Flip Flopping between macOS and Windows

[pshufd]

With me moving back to Windows that means the iMac will be put up for sale. I don't like how iCloud works with non-Apple devices so I'll be going back to Google for my services which means I'll be grabbing a Pixel phone. I've got a 6 coming which I managed to get for £400, should tie me over until the 7 comes out.

iCloud was my biggest issue in a mixed environment. The options are:

- Use the web browser version on Windows. The problem is that there have been bugs with iCloud Notes with all of the browsers. Firefox has a problem where it doesn't display highlighted text properly. I've had memory leaks with Chromium-based browsers. Performance is also awful on very long notes.
- Use a virtual machine running macOS. This requires an Intel Mac with a decent amount of RAM. I used this approach for a while using KVM/QEMU/Docker and it was usable. But it was quite a headache to get setup and running.

For me, ultimately, it was just the right time to get an M1 mini to run Notes because I wanted to kick the tires. It would have been nicer with support for 3 monitors and 32 GB of RAM but the M1 mini is good enough.

 

[LiE_]

I've got a 6 coming which I managed to get for £400, should tie me over until the 7 comes out.

Ah good old eBay... this is the "new, unused" Pixel 6.

I have of course sent it back. Got a brand new one coming for £484, thanks to Google dropping the price recently.

 

[LeeW]

Ah good old eBay... this is the "new, unused" Pixel 6.

I only sell on eBay because I have standards others don't have. Never have I bought anything over £50 since being a member in 2003.

 

[BMox81]

I've flipped (I can't remember if I last flipped or flopped )

Since I don't use a dedicated camera anymore my computing needs are largely just work related. I've managed to get a new Lenovo L13 from work which should be here in the next few weeks. That will be my primary machine which can double up as a personal machine as well for the various admin tasks I do. It's a reverse to how I've always run things in the past where I would use a personal machine for work.

Took delivery today of a Dell 27 4K USB-C Hub Monitor- P2723QE which is lovely. Just need the new laptop as it's a little laggy on my current work laptop of 5 years old.

With me moving back to Windows that means the iMac will be put up for sale. I don't like how iCloud works with non-Apple devices so I'll be going back to Google for my services which means I'll be grabbing a Pixel phone. I've got a 6 coming which I managed to get for £400, should tie me over until the 7 comes out.

Xbox Series X is serving me well as a gaming fix, lovely connected to my 65" LG CX OLED.

The Apple Watch has been annoying me recently with its ability to intrude notifications all the time so I'll be fine ditching that and going back to a dumb watch.

Any particular reason for this latest change back over? Just iCloud issues?

You seemed quite happy with your Apple setup.

 

[LiE_]

Any particular reason for this latest change back over? Just iCloud issues?

You seemed quite happy with your Apple setup.

I’m essentially using my personal iMac for 90% work as I no longer do photo editing. Work are sending me a new Lenovo laptop which will be plenty for my job and means I can get some cash for my iMac.

iCloud doesn’t work very well on Windows, so naturally Google services make more sense.

 

[DarthVader!]

I’m essentially using my personal iMac for 90% work as I no longer do photo editing. Work are sending me a new Lenovo laptop which will be plenty for my job and means I can get some cash for my iMac.

As I mentioned, I sort of flipped (or flopped, not sure). I have a new M1 MBP, and its been an interesting challenge trying to get back up to speed with what macOS has to offer. I'm really liking the idea of iCloud and I've not installed OneDrive. My Office installation can still access my files via the cloud, so I'm not installing OneDrive on my Mac, I wish I could do the same with windows.

I do have a desktop, and I use that for all of my heavy lifting, the MBP is for my mobile needs. I too have a work laptop but my company is uber-zealous with security and I will not install any personal apps or operate it for personal use. My co-worker got into a heap of trouble because he downloaded an ISO file that contained pictures of his kids. It was marked as possible malware and they quarantined the laptop off the network and forced him to get it re-imaged. They said, while the file was not malware, if he does it again, he'll get fired.

 

[pshufd]

As I mentioned, I sort of flipped (or flopped, not sure). I have a new M1 MBP, and its been an interesting challenge trying to get back up to speed with what macOS has to offer. I'm really liking the idea of iCloud and I've not installed OneDrive. My Office installation can still access my files via the cloud, so I'm not installing OneDrive on my Mac, I wish I could do the same with windows.

I do have a desktop, and I use that for all of my heavy lifting, the MBP is for my mobile needs. I too have a work laptop but my company is uber-zealous with security and I will not install any personal apps or operate it for personal use. My co-worker got into a heap of trouble because he downloaded an ISO file that contained pictures of his kids. It was marked as possible malware and they quarantined the laptop off the network and forced him to get it re-imaged. They said, while the file was not malware, if he does it again, he'll get fired.

It sounds draconian from an employee perspective but I actually like that idea from a customer prospective. I can appreciate a company that takes IT security seriously. The potential costs from an incursion can be massive.

 

[keithop]

I've really enjoyed this thread

I flip flop every few days and all my friends are sick and tired of hearing about it.

For me, there's nothing special that I need either system for. All my work/home requirements are fulfilled by both/either but being a computer guy using my system 12 hrs or more a day, I like to enjoy what I use.

The only app. that doesn't work across systems for me is iMessage. Everyone in my circle uses it and so it's rather nice to have it natively on Mac.

I have a VM with macos on it and imessage works on there but double clicking images to view etc. is of course less nice than when it's native.

May as well be honest, I don't care about being able to build my own hardware or get the best value. My pc is self built yes, but my mac studio gives me equal pleasure in simplicity and speed.

So why flip flop at all?

I have a huge text file of my comparisons but briefly

The menu bar on macos is nice for displaying info but the actual menu is a pain on a 49" monitor. Works great on a smaller display, like the ones when they came up with the mac in the first place, but nowadays a menu in a window is fine (yep, I've read all the papers about how much better it is to just shove the mouse up left/top but I don't believe this is the case anymore with larger screens)

The Dock lacks basic functionality. Document/window previews? there by default on windows, additional software needed on Mac.

Minimised windows? easy to see from Windows taskbar but not in Mac (unless using mission control)

Lack of Click through? up to the developer according to Mac documentation and implemented with outlook etc but not on most Mac apps. So if I'm using a browser and want to click on a certain email in Mail I have to click once to focus mail and again to focus the mail.

Seems simple then? sounds like I'm a windows guy?

But I'm really not.

I hate the dlls all over the place, the icky registry, the number of times an app crashes leaving a "hole" on the desktop, the spidery font, the inconsistencies - control panel v settings?, lack of decent PDF handling, screenshots copying to clipboard but not to a file. I could go on.

I won't even mention linux desktop because it lacks all the apps I want and even as a unix guy for the longest time, I'd use it as a server but never a day to day desktop.

I don't know the answer I really don't.

Feel like Mac is closer to where I want to be because I like the underlying OS and the philosophy but then macos hasn't been given as much love as iPadOS/iOS recently and some of the gfx inconsistencies are now quite jarring.

There's also this feeling that Microsoft will give me every option under the sun and Apple want to tell me "do it our way or go away"


So I don't know. Heart=Mac, Head=Windows.

 

[Random_Matt]

Having just found this thread, probably going to building a new rig. The studio was going back because of coil whine anyway, but believe I'm lying to myself trying to accept it, regardless of how much I prefer OSX generally.

Actually wanted a M1 Pro Mini which never materialised, and ended up with a studio. Thing is, even the base version is probably way too much grunt I need anyway.

 

[Random_Matt]

Ah good old eBay... this is the "new, unused" Pixel 6.

I have of course sent it back. Got a brand new one coming for £484, thanks to Google dropping the price recently.

View attachment 2010105View attachment 2010106

Should wait for the 6A, superior Touch ID apparently.

 

[LeeW]

Heart=Mac, Head=Windows.

That is where I am. So I just have both and use each when I feel I want/need to. I did switch to Windows again a while back, lasted a few months without any real issue. Then the M1 came along and it enticed me and been using it pretty much 95% of the time since it was launched.

I even bought the Mac Studio at launch. It arrived and sat next to my desk for 6 days unopened. I thought if it has sat there that long do I really want it? So I returned it unopened.

Maybe it's an age thing, I am 50 this year and have noticed I am becoming a bit of a miser It's certainly not a lack of money, far from it but I am just not upgrading things at the rate I would before. Still using an iPhone 11, that's two new models I have passed on. Series 5 watch, another two models passed on. 1st Gen iPad Pro 11" and so on. Previously I would upgrade everything even if they only changed the colour of the box it came in.

Not lost interest in tech, just lost interest in having the latest everything.

 

[pshufd]

I was running macOS on four monitors and Windows on 1. Now macOS on three and Windows on 2.

One feature that Windows is missing is Independent Virtual Desktop. macOS has had it since at least 2012. Microsoft said that they would add the feature in Windows 10 and Windows 11 in 2021 but they never did. I found a third-part program that claims to do it but I haven't tried it yet but it's on my list to try.

The other thing is that Firefox fixed the bug where iCloud Notes doesn't display highlighting correctly. So I can run iCloud Notes in Firefox on Windows now.

 

[bobcomer]

One feature that Windows is missing is Independent Virtual Desktop. macOS has had it since at least 2012. Microsoft said that they would add the feature in Windows 10 and Windows 11 in 2021 but they never did. I found a third-part program that claims to do it but I haven't tried it yet but it's on my list to try.

??? Windows 11 has it for sure. I don't normally use virtual desktops on any OS, hate them, but it's definitely there, I just tested it.

 

[pshufd]

??? Windows 11 has it for sure. I don't normally use virtual desktops on any OS, hate them, but it's definitely there, I just tested it.

It was promised for both W10 and W11 and Microsoft didn't deliver according to forum threads that I read.

I'm talking about Independent Virtual Desktops. They've had Virtual Desktops for many years. They just don't have the option to have the different monitors act independently. Something that macOS and Linux have had for ages.

 

[bobcomer]

It was promised for both W10 and W11 and Microsoft didn't deliver according to forum threads that I read.

I don't normally run Windows 10 anymore, so don't know about that off the top of my head, but I would be very surprised if it doesn't come to Windows 10 if Microsoft said it would. I'll spin up a VM and check it...

 

[bobcomer]

I'm talking about Independent Virtual Desktops. They've had Virtual Desktops for many years. They just don't have the option to have the different monitors act independently.

I guess I don't understand your comment here, Windows has been able to have different things on them for a very long time.

 

[pshufd]

I don't normally run Windows 10 anymore, so don't know about that off the top of my head, but I would be very surprised if it doesn't come to Windows 10 if Microsoft said it would. I'll spin up a VM and check it...

I'm running W10. It doesn't have Independent Virtual Desktop.

 

[pshufd]

I guess I don't understand your comment here, Windows has been able to have different things on them for a very long time.

Windows treats all of your monitors as one desktop. So a virtual desktop encompasses all of them. When you change virtual desktops, all of the monitors change. What most people want is for only one monitor to change. So, you may have a browser on one monitor which you want to remain fixed but a few things on another monitor in individual virtual desktops so that you can switch those but keep the browser always displayed.

Or you may want to watch a video in one monitor but move around in the other.

Apple allows you to pick what you want to do. You can use Microsoft's behavior or you can have Independent Virtual Desktops.

This has always been a problem with Windows.

 

[bobcomer]

I'm running W10. It doesn't have Independent Virtual Desktop.

Not yet anyway.

 

[pshufd]

Not yet anyway.

I'm going to see if I can do without it for now and just wait. Or I could try the 30-free trial of the program that implements the feature. I might go with three monitors on Windows and two on macOS. That third-party program will be obsolete when Microsoft implements IVD.

 

[bobcomer]

Windows treats all of your monitors as one desktop. So a virtual desktop encompasses all of them. When you change virtual desktops, all of the monitors change. What most people want is for only one monitor to change. So, you may have a browser on one monitor which you want to remain fixed but a few things on another monitor in individual virtual desktops so that you can switch those but keep the browser always displayed.

Or you may want to watch a video in one monitor but move around in the other.

Apple allows you to pick what you want to do. You can use Microsoft's behavior or you can have Independent Virtual Desktops.

This has always been a problem with Windows.

Okay, I understand what you mean. Not a problem for me, but I can see someone else wanting it.

 

[bobcomer]

I'm going to see if I can do without it for now and just wait. Or I could try the 30-free trial of the program that implements the feature. I might go with three monitors on Windows and two on macOS. That third-party program will be obsolete when Microsoft implements IVD.

I've had apps that did it, so I would surprised if your app couldn't, but then again, I don't normally use virtual desktops, no matter the OS. I may have 20 applications going at a time, but only use Alt-tab or the mouse to switch between them depending on if they're viewable or not.

 

[pshufd]

I found an article that states that Independent Virtual Desktops are in Windows 10 but that it's a hidden feature. Another article describes how to un-hide hidden features so I will give this a try. It would be really cool to get this working.

On another note, a Raptor Lake leak has it scoring 2,300 Single-Core which is a stunning figure. It might be time to consider an Intel-based Hackintosh or just running it with Windows. I am pretty sure that it's going to be power-hungry but that's okay on the desktop.

 

[circatee]

With a new job in tow, I have been using Windows fully, for about a month or so now.
Oddly, with that, I have barely touched my Mac Mini M1. Even more so because I cannot edit subject lines of emails on Mac OS/Outlook for Mac. And, with heavy use of Excel, the shortcuts and such, come to mind quickly based on Windows, versus MacOS.

Alas, I do miss Mac OS...

 

[keithop]

Alas, I do miss Mac OS...

see I'm the same, but what do you miss about Mac OS?