Why I can't stand many Mac users . . .

[milhaus]

Well, many of you will know me as a huge Mac fan, and some might even say fanboy, and I do have to preface this post with the fact that I believe OS X to be a far superior operating system, that Macs are actually competitive in cost with PCs, and generally a much better experience.

However, I can't stand the naivete of a majority of Mac users, who are doing several things that annoy me right now, esp. with the release of Boot Camp. Frequenting a bunch of Mac forums, I run into this all the time:

1) Clinging to the so called superiority of Power PC systems, and bemoaning the switch to Intel as if we just turned to the dark side, like the processor had anything to do with what made a Mac experience

2) Questioning why anybody would want to run Windows XP on a Mac, and saying things like, "I wouldn't let that dirty OS touch my beautiful machine," as if they'd never heard of gaming or specific software made for PCs

3) Seeing using an Intel processor and allowing Windows installs as somehow compromising the security of a Mac; of course, when this move by Apple increases market share and actually results in virus designers atually designing a virus for Macs, they'll blame Intel and Windows

4) Fundamentally not understanding Windows XP, and the minimal intrusiveness of security issues

I love the fact that Windows XP boots and runs beautifully on my Mac; I will probably not use it very often, but regardless, I know I have the option.

That said, I could say the same of PC fanboys, but that's another discussion altogether.

[Paolo]

ahh well, atleast mac and pcs can getalong now. thats wasnt possible before.

[Chrispy]

Well said...

However, when you've been stuck in your ways with no other option out for how many years, can we really expect much more from these folk?

I'm only recently into the Mac side of things for around 3 years now, and I love it, but i'll never completely move away from Windows and the PC.

[deep]

I'm comfortable with my inner Mac fanboy. It's my C64 fanboy that keeps getting me in trouble.

[CoinSaver]

I'm comfortable with my inner Mac fanboy. It's my C64 fanboy that keeps getting me in trouble.

LOL

Milhaus: I am glad to see your preference for the Mac isn't blinding you like those people you've mentioned. I've recently got back into the Mac, but would really appriciate being able to run a couple of programs that aren't on the Mac. Custom VB kinda things.

On a side note, a company called parallels just announced that they are shipping virtualization for the Intel Macs. Basically Virtual PC. check out: http://www.parallels.com/en/products/workstation/mac/

Apple is said to include this in the next version of their OS.

[sleepyguy]

honestly being a fanboy on either side is pretty pathetic... pc/mac is a tool that gets the job done. end of story.

[HowEver]

Given how much time is spent with security issues on the Windows side, I'm wondering if you could expand on "minimal security issues"?

I'd love to have the time back I've spent cleaning viruses and spyware off my relatives' and friends' XP computers.

The only comparable thing I've had to do on a Mac was figure out how to get Norton off of it when I upgraded to OSX 10.4, since it was incompatible and hasn't been fixed since (Norton was a free install where I study). And it never, ever found anything *except* when I saved an attachment from an email from a Windows user--which wouldn't have infected the Mac anyways.

[roastpuff]

Given how much time is spent with security issues on the Windows side, I'm wondering if you could expand on "minimal security issues"?

I'd love to have the time back I've spent cleaning viruses and spyware off my relatives' and friends' XP computers.

The only comparable thing I've had to do on a Mac was figure out how to get Norton off of it when I upgraded to OSX 10.4, since it was incompatible and hasn't been fixed since (Norton was a free install where I study). And it never, ever found anything *except* when I saved an attachment from an email from a Windows user--which wouldn't have infected the Mac anyways.

Same experience I had. I got a Mac so that I wouldn't need to fix my own computer, so then I could enjoy hassle-free computing. The IT calls are getting annoying after 5 years or so. I don't whine about the switch, or cling to the "superiority" of PPC systems. In fact, I have one of the first Intel Core Duo's in Vancouver, since I ordered the day it came out.

And XP doesn't have "minimal" security issues. It has plenty.

[milhaus]

Here we go again . . . Install all updates (there's security updates for Mac OS X as well). Install an anti-virus and its auto updates (not necessary on macs). Use Microsoft's anti spyware (also not necessary on macs). Finally, don't be an idiot (well, you can be an idiot on a mac, and still not get spyware or adware - I guess that's an advantage, but I'd rather just not be stupid).

There you go; all virus and security issues for Windows XP are now "minimal." Those steps seem to me to also be "minimal," but perhaps the "don't be an idiot" part is difficult for some.

And I've never said that Windows security is better than on a Mac, only that dealing with security issues is pretty simple and straightforward.

[hagbard]

They all suck in their own way.

[Happy13178]

Lets be honest here...if people used Macs as much as they use PCs now, there'd be just as many problems with Mac viruses, spam, etc. There are more for PCs now because more people screw around with them and try to hack them.

[yatko]

Millhaus, when you are runnig XP, do have any driver issues? Like the camera, LAN, BT etc with your MacBook Pro?

[Ziggy007]

I don't like the elitist attitude of Mac users like they are far superior to all other computer users...

[yjxiao]

Well Said!

honestly being a fanboy on either side is pretty pathetic... pc/mac is a tool that gets the job done. end of story.

I've got a powerbook and my desktop is an amd64. They both serve me extremely well. I appreciate the power of my desktop and the simplicity and peace of mind of my powerbook.

Bashing either or is just plain stupid. They both serve their purpose. Now that you can go dual boot on a mac, that is gonna be awesome. Good decision on apple's part.

[Headhunter]

Our niche interests tend to bring out the evangelist in all of us, whatever they may be.

That said, I think we're giving too much attention to a vocal minority. I don't know which is more overblown, the "Mac users are superior" noise or "blogs are genuine news"...