After over four years, my MacBook is deceased.

Dell does. It's about $70 less.

You can get pretty much any machine without Windows. The trick is to buy it and decline the license agreement when you first turn it on. At that point, call the manufacturer and they'll cut you a check for the cost of the windows license that came with the computer. Simply reformat, install a linux distro, and you're golden.

milbournosphere said:

You can get pretty much any machine without Windows. The trick is to buy it and decline the license agreement when you first turn it on. At that point, call the manufacturer and they'll cut you a check for the cost of the windows license that came with the computer. Simply reformat, install a linux distro, and you're golden.

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Wow... that's genius.

I've encountered this very issue in several cases in law school, and I *still* never thought of the practicality of the case law.

System 76 sells computers preinstalled with Ubuntu.

The windows license fee is less than $100 for pre-built computers. You'll be paying when you have to buy linux software that is free for windows and apple computers.

stevento said:

Perhaps I should not have spilled so much water/soda/beer on it over the years. I don't have the $1800 for the MacBook Pro (15 inch, no extras) I want. So I want to buy a linux. I don't ever want to buy a Microsoft computer (or "smart"-phone) ever again.
I hear linux is cheaper because it's open source and you're not paying the licensing fees associated with buying a new Windows craptop anyways. If I can get a new Windows machine for like $600 and supposedly 25% of that is licensing fees for windows, then I should be able to get a linux for less than $500.
And I like the linux OS, I used it for years when I was in college.
Who sells new linux boxes? (Not red hat, I hate that OS)

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vistadude said:

The windows license fee is less than $100 for pre-built computers. You'll be paying when you have to buy linux software that is free for windows and apple computers.

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What sort of jibberish is this? Pay and Linux cannot be used in the same paragraph. Wake up. You can elect to pay Canonical for a Ubuntu DVD if you are tired of waiting for multi-hundred megabyte cd isos to download but there is no way you should be paying more than about 10 bucks (courtesy copying fee) for a Linux distro.

I recommend Ubuntu if you want something that is most like OS X. There are some add-ons that can make it even more like OS X with a dock and everything. But you will be dealing with a certain amount of BS with Linux. One example is it is not straightforward to update Firefox under Ubuntu. There is a python script for updating FF if you don't want to wait for it to show up in Ubuntu's normal update channels. This is a blunder IMHO. But if you don't mind dealing with a few extra "hoops" to keep your machine up to date, you can get Linux for free from a number of sources and burn your own install cd's. I suggest a "live" cd that lets you boot and see what works before you install. I must caution you that there are a few instances, especially on netbooks, where the live cd or dvd boots fine but after the install something is broken. If you don't think Ubuntu suits you that well, take a look at the various distros listed over at distrowatch.com. Try to stick with ones that are recent, actively updated and popular. One nice thing about Ubuntu is you can get a distro with guaranteed updates for at least 3 years. Stick with stable updates if this is your primary machine.

One alternative you might consider is a used (or refurb) Intel Macbook. I like Linux but if I have a choice, I like OS X better. I also like any Apple hardware better than I like low end or midrange hardware from either HP or Dell. The only real competition is high end Lenovo hardware and if you are spending that kind of money you might as well stick with Apple.