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kest2703

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 30, 2011
14
0
I know this is probably beating a dead horse (and maybe in the wrong place), but I've actually been curious about this for a while...

When I left home for college, I bought my first Mac. It was a 2008 17" MacBook Pro, with all the bells and whistles. For two reasons: because I wanted to be professional, and it was require of me (studying Visual Communication Design). I remember walking around campus, with my new iPhone and MacBook Pro, and seeing most people with Dell, HP, Compaq, Gateway and Blackberry devices. Wow, was I cool:cool:!

Now, six years later, I am out of school, working here and there, doing all kinds of things including photography, designing, writing, and basically whatever clients ask of me (I am the fixer... something needs done now, I do it, until I can get our agency to fix it after the weekend of holiday or so).

Now, through my involvement in youth groups, I know a few high schoolers going to school for various things, ranging from journalism to fashion design. One asked me for advice on a new computer to use for "video, and graphic design and stuff". I listed why I think Mac is the right choice, and one of the classmates chimed in saying "ew, no not a mac, not for design. I could argue this so much but it'd be too much to type". (I am also aware the person that argued me is someone who will do something that isn't mainstream just not to be mainstream... my $0.02 to that: Just cause putting on a seatbelt in the car is too mainstream, doesn't mean you shouldn't do it...)

Now, I know from friends that work in fashion and design and web that they all prefer Mac products. The reason they always seem to give me is "because it works better/faster/harder/otherreasons". What is your argument for a Mac for any kind of creative field? Why are you a Macintosh user?


P.s. the only person who I talked to that said they wouldn't like a Mac for work was a web developer, and he uses ubuntu and linux...
 

Alphabetize

macrumors 6502
Oct 6, 2013
452
48
Most of the people I went to art school with were computer illiterate, and a lot of the time they used Macs just because they were just easier for them to use, or they just liked the design of them.

You can buy/build PCs that are far more powerful and cheaper than Macs, and in fact I had built a PC exclusively for Premiere Pro video editing, because it was so fast and cheap for me to build—but I hated doing anything on it other than that one program.
 

chrono1081

macrumors G3
Jan 26, 2008
8,453
4,156
Isla Nublar
I know this is probably beating a dead horse (and maybe in the wrong place), but I've actually been curious about this for a while...

When I left home for college, I bought my first Mac. It was a 2008 17" MacBook Pro, with all the bells and whistles. For two reasons: because I wanted to be professional, and it was require of me (studying Visual Communication Design). I remember walking around campus, with my new iPhone and MacBook Pro, and seeing most people with Dell, HP, Compaq, Gateway and Blackberry devices. Wow, was I cool:cool:!

Now, six years later, I am out of school, working here and there, doing all kinds of things including photography, designing, writing, and basically whatever clients ask of me (I am the fixer... something needs done now, I do it, until I can get our agency to fix it after the weekend of holiday or so).

Now, through my involvement in youth groups, I know a few high schoolers going to school for various things, ranging from journalism to fashion design. One asked me for advice on a new computer to use for "video, and graphic design and stuff". I listed why I think Mac is the right choice, and one of the classmates chimed in saying "ew, no not a mac, not for design. I could argue this so much but it'd be too much to type". (I am also aware the person that argued me is someone who will do something that isn't mainstream just not to be mainstream... my $0.02 to that: Just cause putting on a seatbelt in the car is too mainstream, doesn't mean you shouldn't do it...)

Now, I know from friends that work in fashion and design and web that they all prefer Mac products. The reason they always seem to give me is "because it works better/faster/harder/otherreasons". What is your argument for a Mac for any kind of creative field? Why are you a Macintosh user?


P.s. the only person who I talked to that said they wouldn't like a Mac for work was a web developer, and he uses ubuntu and linux...

To answer your question: It depends what you use it for.

Mac is a lot more stable in a lot of programs. I've used both Windows and Mac for a long time (and spent 13 years supporting Windows environments) and Mac (and Linux) machines simply handle large datasets much better than Windows.

This isn't necessarily a flaw in Windows since its strength is more in compatibility vs stability. You can't realistically have both.

If you do games and/or a lot of office work, Windows is probably the better choice.

If you like to do a lot of taxing graphics work (Photoshop isn't really that taxing but video editing, 3D art (non-game related since game related requires Windows usually), music, etc. Mac is probably the better bet. If you need to do color accurate work Mac is most definitely a better bet. Windows just isn't up to snuff in the color accuracy department (as proven by the STILL unfixed bug that has been around since Vista regarding color profiles).

There's also the fact that today personal preference plays a role. I personally hate Windows, but I also spent so long supporting it that I have a reason. Some people really like Windows. I think Mac has a lot better workflow features than Windows. Quicklook is indispensable for searching through files quickly. Windows has no alternative to that, not even third party (that works as well as Macs version.)

So basically, it depends what you want to use it for, if you can do your work on both it comes down to personal preference.
 

Jessica Lares

macrumors G3
Oct 31, 2009
9,612
1,056
Near Dallas, Texas, USA
Reasons why I like using a Mac for my creative stuff:

- The built-in Color Picker that works across all apps, and the ability to extend it, with something like the just introduced Skala Color

- AppleScript/Automator

- Font Book, because collections are very, very useful to me

- iLife and iWork, because compared to things like Microsoft Works, and many of the cheap consumer products you could get that weren't Microsoft Office back in the day, they are applications worth using. Be honest, were most of us happy with Windows Movie Maker? No, we used it because it was free. It gave us **** results for the most part. One of the many, many reasons I haven't bought Final Cut Pro is the fact that I can get something that looks pretty darn good in iMovie. Same reason why I use Pages and not Office.

- iCal/Calendar, keeps you organized

- Preview, combining PDFs into one is magical

- Print, being able to setup custom layouts, print multiple pages in one page, and the fact that it works so well

Little things, sure, but that's why when I use Windows or even Linux it doesn't feel right.
 

tech4all

macrumors 68040
Jun 13, 2004
3,399
489
NorCal
Now, through my involvement in youth groups, I know a few high schoolers going to school for various things, ranging from journalism to fashion design. One asked me for advice on a new computer to use for "video, and graphic design and stuff". I listed why I think Mac is the right choice, and one of the classmates chimed in saying "ew, no not a mac, not for design. I could argue this so much but it'd be too much to type". (I am also aware the person that argued me is someone who will do something that isn't mainstream just not to be mainstream... my $0.02 to that: Just cause putting on a seatbelt in the car is too mainstream, doesn't mean you shouldn't do it...)

Anybody who says things similar to this I just ignore. "Ew" serious? Grow up. It's a tool. You use the one that works best. I like OS X more than Windows. That's the primary reason why I use a Mac. Windows 8, is well, "ew." :D

- Font Book, because collections are very, very useful to me

There's other font apps out there besides Font Book.

- iCal/Calendar, keeps you organized

Again, iCal isn't the only calender app out there. Google calender works great as well for example.

- Preview, combining PDFs into one is magical

True for out the box PDF viewing. But Preview can't do what Acrobat Pro can such as editing PDFs. At least not as far as I know.

Again, everything you mentioned is great for out of the box, but there other options out there. In some cases better.
 

Jessica Lares

macrumors G3
Oct 31, 2009
9,612
1,056
Near Dallas, Texas, USA
Again, everything you mentioned is great for out of the box, but there other options out there. In some cases better.

Which is my whole point. Out of the box, the apps on OS X work for me. There are better apps, which could easily cost me up to a thousand bucks - Final Cut Pro, Suitcase Fusion, etc. They all do much more, of course, but most of it I have no use for.

Hence it's "reasons why I like", and not "reasons why you should like." ;)
 

kest2703

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 30, 2011
14
0
Most of the people I went to art school with were computer illiterate, and a lot of the time they used Macs just because they were just easier for them to use, or they just liked the design of them.
I know people who still can't figure out their Mac... Tell them to go to font book or color sync or color picker... heck some don't even know about grab.

Mac is a lot more stable in a lot of programs. I've used both Windows and Mac for a long time (and spent 13 years supporting Windows environments) and Mac (and Linux) machines simply handle large datasets much better than Windows.

Was one of my arguments. Never had issues with apps in my Mac crashing without there being a good reason (missing update, or Logic Board gave out).

If you like to do a lot of taxing graphics work (Photoshop isn't really that taxing but video editing, 3D art (non-game related since game related requires Windows usually), music, etc. Mac is probably the better bet. If you need to do color accurate work Mac is most definitely a better bet. Windows just isn't up to snuff in the color accuracy department (as proven by the STILL unfixed bug that has been around since Vista regarding color profiles).

Didn't know about the bug, but I know Macs are easier to adjust to stuff. Person who said "ew" to mac wants to go into print journalism/fashion. Hence I figured she might want to go with Mac...
There's also the fact that today personal preference plays a role. I personally hate Windows, but I also spent so long supporting it that I have a reason. Some people really like Windows. I think Mac has a lot better workflow features than Windows. Quicklook is indispensable for searching through files quickly. Windows has no alternative to that, not even third party (that works as well as Macs version.)

Heck, at the office it got to the point for me that I had my HP hooked to the same hard drive as my Mac, and I had everything on there. If someone sent me a document to proof, I saved it on there and accessed it with my Mac. In Word. My HP also took solid 20 seconds to start word, my mac 5 seconds....

Reasons why I like using a Mac for my creative stuff:
- The built-in Color Picker that works across all apps, and the ability to extend it, with something like the just introduced Skala Color

Mentioned this.

- AppleScript/Automator
- Font Book, because collections are very, very useful to me
- iLife and iWork, because compared to things like Microsoft Works, and many of the cheap consumer products you could get that weren't Microsoft Office back in the day, they are applications worth using. Be honest, were most of us happy with Windows Movie Maker? No, we used it because it was free. It gave us **** results for the most part. One of the many, many reasons I haven't bought Final Cut Pro is the fact that I can get something that looks pretty darn good in iMovie. Same reason why I use Pages and not Office.

In high school movie maker was the ****.

- iCal/Calendar, keeps you organized
- Preview, combining PDFs into one is magical
- Print, being able to setup custom layouts, print multiple pages in one page, and the fact that it works so well
Little things, sure, but that's why when I use Windows or even Linux it doesn't feel right.

It also hooks nicely with my iphone. Preview is pretty darn powerful, and fast(er). I feel like a lot of functions the mac has most people don't even know exist, until they are looking for it at some point and, hey surprise! they're there.

Anybody who says things similar to this I just ignore. "Ew" serious? Grow up. It's a tool. You use the one that works best. I like OS X more than Windows. That's the primary reason why I use a Mac. Windows 8, is well, "ew." :D

For me this was a "whelp you won the argument, so I am going to pretend that I know I am better than you and this isn't worth my time".

True for out the box PDF viewing. But Preview can't do what Acrobat Pro can such as editing PDFs. At least not as far as I know.
Again, everything you mentioned is great for out of the box, but there other options out there. In some cases better.

Preview can't really directly edit, but still a really powerful tool (cause it's fast). Also hitting space on a file gives you a preview. Don't know if Windows can do that... wouldn't want to load a few gig big file every time just to take a glance at it.

Great feedback, thanks guys. If anybody has anything to add, feel free :)
 

Cubytus

macrumors 65816
Mar 2, 2007
1,436
18
(…)Mac (and Linux) machines simply handle large datasets much better than Windows.
I am not a creative, but I second that one. Back when I had an extremely heavy spreadsheet that would crash Windows every 10 minutes (when auto-save kicked in), and every other time when manually saving, plus a 2'40" load time, I upgraded the RAM to 4GB. Same Windows, same crashes. Got the authorization to install Ubuntu, and despite spending a week just trying to get stable video (graphics card wasn't officially compatible), after that it was slow but finally stable. Windows memory management was always poor.

This isn't necessarily a flaw in Windows since its strength is more in compatibility vs stability. You can't realistically have both.
Hmm, not sure about that one. iOS and other developers choose Mac because it's actually more compatible than Windows, contrary to some common belief.

Again, iCal isn't the only calender app out there. Google calender works great as well for example.
Still blindly trusting big G, aren't you?

Again, everything you mentioned is great for out of the box, but there other options out there. In some cases better.
Sure, as does Windows. It's more what you get out of the box on a Mac vs. a common PC with Windows that makes a difference.

(…)
Didn't know about the bug, but I know Macs are easier to adjust to stuff.
An advantage that doesn't show until you need it, Macs are easier to repair than many PCs. On the software side, not having (arguably) as much granular control as Windows allows makes it easier to debug and fix. In Windows the immense majority of people (including help desk support people) don't know how to properly deal with the registry and the variety of tools provided by Microsoft. So sure you got a very advanced machine, but no one knows how to pilot it, and it's too fragile to be taken out without proper software "equipment".

On the hardware side, reduced product range is an advantage rather than an inconvenience. Instead of relying on obscure chinese knock-offs in an attempt to cut on cost and crappy driver support, you have outlets to buy Apple original parts, even working, used ones. Plus you have access to Apple Stores and mostly free support when your machine craps out. That's a deal breaker with many busy students and pros alike. Problem > Genius Bar > proposed solution > applied solution. That's simply not available for most non-Mac machines.
 

chrono1081

macrumors G3
Jan 26, 2008
8,453
4,156
Isla Nublar
Hmm, not sure about that one. iOS and other developers choose Mac because it's actually more compatible than Windows, contrary to some common belief.

Oops I should have clarified. For hardware and software compatibility Windows is more compatible out of the box but for an all around system (and especially for software development) a Mac is your best bet since it can easily run Mac, Linux and Windows.
 

Unami

macrumors 65816
Jul 27, 2010
1,348
1,550
Austria
- Camera-RAW-Support out of the box (no need for clunky & slow software like adobe bridge just to see the contents of a photo)
- Garageband
- a mac is a tool for working - windows is something you have to work for.

if she want's to have a machine that's not mainstream, linux is definitely the way to go. or she could build a hackintosh.
 

Cubytus

macrumors 65816
Mar 2, 2007
1,436
18
- Camera-RAW-Support out of the box (no need for clunky & slow software like adobe bridge just to see the contents of a photo)
- Garageband
- a mac is a tool for working - windows is something you have to work for.

if she want's to have a machine that's not mainstream, linux is definitely the way to go. or she could build a hackintosh.
+1. It's all about her needs. Not mainstream? She could try to build her own laptop from a white-label chassis.

Oops I should have clarified. For hardware and software compatibility Windows is more compatible out of the box but for an all around system (and especially for software development) a Mac is your best bet since it can easily run Mac, Linux and Windows.
Software-wise a Mac is more compatible, the Mac machine, to be precise. But Windows and Linux OSes support more hardware, but need a lot of third-party drivers, many times not really stable because Microsoft doesn't check them.
 

LorenK

macrumors 6502
Dec 26, 2007
391
153
Illinois
The Mac base is extremely devoted, despite the flaws in the system. But there is one significant reason why I would never go the Windows route: Macs work.

In the over twenty years that I've had a Mac, I've only had one time when my Mac went down due to a software or hardware issue, while I cannot count the number of times that Windows machines that I've had or used crashed, became inoperable for one reason or another, or just frustrated the crap out of me because of a problem I couldn't fix, couldn't understand, couldn't find a solution to fix it.

Now is the best Mac better than the best Wintel machine? That's a debate for others. But when deciding what is best for you, which you would rather have: a tool that you can rely on, or a tool that's good, but might give you occasional problems? When I use a tool, I don't want to have to spend any time fixing the tool, so I am using a Mac.
 

tdale

macrumors 65816
Aug 11, 2013
1,293
77
Christchurch, N.Z.
The Mac base is extremely devoted, despite the flaws in the system. But there is one significant reason why I would never go the Windows route: Macs work.

In the over twenty years that I've had a Mac, I've only had one time when my Mac went down due to a software or hardware issue, while I cannot count the number of times that Windows machines that I've had or used crashed, became inoperable for one reason or another, or just frustrated the crap out of me because of a problem I couldn't fix, couldn't understand, couldn't find a solution to fix it.

Now is the best Mac better than the best Wintel machine? That's a debate for others. But when deciding what is best for you, which you would rather have: a tool that you can rely on, or a tool that's good, but might give you occasional problems? When I use a tool, I don't want to have to spend any time fixing the tool, so I am using a Mac.

I disagree. I am a recent switcher and loving my rMBP. Ive used and built PCs over many years, and the comments about having to manage drivers, failing PC's is biased, never been my experience at all. Where I work, we have 5000 laptops, and to see the IT guys running around fixing them, etc is rare, they just work. In the Apple world, the words logic board failure seem to be mentioned a lot.

Analogise a Mac is a Mercedes. Expensive, quality, cool. You cannot compare a Mercedes to a range of cheap manufactured cars. You need to compare a mac with its PC equivalent in terms of quality manufacture. If Apple licensed it all out, then you have junk manufacturers making junk Macs. If Microsoft licensed theirs to Apple, you will have a quality PC.

PC's work. But you have a choice to buy well and you have a choice to buy cheap. You get what you pay for, the PC as a device is not to blame
 

Cubytus

macrumors 65816
Mar 2, 2007
1,436
18
Where I work, we have 5000 laptops, and to see the IT guys running around fixing them, etc is rare, they just work. In the Apple world, the words logic board failure seem to be mentioned a lot.
Well I see quite the opposite. On a population of roughly 40% Macs and 60% PCs, the IT guy is always solving PC problems for extended periods on each machine, anywhere from 20 min to many hours), while the few Mac-related problems are mostly small configuration errors that get solved within minutes.

Logic board failure is often mentioned on the Apple side because people tend to complain when something of high build quality fails and the Mac community tends to be more vocal about it. True, we never hear PC users complain much when their $600 machine craps out, because they expect it to.

If Microsoft licensed theirs to Apple, you will have a quality PC.

PC's work. But you have a choice to buy well and you have a choice to buy cheap. You get what you pay for, the PC as a device is not to blame
A few years back the MacBook Pro was said to be the best PC to run Windows upon. Not sure now as Win 7 support was cut.

Price is indeed a great indicator of the overall build quality. The IT guy I'm referring to also gives advice to users who ask him about buying a new machine but refusing a Mac: spend at least $1K on a laptop PC. Anything less and you're playing lottery. Curiously, no brand seems to have its favor.
 

phrehdd

macrumors 601
Oct 25, 2008
4,311
1,311
I use OSX because I don't like Windows.

I prefer PC hardware over Mac hardware.

End result I use Mac hardware to get to the OS.


Smart shoppers go for their needs first then find the right system. If the majority of your software resides with Windows, get a PC and similar with Mac unless all things being equal, you deal with others such as clients and need to emulate their system/file needs (shouldn't work that way but often does).

I left the Windows world when Vista came out and was such an incredible screw up by Micro$oft. OSX is not without its issues too but with time, most people know how to tame those problems sans the Apple tax facet.
 

tdale

macrumors 65816
Aug 11, 2013
1,293
77
Christchurch, N.Z.
The problem with this type of discussion is that most are biased, so the commentary is skewed. The only real replies are those where the users are experienced with both OS's, and while they may prefer one or the other, that bias isn't based on the hater mentality. Note I am not aiming my comments at anyone here specifically, its just how it is. Whether its Microsoft vs Apple, Windows vs OSX, Android vs iOS, etc. Makes it a bit hard to find out the real pros and cons for those that are considering a switch

Me, I am a recent switcher, so I am not qualified to comment, not yet anyway.
 

Renzatic

Suspended
The problem with this type of discussion is that most are biased, so the commentary is skewed.

Yup. If there ever was a loaded question to ask on a tech site, it'd be "Mac or PC". PC messageboards will, of course, sing the glories of the PCs. Mac messageboards will, of course, tend towards Macs in a big, bad way. And no matter which one you're at, there's always that one guy who will jam himself right into the middle of the conversation, and scream "LLLIIINNNUUUUUXXX".

It's the impossible question.
 

tdale

macrumors 65816
Aug 11, 2013
1,293
77
Christchurch, N.Z.
Yup. If there ever was a loaded question to ask on a tech site, it'd be "Mac or PC". PC messageboards will, of course, sing the glories of the PCs. Mac messageboards will, of course, tend towards Macs in a big, bad way. And no matter which one you're at, there's always that one guy who will jam himself right into the middle of the conversation, and scream "LLLIIINNNUUUUUXXX".

It's the impossible question.

Not impossible though. Once I get up to speed with OSX so I can fully appreciate the pros and cons of it, I could offer an unbiased opinion as I don't automatically hate OSX as I was a Windows user, and now that my main machine is an rMBP, I dont automatically hate Windows. When I have read the odd unbiased comparison, it has been good reading. No filtering required
 

tdale

macrumors 65816
Aug 11, 2013
1,293
77
Christchurch, N.Z.
Another way to look at this.

When you switched to a Mac, why?

My reasons as follows.

I wasnt disillusioned with Windows, nor were there things I disliked. I didnt just have a desire for a change either.

1. From rthe iPhone 4 I am an iOs user, so getting an Apple desktop OS seems a logical idea to maximise integration of the Apple hardware and software. Not a big enough reason to switch

2. Windows does slow down over time. It also bogs down with excess registry entries, more processes seem to be running over time. Not enough reason to switch

3. That Macs don't get viruses these days (they did prior to Unix based OS of circa 2000) is a nice plus, no AV slowing the system down. Not enough reason to switch

4. The generally sandbox based logic of OSX is a nice plus. More protection against bugs, etc , general stability to the small range of hardware used. Not enough to switch though.

Overall, these small reasons when combined did over me a compelling reason to switch, and I did a few weeks ago
 

Cubytus

macrumors 65816
Mar 2, 2007
1,436
18
That's an interesting way to put it. I have been using Windows for the most part of my computer life, Linux for a while, then OS X.

Another way to look at this.

When you switched to a Mac, why?

My reasons as follows.

I wasnt disillusioned with Windows, nor were there things I disliked. I didnt just have a desire for a change either.

1. From rthe iPhone 4 I am an iOs user, so getting an Apple desktop OS seems a logical idea to maximise integration of the Apple hardware and software. Not a big enough reason to switch
I won an iPod touch at a contest early 2008, and got my Mac fall 2008. Still, I don't credit it for pushing me toward better integration.

2. Windows does slow down over time. It also bogs down with excess registry entries, more processes seem to be running over time. Not enough reason to switch
This was a mere annoyance to me, and I routinely reinstalled Windows every 6 months. Was a pain, but I considered it a normal part of PC usage. And I never lost significant amounts of data because I already had good backup habits. Not enough reason to switch, either.

3. That Macs don't get viruses these days (they did prior to Unix based OS of circa 2000) is a nice plus, no AV slowing the system down. Not enough reason to switch
Wasn't a significant concern of mine on Windows. I had NOD32 installed, and it was coded with portions of assembly code inside. Couldn't have been lighter.

On the other hand, I really disliked Windows' tendency to require updates at the worst possible moment, and mysteriously crash whenever I postponed them.

4. The generally sandbox based logic of OSX is a nice plus. More protection against bugs, etc , general stability to the small range of hardware used. Not enough to switch though.
THAT was one reason for switching. After seeing a friend struggle with bad drivers, calling and receiving support emails from different companies, running one only one GPU for weeks waiting for a stability update for his dual-GPU setup, all of it on a $2.5k+ machine, I felt it was unreasonable.

Just at about the same time, I had a Sager laptop that failed at least five times over a two-year period. It was very heavy, thick and noisy. Likewise, support was appalling. Had to go without a modern machine for extended periods of time, never knowing when it was going to fail next, what would happen to it during transit, etc.

When UPS finally lost it (or stole it, will never know), I stuck with desktop PCs, including the one from the friend where it still had constant hardware issues. At the same time, he converted to Mac since his gf won a MacBook at a contest, and he found himself to be liking its OS, so bought an iMac. She lent me her MacBook from time to time, and I couldn't believe how light, responsive, silent and what a good battery life it had. This was literally night and day from the Sager.

As soon as I had enough money, I bought a MacBook as well, finding it lighter and much more well integrated than the PC. Plus, I was told should any problem arise, a short trip to the Apple Store would get it fixed in a matter of minutes most of the time, in days at worst.

Switching to Mac was chiefly based upon superior engineering (as I understood a laptop requires more of it than a discrete components desktop), a fast OS combining the power of Linux and software compatibility of Windows without its gripes, and strong service whenever a problem occurs.
 

tdale

macrumors 65816
Aug 11, 2013
1,293
77
Christchurch, N.Z.
Ive never had those types of issues, although I have always built my own desktop PC's. The three laptops have all been fine as well. The hardware/some software/OS made by one company for this specific range of hardware components, all in house is a plus.
 

tdale

macrumors 65816
Aug 11, 2013
1,293
77
Christchurch, N.Z.
Did they? I've been using Macs since System 7.1 and the only significant threat I can recall was the CD-ROM Autostart Worm, which wasn't even a virus.

Cheers

Jim

Apparently so. On an iPad forum this topic arose, and one of the more fanboy iPad users commented that Macs don't get viruses and did explain what ones were in the wild in those times. Enough detail for me to believe.
 

lucidmedia

macrumors 6502a
Oct 13, 2008
702
37
Wellington, New Zealand
The reasons many creatives use macs is mostly historical.

Apple released the first laser printer and, in so doing, started a desktop publishing revolution that empowered designers and other creatives to do their own typesetting and layout -- skills that were once specialized.

Lots of tools quickly followed, tools that were for a long time Mac only. This meant that agencies, newspapers and design shops invested heavily in a mac infrastructure.

For many years after Apple invested heavily in the creative market. We felt supported by the company and were, for a time, its primary market.

Today, many such differences are gone. Designers can choose which platform they want to work on. In my studio all of the designers use PCs except me. Adobe sells far more software for PC than Mac. Apple has made it very clear that it no longer values creatives as a market. We are too small and too high maintenance.

Admittedly, for production work I would argue that the PC requires a bit more knowledge upfront to do things correctly. I think that color calibration and font handling on the mac are a bit more elegant than on the PC, but again, my opinions are personal taste. Apples integration with postscript is also a benefit behind the scenes, but one that many designers would not notice on a day to day basis.

(To give some context, my first mac for design was a $10,000 IIfx. I moved to PCs when OS 9 got really bad, and then worked for a few years on SGI workstations. I came back to macs with OsX.)
 
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