Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Heb1228

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Feb 3, 2004
2,217
1
Virginia Beach, VA
I just made the switch to Intel and figured since Windows 7 is free right now, why not use the copy of VMware I got like 2 years ago at a half-off sale. So I went through the steps of installing and everything is working. Got AVG free anti-virus first thing. But now what?

I've lived pretty much without Windows for 6 years now. (Except for the family/friends troubleshooting venture where I'd rather pull my teeth.) I can't think of anything I want to do that I can't do on OS X.

Give me some suggestions. What do you guys use Windows for? I guess twice I've come across Windows/IE only websites (one was a health ins. application) so I'll have it in case of that again. But I can't think of anything to do but play solitaire! Help me out. What am I missing?
 

MacDawg

Moderator emeritus
Mar 20, 2004
19,823
4,503
"Between the Hedges"
You are not missing at thing!

There are a few programs that people need to use that are very limited and Windows only, but other than that, it is a novelty for the Mac user.

I have it installed along with Ubuntu, just 'cause I can ;)

Woof, Woof - Dawg
pawprint.gif
 

Tomorrow

macrumors 604
Mar 2, 2008
7,160
1,364
Always a day away
I have Vista installed on my iMac, and I rarely boot into it. MacDawg is right - there's no much you can do in Windows that your Mac can't do on its own.

I used to be more into gaming, but I haven't played in a couple of months, and it's been just about that long since I've booted up Windows at all.

Way back when the Windows 7 RC was made available, I downloaded it. I still haven't tried to install it. I'm not in any hurry.
 

VideoFreek

Contributor
May 12, 2007
577
180
Philly
I use Windows routinely for just a few things:

* to run Quicken financial software--the Mac version sucks huge.

* to rip my personal DVDs for my media server...Windows-based tools far outclass the likes of MacTheRipper.

* to run IE when necessary...my employer's employee portal, for example, requires it.

I might also suggest playing around with Media Center...just to see what you think.

Besides that, an OS is "just" an OS, so a lot of the differences are "techie" things buried inside the OS. To give just one example of a cool Windows feature--Windows Search 4.0, which is the latest MS equivalent to Spotlight, has the ability to access indexes on remote Windows machines, enabling fast searches across the entire user environment--local drives, remote desktops and network shares. It takes advantage of the indexes already built on the remote machines. See here for more information.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.