Forum Moderators: travelin cat
I've heard good things about the Powerbook 15.2. I have never owned a MAC before.
If I use my business logic, I should buy a XP notebook, because that's what I use at home and the office. No compatability issues. AND it is cheaper.
But the coolness factor of the powerbook draws me to it like "my precious" to Frodo.
If I bought a Powerbook, would the honeymoon period quickly end and would I have difficulty with all the files and programs that I work with? Would networking also be an issue?
would I have difficulty with all the files and programs that I work with?
Would networking also be an issue?
Most likely you'll be just fine. The only thing to beware of is if you are relying on any Windows-only software. With mainstream software, though, there is usually a Mac version, and if not you'll likely find other software that does the same thing. For example, I can think of two programs not available for the Mac: MS Access and Visio. Access is easily replaced with Filemaker, AppleWorks or any of the opensource one's like MySQL. Omni web makes a great app like Visio (but I'm not sure about file compatibility on that one). So the thing to do is inventory all the software you rely on and make sure that there are Mac equivalents. I'll bet you dollars to donuts everything you need will be covered. All the mainstream stuff (internet, offices apps, graphics, music/movies, web development apps, etc) is plentiful on the Mac.
>> But the coolness factor of the powerbook draws me to it like "my precious" to Frodo. <<
Sounds like a great reason to me. Assuming what I mentioned above checks out okay, then what's wrong with owning a computer that you'll love? ;)
The Powerbook is wonderful, however.
I would advise against the Mac Powerbook if your office is on Windows and you run on a secure network. The workarounds can be done, but you'll be hassling the tech staff.
and of course, I would advise the opposite ;-)
you will need less tech support overall and the tech staff is supposed to serve YOU, not the other way around.
my wife uses her iBook in an all Windows world and manages to do OK. without tech support too. this is an office where people don't even know how to cut and paste.
there are other Mac users in the office, but they were told they could ONLY use Windows, so they went out and bought big clunky Dell laptops and when they saw that my wife's 2 year old iBook worked fine, several of them were very pissed off that they had been duped into buying a new laptop.
note that this is a Reator office with a wireless network and mostly all they do is access their mail, and use a variety of browsers to access the Multiple Listing Services.
The thing that I notice most for PC users when they hop on a Mac, is they get confused by the little differences. Such as right-clicking. Macs don't have right clicks, although they do have a control-click which is similar and can be programmed on virtually all multi-button mice. File management is different too. Especially compared to XP. Macs tend to let you put stuff wherever you want it, whereas Windows tends to define where things go for you.
I think the biggest place where Mac compatibility becomes a problem is in the web arena. For example, the Google toolbar is not available for a Mac! That's huge.
I am an avid Mac user. I should be on Apple's payroll for how often I recommend their products. However, I still own Windows boxes because there are certain functions that I need from them. In fact, I have a Windows box at my office that I use Microsoft's remote desktop client to access. So I get around most of my Windows issues because I can temporarily turn my iBook into a Windows machine by opening the remote desktop client (I've never had good luck with emulators so I prefer an actual windows box that I can access remotely)/
the mac is fine but look at it this way can you do something on a mac that you could not on a pc
yeah, surf the web and check email without having to constantly be patching the OS and running AntiVirus programs (extra $$$) and constantly running AdAware or Pest Patrol.
that's just one thing thats nice
...and if the pc is cheaper maybe you can get the super mac daddy pc for the same price
? what is the "super mac daddy pc"? does it run OS X?
if you want to play games on your laptop, get a fast Windows machine.
...having the fastest biggest and badest notebook that can be built make sure you can up grade and have a way to expand your possiblitys for making your work faster better and more yourself more effeciant
sound like you are describing a Powerbook. ;-)
Yes they do. No drivers to install. Just plug in a any two-button mouse and you're set. Same goes for the scroll wheel. (With one-button mice you can Control-click to get the contextual menus, for those of you not familiar with Macs).
Should I Buy a Powerbook?
Just because it is cool?
Yes.
