Question:
Should I go with a Mac or a PC?
Nikx
2016-02-24 17:05:55 UTC
Let me start off by saying I know little to nothing about computers. I'm looking for something that's fast and holds a lot of memory. I've only ever owned PCs my entire life (because lets face it, they're a lot cheaper than apple) but I've had a lot of problems with speed, installing software, storage issues, ect. on PCs.

I do a lot of graphic art work so I need a lot of storage. Most of the people I've talked to said that they really liked Mac, but i know even less about them than I do about PC. What do you guys have and what do or don't you like about them?

(I've saved quite a bit so Money right now isn't a big issue)
Thirteen answers:
dallenmarket
2016-02-27 16:46:26 UTC
Southpaw has it pretty close. I use ONLY Macs in my graphics, audio/video editing company. They are put together the same as a very high end PC, which will cost the same, or more than the same equipped Mac.





Where I differ from Southpaw is in the "gaming requires Windows" part. A Mac using Bootcamp (and you will need to buy your own Window installation just like when you buy one for a Windows machine) can use all Windows software at the same speed as a comparable Windows only machine. That means you can play any Windows games, or applications and ALSO any Mac software. Bootcamp is a free part of the Mac OS.



I use Parallels, a commercial app that works along similar lines to Bootcamp, but has some features I prefer in my work. Parallels can have the Windows and the Mac OS operating side by side and drag and drop between them, where Bootcamp requires a reboot each time you change between Windows and the Mac OS. I run dual monitors on my major work stations. I can have what looks like a Windows monitor and a Mac Monitor side by side, but they are being run by the same Mac.



If you later decided to get deeper into computers, you could also add Linux and have 3 computers in one.



An iMac is a good suggestion for you, as it is fast, has decent video and good RAM capacities at a much lower cost than the Mac Pro towers. If you've got the big bucks, they are the epitome, but for those who can't write the Mac pro off of their taxes via depreciation, the $5-6000 price to set one up properly is a whole bunch over the top. For the 'casual" user, a top of the line iMac 27" (4.0 GHZ, quad core i7, w/ 32 GB of RAM, a 2 TB Fusion drive (combination SSD and HHD) Best video (Radeon M395C/4 GB VRAM) would be $3149. External USB hard drives are inexpensive with an average of less than $50/TB of storage, so are the way to expand storage only when and as needed. (My wife uses hers daily and has lots of music , videos and graphics on it and is nowhere near 50% full on her 2 TB drive.
dazabas
2016-02-24 23:13:00 UTC
Why don't you get the mid range iMac, it has a great screen and a great OS. However it gets very expensive if you pick many high end add ons and options.



Which every computer you choose, to solve that problem, you do have to do some research regarding external storage.



NAS - Network Attached Storage, you buy just the NAS enclosure, and then buy your own hard drives to stick in them, so how large the drive is, depends on your needs. But using a NAS also means you need to learn a little bit about RAID storage options and how to connect to them from your computer. But this is useful knowledge and worth the time to read up on.



Of course a simple external USB attached hard drive will work as well.



Here are some reasons why a Mac is great, built in Font library management with Fontbook, while it is by far incomplete, it is still better than what you get on Windows, which is Character Map. Fontbook lets you group fonts, enable and disable them, very handy built in utility.



Macs have great screens, sure you can buy a IPS screen for a PC just as well, but then the price difference won't be that large anymore, good IPS screens are expensive, although there are cheaper IPS variants today, you do worry about longevity because of the price, at least I do. Dell might be a good choice here, good availability (for repairs, relatively inexpensive, generally reliable).



Some things you may not care for, but I do love the dictionary in Macs, there are multiple language dictionaries on it.



Typing special characters is very easy, just hold down a key for a while and you get accented options for that character, and you can hold down option key to type a range of special characters not available on the keyboard otherwise.



You know, I can go on and on and there really are more to it, but I have get back to work ><
Andy T
2016-02-29 12:29:32 UTC
Macs, the actual pro and cons no longer withstanding that has that bit extra as in Apple bowed down and begged (maybe?) to run their software on, as a fully loaded Intel PC the flipside is running Windows if required.



That and their customary commercial lock up means this advantage is not present with ordinary PC machines.



Though the interface is a bit dated. And it is not a desktop as most people would consider it to be. It is an appliance like photocopiers, water coolers, conference phones and such.
?
2016-02-29 21:20:21 UTC
Well it depends upon the use of your Computer

like i have Mac because i like to play games and watch movies on big screen

So mac is best for me
Shadow
2016-02-29 00:51:27 UTC
Get a customized Windows 10! 4GB is not enough for my video editor and Minecraft. So I recommend 128GB/64GB and 64GB Memory (to be safe), and a 4K Screen as your conputers built in screen, and update all drivers every month using Device Manager, once you get the PC (make sure you have GPU too!)
?
2016-03-01 04:40:01 UTC
If you need it for art & graphics buy Mac. If you need it for writing documents buy PC with Microsoft OS
2016-03-18 15:58:50 UTC
a custom built pc, built by ppl on craigslist should suffice.

choose a pc chasis in newegg, which is durable, so next upgrade won't need

to buy another pc chasis.

custom built pc can minimise waste because next custom build pc can keep the chasis.

old chasis likely won't be discarded.



pc allow installing linuxmint as well.

linuxmint is number 1 distro in http://distrowatch.com

linux can run autodesk maya, officially.

source : https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/maya/troubleshooting/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2016/ENU/Installation-Maya/files/GUID-3E0A3A36-B1C2-4B91-994B-731C672D9694-htm.html

from google 'linux maya 3d'

3ds max isn't available for linux but maya seems same as 3ds max

source : http://www.autodesk.com/suites/entertainment-creation-suite/compare/compare-to-other-products

from google 'autodesk maya vs 3ds max'



the same amount of money, allow custom-building a pc which will be stronger than mac.
?
2016-02-24 17:07:43 UTC
go with the pc it is easier to get advice for running a pc than an apple.
?
2016-02-24 17:07:42 UTC
just get a computer that is very small, compact and holds a lot of memory. thats all you should make your decision upon. go on google to see which has more memory. For me personally, i prefer pc be cause it find it less confusing.
Sarah
2016-02-24 17:10:26 UTC
I feel with Mac you get what you pay for. I have one and it's a great computer. Haven't had any problems.
VenkataTarun
2016-02-24 17:39:43 UTC
PC is a better option.
2016-02-28 16:20:16 UTC
mac
2016-02-24 17:57:07 UTC
In my experience... Visual people (artists, designers, etc.) are more likely to use Macs.


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