Friday, 26 June 2009

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  I didn't think I'd ever be ASKING for more work to do, but that's where I found myself this week at my job. After completing the the tasks no one else wanted or had the time for, I went on to complete other miscellaneous tasks which I finished too quickly... and so I was left with nothing work-related to do. Instead, I spent a day researching the general public's opinion regarding Windows or Mac. Consequently, I wrote a discussion... on the discussion. It's most likely biased, which doesn't mean untrue.
  

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  Coke vs. Pepsi
  Republican vs. Democrat
  Pro-life vs. Pro-choice
  Toyota vs. Honda
  Chipotle vs. Freebirds
  Texas A&M vs. UT Austin
  Canon vs. Nikon
  Democracy vs. Communism…
  
  
  And most importantly,
  
  

  Windows Vista VS. Mac OS X
  

   
  Apples and Oranges? Almost.
  One thing you have to keep in mind before I get started is that Windows and Mac are very, very different. From their origins they pursue fairly unlike goals, and so their mindsets and business approaches are unique. Yes, we are still comparing two of the most popular operating systems (apples & apples), but included in this debate we must make references to their broader creators of Microsoft (oranges) and Apple (apples, naturally). Now please take a brief moment and attempt to release all previous opinions of the two operating systems and realize that the choice is going to be based on what the consumer prefers, because undoubtedly both contenders are great systems.
  
  In the beginning, God created…
  Adam and Eve, which after many years of procreation lead to the births of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Two brilliant minds (Gates probably the superior) hard at work in this world's current race to technological success and superiority. Bill was the original. He was the PC. Credit goes to him without any hesitation for being a pathfinder (consider Windows, MS Office, SQL Databases, MS Exchange). Steve, however, was the innovator. Even Bill acclaims the work which Apple has done over the years (consider Mac computers, iPod, and iPhone).
  
  Metadata, the data behind the data.
  I threw away my immediate reasons for buying a Mac. Instead, I decided to do searches (mainly using Google) regarding the advantages  and disadvantages of both systems. Furthermore, I checked the Microsoft and Apple websites for authentic technical information. Lastly, I did not take mere public opinion for concrete explanations. If someone were to say, "Vista is prone to more viruses" I would ask WHY and WHAT causes this. Similarly, if "Macs have problems with compatibility" was stated, I would again ask WHY and WHAT causes this.
  
  While preparing this debate, I found that there is no definite "disadvantage" or "advantage" – it's a foggy dispute out there, and it doesn't look like the weather will clear anytime soon. So, instead of listing the angels and demons of each system separately, I'm going to take a topic, like "Compatibility", and discuss it regarding the two rivals.
  
  To ensure that I am using pistols and pistols, rather than arrows and cannons, I am comparing VISTA with OS X. Even though a new Windows (Windows 7) and a new Mac (Snow Leopard) are being released soon, I'm going to stick with what we’re currently familiar with.
  

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  1. Compatibility
  Vista: About 95% of applications, programs, etc. are PC-compatible. We all know what this means. Therefore, we are VERY RARELY faced with the dilemma of a program not being able to run on this sytem. However, certain desired aspects of OS X, such as Expose, Spaces, Quick View, and multi-touch trackpad, cannot be run on a PC (more details later in "User Friendly").
  
  OS X: This is probably the main issue that people have with Macs. Many things just can't be run on a Mac (note: the more common the program, the more likely it will be compatible). However, there is evidence of fast-growing compatibility. The software, hardware, and altogether technological realms of industry have realized the growth of Apple and are creating versions of their current products to suit Macs (rather quickly, too). Trinity University have given their professors the choice of a Mac or PC when issuing computers for work/personal use. We can only assume that Macs therefore are capable of running the necessary applications used by an educational institution. But don't generalize, this is just a specific situation. Furthermore, you can run Windows on a Mac, which solves almost all compatibility issues (more details later in "Deal or No Deal").
  
  2. Security
  Vista: Let's face it, PC's get viruses. But WHY? Why not Macs? PC's are used by most businesses, and there are A LOT of businesses. If the majority of the world has a PC, and if I'm an evildoer who wants to crush the happiness which comes with a working OS, then I'll choose to defile the system which affects the greatest number of people, naturally.
  
  OS X: Viruses for Macs DO EXIST. They're real, they breathe, and they're active… just not quite as active as PC's viruses. Now I'll admit I don't know more details on why/how this works, when/if Macs will be massively infected, or how they've been able to stay so virus-clean… but what I do know is that I've never experienced a virus on my Mac, neither have any of the other Mac-users I know… but PC's on the other hand… unfortunately, most of us can recognize a virus from first-hand experience.
  
  3. User-Friendliness
  Vista: We've grown up using a PC, and so we're accustomed to how they work, where things are kept, and how to change settings (for the most part). Windows has been known to be business-oriented, more so than a Mac, therefore they focus on a hierarchical organization. You click on one folder to enter another folder, which leads you to another, until you reach your object – this has been the accepted set-up for many years, and its' worked more or less. At the same time, because they are business-oriented, there are many details which the typical user may not need to access, and these options/settings should be left for corporate administrators and such. Much of this redundancy in operations have been removed from XP but some still remains in Vista. I'm referring to Vista's security system which asks the user to "Allow" or "Cancel" after every barely-important to severely-important process. Furthermore, actions such as adding a printer, connecting to the internet, setting up a network, and searching for items can all be very cumbersome.
  
  OS X: Initially, it takes a couple of days to get used to, but after using a Mac, it all comes pretty easy to operate. When I open "Preferences" it shows me all options under one simple menu; there's no folder-after-folder involved. I have used both a PC and Mac, and so I'm quite positive that I am familiar with the user-friendly capabilities of both. I will quickly discuss five components of OS X (all built-in) which greatly affect the user's experience.
  

  1. Expose: allows the user to quickly see and choose among all of his/her applications which are running. To do this, the user assigns a corner of the screen to activate Expose. Once the pointer is moved to that corner, all running windows and applications are scattered neatly across the screen so you can visually choose the one you're looking for. This eliminates the use of a "Menu Bar" as we see in Windows.
  2. Spaces: with a simple customizable keyboard shortcut, you can switch between up to 6 desktops at once. Basically, you can have 6 screens so your workspace doesn't get cluttered.
  3. Spotlight: I can type in the word, "black" and it will pull up ALL relating documents, applications, programs, definitions, logged conversations, pictures, internet history, bookmarks, and typically ANY information which has the word "black" in it… all under 2 seconds. So no longer do I have to open a folder to find a document or open an application, I can just use Spotlight.
  4. Quicklook: created solely to save RAM, while an item is highlighted, pressing the spacebar activates Quicklook, which gives the user a "quick look" at what is highlighted. This works with all MS Word documents, pictures, PDF files, and even videos. Quicklook gives the user more RAM to work with, and there's no time used in waiting for the actual applications to load, instead you get a quick look with Quicklook.
  5. Multi-Touch Trackpad: This trackpad recognizes 1, 2, 3, and 4 fingers to do certain processes, like zooming in and out, rotating objects, scrolling, navigating forward and backward, and it can also be customized to perform specific actions in applications.
     

  These are only a few of the user-friendly built-in applications which OS X has. I could list more, but you have to use a Mac yourself and become familiar with these and others to understand how Mac simplifies the most common processes while using a computer.
  
  4. System Requirements
  Vista: According to their website, Vista requires about 20GB of hard drive space along with 15GB of free space to operate affectively. Both Vista and OS X use roughly 20GB of hard drive space because they're hefty operating systems with built-in applications.
  
  Mac: According to Apple's website, OS X requires approximately 20GB of hard drive space (same as Vista) along with 5-6GB of free space to operate affectively. Therefore, you've got an extra 10GB to work with. Supposedly, the new OS coming out in September 2009 should reduce the hard drive space requirement to 14-15GB compared to the current 20GB.
  

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  Like I said earlier, both are great operating systems, but they're also very different. It all depends on what you're looking for, what you're used to, and whether or not you're willing to change and try something different (this goes both ways).
  
  However, for those tip-toeing in both systems, trying to find the better fit, these are my own personal deal-breakers:
  
  Or as Howie Mandel puts it, "Deal or No Deal?"
  Vista: Place all the most common existing software, programs, and applications in a box… mix it around… pull one out… and it'll almost always be compatible with your PC. However, be careful of what you choose, downloading & installing PC applications is like a box of chocolates, ya never know which nasty fruity-oozing chocolate you're gonna get (there's always at least one in every box).
  
  OS X: Choose from the same box as mentioned above, but your results won't quite compete with a PC's, YET (note: compatibility must not be such a pressing issue, just take a look at the number of Mac users). Keep in mind, you can always run Windows on your Mac and solve 99.9% of all compatibility issues, so what's to lose?
  

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