etc....), can be read on my Apple.

[Occulus]

37. Have you ever noticed how Windows hates other OS's?

Windows can't seem to read anything but Windows drives. Linux can read from NTFS, and read/write Fat32; Mac OSX can read Win files (as I understand it), AND run .exe files under Bootcamp; linux has Wine, Winex, and Cedega.

What's available for Windows that allows Windows users to read from Mac and linux partitions? I'm unaware of any. Period.

Windows is insular. The only reason I use it instead of linux is because I'm a gamer. If I had the money for a powerful Mac with OSX, I'd get it and run Bootcamp for all my Windows stuff.

Does Bootcamp handle DirectX 9.0c? Can Bootcamp run Oblivion?

[jayctravis]

45. Yes, and yes, well sort of.

Does Bootcamp handle DirectX 9.0c? Can Bootcamp run Oblivion?

Not exactly a valid question. Bootcamp is the application that allows you to format the drive so you can include XP on an intel Mac system.

Once XP is installed, it handles DirectX 9.0c and Oblivion. It's not an emulator...you reboot and actually *run* windows.

[Swamp Rat]

35. I've been using Apples since the early 1980s

Since I have used Windowz PCs, LINUX, Sun Solaris, Amigas, and SGIs. I've had plenty of opportunity to decide what I like best; I prefer Apple OS X and Apple hardware:

1. Never had a hardware failure.
2. Never had a virus.
3. PC files translated very easily.
4. Apple tech support and customer service has been, for me, better than any other computer manufacturer.
5. The GUI is the best ever, and UNIX is a very stable OS.
6. When PC users act like jerks and throw insults I just smile ... at this gorgeous Apple monitor. :D

[Occulus]

36. Try linux with KDE

A Macfiend friend was ecstatic over KDE. "It looks and feels a lot like a Mac" was his constant statement.

You can download live CD distros of linux that don't install to the hard drive; they run from the CD. No changes to the drive are made.

Just do a Google for "linux live CD" and take your pick. Because linux is a "free version" of unix, and Mac OSX runs on a unix-based kernel, it should feel very familiar to you- far moreso than when I started using linux, back in the days of RedHat 4.

The only thing is, linux has nothing like Bootcamp (which is what is making me seriously consider a Mac as my next computer- if I can run Windows natively AND game as well on a Mac- I need to be able to use my huge game library- I'll drop Windows like a hot rock!).

But if you don't play games on your PC, and only websurf, write, do your finances, etc., linux is a viable option for Mac users. My understanding is that it's very simmilar to Mac OSX (which I've never used).

KDE, running with a few applets installed, can look and feel exactly like a Mac. AND, with Fedora Core 5 (what I'm running), there's very minimal use of the terminal- mostly for updates and yumming new applications.

Yumming?

Yup. You do a 'yum install application_x' at the terminal, and it downloads the appropriate version and installs it for you. No building of code is necessary!

Seriously, if you already have a PC, try a live linux distro. WARNING: it will be SSSLLLOOOWWW, because everything is loading into ram from the CD. But, it will allow you to get a feel for linux, without changing anything at all on your hard drive, and at a cost of only the time to download the .iso image and burn it with Nero or some such.

Once linux is able to do the things that directx does, Windows will be toast. That's getting closer and closer, and high time. I really would like to see a viable rival to Windows, and I think between Mac OSX and linux, that's a definite possibility.

[eppur_se_muova]

39. Thanks for that info. I need to try out several Linuces to see which works

for my purposes. I'm the only person in my Dept. with a need for Linux/Unix, so having to do it myself, without the necessary guru-quality background.

[Rosco T.]

52. Check out Unbutu Linux

http://www.ubuntu.com/

probably the best distro out there..

[eppur_se_muova]

64. Thanks. Heard it rec'd before, but appreciate the link. nt

[133724]

40. Of course...

As I understand it Mac's & Kde both use X11 windows systems. Basiclly the same software....

I have three operating systems that I use.

Windoz
Linux
OS X oon an antiquated G3 blue & white.

I use windoz because as an accountant some programs simply cannot bee run on Linux or OS X. specifically software used to file tax returns, tax research software, write up software such as caseware and quackbooks. I use the MAC's because I have clients who use some Intuit programs on Mac's and it is necessary to convert them wo use on the Windoz machine.

The for anything other than those programs I try & use Linux,

1) Desktop versions are free at the various Linux mirror sites, Open Office is Free (the counterpart of MS Office) but I would recommend a donation.

2) LINUX NEVER CRASHES....

3) The KDE environment (one of many available) is more Windoz like than Windoz.

4) You can configure just about anything the way you want it.

[Solon]

50. Note, X11 isn't on a default install of MacOS X...

Its on the DVD install disk, but you have to choose it as an option. At least, that is what I heard, the most experience I have with MacOS X is fooling around with Darwin, the Open Source base for OS X.

The Aqua interface for MacOS X doesn't use X11, but after you install X11 you can use KDE or Gnome, or Xfce, etc.

[Solon]

49. Uh, I don't get one comment you made...

The only thing is, linux has nothing like Bootcamp...

Now, I may be wrong, but isn't Bootcamp just a fancy name for a Boot manager? Linux, depending on your distro, uses either LILO or GRUB, both of which allow you to boot Windows, or even MacOSX, if you installed Linux on a Mac.

I dual boot Windows XP and Ubuntu Linux, Linux on a 160GB partitions, and Windows on a 30 GB partition. I don't even have to go to the command line to update my computer, I use Synaptic or Update Manager. :P

BTW: Have you tried Flash 9 yet? The beta is out, and for me, as stable as a rock(knock on wood). Didn't even have to go to the command line to get that either.

ON EDIT: I think you are thinking of Parallels, the MacOS virtualization software, it runs Windows, or any other x86 OS in tandem with MacOS X. The Linux equivalent is called Vmware.

[DancingBear]

43. We run one of each

The only problems using the Mac in this dual environment are:

1) We can't use the Mac on a work-related VPN. It's not supported by the company IT department, and since they are all PC based they have no plans on doing so.

2) The newest IE version for Mac (if you choose to use it) is not supported by Microsoft. For some reason, if you connect to the Internet via satellite (Hughes - formerly Direcway) the dish hates Safari and tolerates Firefox. IE, for some reason, works fine. Don't know about Outlook vs. Entourage with regards to mail.

[HannibalBarca]

46. Well

have been lifelong PC user with a custom built computer and an ibook for the last 2 years. No doubt it will raise the ire of many here but I just prefer my PC for innumerable reasons. With Windows 2000 and now XP I rarely (if ever) experience the nightmares that seem to plague so many. For what its worth the mac was supplied to me (by my college, its compulsory to have a laptop) and several people in my class and others have had numerous hardware failures more specifically the hard drive which upon research seemed to be a common problem with this model. The ibook isn't compatible with my mp3 player either but thats not a huge problem.
They seem to be relatively well designed and are certainly the target of less malware and virus writers but whether thats as a result of the OS itself or simply market share remains to be seen.
Haven't seen vista yet and I don't believe in condemning something that I haven't yet seen or is indeed finished. I'm sure you'll be happy with the mac,best of luck.

[Rosco T.]

51. You don't want a "Y" adapter.. you want a KVM switch...

look here...

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7708545&st=kvm&type=product&id=1138086034896

[Rosco T.]

53. BTW.. simple way to deal with Vista...

.. stay with Windows 2000. Most stable one they put out.

[hamerfan]

60. I've heard that about Windows 2000,

but I run 98SE.
These comments are all great, and it was especially good to hear some *gasp* negative comments about Apple. Listening to Apple fanatics, you'd think there is never aproblem with them, although I'd wager there are a LOT less problems with Apple than Windows.
All this being said, I'm almost positive we'll be getting the Mini when it's time.
Thanks again to all, even though some of these answers did not pertain to me or were far beyond what I use a computer for. Solitaire, anyone?
dumpbush

[sakabatou]

54. The thing with Mac mini's:

You can't upgrade them and there is no expansion with them.

[JCMach1]

58. Will stick with PC thanks... I never buy new any more

we get all of the year old corporate PC's in the used market here from Japan and the U.S., and Europe. I can have a regular PC (FAST PENTIUM 4) for $100. Or, a heavy duty corporate workstation for $150.

Then either load it with Windows, or Linux and you are on your way.

I prefer being able to get under the hood of my system and the OS, so no Apple for me thanks... keep your over-priced boutique machines.

[sakabatou]

59. I'm planning to upgrade my CPU and D: drive

[elocs]

57. What is weird about reading this is that the Mac/PC guy commercial

just came on. I have been pretty happy with my Mac Mini for the past year. I have enjoyed not having to do maintenance and having to worry about a virus. I did not enjoy it when my Mini crashed and I lost everything. Apple said it was a software problem, so "too bad, so sad". Yes, some things are easier, but for others I go back and use my 5 year old PC. Sometimes I can understand when people complain that there is no viable third party.

[The Cleaner]

63. CSR From Macmall.com told me Mac Mini will not run Adobe CS2,

the most widely-used graphic design software. However, I don't see why it wouldn't. Maybe he was just trying to upsell me? Anyone?

[NYCGirl]

65. I have no idea what he's talking about. Mine runs it just fine. NT