For Someone Who Has Used Both XP & OSX

[Nitromaster]

I am someone who has to use windows xp everyday and get ot use macs about once a week for one hour (in school)

Here is my opinion:
Mac OS X is awesome,
Its a bit different than Windows but youll get used to it,
For example to install most applications there is only one step:
Drag it to your Applications folder.
Easy, isnt it?

To get rid of Applications yuo just drag them from your Applications folder to the thrash.





I got my first go on Windows Vista today,for about two mins,

Its very bland and empty feeling, you dont even get windows live messenger bundled with it,

Thats my opinion, Im getting a MacBook in a few months and the only reason Im installing vista is to impress my friends.

They arent really impressed by a new release of the best OS ever (ie Mac OS X)

 

[Hummer]

I was an XP user and a bit skeptical about Macs, but I saw how beautiful the OS looked. I was still very skeptical but I just dove in and bought one. For a while I didn't quite like it because I still needed to use Windows for a lot of my programs. I eventually found substitutes for all of my programs that were a lot better than what I used to use. I eventually sold my computer and now my Mac that I bought as a secondary computer is my primary computer. I'll never ever switch back to dealing with the "chore" of owning a PC.

I say everyone needs to own a mac before they can judge one.

 

[maxrobertson]

You will love OS X. I use both on a daily basis, having come from Windows a year or so ago. There's no comparison. At work, I use XP and I always miss the features of OS X. I forget where a file is, well in XP I might as well look for it since the search takes so long. In OS X, it's instant. I love Exposé in OS X as well, the Dock, Widgets. The list goes on and on. It takes some time to get used to, but it's worth it.

 

[HawaiiMacAddict]

Aloha,

I have been using Windows since 1995 (Windows for Workgroups 3.1.1 anyone?), but switched to the Mac last August. I remember spending literally hours on the phone with tech support, sometimes in a vain attempt to get things working on my various Windows boxes. I became a PC tech primarily because I already had the knowledge - just by being a Windows user!

It was after loading some music on my sister-in-law's iPod that I finaly gave the Mac a fair shot. I had been experimenting with Linux (since Redhat 5.3), and had been increasingly frustrated with the "Windows exerience," but actually believed the Microsoft FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt - read: Anti-Apple propaganda), therefore thought Apple was crap.

After loading music on the iPod, then enjoying the awesome sound from the earbuds, I took a long, hard look at the iPod itself, and was amazed at the sheer beauty and functionality of it. If Apple paid that much attention to detail, not to mention quality, on the iPod, how much more would they pay to their computing platforms?

I bought a 20" iMac Core Duo last August and followed that up with the purchase of a 15" MacBook Pro Core 2 Duo in October. I've switched to the Mac and I'm NEVER going back

HawaiiMacAddict

 

[zap2]

I used '95, '98,ME, 2k and XP all as my main OS. Then I switched to 10.3, but still use XP at school.


OS X is alot better...I've grown to love everything about OS X. The only thing I miss on XP is MS Paint...I've tried OS X alternatives, but nothing matched paint.



Safari is a lot better then IE. IE 6 doesn't have tabs, switch is a must for me. And althought I never installed IE 7, my school's PCs have it, and while it has tabs, I can't stand it. It took me 5 mins to find the print button.

Spotlight was better then anything I ever used in Windows, but Vista has Spotlight clone...not sure how good it is,but Apple clearly proven they are ahead of the curver on desktop searching.

Media Center has TV recording which is very nice, but I used FrontRow away from my TV area, so I couldn't record it if I wanted it. If you going to record TV, you'll need to shell out the cash for EyeTV, which I here good things about, but I've never used it.


iLife beats anything I've ever used on Windows, by a lot. Window MovieMaker is terrible when put against iMovie. I'd know what Window uses for photo, but iPhoto is very nice. iDVD makes it simple to make DVD. GargeBand is like Acid for the PC, expect Acid doesn't ship with Windows(like iLife does w/ a new Mac), and if your just playing around with music, I'd have trouble buying an app for the heck of it


iWork vs Office....Personally I like Pages more then Word, but I think I'm in the minority for that idea, either way Apple has Office also. Keynote eats anything PowerPoint can do, and I think thats the general feeling on the boards.

 

[emptyCup]

There is a period of adjustment which can run from hours to weeks depending on how ingrained the Windows way of doing things has become in you. There are two important things to consider:

1. You are dissatisfied enough to consider switching and
2. Apple makes nice hardware that you can always run Windows on if you really don't like OS-X.

If you do buy a Mac give OS-X a fair try before you fall back on Windows. There are guides here and at Apple which will help you find alternative software and adjust. Plus we will help if you ask. Best wishes.

 

[psycoswimmer]

I love my iMac. I could never think of going back to the Windows world. Everything just works. That's the most important thing to me.

About switching, it took me less than a day to feel like I knew the Mac great. Every day I learn a new keyboard shortcut or something. After a while, you'll feel like you were made for a mac.

 

[alFR]

For an incredibly comprehensive walkthrough of the 2 systems side-by-side, see http://www.xvsxp.com/. It's useful in that it compares how to do pretty much any task on the 2 OSes.

 

[blodwyn]

I can not imagine using a Mac at work. By the same token, I can not imagine using anything other than a Mac at home or school.

Just to counterpoint - I've been using a Mac for the last 3 years in a Corporate environment without any issues. I use MS Office extensively with Entourage accessing our Exchange server, booking and attending meetings using the shared calendar, etc, and routinely swap Powerpoint and pretty complex Excel spreadsheets with Windows users without any problems. There may be some applications in use in companies that won't run on a Mac, but for a good number of business users I'd say a Mac is a great choice.