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An Academic Perspective on Windows vs. Mac

stevento

stevento

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 10, 2006
252
0
Los Angeles
I am a Computer Science major now currently enrolled at LMU, in a course called Operating Systems. Last semester, i finished a course called Interaction Design, the study of human computer interaction and how to build a good interface. This is a professional look at how operating systems are built, and the differences between them. At the end of the course, we will write our own OS's.
Anyways, I have a new perspective on the debate between which is better PC or Mac.
Macs tend to have more cache memory, which is expensive to build. That's why the cheapest new mac you can buy goes for over $1000. The cheapest new PC you can get varies by the manufacturer and goes for around $250. Apple pours much more effort in R &D, design and usability metrics and it shows in the retail price.
Therefore, I came to the conclusion that Apple is a luxury computer manufacturer (just like a luxury car).
So when you say, "I love my apple computer, and I laugh at anyone using Windows", that's the same pretty much as saying "I love driving my Mercedes-Benz, and I laugh at anyone driving a cheap Hyundai." (or some other no-frills economy car).
Because when you get down to it, there's nothing a Mac can do that a PC can't potentially do -because both are written in C- its just that Macs are a lot nicer to use and have more cool features.
 
Um, good luck with your course and all, but I think there are fairly significant differences between the two OS's that make things possible or extremely hard on both.
 
stevento said:
...
Because when you get down to it, there's nothing a Mac can do that a PC can't potentially do -because both are written in C- its just that Macs are a lot nicer to use and have more cool features.
Click to expand...
Wow! You have it all figured out.
 
im sure judging from the intelligence of your post you are aware there is alot more factors to take into consideration.

Such as apple also enjoys a larger profit margin, because apple got us all hooked on OS X, and they know we will pay higher prices to use apples exclusive OS.

Although, i guess that still fits in the luxury car analogy, the people who spend way more on a mecerdez-benz, are doing it even though they are aware the manufacturer isnt giving a great deal and is recieiving a good profit margin.
 
stevento said:
...Macs tend to have more cache memory, which is expensive to build. That's why the cheapest new mac you can buy goes for over $1000. The cheapest new PC you can get varies by the manufacturer and goes for around $250.
Click to expand...

Marvelous reasoning; cache memory is the reason Macs are expensive to build. What is your proof that a Mac costs more than a PC? Are you comparing the actual parts costs? The parts inside the Apple are pretty much the same as the parts inside any Intel Windows PC.

"At the end of the course we will write our own OS's"...To what purpose? Are you seriously saying one person can write an entire OS? Have you ever looked at the internals of ANY OS? Any reasonabe OS has hundreds of thousands of lines of code.

(demented laughter..)
 
Well, I am sure you are a funny computer scientist. Thanks for the laugh you made me have.

If it's true you're at LMU (acronym I ignore), I would remove it before the university lawyers find out what you wrote.

thistle
 
Pardon me if I take your assessment with a grain of salt. Do you honestly think that, as a beginning student, with no real-world technical experience and without even completing the course you described, that you suddenly have the entire Mac vs Windows thing figured out? That's pretty naïve! This thread should be entitled "A not yet fully-educated opinion on Windows vs Mac". :rolleyes:
 
*S******* (Wow, the word filter is a bit too greedy I see.)

The Difference Between Windows & Mac

Mac is a combination of a closed operating system operating on closed hardware and thus has a high focus on highly refined implementations both on the software and hardware (i.e. The aesthetic aspect). Primary lack over opposition is lack of a strong focus on gaming due to Microsoft's DirectX API which has become the defacto standard.

Windows is a combination of a closed operating system operating on an open hardware and thus has a high focus on wide spread compatibility. Primary lack over opposition is strong system integration and issues caused by the ever present need to stay compatible with older versions and a VERY wide range of hardware.

Edit: Open vs. Closed Hardware has nothing to do with there being concrete differences, but rather that OSX is explicitly designed not to run on over the counter hardware without low level hacking.
 
old-wiz said:
Marvelous reasoning; cache memory is the reason Macs are expensive to build. What is your proof that a Mac costs more than a PC?
...
"At the end of the course we will write our own OS's"...To what purpose? Are you seriously saying one person can write an entire OS? Have you ever looked at the internals of ANY OS? Any reasonabe OS has hundreds of thousands of lines of code.
Click to expand...

for the purpose of academic exercise. by the technical definition of Operating System, yes anyone who knows some good C can write an entire OS.
obviously the one we write in an undergraduate class isn't going be anything like a large commercial OS, but it will be an OS.
 
stevento said:
for the purpose of academic exercise. by the technical definition of Operating System, yes anyone who knows some good C can write an entire OS.
obviously the one we write in an undergraduate class isn't going be anything like a large commercial OS, but it will be an OS.
Click to expand...


and yes negating the other stuff on the functionality and the usability of such an "academic" exercise....

similarly I could also build my own car in a day...but by my own definition of course.

Your comments on the primary difference between the OS highlights either the inadequacy of your course or the stuff you learn

More importantly, on the topic of cars, the difference between Mercs and a cheap car is more than just their similarity which is to get you from point A to B. You have conveniently, for the sake of your argument, negate speed, comfort and reliability which are key components of a good car (OS).
 
I think it's safe to say a Mercedes-Benz is more reliable than a hyundai.

Your comments on the primary difference between the OS highlights either the inadequacy of your course or the stuff you learn
Click to expand...
no, the course's purpose is not to learn the difference between one OS and another. the purpose is to learn how to build an OS and make it safer, faster and smarter.
and I'm talking about the differences, from a user's standpoint, because they are the ones buying the machines.

edit: let me reiterate: the point of the course is not to learn the differences between two examples of OS's, but to learn the principals of an engineering an OS.
 
Hi,

An Academic Perspective on Windows vs. Mac
Click to expand...
I guess you meant Windows vs OSX otherwise it wouldn't make sense.


Well you are "academically" and "professionally" comparing both OS but where is that comparison ? All you say is that Macs have better hardware hence they are superior to a cheap PC. I really don't see the point of your post.

Good luck for your degree.

Tex
 
stevento said:
no, the course's purpose is not to learn the difference between one OS and another. the purpose is to learn how to build an OS and make it safer, faster and smarter.
Click to expand...

Then why do you cite cache size and cost? These have nothing to do with the OS.

and I'm talking about the differences, from a user's standpoint, because they are the ones buying the machines.
Click to expand...

The average user doesn't know (or care) about cache memory, swap space, bus speed, or any of the technicalities of the machine they're using.

edit: let me reiterate: the point of the course is not to learn the differences between two examples of OS's, but to learn the principals of an engineering an OS.
Click to expand...

Then you need to re-think your argument and make it relevant to the user interface. Citing hardware differences isn't going to get you there.

Because when you get down to it, there's nothing a Mac can do that a PC can't potentially do -because both are written in C- its just that Macs are a lot nicer to use and have more cool features.
Click to expand...

This is borderline self-contradictory. If there is "nothing a Mac can do that a PC can't potentially do" then how can a Mac "have more cool features" ? There are some features of Windows I would argue are "cool" that OS X doesn't have, why isn't it a two way street?

Apple pours much more effort in R &D, design and usability metrics and it shows in the retail price.
Click to expand...

Any figures to back this up? Don't make claims you can't verify.

Macs tend to have more cache memory...
Click to expand...

So if a Windows machine had more cache memory, would it be better?

So when you say, "I love my apple computer, and I laugh at anyone using Windows", that's the same pretty much as saying "I love driving my Mercedes-Benz, and I laugh at anyone driving a cheap Hyundai." (or some other no-frills economy car).
Click to expand...

What you're really saying is something along the lines of "I'm too immature to realize that both operating systems offer unique advantages and disadvantages to the end user. My ignorance should be a free pass for my elitism."
 
I worked for 40 years in the computer business spending most of my time on the internals of several operating systems. I can remember computer science graduates who came to work and didn't have a clue about how to look inside the code for an OS and make sense out of it, much less fix problems or make changes. How could a one-semester course in OS qualify anyone to pontificate on such absurdities as cache size relative to the quality of an OS. And if you're talking about cache size, which cache are you talking about? the CPU L1 Cache, L2?, disk drive cache? You could try to write an OS on your own, but do you really think that one example would make you an expert on multi-threading, multi-processor issues, code deadlocks, hardware fault tolerance, etc. And to write your own OS from scratch you'd need to understand a BIOS, deal with hardware abstraction layers, and a host of other issues. Most users could care less what OS they are running; If they can use the computer to surf the web, write letters, do e-mail, spreadsheets, print, it doesn't make any real difference what OS is running. And why limit to OSx VS Windows. And WHICH Windows? Windows ME? Vista? XP? 2000? 3.1? DOS? What about Linux? The multiple flavors of *Nix? And what about the lesser known special purpose operating systems?

Makes a nice humorous thread though.
 
Well at least even the lowest of the low of car makers are smart enough not to have user press START to turn off the car. ;)

Yes, OSX / Apple Computers are nicer to use, some factors:
- quiet
- modern design
- high usability
- low maintenance

If you compare to a pc, you have to compare to a QUIET pc, which are more expensive.
 
I like to browse this site during my lunch break and was initially excited about reading this post.

I cannot begin to tell you how disappointed I am. You should think about changing your thread title to: A Superficial Perspective on Absolutely Nothing.


=|
 
stevento said:
Because when you get down to it, there's nothing a Mac can do that a PC can't potentially do -because both are written in C- its just that Macs are a lot nicer to use and have more cool features.
Click to expand...

DOS 1.0 and OS X are both implemented in C. So they are basically the same OS, right?
 
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