Linux or Mac....... hmmm ?

I've been kinda,sorta, maybe thinking of getting a new computer. I've been looking into getting a Linux based system from Dell, but the thought of learning to use Linux seems quite daunting, to be honest, as I am not very technically inclined when it comes to computers in general.(more of a point and click kind of person)I'm also considering a Mac. I'm officially fed up with buggy Windows based systems. I know this is a Linux forum, but would anyone care to give some unbiased opinions as to which one I should get, Linux or Mac, the pros and cons of each, etc. Thanks in advance.

 

Sure.



Mac OS X:

Pros:

Crazy easy to use. Intuitive is the name of the game for Apple
Beautiful interface (gui)
Built upon Unix
Can be extremely powerful if one wishes to delve into its Unix roots.
Point releases( service packs) are plentiful and free.
Apple has the open source community backing many parts of the OS so that security flaws are discovered quickly and patched just as fast.

Cons:

Cost of the hardware, which is extremely overpriced, unless you use all the features it has (firewire, etc).
Limited software support
Limited game support( again software)
Limited third party hardware support. Not all manufacturers have OS X drivers.
The time (albeit short) to learn a new interface.
Support is limited; expect to be calling Apple if you need help.

Linux

Pros:

Free, Free, Free!
Very customizable, and powerful OS.
Free, Free, Free!
Very customizable, and powerful OS.
Can have the most awesome GUI you have ever seen. The sky is the limit.

Cons:
Learning curve
Requires a strong, working knowledge of PCs.
Even more limited software support
No standardization for the most part (each distro has its own way of doing things and support, unless its an offshoot of another distro)
Good luck getting help when it breaks
Tough to fix
Buggy--Few distros have all their applications working on initial install. Thats the stuff that it comes with!

Both OSes have their bugs. Both are limited on software support. Lets face it, you won't be shooting the sh*t with your neighbors on how to fix your OS issues; they won't know. Internet support via forums will be limited too.

I use both regularly. OS X will give you less headaches. Linux is for the power user. If something breaks, unless you are computer savvy, you won't be fixing it.

Linux is a toy, a hobby.

My recommendation to you is to steer clear from it.

 

Thanks Adrynalyne for the speedy reply. That clarifies alot for me. I think I'll go with a Mac.

 

Very true and to the point Ady. Well said.

 

All I would add to Adry's post is this...
Support is pretty good on IRC. I've been using channel #suse (for SUSE Linux) on irc.freenode.net - there are some useful forums dedicated to the major distros too.

Personally I'd go for either... I'm no power user under any system so not coming from a position of vast PC knowledge - but I'm managing.

I think the decision could well come down to 2 issues...

1> Do you want to learn a fair about computers and be able to customise your operating system (Linux) and interface to perfection; or use an already very good (though not to my personal tastes) system (OSX) that will require far less tweaking and "making it work" from you?

2> What are you using it for?
Some things (like video editing) have quite a long way to go before they can match the capabilities of the packages available on MAC and Windows baced PCs.

There is one final point that almost sold Mac to me recently despite not being mega keen on the GUI of OSX... They are INCREDIBLY good looking machines.


Adry - great post. I'll probably be pointing people to it if I ever get asked that question.

 

Adrynalyne is right. Both OS's have there Pros and Cons. I would use google to see which OS is right for you. If you want I think you can use Boot camp on Mac and use both Mac and Linux.