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Mac OS X Versus Windows Vista
An anonymous reader writes "With Macworld set to start Jan. 8, InformationWeek has a detailed comparison that pits Mac OS X against Vista. According to reviewer John Welch, OS X wins hands down. The important point: he doesn't say Vista is bad, just that technically speaking, OS X remains way ahead. Do you agree?"
When I use a system, I expect the source code to be fully accessible to me. I want to be able to inspect the quality of that system for myself, and fix it myself if the need arises. A system like FreeBSD is excellent in this regard, as are most Linux distributions.
Mac OS X and Windows Vista completely fail in this area, however. I cannot see the source code to the window systems of either, for instance. Nor can I inspect the kernel source code. Mac OS X is perhaps slightly less terrible in this regard, as they do make use of some open source software. For some of the stuff they modify, like GCC, they release the source code to. That's not at all the case with Vista.
"Technical superiority doesn't mean as much when you can't get vendor support"
What vendor support? A while back I set up a wireless/dell/btinternet laptop. I have been back in three times since for unpaid for tech support. The talking CD wasn't configured to pick up wireless connections. Sound doesn't work except under admin, Talk/Talk as stopped working for no reason. The spam blocker freezes on downloading of email. The call center in India wrongly advises me a) the router is incompatible with BT b)to replace the NIC card and/or c) reinstall.
was Vendor support (Score:3, You're kidding)
davecb5620@gmail.com
if I could buy the DVD and install it on any computer. At least Apple could let any distributer buy the software to install on a computer with the required EFI chip instead of locking it down only to their hardware. Until Jobs stop this it's "mine, mine, mine!" idealogue with Apple OS's they will always have a limited marketplace. I predict the use of bootcamp to boot winXP on a mac will kill the Mac OS in one year. My mac frind now use winXP 99% of the time on his mac intel.
he doesn't say Vista is bad, just that technically speaking, OS X remains way ahead. Do you agree?
As long as OS X cannot run on the computers I have available at home or at work, I cannot compare. So it is impossible to make that judgement.
And even when OS X would come out as superior, there is no way I would get my boss to discard all the investments in hardware and replace it with Apple, so there is no need to even think about evaluating the differences between the systems.
This is something Apple needs to fix. OS X must be running on PC hardware, even if only to evaluate it and be able to support a migration.
As it is now, they are in certain markets where they are known, and outside of those markets they receive little or no attention.
I have never touched a real MAC in my life, and the only thing I have seen of its software was emulation on my old Atari ST.
But PCs are all around. So it is easy to look at Linux or whatever alternative OS to Windows, but very difficult to look at OS X.
Since the x86 switch, Apple no longer makes the XNU source code available. There was a lot of talk about it here at Slashdot when they stopped distributing it. Go search for the previous discussion for more information.
But the XNU source was pretty useless in the PPC days when it was available. It was a massive pain in the ass to build, especially when compared to systems like NetBSD and FreeBSD. So modifying it was basically out of the question. At least it was available for inspection, which is far better than what Windows has ever offered.
The thing about PC gaming is that games on PC don't really use the operating system at all. They all run in full-screen mode with their own UI. As long as your version of Windows has the needed version of DirectX, etc. etc., a committed PC gamer doesn't really care if he's running Vista, XP, 2K, or 95.
The other thing worth noting is that Vista's hardware requirements make it difficult for users to upgrade their PCs; most people who want Vista's bells and whistles will need to buy a new machine. Since that's the case, it's worth telling them about how Vista stacks up to OS X, which will also need a new box of hardware.
How many people need Final Cut Pro?
I have no idea what it is and I probably will never have any use for it
I find the article in macworld to be of similar quality as if Windows magazine had done the same comparison and found Vista to beat OSX hands down. I'm so impressed! NOT!
If you mod me down, I *will* introduce you to my sister!