Should I get a MacBook Pro? Forum

[ResolutePear]

It going to affect it a lot when people start making viruses for Macs.

I've been hearing that this is going to happen "any day now" literally for years.

Also, who worries day-to-day about viruses? That's asinine. Run a virus scanner on a regular basis, and don't click pop-up links or open strange emails. That eliminates 99% of the viruses right there. I've been a Windows user all my life, I've had maybe 2 viruses. This isn't something to worry about. If you have to worry about it, you're doing something wrong.

I totally agree with you here. It really isn't a big selling point to me for the mac, or something I consider a serious problem for PCs. In the end my main attraction to the mac is that I've been an Apple user all my life, since before there were macs (yeah, I'm showing my age here). It is a question of familiarity more than anything. I don't know my way around windows nearly as well as I know my way around the Mac OS, and for a long time learning windows was far less intuitive than learning to use a mac, so I just didn't really make the effort. I'll freely admit though that part of my attraction to the mac is that I like Pretty Things, and I'm willing to pay that premium.

What I don't understand is the basis of your vehemence against the mac. Sure the hardware is often identical to what is found in PCs, and sure macs are expensive to the point of being overpriced, but do you rail against every overpriced product? In your mind is it a terrible mistake to ever pay a premium for a certain brand? Do you buy all your clothes at Walmart?

I don't think it's so much the fact that they are overpriced as the fact that so many people seem to think they are perfect and inherently better than PC's. Like that idiotic statement about how Macs are virus-proof.

Again, I agree that it is ridiculous to think macs are perfect, but equally ridiculous to pour hate onto them.

I'm just stating fact to clarify myths; I hardly consider that 'pouring hate'.

If I really wanted to pour hate - I would say this:

I heard there is a virus in development to target the EFI(bootloader) of macs and by extension to exploit a bug on the motherboards found in all new MacBook, MBP, and Mac Pros from 2006-current. Once infected, your motherboard will blow up and Apple said your warranty will be void because only software pirates get it.. so they say.


Of course, although it's always possible and has happened in the past - this is not the case.

[Emma.]

And... the only thing I've ever bought from Walmart are Dickies. My wardrobe currently consists of shirt.woot.com shirts and Levi jeans.

Lulz. The Walmart thing wasn't intended to be a serious personal attack. I mean, surely you can buy jeans that are of equal quality to Levis for less money. You are paying a premium for the design and the Levi's brand name. If mac users decide they want to do the same, where's the problem?

[ResolutePear]

In the end my main attraction to the mac is that I've been an Apple user all my life, since before there were macs (yeah, I'm showing my age here). It is a question of familiarity more than anything. I don't know my way around windows nearly as well as I know my way around the Mac OS, and for a long time learning windows was far less intuitive than learning to use a mac, so I just didn't really make the effort. I'll freely admit though that part of my attraction to the mac is that I like Pretty Things, and I'm willing to pay that premium.

And that's a perfectly valid reason. I like Windows for the same reason.

It used to be true that Macs (I remember working on an Apple II. Damn, I'm old.) were much better than PC's.

Now, it's just personal preference. Neither one is better than the other.

I think it's also about what industry you're in. If you have a video editing studio - you can get away with Final Cut Pro on macs and save shit tons of money. If you want to develop apps for the iPhone, you have to not surprisingly enough own a mac

[kalvano]

And... the only thing I've ever bought from Walmart are Dickies. My wardrobe currently consists of shirt.woot.com shirts and Levi jeans.

Lulz. The Walmart thing wasn't intended to be a serious personal attack. I mean, surely you can buy jeans that are of equal quality to Levis for less money. You are paying a premium for the design and the Levi's brand name. If mac users decide they want to do the same, where's the problem?

No. Designer jeans are usually far, far better than Levi's or crap like that.

Unlike Macs, which are just the same with a different label.

[Emma.]

And... the only thing I've ever bought from Walmart are Dickies. My wardrobe currently consists of shirt.woot.com shirts and Levi jeans.

Lulz. The Walmart thing wasn't intended to be a serious personal attack. I mean, surely you can buy jeans that are of equal quality to Levis for less money. You are paying a premium for the design and the Levi's brand name. If mac users decide they want to do the same, where's the problem?

No. Designer jeans are usually far, far better than Levi's or crap like that.

Unlike Macs, which are just the same with a different label.

Better how? In the quality of the denim? Or just the design/cut/ability to attract members of the opposite sex?

[09042014]

And... the only thing I've ever bought from Walmart are Dickies. My wardrobe currently consists of shirt.woot.com shirts and Levi jeans.

Lulz. The Walmart thing wasn't intended to be a serious personal attack. I mean, surely you can buy jeans that are of equal quality to Levis for less money. You are paying a premium for the design and the Levi's brand name. If mac users decide they want to do the same, where's the problem?

First of all, non brand name clothing can be very poorly made. They have absolutely no brand name to maintain. When I was super poor and needed shirts for work, I bought them at walmart and they were total shit.

But back to your real point about paying for design and brand. That's not bad if that's how you want to use your money, but many Mac fans argue that Macs are better computers. They aren't.

[kalvano]

Better how? In the quality of the denim? Or just the design/cut/ability to attract members of the opposite sex?

Quality of denim, design, cut, fit, everything.

[Emma.]

Better how? In the quality of the denim? Or just the design/cut/ability to attract members of the opposite sex?

Quality of denim, design, cut, fit, everything.

I'd say this point is often questionable, especially when a lot of designer jeans are subjected to all these crazy washes that in the end make the fabric pretty flimsy. As for the design, if you are willing to pay extra for more pretty jeans, why not for a more pretty computer?

[kalvano]

Better how? In the quality of the denim? Or just the design/cut/ability to attract members of the opposite sex?

Quality of denim, design, cut, fit, everything.

I'd say this point is often questionable, especially when a lot of designer jeans are subjected to all these crazy washes that in the end make the fabric pretty flimsy. As for the design, if you are willing to pay extra for more pretty jeans, why not for a more pretty computer?

It's not questionable. I don't get the stupid washes or anything like that. My cheap jeans last about a year. I have some expensive jeans that are 5 and 6 years old and still look fine.

I'm not paying more for jeans simply because they look prettier, I'm paying more because they function better (more comfortable to wear). They are better at what they do than their competitors. Unlike a Mac.

[ResolutePear]

And... the only thing I've ever bought from Walmart are Dickies. My wardrobe currently consists of shirt.woot.com shirts and Levi jeans.

Lulz. The Walmart thing wasn't intended to be a serious personal attack. I mean, surely you can buy jeans that are of equal quality to Levis for less money. You are paying a premium for the design and the Levi's brand name. If mac users decide they want to do the same, where's the problem?

I see where you're going here and I agree - I always spend a premium where I want to and I expect no less of others to do the same... but if that pair of levis were to increase my chances of getting run over by a truck or getting mugged, chances are I wouldn't buy them

And to be honest - nope.. these Levis cost me $20/each and I havn't found anything better for less :/

And thanks for calling the basis of my (student) wardrobe crap Kal. -_-

[09042014]

Better how? In the quality of the denim? Or just the design/cut/ability to attract members of the opposite sex?

Quality of denim, design, cut, fit, everything.

I'd say this point is often questionable, especially when a lot of designer jeans are subjected to all these crazy washes that in the end make the fabric pretty flimsy. As for the design, if you are willing to pay extra for more pretty jeans, why not for a more pretty computer?

If you wanna pay more for a pretty computer fine, but Mac's aren't even that pretty.

[kalvano]

And thanks for calling the basis of my (student) wardrobe crap Kal. -_-

Happy to help.

[ResolutePear]

Better how? In the quality of the denim? Or just the design/cut/ability to attract members of the opposite sex?

Quality of denim, design, cut, fit, everything.

I'd say this point is often questionable, especially when a lot of designer jeans are subjected to all these crazy washes that in the end make the fabric pretty flimsy. As for the design, if you are willing to pay extra for more pretty jeans, why not for a more pretty computer?

It's not questionable. I don't get the stupid washes or anything like that. My cheap jeans last about a year. I have some expensive jeans that are 5 and 6 years old and still look fine.

I'm not paying more for jeans simply because they look prettier, I'm paying more because they function better (more comfortable to wear). They are better at what they do than their competitors. Unlike a Mac.

Although I'm not in the habit of buying designer clothes for school - I have done so for the workplace.. and I'll say that there is a large difference between the non-brand suits and designer suits.. aside from fit as well because you're expected to tailor all your suits anyways.

[ResolutePear]

Better how? In the quality of the denim? Or just the design/cut/ability to attract members of the opposite sex?

Quality of denim, design, cut, fit, everything.

I'd say this point is often questionable, especially when a lot of designer jeans are subjected to all these crazy washes that in the end make the fabric pretty flimsy. As for the design, if you are willing to pay extra for more pretty jeans, why not for a more pretty computer?

If you wanna pay more for a pretty computer fine, but Mac's aren't even that pretty.

Sometimes I would sit at a genius bar and hear conversations people have with the mac geniuses.. it made me wonder if the only reason they got a mac was to have a genius to talk to all day long.

[Emma.]

Better how? In the quality of the denim? Or just the design/cut/ability to attract members of the opposite sex?

Quality of denim, design, cut, fit, everything.

I'd say this point is often questionable, especially when a lot of designer jeans are subjected to all these crazy washes that in the end make the fabric pretty flimsy. As for the design, if you are willing to pay extra for more pretty jeans, why not for a more pretty computer?

It's not questionable. I don't get the stupid washes or anything like that. My cheap jeans last about a year. I have some expensive jeans that are 5 and 6 years old and still look fine.

I'm not paying more for jeans simply because they look prettier, I'm paying more because they function better (more comfortable to wear). They are better at what they do than their competitors. Unlike a Mac.

Eh. For my purposes a Mac is better at what it does than its competitors. I know I "could" install Mac OS on a PC (security concerns aside I do think that Mac OS is a better OS, at least for my purposes. I haven't checked out Windows 7 though) but I like the design of the hardware. Macs may not be inherently superior in any way, but in my experience the hardware is solid and trouble-free. I can get great service by walking into a physical Apple store if I need to, and in the end the whole package just works better for me than any PC I could buy (yes, that includes fulfilling my desire for something aesthetically pleasing).

[ResolutePear]

Quality of denim, design, cut, fit, everything.

I'd say this point is often questionable, especially when a lot of designer jeans are subjected to all these crazy washes that in the end make the fabric pretty flimsy. As for the design, if you are willing to pay extra for more pretty jeans, why not for a more pretty computer?

It's not questionable. I don't get the stupid washes or anything like that. My cheap jeans last about a year. I have some expensive jeans that are 5 and 6 years old and still look fine.

I'm not paying more for jeans simply because they look prettier, I'm paying more because they function better (more comfortable to wear). They are better at what they do than their competitors. Unlike a Mac.

Eh. For my purposes a Mac is better at what it does than its competitors. I know I "could" install Mac OS on a PC (security concerns aside I do think that Mac OS is a better OS, at least for my purposes. I haven't checked out Windows 7 though) but I like the design of the hardware. Macs may not be inherently superior in any way, but in my experience the hardware is solid and trouble-free. I can get great service by walking into a physical Apple store if I need to, and in the end the whole package just works better for me than any PC I could buy (yes, that includes fulfilling my desire for something aesthetically pleasing).

Having used both, I find Win7 to be a better fit for me. I think it's less "smooth" and more to the point.. and the taskbar is just awesome.

[Emma.]

Having used both, I find Win7 to be a better fit for me. I think it's less "smooth" and more to the point.. and the taskbar is just awesome.

This is really what it comes down to, with jeans, computers, whatever, IMO.

I'm sure some of the Mac koolaid drinking must be annoying to non-mac users, but I also think it is ridiculous to suggest that macs are never going to be the best machine for some people.

[California Babe]

Sometimes I would sit at a genius bar and hear conversations people have with the mac geniuses.. it made me wonder if the only reason they got a mac was to have a genius to talk to all day long.

Could be true.

Eh. For my purposes a Mac is better at what it does than its competitors. I know I "could" install Mac OS on a PC (security concerns aside I do think that Mac OS is a better OS, at least for my purposes. I haven't checked out Windows 7 though) but I like the design of the hardware. Macs may not be inherently superior in any way, but in my experience the hardware is solid and trouble-free. I can get great service by walking into a physical Apple store if I need to, and in the end the whole package just works better for me than any PC I could buy (yes, that includes fulfilling my desire for something aesthetically pleasing).

This whole thread is silly because this point is overlooked. No one can deny that for many people, Macs are much more headache-free than PCs. Period. It's not the case for everyone, but there are a lot of Mac users (and recently switched to Mac users) that will tell you that using their Mac is just so much simpler, and so much less of a headache than using their PC. Everything feels more seamless, snappy, user-friendly - whatever the reason, there are a lot of people who will tell you this (including myself).

When you try and compare specs and specific hardware components in Macs to PCs and then come to the conclusion that a Mac isn't "better" than a PC (and therefore "better" can't be used to justify cost) you are completely removing the fact that for so many people the user experience of using a Mac is what makes it better. Who cares why that experience is the way it is? If using a Mac gives you less headaches than using a PC, then the Mac for you is better and worth the cost. It's not necessarily a one-size fits all glove, but by comparing components and specs in an attempt to decide which computer is better you are giving an objetive definition of "better" where none exists. And both PC and Mac users both try to do this to justify the decision.

It's a completely silly debate. I hate having to work on Windows. It's a terrible OS in my opinion, and would much rather using OS X, and to me, that makes Macs much better computers than PCs. Which means I'm willing to pay more for them. It's really that simple.

Having used both, I find Win7 to be a better fit for me. I think it's less "smooth" and more to the point.. and the taskbar is just awesome.

I will give you this: The Win7 taskbar is awesome.

Yes, I realize I just randomly jumped into your all's discussion. Hope you don't mind.

[Emma.]

Yes, I realize I just randomly jumped into your all's discussion. Hope you don't mind.

You're fine. Welcome to TLS.

[ResolutePear]

Having used both, I find Win7 to be a better fit for me. I think it's less "smooth" and more to the point.. and the taskbar is just awesome.

This is really what it comes down to, with jeans, computers, whatever, IMO.

I'm sure some of the Mac koolaid drinking must be annoying to non-mac users, but I also think it is ridiculous to suggest that macs are never going to be the best machine for some people.

Where business is concerned - it's not a better match. I think this was the basis of my anti-mac argument in another topic.

And ultimately, lawyers are entrepreneurs... so security is a big thing especially when carrying client info.

[ResolutePear]

Sometimes I would sit at a genius bar and hear conversations people have with the mac geniuses.. it made me wonder if the only reason they got a mac was to have a genius to talk to all day long.

Could be true.

Eh. For my purposes a Mac is better at what it does than its competitors. I know I "could" install Mac OS on a PC (security concerns aside I do think that Mac OS is a better OS, at least for my purposes. I haven't checked out Windows 7 though) but I like the design of the hardware. Macs may not be inherently superior in any way, but in my experience the hardware is solid and trouble-free. I can get great service by walking into a physical Apple store if I need to, and in the end the whole package just works better for me than any PC I could buy (yes, that includes fulfilling my desire for something aesthetically pleasing).

This whole thread is silly because this point is overlooked. No one can deny that for many people, Macs are much more headache-free than PCs. Period. It's not the case for everyone, but there are a lot of Mac users (and recently switched to Mac users) that will tell you that using their Mac is just so much simpler, and so much less of a headache than using their PC. Everything feels more seamless, snappy, user-friendly - whatever the reason, there are a lot of people who will tell you this (including myself).

When you try and compare specs and specific hardware components in Macs to PCs and then come to the conclusion that a Mac isn't "better" than a PC (and therefore "better" can't be used to justify cost) you are completely removing the fact that for so many people the user experience of using a Mac is what makes it better. Who cares why that experience is the way it is? If using a Mac gives you less headaches than using a PC, then the Mac for you is better and worth the cost. It's not necessarily a one-size fits all glove, but by comparing components and specs in an attempt to decide which computer is better you are giving an objetive definition of "better" where none exists. And both PC and Mac users both try to do this to justify the decision.

It's a completely silly debate. I hate having to work on Windows. It's a terrible OS in my opinion, and would much rather using OS X, and to me, that makes Macs much better computers than PCs. Which means I'm willing to pay more for them. It's really that simple.

Having used both, I find Win7 to be a better fit for me. I think it's less "smooth" and more to the point.. and the taskbar is just awesome.

I will give you this: The Win7 taskbar is awesome.

Yes, I realize I just randomly jumped into your all's discussion. Hope you don't mind.

Welcome to TLS. Anybody who gets a hardon over technology is a friend of mine

If you'd rather use Windows or OSX is fine. At the end of the day though - UNIX(or a flavor thereof) is industry standard.

[Emma.]

Having used both, I find Win7 to be a better fit for me. I think it's less "smooth" and more to the point.. and the taskbar is just awesome.

This is really what it comes down to, with jeans, computers, whatever, IMO.

I'm sure some of the Mac koolaid drinking must be annoying to non-mac users, but I also think it is ridiculous to suggest that macs are never going to be the best machine for some people.

Where business is concerned - it's not a better match. I think this was the basis of my anti-mac argument in another topic.

And ultimately, lawyers are entrepreneurs... so security is a big thing especially when carrying client info.

Whether or not this is true, law students ≠ lawyers.

[myq]

Sometimes I would sit at a genius bar and hear conversations people have with the mac geniuses.. it made me wonder if the only reason they got a mac was to have a genius to talk to all day long.

http://www.theonion.com/video/new-apple-friend-bar-gives-customers-someone-to-ta,17693/

[bk1]

OSX is more idiot-proof than Windows 7. Choose accordingly.

/thread

[bk1]

Better how? In the quality of the denim? Or just the design/cut/ability to attract members of the opposite sex?

Quality of denim, design, cut, fit, everything.

+1. For me it is more that most "average" jeans (i.e. Levi's) are always very stiff and thick. I prefer thinner (because it doesn't make my legs as hot) and more flexible (because it is more comfortable).