Mac OS X - Transublimination

As a user of Dr Dos, OS2, AIX 5.x, Linux Red Hat 1.0 thru Centos 5.0, Windows 3.1 thru Windows XP.....I was dubious when my wife convinced me to drop Lenovo/Dell for a Macbook Pro.

The first 3 hours of use was the most enjoyable three hours I've ever spent learning an OS. It's smooth, it's simple, its deep and I loved it.

I was a anti-mac bigot who didn't understand why "geeks" would want a Mac...it's because it's freakin UNIX with a beautiful top to it. It's the heart of a tank with the exterior of a Ferrari.....ain't cheap...but it's the SINGLE best LEARNING platform for Comp Sci majors...I've figured this out in a few days now...

I'm not a mac convert bigot yet, but I do like the OS. I guess I will have to pony up for Leopard and then ThunderCats are go or whatever cat is left over..

This post is just for anyone on the fence who's worried about the OS coming from windows. I heartily recommend it -especially for IT specialists.

 

I don't like bigotry, be it Mac, Linux related or anything else. That said, MS dominance of the market is bad for consumers, so I try to push alternatives whenever possible. OS X is a good OS, it has its shortcomings for sure, but no one needs to be afraid of changing and trying it just because it "ain't Windows".

PS. Looking forward to OS X Thundercat as well lol

 

Thunder...Thunder...THUNDERCAT. what a great idea..you should share that with apple. Welcome to the club

 

OS X is a good OS, and is certainly pretty to look at. I personally prefer Linux myself as I enjoy the customizations and the freedom of choice and options, but I think my next laptop will be a Mac. Don't expect to get as many games with OS X as you would get with Ubuntu via WINE/Cedega though.

 

I've used a lot of OS's over the years, but Mac OS X did strike a chord in me when I really started using it. I was a hardcore Linux and Solaris user for a good number of years before this, so it wasn't until I really realized that OS X is a Unix OS with a greatlooking GUI that it just clicked.

I still prefer Linux or Solaris for servers for example, but for everyday use it's OS X all the way for me now. I have my dear command line available when I want it (this is really a must for me), and a nice GUI for the rest of the time. And when I want to play games, I boot into Windows for that (with some reluctance, but eh - Cedega failed me by not updating their support for EverQuest, so I am forced to. Cedega was good while it lasted though).

All this in one machine. Perfect.

 

i got my MBP yesterday and i just love os X! Obviously i had to configure minor things but everything went smooth and fast. I was surprised at how easy it was to connect to a windows based server and share files, etc... (i had heard many rumors that this was impossible to do).

Bottom line, i won't be crawling back to windows any time soon.

 

i will have had my MPB a week tomorrow and I love it to bits!

i was a little wary about OS X but the more I use it the more I like it. And expose is funky as!

I got all the software I want/need on it within the first day and just been fine tuning since.

 

Thanks for the post. I am still worried about switching from Windows to Mac OS X so this was hepfull.

The biggest thing im trying to work out is how to use MS Office. It will cost more $ to buy and install vista and office 2007 but i have heard that the apple version of Office sucks and doesn't have publisher. SO i dont really know what to do yet. Apple is expensive as it is...all the MS sofware will clean out my wallet.

 

Well, unless you really need all the graphical features of Microsoft Office, if you're just going to do basic word processing and presentations you could try NeoOffice, which is a free office suite. NeoOffice is the Mac version of OpenOffice, by the way. NeoOffice will suit the average user perfectly fine, I for one know I don't use half the features of Microsoft Office. And remember, its free!

 

tjizzle... I use Windows computers at work and basically write word documents for a living so I know where you are coming from.

But I try not to take work home very often so my needs on my old laptop (also) Windows) was fulfilled by OpenOffice 2.0. I found its versions of word and excel more than adequate for my home needs *except* that at work I often deal in documents which contain heavy track changes from multiple organisations and comments bubbles... And OpenOffice struggled with the comments bubbles which was frustrating sometimes.

On my Mac I have installed NeoOffice; it is basically the same as OpenOffice2.0 although surprisingly deals with comments bubbles a little better, though still not perfect.

If you *need* a fully functional copy of microsoft word and can't get a copy via work or college then this could be a problem for you.

But if you are still really keen to try Mac OS and this is a dealbreaker for you; why not download OpenOffice 2.0 to your windows PC and have a play around, see what you think. You can set it to save powerpoint, excel and word files in the microsoft format and be pretty much fully compatible.

I am loving my mac but like you software was a worry. In the end I got all the software I need no problem HTH

 

Sounds like you should join the linux community. Two closed platforms creates a logistics problem.

I didn't think anyone used Publisher anymore...what do I know..nothing apparently.