Ibook advice for a Window user

Hi,
I'm tempted by the look of Ibook and Tiger OS. But I've been a Windows user for years ... so I don't know if I can still continue my work under apple ...

For school, I'm using Matlab and C++. I know apple has Office, but does it come w/ the OS, or do I have to buy since I alread0y bought Matlab and Office for my windows ... ( daxx expensive ... lol ) ... so is there anyway to 'run' them under Mac ? I don't wanna buy another version since this is too expensive to me ...

I don't play game, but I do watch movies alot from my computer. I have movies that are Xdiv, Div ripped, and they have seperate subtitles ( I use VobSub to display them ) ... so is there any equivalent softwares that do dthe same job ?

If there's a solution for these questions ... I think I'll go for apple ... I really like the design ...

 

I doubt you can use your office on Mac. I could be wrong. You could try OpenOffice which is compatible with Office and free. There is always VirtualPC for running Windows applications. Personally, I would shy away from Mac. Software is more limited and tends to be more expensive. Good Luck.

 

I know there is an Office version for Mac ... but unsure about other apps ...
How well the virtual pc handle softwares like matlab, maple, etc ?

 

Don't expect to play games on virtual pc... it is after all an emulator..

 

I had a friend load Virtual PC on his PowerBook with different Windows OS's I had lying around. All I have to say is that its so freaking slow I couldn't believe it. It takes forever to load webpages and anything else for that matter. It is not worth it. I tried Windows NT, Windows 98SE, Windows 98, Windows XP Pro, and Windows 2000 Pro. None worked well. All of them chugged along ungraciously. And the install took forever. One other friend I loaned a Windows 2000 Pro CD to, told me it took him 12 hours to install it on his PowerBook. Stick with a PC since you spent a lot of money buying Office and MatLab, it would be a waste if you couldn't even use then properly. If you didn't have them, then I a buying an iBook or Powerbook would be a good idea, seeing how cheap a 12" iBook is and it even comes with some productivity apps, the iLife suite with Appleworks, I believe with trial Office software. And being a student you can get an even better deal with a student discount. And you can find free C++ compilers everywhere online these days, but I am not sure about the MatLab. It would probably run you a pretty penny trying to buy it for OS X.

 

luxuguy,

you may try posting your concerns at Apple Discussions in the iBook G4 usage section.

Many forum posters use both platforms and can give an idea of availability of the applications you need to use.

good luck

susan

 

1. Windows office won't work, but if you are a student, then you can get MS office for mac pro for around 130 (with tax in cdn, reg 500$). And there is a cheap word editor included that i found that would be comparable to ms works, but not sure of the formats it saves in or its compatibility.
2. There is matlab and maple and stuff for mac, but again, would need a different version.
3. For the c++ coding, you can use xcode 2.0 which is included.
4. For the videos, use VLC player, it handles just about everything. but still has some bugs.

All in all the switch might cost a little (okay, with matlab, maybe a lot), but i have found the switch to be invalueable. Before it felt like all i was doing was fixing my windows laptop and not being as productive, and in the month that i have had the ibook, i have had no problems whatsoever and just love the ibook and the os.

 

thanks guys ... I think I should wait ... I heard a rumor that the new Intel based Mac will come in Feb 2006 ... right now I think Ibook is not suitable for me ....