Computer tidbits

[loco.cerveza 0]

Well, I have been reading, I mean a lot of reading, I have been working 8 days on with one day for almost two months now so I have not had very much time for anything but sleeping and spending time with Moodyskydiver. So I have been playing around with and, in fact I have switched from using windows on my laptop to running the Ubuntu distro of Linux. I have found that I have had far less problems with ad-ware, spy-ware and all the nasty things that Windows seems to have problems with. I have also found that a lot of the software that comes in the distro that I am running works a lot better then anything put out by Microsoft. What I was wondering is how many people are running a distro of Linux and what they used before going with linux. I have not ever owned a Mac, nor do I plan on getting one for my self but I do plan getting one for Moodyskydiver with any luck after the first of the year, So I can't comment on how Mac run or what kinds of problems they have, but I will say I do not like the fact that all of the repair work has to be done by Apple and that you can buy parts from Apple or any third party vender to home build a Mac. So if any one can tell me what about good Mac laptop for $1000, $1500 max please do so. I would be really thankful for the info. For me; I love Linux and hope to never have another Windows computer in my life. I have crashed it 5 times now, but I know what I did to crash it, so right now I am dealing with the whole learning curve thing.

Remember that expectant life span is an average, and most people are below average
--Garrison Keillor

[Misternatural 0]

Well I'm no geek but I can tell you that I have two Mac's and they are quite reliable. One I have had for over 15 years and the thing is STILL a workhorse for my business. They are damn near bullet proof- I say this because I have never had one crash, sure the programs sometimes do but thats minor compared to some of the nightmares I 've heard about other computers. No virus problems, good speed,nice graphics, easily upgradable, and they are very user friendly.

Beware of the collateralizing and monetization of your desires.
D S #3.1415

[Guest]

Depends on your learning curve and how much productive work you can accomplish in Linux vs Wintel or Mac (btw - I think Ubuntu is overrated).

As with Unix, the learning curve is steep, but you only have to climb it once.

Nothing, and I do mean nothing about Macs is cheap, and thus far there is no way to roll your own as with the other OSs.

Mac afficianados tend to be well-heeled, so perhaps it's not that big of a deal to them, but it's a different story for most of the population.

IMO Mac owners sometimes tend to come across as elite snobs. They remind me of owners of expensive cars; i.e., smug, though this may simply be my own perception.

I own several Macs, but I don't think that it makes me better than anybody else who's not fortunate enough to have one. In fact, it doesn't make me anything at all, except more knowledgeable of non-mainstream systems. As a career IT puke with 14 years in this field, very little about desktop ownership impresses me much.

However, were I a Unix sys admin I'd feel more godlike. . Likewise, if I owned some Sun or SGI gear and knew how to use it..

mh
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"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[faulknerwn 37]

I spent many years as a Unix sysadmin (before I quit to become a skydiving bum :-) and while I do like Linux/Unix, there are always more problems trying to get programs to work/compile/install on Linux than there ever is on a Mac. For years I used Linux/Solaris at work and Macs at home.

I use the "Unix" side of my Mac daily - you can do all the power-user geek stuff on a Mac, while its simple enough and works well enough that my parents set up their own wireless network without any help from me (amazing!)

And you can do your own work on the Mac if you know what you're doing - it can be difficult depending on the Mac, but I've swapped out DVD drives and memory and stuff on my Mac before. I do always wait till its out of warrenty tho :-)


What I've found about Macs is that they're not much more expensive than a SIMILARLY-EQUIPPED Windows box - add in the nice video, CPUs, memory and other items to a Windows box, and the price goes way up from the standard $300 Walmart special.