Question about bootcamp.

About 3 weeks ago I ordered a dell xps m1330 to be my computer for when I go to college. Well that turned out to be a piece of s*** so I am now thinking about switching to a macbook. I honestly don't know if I need anything special for college (I am majoring in computer science) but I would like to know if boot camp with vista 32 bit is just like vista on a regular pc. Do all programs and other things work with boot camp or are there things that don't work? I went and looked at some macbooks and they seem really nice and OS X looks like it would be fun to use but I have a feeling that I will still need to use windows.

 

Yea, Vista will run like Vista.

My CS class has programs that run on Windows, Mac, and Linux, yours might too.

 

Vista runs well on the MB. So well, that the Vista experience index is astonishingly high on the MBP for me is at 5.2 (weakest link was the hard drive).

 

If you can, I would recommend the MBP for a CS major

 

^thanks for the suggestion, but could you tell me why you think that? The only difference that I see is a bigger screen,better graphics card, backlit keyboard, and bigger hdd. Doesn't seem worth 700 dollars more but let me know.

 

For CS major's, a Mac is probably not the best choice as you'll most likely be forced to learn development on a PC with either Linux or Windows. Now, you can put Windows or Linux on a Mac via Boot Camp (Windows-only!), VMWare, or Parallels, but you have to weigh the cost / benefit ratio for it as you'll need to buy a license for Windows XP/Vista.

The MBP is an incredibly powerful notebook which might be overkill for budding software developers.

But of course, if you plan to game or do graphics work with the MBP then that's a different thing altogether.

 

I figured that I would need to use windows alot so I didn't know if a mac would be good for me. But about the cost of a license I have a Vista disc/license just sitting around not being used, so I figured if a Mac can run windows just as good as a pc then I could have the best of both worlds and I would also be ok for my classes.

 

The question now becomes this: Do you want to use Mac OSX? If not, you could get a comparable laptop to the MBP for roughly half the price.

 

Well I definitely don't think that I will be getting a MBP. They are nice but 2000 dollars is out of my price range at the moment. I like the macbook and I don't think that is to "overpriced" it is comparable to my m1330 (it was about 1400 dollars) I had except for the graphics card which I don't think I need. I think I will check out OS X to make sure I will be happy with it. I am really just looking for a reliable computer that might last more than 2 weeks and I have never had a mac so I am interested to learn more about them.


Thank you for your replies.

 

I still think the M1330 is better than a Macbook spec to spec wise.

 

Vista will work just fine and all your apps will run. I would suggest running XP in Fusion or Parallels. You gain no benefit running Vista..it's just a resource hog.

As far as a MB or MBP I would suggest going with the MBP if possible. Since you are in school/will be in school you are eligible for an education discount. So you can pick up a MBP for $1799 or MB for between $999 - $1399 with a free iPod (which you can sell and make some $$).

Fortunately, specs aren't everything. I've owned both and the MB is a better machine (excluding gaming performance) minus the display. Once the MB ships with LED backlit displays the point will be moot.

 

My m1330 did have better specs but it just had stupid problems out of the box and eventually I had more problems including a high pitched noise that was constantly happening which was very annoying. So my m1330 is on its way back to Dell.

I was thinking of using vista because thats the only disc/license I have. I don't have an xp licencse to use and I don't want to buy one when I have vista for free (although I do like xp more than vista).

Is there a way to get the education discounts if I am going to a school that is not on their list? I don't think there is but if I am missing something please let me know.

 

I just found my school under the "create a proposal" category. Now when I go to buy it says I have to make a proposal. Do these usually go through or can they deny you?

 

You can refurb macbook pros for $1500. If you've got the money I recommend that. I'm a huge supporter of refurbs as I have one and am very happy with it.

 

I too would second that recommendation to get a refurbished MBP for $1500-$1600.

 

Go for the refurb Macbook Pro!

 

Well I found out that apparantly I can get the student discounts and free ipod which is nice but I still don't understand why I should go for the macbook pro? I don't see a huge difference in specs and I kinda of want a smaller size (although I don't think there is to much of difference between the macbook and macbook pro.) Maybe I'll go check them out this weekend and see the difference again.

 

The only two main differences between the MacBook and it's Pro sibling is that the Pro has a dedicated graphics card, and larger LED screen. Other than that there is no difference in anything else.

On the plus side for the MacBook, you can change out the hard-drive and memory without voiding your warranty. With the MBP, you can't change out the hard-drive that easily, but at least you can change the memory without worry.