| Author | |
Mary G
Forum All-Star
Joined: Feb 07 2005
Location: Virginia
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5790
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 8:03am | IP Logged
|
 |
|
On the new laptop thread, there has been discussion of Mac laptops vs Windows ...
I used to be REALLY into all the techie stuff (taught computers K-8) but I've been out of the loop a bit ....
So, a couple of questions for y'all: why is Mac less prone to viruses (viri?  )? Can Mac run windows-based software or would I need to get all new stuff? I know Mac is great for graphic applications (my cartoonist brother who is getting another degree in graphic art swears by them) but what about us internet surfing, Word doc writing, hs'ing moms?
__________________
MaryG
3 boys (22, 12, 8)2 girls (20, 11)
my website that combines my schooling, hand-knits work, writing and everything else in one spot!
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
kingvozzo
Forum All-Star
Joined: March 28 2005
Location: Maine
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 2653
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 9:01am | IP Logged
|
|
|
I can't wait to hear more about this. Dh is convinced that he wants our next computer to be a Mac. I think they're less 'quirky.' Our computer drives him crazy sometimes, poor guy!
__________________
Noreen
Wife to Ed
Mom to 4 great kids and 10 sweet ones in Our Lady's arms
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Ruth
Forum All-Star
Joined: Nov 04 2006
Location: Virginia
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5007
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 9:24am | IP Logged
|
|
|
Yes, me too 
__________________
Ruth
mom to 7 miracles
My family blog
Loreto Rosaries
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Tami
Forum All-Star
Joined: Dec 27 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1066
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 9:32am | IP Logged
|
|
|
My dh is, in the words of those he's worked with, a Mac guru. 
I can get some answers to this and post later - we're in the thick of things at the moment.
I can say that we have Office on our Mac, and I use Word all the time, even between our Mac and an old PC that we have. OH, and yeah, I surf the net just fine.
More later, but I'll bet you get tons of comments from others anyway.
__________________
God bless,
Tami
When we are crushed like grapes, we cannot think of the wine we will become. (Nouwen)
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Mary G
Forum All-Star
Joined: Feb 07 2005
Location: Virginia
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5790
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 11:59am | IP Logged
|
|
|
Tami wrote:
I can say that we have Office on our Mac, and I use Word all the time, even between our Mac and an old PC that we have. OH, and yeah, I surf the net just fine.
|
|
|
Tami, this is exactly the kind of stuff I need to know; dh has a PC at work and we have a PC upstairs for the kids ... can we use a Mac as back-up for both of those. In other words, when DH emails me something from work to print at home, can I use the Mac to print it with no problems?
And why is Mac more stable?????
__________________
MaryG
3 boys (22, 12, 8)2 girls (20, 11)
my website that combines my schooling, hand-knits work, writing and everything else in one spot!
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Tami
Forum All-Star
Joined: Dec 27 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1066
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 1:47pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Mary G wrote:
Tami wrote:
I can say that we have Office on our Mac, and I use Word all the time, even between our Mac and an old PC that we have. OH, and yeah, I surf the net just fine.
|
|
|
Tami, this is exactly the kind of stuff I need to know; dh has a PC at work and we have a PC upstairs for the kids ... can we use a Mac as back-up for both of those. In other words, when DH emails me something from work to print at home, can I use the Mac to print it with no problems?
And why is Mac more stable????? |
|
|
Caveat: I am not a geek when it comes to computers, more of a dork  , so take that into consideration when you read my responses. I just try to do what I'm told, with little to no understanding. But, I am a linguist, so I know how to repeat what others say really well.
Mary, if you're talking about being able to print attachments, then yes, as long as you have the same software, it should be no problem. [caveat, caveat] I get attachments from folks all the time that were created on a PC.
And you can transfer files [caveat, caveat], I did it today with ds, using a flash drive. We took some work to the library where it was quiet, then came home and he printed it here.
I'm thinking maybe I'll ask dh to post something here, so that I don't have to transcribe...maybe I can catch him tonight.
I'll get back with you.
__________________
God bless,
Tami
When we are crushed like grapes, we cannot think of the wine we will become. (Nouwen)
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Matilda
Forum All-Star
Joined: Feb 17 2007
Location: Texas
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1827
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 2:42pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
I will have Husband check back later and offer his advice, but for now I can tell you that the virus issue has to do with the operating system that Mac's run. Mac's are UNIX based whereas PC are DOS based. Viruses are nothing but computer programs that must be written to work within the operating systems.
Macs are great for surfing! Very smooth! My PC was always getting snagged or bogged down with pop-ups and what-not.
I have had no complaints with any documents I have tried to create or print.
I love my Mac and wouldn't switch back unless I was forced to! My husband converted his boss to a Mac and a few other people after he switched a few years ago and he was a PC technician for many years before that!
My father calls him to get help with his Dell all the time. When all else fails and my dad asks "what else can I do?" Husband always replies "Buy a Mac!"
__________________
Charlotte (Matilda)
Mom to four (11 , 10 , 9 & 5 ) an even split for now
with bookend boys and a double girl sandwich
Waltzing Matilda
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Natalia
Forum All-Star
Joined: Feb 07 2005
Location: Louisiana
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1343
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 2:50pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Mary,
We have always have a Mac and sometimes we can't open attachments that at send in Word. The Mac comes with a software (or program- I am not sure of the difference) that can translate some files. That took care of the majority of files but every now and then there were some that wouldn't translate. We finally decided to get Office for Macs. We got the student version which is not as expensive as the full blown version but it has Word, PowerPoint and Excel. Now we don't have any problems at all. It works great on a Mac.
The other issue I had with our Mac was some things would mess up while using Safari (the browser that comes with the Mac) but we downloaded the Mozzilla Firefox for Macs and haven't had any problems.
Occasionally we come across some online games that won't run in a Mac but that is very rare. Also when something new comes out sometimes the Mac version takes longer to develop. For example I was trying to get Picassa for my blog and it is not available for Macs. That is also the case for some computer games. That wouldn't affect you because you wouldn't get rid of your PCs.
Other than these minor issues we have loved our Mac. We have never had a virus _ I don't know why they don't "catch" viruses as easy as PCs-. I love the ease of use. We got a new Mac last year and we took it out of the box and shortly after were able to surf the internet.
HTH,
Natalia
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
mellyrose
Forum All-Star
Joined: May 12 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 939
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 3:06pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
I moved from a PC to a MAC notebook last summer. I was resistant at first, but DH was pretty convincing and I have to say that I love my MAC. DH has a MAC desktop and a PC laptop (got a smoking deal for the laptop!)
I did insist on buying Office for MAC (pretty good deal bc of their educational discount) and Photoshop for MAC. Most PC software isn't compatible, but I'm sure some is? Almost a year later, I realize I could have spared the expense of Office most likely. The programs that came with the MAC are pretty good (but I'm resistant to change and insisted I had to have them. I should have waited 3 months and saved the $$).
I'd wait til they start offering their "new school year" specials. We bought in August and saved a ton, plus I got a new IPOD for free -- all part of their educational discount. I showed them our homeschool affidavit and had no problem. They always offer educational discounts, but I found that their summer deals were best (getting kids ready for back to school).
Also, if there's a MAC store near you, go in and play for a while to get a feel for what is offered. I used PC's since the early 80's and taught hardware/software for many years before staying home -- and I'm a complete convert now. My MAC has never crashed since purchasing it last August. There was a slight learning curve, but I have never regretted the decision.
OH! And their licensing is better than PC/Microsoft for the most part. I can load Office on 5 computers (I think it's 5?) that I own -- if we upgraded our PC Office I needed a new license for each machine (we currently have 4 computers in our house -- 2 for DH (one Mac, one PC), mine (MAC), and kids (PC))
ALSO, I hook my laptop up to a regular monitor when using it in the office, then just unhook and go when I want. Wireless internet means I'm free to travel throughout the house. I know you can do this with a PC laptop, too, but just thought I'd mention it.
Melanie
Mom to Colin (6), Nate (almost 5), and baby girl on the way!
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Mary Chris
Forum All-Star
Joined: Jan 27 2005
Location: Virginia
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 2175
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 4:15pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
I really want a MAC after reading all the threads about how easy they are. Unfortunately, my dh is set in his PC ways.
__________________
Blessings, Mary Chris Beardsley
mom to MacKenzie3/95, Carter 12/97 Ronan 3/00 and wife to Jim since 1/92
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Matilda
Forum All-Star
Joined: Feb 17 2007
Location: Texas
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1827
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 5:02pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Mac offers a discount for homeschoolers, oh...and they have really cool commercials.
__________________
Charlotte (Matilda)
Mom to four (11, 10, 9 & 5) an even split for now
with bookend boys and a double girl sandwich
Waltzing Matilda
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Tami
Forum All-Star
Joined: Dec 27 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1066
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 5:05pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Ok, I snagged him for a few minutes. Here's what he said:
There are so few Macs out there, that people who write viruses go for the bigger catch. Mac is ~ 5% user-base (=/-) world-wide. Therefore, there are none.
It is more stable because it runs on a UNIX system and it’s an industrial strength OS. UNIX is an open architecture. Mac has written an interface (Darwin) to go on top of it, that’s why it’s so easy to use. Mac’s OS is Darwin.
It’s transparent to move documents back-and-forth in Office. It comes with a lot of programs already, including the whole Ilife series: I-Photo, I-Movie, I-DVD, I-Cal, I-Tunes, etc.
New Macs can run Windows on them. Some people have success, dh doesn't think it's a good idea, but he ~is~ biased! 
Dh suggests you look at the Mac commercials: apple ads It’s a parody of the differences!
You can get small discounts from Apple for home educators (hardware) and perhaps more significant discounts for software. Software needs to be purchased that’s Mac compatible.
Dh suggests the new Mac mini. You can use your PC keyboard and mouse and monitor.
The longevity on them is incredible.
Hope this helps, Mary! I know there are other Mac users here, Lissa's been on one since the early 90's, I think she mentioned in another thread.
__________________
God bless,
Tami
When we are crushed like grapes, we cannot think of the wine we will become. (Nouwen)
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Celeste
Forum Pro
Joined: April 03 2006
Location: Nebraska
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 263
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 8:03pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Macs are prettier.
__________________
Celeste
Mother of five. Daughters.
Perchik: Do you have children?
Tevye: I have five daughters.
P: Five?
T: Daughters.
P: Girls should learn, too. Girls are people!
Student: A radical!
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Mary G
Forum All-Star
Joined: Feb 07 2005
Location: Virginia
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5790
|
| Posted: April 19 2007 at 10:22pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Celeste wrote:
| Macs are prettier. |
|
|
Well, there you go! But, I think I have to get a bit more concrete for dh to go with it!
__________________
MaryG
3 boys (22, 12, 8)2 girls (20, 11)
my website that combines my schooling, hand-knits work, writing and everything else in one spot!
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
extremeknitter
Forum Rookie
Joined: March 08 2007
Location: Texas
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 71
|
| Posted: April 20 2007 at 6:44pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Anyone cool enough to be a knitter needs a Mac.
I have no trouble ever. Like a pp said, I have installed Firefox for the rare occasion that a web page is fussy about my mac. You can install & run Windows natively if you like, so I'd say go for a Mac... you get the best of everything. I've always used Mac & have never been disappointed. Ever.
__________________
blessings and peace,
~knitter
mom to 6 terrific kids (ages 21 down to 1) and 10 little saints
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
|
|
Forum Locked) 
4Real Forums : Tea and Conversation
Topic: Mac vs PC
