Moving from Windows to MAC OSX

By alphaprior on April 5, 2015 9:49:40 AM from

alphaprior

Join Date 02/2006

Being dissapointed from Windows 8 and upcoming 10 (9 actually) their new ways and interface I decided to abandon Windows after 19years and go to much better but also very expensive iMac with OSX.

I do have some questions though for users who have Macs and they can englighten me before I buy an iMac.

Windows is the most widely used OS hence almost everything out there is designed and made for them. I know I can install windows in my iMac but want to know if there are enough apps and games that are native to OSX. Surely Photoshop is, What about games like GC3 and other strategy games I play like Civilization etc. most on Steam.

So:

1. Compatibility: Apps for daily use like uTorrent, Games, Steam, Google Earth. GC3 of course..

2. Cost of use. How much it costs to have a mac after you buy it? In Windows I spent almost nothing except power and buying some games and Kaspersky Internet Security.

3. Security. Using a mac means I don't have to worry about security am I covered or I still need some extra security software?

4. Customization. I don't like white and bright interfaces and dislike white in general from phones to cars. Is there customization for OSX? Do I have the same freedom as I do in windows changing icons, colours etc?

5. CPU and RAM and OSX. Having an almost 3yr old computer with an Intel 2600k and 16GB RAM I'm very satisfied only playing GC3 with Insane sized map it becomes slow sometimes so much I have to reboot. OSX is lighter compared to windows? 3.5Ghz CPU / 16GB RAM would be enough to run a heavy app or game smoothly?

6. Storage: I will choose a flash drive 256GB as option and buy an external drive for my files around 4GB or bigger. What's the fastest interface and best option for external drive?

You are welcome to give me any tips I haven't think about. Not interested for hackintosh..

In a perfect world the perfect computer would be one with quality as Apple's, OS interface made by Skins Factory, system perhaps based to UNIX/Linux and company Stardock.

Most hated company EA.. then Apple only its love and hate.. for their cool nice but overpriced products.

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Quoting alphaprior,

reply 51

Most hated company EA.. then Apple only its love and hate.. for their cool nice but overpriced products.

For me, Apple AND Google share top spot on the corporate hate list... then it's take my pick as to which company next pisses me off most. Lately it has been Woolworths and Coles, Australia's supermarket duopoly, which has branched out into everything but brain surgery and politics... but give them time....

As for Apple, well they invented everything but brain surgery and politics.... but give them time.

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As for the title of the OP.

I moved to Mac, and straight back to Windows....

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Well after lurking for 3 pages I figure I'll pass along my experience.

I have extensively used both MS and Apple products for many years now (own and use both daily). I can say the following with regard to the HOME USER computing experience with both/either.

Up until about a year or so ago I always (for home consumer use only) recommended Mac OS due to it just doing (out of the box) most if not everything the average joe user wanted/needed from a computer system and not inundating the user with needlessly complex system configuration and operational structure. Obviously businesses are a completely different story.

Then the Apple visionary died.

For me at that point a lot of what I had loved about apple died as well. 3 new iterations of the venerable iPhone and still it has nothing on my 2+ year old Windows Phone 8. Apple TV (a fantastic product some time ago) which tied in so nicely with Elgato's EyeTV software DVR system(s) running on Mac's as well as other media shares suddenly has issues because Apple decided to change their file-sharing protocol/stack (yes there are 'work-arounds'.........but what? is this windows or Mac OS?) With windows one expects a certain amount of 'work-around'.........with MAC that was/is never supposed to happen.

More and more I'm finding things that just 'used to work' (because it was Mac/Apple) don't anymore, or worse yet.........sometimes do........sometimes don't with absolutely no fucking clue as to why. This is ironically where Windows shines. Its flexibility, mod-friendly nature (while making some things more difficult) always feel like 'home' when the shit that used-to, is supposed-to, just-doesn't-anymore work in the Mac world can be MADE to work with Windows.

In a nutshell, MacOS is that hottie you like to take for spin now and then, but Windows..........ahh windows.........she's that loving, caring and oh so understanding wife you will just love....forever!

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Quoting the_Monk,

reply 54

Having never used a Mac before I am not familiar with your observations of what's missing, plain don't work anymore; therefore, I am enjoying the Mac experience while maintaining a Windows environment on my desktop... the two co-exist and I can use either or. However, I tend to lean towards Windows more often because I'm so familiar after years of use, but each day I am using the Mac that bit more and I'm becoming more proficient as I familiarise myself with it more.

As for the iPhone, not on my watch, and certainly not while my Lumia 820 is still going strong, which it is. Even then, I most likely will replace it with another Lumia with Win 10 on it because I like the Windows phone better anyhow.

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Again.........all I can say is if you like your 'apple-experience' now......image what it might have been before 'Mr. Apple' died.

As stated I've been using both (I have a home with various servers, workstations and mobile devices of which at any time at least 40% are/have been non-Windows in nature) for many years now and as far as I'm concerned once the visionary at Apple died, so did any real innovation (in comparison to other markets anyway) and my level of frustration (which used to be lowered by using Mac's because they 'just worked') has steadily increased thanks to the post-death Apple company making changes to their OS and hardware devices etc. which (in my opinion anyway) go in a backwards direction and can quite easily remind someone of the strange decision-making usually attributed to say Microsoft.

That's all. Glad you're enjoying your sojourn into Mac-land. Let me know when the novelty wears off! hehe

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Quoting the_Monk,

reply 56

Again.........all I can say is if you like your 'apple-experience' now......image what it might have been before 'Mr. Apple' died.

As stated I've been using both (I have a home with various servers, workstations and mobile devices of which at any time at least 40% are/have been non-Windows in nature) for many years now and as far as I'm concerned once the visionary at Apple died, so did any real innovation (in comparison to other markets anyway) and my level of frustration (which used to be lowered by using Mac's because they 'just worked') has steadily increased thanks to the post-death Apple company making changes to their OS and hardware devices etc. which (in my opinion anyway) go in a backwards direction and can quite easily remind someone of the strange decision-making usually attributed to say Microsoft.

That's all. Glad you're enjoying your sojourn into Mac-land. Let me know when the novelty wears off! hehe

Perhaps I am fortunate not to have known Apple/Mac products prior to the demise of Steve Jobs, in that I'm not missing anything that may have been there before. Having said that, however, I hate it when companies like Apple and MS remove useful features to 'so-say' make the OS/program more lightweight... then go add useless bloat nobody needs.

As for Apple products going backwards, at this point I have no comparison with which to gauge, though now I've entered the Mac world and intend to hang around a while, I shall be witness to it should the trend continue. For now, though, I'm happy enough and have enjoyed the experience thus far.

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just to drop in, bought iMac for extra tax reduction, and it has really been a better working experience, and now with steam getting more and more Mac games, even great experience. Hell, beyond Earth in local family LAN MP plays far better on mac then on my great PC.

Work, however, has been absolutely outstanding. From ordinary typing to gfx editing, everything is subjected to user experience and easyness of using the machine. There are some perks, some quirks you get used to, but UI and speed of it is awsome.

Havent had any problems with any virus or something like that, but I do my ordinary Watch Outs, not opening stuff I dont need to etc.

Anyway, extremely happy.

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Quoting athelasloraiel,

reply 58

but UI and speed of it is awsome.

Yeah, UI looking like white paper is your only choice...."Awesome", notsomuch.

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Quoting athelasloraiel,

reply 58

with steam getting more and more Mac games

yeah just not as much...

Some products look good- I can agree with that, but that does not justifies the price of used hardware as i mentioned multiple times before.
You can’t compare a mac against a modern windows pc anymore- the performance is far behind in any mac and mostly the software isn’t as good supported these days as on windows. Those times are over and is not an argument anymore that you could bring up to defend the price.
Same as the old clash of Nvidia vs AMD. Which is also over, it simply is.
AMD users always said oh its cheaper and brings the same performance to the table.
The only issue is that one is and was always a mutimedia card and never had been anything else, while the other was all of that + Gaming and pushing technology.
Meanwhile getting an AMD card can truly backfire even outside the gaming environment where people praised it so highly.
Good example paletteCAD - AutoCAD no support to barely any driver support which renders the one CARD useless.
'Same thing goes for mac, it’s not faster, it has no better support. ( ANYMORE )
And it is behind when it comes to Software also these days. So where is the benefit?

I laughed my ass off when I saw this:
http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/mac/10-reasons-why-macs-are-better-pcs-3471928/

All I can say is if you are happy using it that is all that counts, I just commented since you said a game would play better on mac.

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Moving from Windows to MAC OSX

alphaprior