I had my fill with Windows. I was used to replacing a hard drive every couple of years after some corruption snuck in.
There seems to be a ripoff going where you are bombarded with warnings to buy protection. The Mafia once seemed to have a monopoly on this .
Then I went the Apple route. I am beginning to regret it. The stuff is simply too cute. Those little spinning wheels and jumping icons are a bit too much.
Now mail is shitting the bed every hour or two. So I must re-load. Perhaps it is time to go back to Microsoft and my laptop.
Linux might be the way to go.
Apple sucks.
Well, while I don’t think that Microsoft sucks, Windows Vista certainly does! I think of it as this year’s version of Windows ME, which also sucked.
Vista has certainly proven to be a royal pain in many ways. I don’t expect much more from Windows 7. However….this PC I am using now (built about 4 months ago) is based on the i7 and I am running Vista Ultimate 64 bit with 12 GB RAM. Haven’t had a spot of trouble. Unless you count my good scanner being Vista x64 incompatible, and that was overcome by running XP on a virtual machine. Now if I could find a good way to get rid of the wireless network between it and the server…
I use all three – Windows (7 & Vista), OS X, and Linux (Mint). I’ve always liked Windows (except ME) and never been a huge OS X fan. When I buy an Apple product I always end up running Windows on it – the hardware is the key. With PC manufacturers aiming for the lowest common denominator the deck is stacked against a resource hungry OS like Vista. It’s miserable to use on weak hardware – but it runs like a dream on great hardware. That said, there are a lot of elegant things about OS X and being an open source fan I appreciate it’s BSD roots, but I just can’t love it. I agree, the spinning wheels and bouncy icons irritate more than they impress. I highly suggest you try Windows 7 – I think it’s the best OS I’ve ever used and very capable on most hardware. If you’d like to give Linux a try – go for Linux Mint. It’s based on Ubuntu and is a true delight to use. Peace.
PS – Finder sucks.
I got my buddy an HP laptop in Sept. for his birthday and this past Monday my wife bought a new Sony laptop. Both have Vista and I think it sucks. Took me 20 min. to fogure out how to “shut down” the first time. Plus, all those little windows poping up asking me if I’m sure I want to do X.
I went Mac for a while and liked the computer/software but not the company. I’ve used Windows since 1998 never really had any issues. I run XP and had ME before that and never any problems… maybe I’m the exception?
I switched to Mac in 1999. OS X Has made it so much better. I like the fact that I can go a month between reboots while running my 20 apps I use here and there. Keeping 40 windows open, never getting spyware, malware or popup after popup is great. If I tire of the bouncing and magnifying Dock icons, I just turn that off. I currently have 3 monitors running on 2 cards, NVIDIA GeForce 6600 and NVIDIA Quadra 4500 FX. My box is a late 2005 PPC G5 Quad with 8GB ECC RAM. I can put in 16GB if I need to. No matter what I plug in, it just works. Windows 98 was OK. I used 2000 and now XP at work and also have a Toshiba laptop at home that I don’t even turn on. My wife plays one game on it. Windows tells me too much info I don’t need to know. Mac OS X isn’t perfect, but It works tight with the hardware. If I want to take the time to learn it, Terminal or X11 and UNIX will do anything. I’ve looked at some basic stuff. Great.
Walt
Apple’s stuff can be unstable, but I like it because it’s more secure and less likely to completely go insane on you. It’s a little spotty but it works. I use Linux in my lab and it’s probably the best functionality-wise, but the applications we have for Linux are awful (OpenOffice is a horrifyingly bad POS alternative to Microsoft or iWork).
Regardless of the OS or hardware, remember to backup your stuff! Hard drives fail. Digital pictures are great until the drive crashes and they are gone. Spending a few bucks and planning and following a backup strategy is a must. Don’t forget to include something offsite (online backup service or a USB drive in a safe box at the bank), just in case you are robbed or the house burns. (Don’t laugh about the burned house. I managed to recover some pictures from a PC that had been in a house fire. The case was melted and the MB was scorched, but the HD ran. However, if the PC had been in the direct flames it would have been all over….)
JohnC: sound advice. I’ve been nailed on that before.