What I miss the most from the dark side
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Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Since I got my first Mac in 2001, I have never once wished I had a PeeCee or Linux box around because of something I could not do on my Mac.
I work on Windows during the day at the office. So 5 days a week I am reminded why I don't miss that sorry excuse for an OS.
Since I got my first Mac in 2001, I have never once wished I had a PeeCee or Linux box around because of something I could not do on my Mac.
I work on Windows during the day at the office. So 5 days a week I am reminded why I don't miss that sorry excuse for an OS.
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I never have had "PeeCee Days" since I've started with my computing history with a Mac. But however before Panther was released, I really loved the alt-tab for getting around multiple windows. Now I keep going to press F9 no matter what computer I'm using.
Another thing I like about Windows was the maximize function, it went hand in hand alt-tab, and whatever I was working on was the main focus, and there was nothing else.
Just my 0.02
Another thing I like about Windows was the maximize function, it went hand in hand alt-tab, and whatever I was working on was the main focus, and there was nothing else.
Just my 0.02
I'm definitely in the mouse category.
Since I do a lot of CAD work I had my 5 button mouse programmed to do all sorts of shortcuts on my PC.
I could of course still use one but I don't want to bastardize my sytem with anything other than an apple or at least mac specific product.
I use the one click apple pro mouse when I've got my desktop situation setup and my ultra tiny macally 2 button and scroll mouse when I'm mobile and/or doing CAD work.
PLEASE APPLE....when are you going to come out with the mutlibutton mouse?!?! I just don't understand!?!? You'd make SO much money! And probably gain a bunch of PC users!!!
Since I do a lot of CAD work I had my 5 button mouse programmed to do all sorts of shortcuts on my PC.
I could of course still use one but I don't want to bastardize my sytem with anything other than an apple or at least mac specific product.
I use the one click apple pro mouse when I've got my desktop situation setup and my ultra tiny macally 2 button and scroll mouse when I'm mobile and/or doing CAD work.
PLEASE APPLE....when are you going to come out with the mutlibutton mouse?!?! I just don't understand!?!? You'd make SO much money! And probably gain a bunch of PC users!!!
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Pamela - This has been answered before, but summed up it goes along the lines of one button mice being easier to use.
They are less daunting and easier to use for new users, along with shipping your product with a one-button mouse, it rrequires developers to make their programs more Mac like, where everything is available with one button, and there are no extra features that can only be accessed by right clicking or something similar as seen in Windows. It may be a seemingly stupid way of keeping the use of the Mac OS more orderly, but you can always just buy a 5 button mouse for your Mac, and use USB Overdrive to set shortcuts to the buttons.
They are less daunting and easier to use for new users, along with shipping your product with a one-button mouse, it rrequires developers to make their programs more Mac like, where everything is available with one button, and there are no extra features that can only be accessed by right clicking or something similar as seen in Windows. It may be a seemingly stupid way of keeping the use of the Mac OS more orderly, but you can always just buy a 5 button mouse for your Mac, and use USB Overdrive to set shortcuts to the buttons.
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I don't have any problem with the one button mouse. I just wish Apple would wise up and put in a scrolling wheel.
I use my Macally for surfing, just because of the wheel, which by the way, also allows you to click a link with the wheel too.
Cheers
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I use my Macally for surfing, just because of the wheel, which by the way, also allows you to click a link with the wheel too.
Cheers
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Moscool - you scared me there - I thought I had posted a duplicate thread for a second. I like your title the best BTW. A Poll was definitely in order. I think I was feeling nostalgic, fall, Christmas time approaching and all.
I really loved tinkering with hardware too, but it was an expensive hobby.
At home I have used, in order:
*TI 99 4/A running BASIC, Car Wars, etc
*Apple II clone running Oregon Trail, BASIC, etc
*286 running WordPerfect
*100 MHz 486 from College St., running Windows for Workgroups 3.11
*PII 266 MMX, various ATI and Voodoo video cards dual-booting Win95 and Linux
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*700 MHz Duron Socket A MSI with SB Live! Value a DVD-ROM and CD-RW running Windows 98 2nd Ed. which I donated to the church after failing to do music sequencing and play DVDs without re-booting
* Quicksilver 2002 single 800 MHz G4
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* Trogdor the Burninator ^S^
I really loved tinkering with hardware too, but it was an expensive hobby.
At home I have used, in order:
*TI 99 4/A running BASIC, Car Wars, etc
*Apple II clone running Oregon Trail, BASIC, etc
*286 running WordPerfect
*100 MHz 486 from College St., running Windows for Workgroups 3.11
*PII 266 MMX, various ATI and Voodoo video cards dual-booting Win95 and Linux
*700 MHz Duron Socket A MSI with SB Live! Value a DVD-ROM and CD-RW running Windows 98 2nd Ed. which I donated to the church after failing to do music sequencing and play DVDs without re-booting
* Quicksilver 2002 single 800 MHz G4
* Trogdor the Burninator ^S^
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9,262 Posts
The only thing I miss with the PeeCee is 3DStudio Max,
It's something that I got addicted to in animation school
and the Mac just doesn't have anything like it.
Well..I'm sure some will beg to differ, But I really preferred
the interface of 3DStudio Max.
My brother inlaw has it on his laptop for his architectural
rendering that he does for his work, I'm always amazed by
what he does with the program.
Dave
It's something that I got addicted to in animation school
and the Mac just doesn't have anything like it.
Well..I'm sure some will beg to differ, But I really preferred
the interface of 3DStudio Max.
My brother inlaw has it on his laptop for his architectural
rendering that he does for his work, I'm always amazed by
what he does with the program.
Dave
When I first switched about a month ago I missed the full maximizing of windows. I love to have all the realestate being covered no matter what app or window I am using. Especially if you're on a 12 inch laptop screen!
but on another note:
In class my prof uses a pc for power point every class and he never uses full screen mode, and the ugly square menu bars and scroll bars of windows are exposed.. and its a constant reminder of how beautiful OSX really is... thats is something I definetly don't miss.
but on another note:
In class my prof uses a pc for power point every class and he never uses full screen mode, and the ugly square menu bars and scroll bars of windows are exposed.. and its a constant reminder of how beautiful OSX really is... thats is something I definetly don't miss.
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I don't know about the choice of options in this list...
Two-button mouse and software designed to take advantage of it
Whereas a two-button mouse is certainly a pet peeve for many users, the Mac has taken advantage of multi-button mice in almost every application I have ever used (and I have used ALOT of different apps and versions of apps in my time) since System 7.5. OS X is excellent for this. As for programmability, well, there is USB overdrive for anything that isn't doable from an out of the box situation...
ALT-Tab switching and click to desktop
Although it's actually Command-Tab, it's there and has been there for quite some time. Almost as long as the multi-button functionality.
Legible font sizes in all your mail
I've never had font size problems with my mail on a Mac. On a PC however, it's been a pretty painful experience. (Unless of course I read this wrong and you HATE legible fonts?)
Fast games
This is a tricky one, since the Mac games market is obviously smaller than the PC one. As for "fast" games, I find that there is very little difference when you compare similar systems. Fast games on a PC is subject to the same kinds of problems a Mac can encounter...
Fast MS office
Office seems to load faster on my 4 year old G4 than it does on some of the higher end (1GHz +) PC systems I've used. In truth, I think it IS faster (and better) on the Mac.
Cheap peripherals
Again, like games, this is another tricky one. If a peripheral works on a PC, it's quite possible to make it work on a Mac (often it's just a matter of drivers). Cost of said items is irrelevant if the only difference is the software used to run them.
Also, you get what you pay for. "Cheap" doesn't necessarily have to mean "crap", but quality vs price often is a factor. Some lower-quality peripherals are often not available for Mac because they are junk not worth buying.
For example, a printer from HP, regardless of platform, will cost the same if it works on a Mac or a PC.
Ability to tweak
Tweak in what way? OS interface tweaking? It's doable, in both OS 9 and OS X. Both platforms can customize the interface in many ways and each has 3rd-party software that can tweak just about any aspect you want.
If you mean hardware tweaking, well, I confess, there is less variety of tweaking/modding in the Mac world. However, it does exist. But in either platform, many 'customizing tweaks' can be done and also may void any existing warranty. many Mac users don't feel the need to do hardware tweaks.
Choice of business software
Well, the Mac may not have the same bredth of selection in some areas, but without specific examples, this becomes as vague as games. Sure, not every piece of software that exists for PC also exists for Mac. But there are also applications only made for Mac that can fill these gaps..
Messenger and netmeeting
Since all the different chat-programs have mac equivalents (and we also have iChat AV, which allows both Audio and Video chats) this isn't really much of an issue.
No need to pay for an OS update once a year
Again, this is another one of those points that is quite vague. Jaguar, followed by Panther, definitely seems to be setting up a "once a year" pattern. However, 10.1 (which was a free upgrade for OS 10.0 owners) and previous versions of the OS certainly didn't have any kind of rigid release schedule.
As well, the updates from 10.1 to 10.2 and then again from 10.2 to 10.3 were NOT minor upgrades. MANY features (either obvious or subtle) have been added in each of these releases.
In conclusion to my babbling...
I guess, in all, I have nothing in the PC world I wish to see on my Mac because it is either there already, or it is not a feature/application/aspect I desire.
For over 12 years I have been able to do more on all of my Macs (and I've owned about 10 in my lifetime) than on "comparable" PC systems. Although PCs are quite powerful now and are pretty much on par in many of the areas it lacked in the past, I still feel I can get more accomplished on my Mac.
Two-button mouse and software designed to take advantage of it
Whereas a two-button mouse is certainly a pet peeve for many users, the Mac has taken advantage of multi-button mice in almost every application I have ever used (and I have used ALOT of different apps and versions of apps in my time) since System 7.5. OS X is excellent for this. As for programmability, well, there is USB overdrive for anything that isn't doable from an out of the box situation...
ALT-Tab switching and click to desktop
Although it's actually Command-Tab, it's there and has been there for quite some time. Almost as long as the multi-button functionality.
Legible font sizes in all your mail
I've never had font size problems with my mail on a Mac. On a PC however, it's been a pretty painful experience. (Unless of course I read this wrong and you HATE legible fonts?)
Fast games
This is a tricky one, since the Mac games market is obviously smaller than the PC one. As for "fast" games, I find that there is very little difference when you compare similar systems. Fast games on a PC is subject to the same kinds of problems a Mac can encounter...
Fast MS office
Office seems to load faster on my 4 year old G4 than it does on some of the higher end (1GHz +) PC systems I've used. In truth, I think it IS faster (and better) on the Mac.
Cheap peripherals
Again, like games, this is another tricky one. If a peripheral works on a PC, it's quite possible to make it work on a Mac (often it's just a matter of drivers). Cost of said items is irrelevant if the only difference is the software used to run them.
Also, you get what you pay for. "Cheap" doesn't necessarily have to mean "crap", but quality vs price often is a factor. Some lower-quality peripherals are often not available for Mac because they are junk not worth buying.
For example, a printer from HP, regardless of platform, will cost the same if it works on a Mac or a PC.
Ability to tweak
Tweak in what way? OS interface tweaking? It's doable, in both OS 9 and OS X. Both platforms can customize the interface in many ways and each has 3rd-party software that can tweak just about any aspect you want.
If you mean hardware tweaking, well, I confess, there is less variety of tweaking/modding in the Mac world. However, it does exist. But in either platform, many 'customizing tweaks' can be done and also may void any existing warranty. many Mac users don't feel the need to do hardware tweaks.
Choice of business software
Well, the Mac may not have the same bredth of selection in some areas, but without specific examples, this becomes as vague as games. Sure, not every piece of software that exists for PC also exists for Mac. But there are also applications only made for Mac that can fill these gaps..
Messenger and netmeeting
Since all the different chat-programs have mac equivalents (and we also have iChat AV, which allows both Audio and Video chats) this isn't really much of an issue.
No need to pay for an OS update once a year
Again, this is another one of those points that is quite vague. Jaguar, followed by Panther, definitely seems to be setting up a "once a year" pattern. However, 10.1 (which was a free upgrade for OS 10.0 owners) and previous versions of the OS certainly didn't have any kind of rigid release schedule.
As well, the updates from 10.1 to 10.2 and then again from 10.2 to 10.3 were NOT minor upgrades. MANY features (either obvious or subtle) have been added in each of these releases.
In conclusion to my babbling...
I guess, in all, I have nothing in the PC world I wish to see on my Mac because it is either there already, or it is not a feature/application/aspect I desire.
For over 12 years I have been able to do more on all of my Macs (and I've owned about 10 in my lifetime) than on "comparable" PC systems. Although PCs are quite powerful now and are pretty much on par in many of the areas it lacked in the past, I still feel I can get more accomplished on my Mac.
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Some cool input Strongblade, although I can't agree with some of your comments (see below). Voting currently almost a dead heat between 2 button mouse and faster games. I'll let it run for another 24 hours see if we have a clear winner...
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Two-button mouse and software designed to take advantage of it
SB: Whereas a two-button mouse is certainly a pet peeve for many users, the Mac has taken advantage of multi-button mice in almost every application I have ever used (and I have used ALOT of different apps and versions of apps in my time) since System 7.5. OS X is excellent for this. As for programmability, well, there is USB overdrive for anything that isn't doable from an out of the box situation...
Moscool: comment was more about Apple's stance. Ctrl-Click is not that easy with a laptop on your knees...
ALT-Tab switching and click to desktop
SB: Although it's actually Command-Tab, it's there and has been there for quite some time. Almost as long as the multi-button functionality.
Moscool: Well I never...
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Legible font sizes in all your mail
SB: I've never had font size problems with my mail on a Mac. On a PC however, it's been a pretty painful experience. (Unless of course I read this wrong and you HATE legible fonts?)
Moscool: This is one where I am sometimes wondering if I am going mad or not. Totally drives me nuts and doesn't seem to bother anyone else! Basically with Word as your Outlook editor you get perfect WYSIWYG in e-mail from PC to PC. Most of the mail I get in Mac Mail is either 'normal' or in a ridiculously small font. The only way to print those e-mails legibly is to resise the mail window (from Apple KB !!!). Definitely not WYSIWYG Besides, font smoothing gives me a headache (really).
[...]
Fast MS office
SB: Office seems to load faster on my 4 year old G4 than it does on some of the higher end (1GHz +) PC systems I've used. In truth, I think it IS faster (and better) on the Mac.
Moscool: OK for loading, but calculating and saving are definitely slower. Also the default font size bears no relationship to reality (both comparable Windows font or printed paper). Which bit of WYSIWYG don't I understand?
Cheap peripherals
SB: Again, like games, this is another tricky one. If a peripheral works on a PC, it's quite possible to make it work on a Mac (often it's just a matter of drivers). Cost of said items is irrelevant if the only difference is the software used to run them.
Also, you get what you pay for. "Cheap" doesn't necessarily have to mean "crap", but quality vs price often is a factor. Some lower-quality peripherals are often not available for Mac because they are junk not worth buying.
For example, a printer from HP, regardless of platform, will cost the same if it works on a Mac or a PC.
Moscool: Nope. Recent example of a 'cheap' HP colour laser printer costing *twice* as much on a Mac platform as on a PC platform. What happens is that the PC world is used to heavy discounting and distributors will be much keener than their Mac counterparts. I always shop around PC outlets for Mac peripherals and I always get better value for money.
[...]
Choice of business software
SB: Well, the Mac may not have the same bredth of selection in some areas, but without specific examples, this becomes as vague as games. Sure, not every piece of software that exists for PC also exists for Mac. But there are also applications only made for Mac that can fill these gaps..
Moscool: The business market has all but given up on the Mac platform (which is not surprising with a 3-5% market share). Although I switched my business to Mac, I am paying everyday for it with no bridge to my accounting software, no Mac version of Act!, no professional services practice management software, etc.
Messenger and netmeeting
SB: Since all the different chat-programs have mac equivalents (and we also have iChat AV, which allows both Audio and Video chats) this isn't really much of an issue.
Moscool: this reminds me when my cousin bought one of the first fax machines twenty years ago - He had to send faxes to himself for a long time... What is the point of having the coolest messenger software if no-one else can use it? Besides iChat AV ain't cheap, so it's going to slow progress further to convince all your mates to buy a Mac and an iSight. Maybe it would have been a better idea to make the thing X-platform compatible with one side getting the quality and the other using the USB/cheap cams but getting the urge to upgrade...
[...]
My conclusion: Macs are cool and that's why I am prepared to pay more to use them. But let's not pretend that everything is perfect - there are quite a few things that PC platforms do faster & cheaper, albeit not as elegantly.
Two-button mouse and software designed to take advantage of it
SB: Whereas a two-button mouse is certainly a pet peeve for many users, the Mac has taken advantage of multi-button mice in almost every application I have ever used (and I have used ALOT of different apps and versions of apps in my time) since System 7.5. OS X is excellent for this. As for programmability, well, there is USB overdrive for anything that isn't doable from an out of the box situation...
Moscool: comment was more about Apple's stance. Ctrl-Click is not that easy with a laptop on your knees...
ALT-Tab switching and click to desktop
SB: Although it's actually Command-Tab, it's there and has been there for quite some time. Almost as long as the multi-button functionality.
Moscool: Well I never...
Legible font sizes in all your mail
SB: I've never had font size problems with my mail on a Mac. On a PC however, it's been a pretty painful experience. (Unless of course I read this wrong and you HATE legible fonts?)
Moscool: This is one where I am sometimes wondering if I am going mad or not. Totally drives me nuts and doesn't seem to bother anyone else! Basically with Word as your Outlook editor you get perfect WYSIWYG in e-mail from PC to PC. Most of the mail I get in Mac Mail is either 'normal' or in a ridiculously small font. The only way to print those e-mails legibly is to resise the mail window (from Apple KB !!!). Definitely not WYSIWYG
Besides, font smoothing gives me a headache (really).[...]
Fast MS office
SB: Office seems to load faster on my 4 year old G4 than it does on some of the higher end (1GHz +) PC systems I've used. In truth, I think it IS faster (and better) on the Mac.
Moscool: OK for loading, but calculating and saving are definitely slower. Also the default font size bears no relationship to reality (both comparable Windows font or printed paper). Which bit of WYSIWYG don't I understand?
Cheap peripherals
SB: Again, like games, this is another tricky one. If a peripheral works on a PC, it's quite possible to make it work on a Mac (often it's just a matter of drivers). Cost of said items is irrelevant if the only difference is the software used to run them.
Also, you get what you pay for. "Cheap" doesn't necessarily have to mean "crap", but quality vs price often is a factor. Some lower-quality peripherals are often not available for Mac because they are junk not worth buying.
For example, a printer from HP, regardless of platform, will cost the same if it works on a Mac or a PC.
Moscool: Nope. Recent example of a 'cheap' HP colour laser printer costing *twice* as much on a Mac platform as on a PC platform. What happens is that the PC world is used to heavy discounting and distributors will be much keener than their Mac counterparts. I always shop around PC outlets for Mac peripherals and I always get better value for money.
[...]
Choice of business software
SB: Well, the Mac may not have the same bredth of selection in some areas, but without specific examples, this becomes as vague as games. Sure, not every piece of software that exists for PC also exists for Mac. But there are also applications only made for Mac that can fill these gaps..
Moscool: The business market has all but given up on the Mac platform (which is not surprising with a 3-5% market share). Although I switched my business to Mac, I am paying everyday for it with no bridge to my accounting software, no Mac version of Act!, no professional services practice management software, etc.
Messenger and netmeeting
SB: Since all the different chat-programs have mac equivalents (and we also have iChat AV, which allows both Audio and Video chats) this isn't really much of an issue.
Moscool: this reminds me when my cousin bought one of the first fax machines twenty years ago - He had to send faxes to himself for a long time...
What is the point of having the coolest messenger software if no-one else can use it? Besides iChat AV ain't cheap, so it's going to slow progress further to convince all your mates to buy a Mac and an iSight. Maybe it would have been a better idea to make the thing X-platform compatible with one side getting the quality and the other using the USB/cheap cams but getting the urge to upgrade... [...]
My conclusion: Macs are cool and that's why I am prepared to pay more to use them. But let's not pretend that everything is perfect - there are quite a few things that PC platforms do faster & cheaper, albeit not as elegantly.
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I'm with Kaycee, I don't miss anything from my days as a PeeCee owner.
Of course that was back when they only had a one-button mouse.
Several months ago our office went PeeCees -- new Dells and XP for the OS. I can't say that there's anything here that I would want on my Mac at home.
Though I must admit I have a two-button mouse at home.
Of course that was back when they only had a one-button mouse.
Several months ago our office went PeeCees -- new Dells and XP for the OS. I can't say that there's anything here that I would want on my Mac at home.
Though I must admit I have a two-button mouse at home.
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I use several platforms, not just the Mac. In fact, I recently bought three machines and all three were PC's (home brew AMD XP2400+ for games, really cheap ($300) 2.2GHz P4 Dell for the wife to read email etc... and a PIII-450 Thinkpad for the family room).
If Apple would come out with a cheap (< $1000) Power Mac, at least one of these would machines would have been a Mac.
I've got dozens of machines, most of which are Macs, but the thing I'd like to see the most if a reasonably priced Apple platform that doesn't have a built in monitor...
If Apple would come out with a cheap (< $1000) Power Mac, at least one of these would machines would have been a Mac.
I've got dozens of machines, most of which are Macs, but the thing I'd like to see the most if a reasonably priced Apple platform that doesn't have a built in monitor...
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So there you have it:
- fast games
- two button mouse
- cheap peripherals
I guess that this points to the availability of very cheap PCs that can be almost 'single use': i.e. play games and browse the web abd that hang in the family room next to the defunct Atari or Sega console...
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- fast games
- two button mouse
- cheap peripherals
I guess that this points to the availability of very cheap PCs that can be almost 'single use': i.e. play games and browse the web abd that hang in the family room next to the defunct Atari or Sega console...
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1,579 Posts
I can think of one other thing - bundle MS Office cheaply. There's no way it should cost what it does considering it has no Access or Visio. Even when it was 'cheaper with a new Mac' it wasn't all that cheap compared to DELL which always bundled it for less than $200 CDN with a home computer. Sorry, AppleWorks is at most the equivalent of MS Works. OpenOffice is still not ready for prime time - I prefer TextEdit over OpenOffice.
[ November 25, 2003, 11:00 AM: Message edited by: elmer ]
[ November 25, 2003, 11:00 AM: Message edited by: elmer ]
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well I definetly dont miss DOS, or Win 3.1, 95. I really do enjoy the built in Solitare and now the built in Online Backgammon. But hey they both can be found for free to download for mac. So I guess nothing. I guess I just feel left out when all my PC friends are talking about there big problems and all I can say is well mine is still working fine.
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double post please delete
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