

Ask HN: Switch to mac? - imasr

I'm in the process of choosing a new laptop, currently working on mobile apps on J2ME, NetBeans and Nokia emulators.
Have worked on PC's for all my life, but started wondering what can I gain from switching to Mac, considering for the budget I have, PC's outdo Macs by a mile.<p>Thank's and Regards
======
lsemel
After using a new Mac for two weeks, here's what I've noticed:

\- The typography is a lot nicer once you get used to it. It's great to look
at websites using type as it was designed rather than in the blocky rendering
Windows uses.

\- Keyboard shortcuts are worse. On Windows, all the menu options have
underlined shortcuts, so I could usually guess what the shortcut was based on
its menu position, even if I hadn't memorized it (i.e. Alt-F, S to save,
Alt-S, A to Select All). Mac has 3 modifier keys that have to be pressed in
combination, and the shortcuts have to be memorized. It took me forever to
figure out Command-D was the shortcut for "Don't Save" because there was no
onscreen indication.

\- Desktop programs for the Mac are of higher quality, more creative, and seem
to be free of viruses and spyware, thus safe to download and install. I rarely
download any desktop programs for PC, but on Mac I've found a bunch of great
ones that are worth paying for.

\- Everything is smaller on a Mac screen and harder to adjust, so if you don't
have perfect vision it can be a problem. There is no systemwide DPI setting.

\- Having a Unix shell is very convenient. MacPorts is a pretty good installer
for Unix programs but not as good as something like yum on Linux.

\- The windowing system is document-based rather than applicaiton based, so
you get lots of overlapping windows strewn across your screen. Once you get
used to this, dragging and dropping between apps makes more sense.

\- The progams I miss which don't have Mac equivalents yet are VanDyke
SecureCRT and Macromedia Homesite (a great HTML editor but several years old)

\- I haven't had to restart it for any reason. Installing software is much
easier and doesn't seem to modify the underlying operating system or registry
as it does on Windows.

\- Peripherals just work. It recognized my printer, digital camera, etc. right
away without problems. No futzing around with BIOS settings or drivers.

\- Some of the system UI controls feel less standardized, are often missing
keyboard navigation, and more annoying. For instance, the tree view control in
TextMate for browsing projects has little arrows you need to click to open a
folder, but clicking the folder name does absolutely nothing. On Windows this
would be standardized, it would let you click on the folder name, and also
respond to the keyboard.

\- You need to get mouse with a right button.

------
thismat
Obviously this topic will tend to be highly subjective as the tools (at least
for me, ymmv) have not been different enough to matter.

I personally feel it's a matter of what you enjoy using more. Before Windows 7
I would have given OSX with the better user experience overall, but after
using Windows 7 for the last 2-3 months, I am so impressed that I don't dread
going back and forth between it and my mac at all. It's a fine operating
system that is a pleasure to use.

That said, for development reasons, I tend to stick with OSX simply because of
the unix shell (though with how easy it is to spin up a virtual machine with
linux now days, this might also not matter as much anymore).

So really I don't see a clear advantage either way, I think it all depends on
how much you enjoy using one vs the other, as your environment enjoyment will
probably affect your productivity more than just the actual platform.

------
movix
After 15 years of being a PC advocate, last year I switched over as the main
development platform we were using was Mac only.

I would never go back to PC now, and I can't even give you a succinct or
informed reason why, there's just something about using a Mac, when you get
used to it, that just feels 'right'.

I'd go Mac.

~~~
thegoleffect
As much as I agree with you, that's highly subjective - that mysterious draw
to Macs. There's also a silent, mutual bond between Mac users as well that is
also a draw - the idea you're in an exclusive club. But those aren't really
reasons to switch from one OS to Macs.

~~~
movix
I actually can't abide the 'mac club' mindset, it's partly the reason I
avoided the platform for so long - the idea of being part of a brand 'family'
is hideous I think. The association of the fact that you use one particular
brand over another, in some way makes you superior to other computer users, is
an appalling, but highly effective piece of marketing hype.

Just as a machine to use, I find it very efficient, I couldn't care less who
made it.

------
andhapp
You could actually debate the Mac pricing and you would find numerous articles
on it. Anyhow, I switched to Mac recently and I don't think there are any
downsides. You can still run Windows using VM seamlessly only if you want to
do some windows dependant development.

------
stonemetal
>wondering what can I gain from switching to Mac

As a person who has been using a Mac for about 5 years now, not much. Macs
have a slightly better UX(for now, personally I think Win7 makes them equals)
if you don't like the command line at all(or are command line only, but then
it offers nothing over Linux). If you are a fan of both the command line and
the GUI Mac OS is a bizarre halfling that doesn't play well with itself.
Windows is much more coherent if you use both(even when you use Cygwin for the
CL side of things.) If you stray off the blessed path with Macs things get
ugly quickly(Steve Yeggie has a rant about trying to make Focus Follow Mouse
work properly that is quite amusing.)

~~~
pedalpete
I've done a half-switch, but completely agree with stonemetal. I have both a
Mac and Windows that I use for development. OSX is pretty. I'm running
Windows7 on my other machine.

stonemental's 'halfling' comment is dead on, and I find it the strangest thing
about macs.

Also, what I wasn't prepared for was the need to learn so many keyboard
shortcuts. No button to go right to your desktop, there's a keyboard shortcut
for that (but who knows what it is). Not 'rename' in the dropdown menu, but
there's a short cut for that (I don't know what it is). It seems like the
things like this that I use all the time and are basic on a PC are obscured on
a mac.

~~~
thegoleffect
Default shortcut to go to the desktop is F11. Default shortcut to rename a
currently selected file is Enter.

These keys are unusual if you're already coming from another OS but I've found
them to be quite comforting after you get past the initial learning curve. But
that's the point, there is a curve to everything.

I don't think it really matters what OS you use as much as the fact that you
constantly try to get more adept at using it (w/ the underlying assumption
that the limit is not infinite yet unattainable.. but that's another story
^_^).

~~~
pedalpete
My brother said that go to shortcut was F11, but F11 is volume control on my
mac. F11 was screen brightness on my brothers older generation MacBook Pro.

These is some of the inconsistencies that I'm really surprised to see, but
kinda go hand in hand with the inconsistency with command-line from linux.

I agree with your comment about getting more adept. However, with Microsoft, I
find that you learn as you go. Keyboard shortcuts are listed, menus may be
longer, but show you the functions you can use. It is more cluttered, but it
is a platform that allows you to learn. Macs (and of course Unix) force you to
go look for the solutions. This makes for a cleaner interface, but doesn't
provide the opportunity for discoverability.

Personally, I'd rather spend my time learning a new language than a new OS.

------
aaronblohowiak
Make sure your Nokia emulators work on the Mac, or you'll end up running a
windows VM anyway.

