14 DAY TRIAL // As I was saying a few days ago, the Mac team here, at Softpedia, was challenged to a "duel of operating systems" by those at Windows, who claimed Vista has dethroned the Mac OS as "supreme" operating system. We obviously resent that (as would, of course, any sane human being), and we are now fighting on Mac OS' behalf, armed with a "digital feather" and a small dose of cruel sarcasm towards the Mac-wannabe.
We initially said there will be dirty playing, but us ladies don't like hitting one when it's down (and from what we've got to see of Vista user reviews, they're pretty low....). We decided to focus on how great the Cats are, and not on how disappointing Vista is. Initially, we thought of comparing Vista to Leopard, but two reasons made us not to: first, Leopard won't be seeing light any time soon, according to recent information, and secondly, the fight would then be really unfair, since Vista is comparable to Jaguar, and way below the current Tiger.
This being said, let the games begin. May the best win (the Cats, that is)!
All Mac users surely know and love everything that makes a Mac and its operating system lovable and unique. We have asked Mac users to tell us why they chose to use Macs for personal or work computers and, auxiliary, to give us a piece of their mind about Microsoft's Vista. We've got great "reviews" from passionate Mac users, and here's our top 5 of what makes us love Mac OS:
1. It's so easy to use and intuitive. It's elegant, graceful, so powerful yet so simple even a kindergarden kid can use it. I'd say Tiger took the concept of user-orientation to superior levels. When using a Mac, you're confident that you can't do anything wrong; whatever you're 'trying out' won't make your computer crash or blow up. Speaking of crashes, if one of these were to occur (I've only seen the black "blue screen of death" only a couple of times, but never on my iMac), the system goes down in style. Elegance is something Windows never had and no matter how "inspired" they get from other operating systems, it's still artificial.
I should also add here that Macs are ready to go in 10 minutes, just out of the box. It takes 10 minutes to get the Vista CD out of its case! Not to mention the lack of drivers and compatibility issues (ups, I did mention it!), these will be taken care of in time. And speaking of time, judging by the time it took Microsoft to create the "masterpiece", one would have thought Vista to be more than a good-looking beta (with transparency, lets not forget!).
When talking about ease of use and great user experience, I just can't move on without mentioning the install/uninstall process on Macs. What am I talking about? That's right! No such thing! Just dragging and dropping, and you're ready to go.
2. Mac OS is safe and stable. Us girls, we appreciate greatly the feeling of security and protection. I'm not saying Mac OS is completely safe or 100 percent stable, but compared to any Windows OS, it's a rock. Is it possible for your Mac to get infected? Yes. Is this likely to happen? No! Mac means not having to worry about viruses, worms, trojans, backdoors, spyware or any other "delightful" malware Windows has to hide from (just think of the time and resources that are lost, plus the money for antivirus software).
3. Mac OS looks better. Some say it's not all about the looks. True, but come on! It has even become a figure of speech: "Oh, this application looks so good, kind of like Mac!" True, the hardware is involved as well, and we're only here to judge the OS. Still, after the huge progress Windows has made with the Vista look, the artistic wallpapers and so on, Tiger looks better. Vista's Aero and transparency, the improved icons and gadgets... what can I say? Nice try!
4. iLife. Mac OS has it, Vista tried to. It's funny how PC stands for personal computer. Macs are everything that one could need for a home computer. There's no easier, more pleasant way to manage you media content. Just compare iTunes to Windows Media Player, or iMovie to Windows Movie Maker. As I was saying, nice try...! While talking of the applications, I can't help but mention Vista's editions and their limitations: Home Basic: no remote desktop; Business: no media center. Bottom line, you need Ultimate if you want a system you can rely on.
5. Mac OS doesn't need outrageous resources to work properly. To decently run Vista, you need a very powerful (probably new) computer. It's true Macs are expensive, but considering they can run Windows and Linux, besides its Mac OS, the investment is comparable to that required for running Vista. While at system resources, I should add Vista eats up much of them. I assume it's quite frustrating to spend a pile of cash on the meanest machine in the store and still wait on your system.
Well, it's about time for our Vista "praises", so here it is:
We expected this OS for sooo long, it seems like forever. The long and painful development process took about five years and the new operating system appears to be underdeveloped, even premature.
When I first laid my hands on it something stroke me - there are too many features that seem to be inspired from Apple's Tiger. Why would the highly qualified and very well financed team in Redmond choose to imitate features like gadgets (see the widgets), Spotlight (the new live search), Expose (flip 3D) and other such enhancements? I don't know.. but if I were you, I would choose the original.
So finally, Microsoft managed to create an operating system that actually looks good. The problem is that many users have to upgrade (buy new computers, that is) in order to run it decently, and the lack of drivers can be really frustrating.
Some might feel safe with the new User Account Control. But it seems that, due to compatibility issues with older applications, its purpose has not been achieved. So here we have another system that is fully loaded with security flaws. Too bad for Windows there's a bunch of evil nerds out there that are very eager to take advantage of them. I wonder when they'll be setting their eyes on Macs...
Here is what we thought are the most notable Vista accomplishments (embarrassing issues, to be read): the permission to run applications like Visual Studio only as admin, the long-debated animated cursor bug, the inability to view, in Task Manager, the hidden information of a truncated file. So many problems and just one OS...
These are our main reasons why we love the cats and hate Vista.
Now here's what you Mac-loving people had to say:
"Great performance and a great bundle off application for freetime and daily use", said Thomas K. from Germany.
Jared D. told us :"I actually took out my first loan ever to get one. A worthy investment. Although there are many little things that have made my OS experience ridiculously more efficient (effective hotkeys, expose, no downtime - two system crashes in two years) one benefit I had taken for granted occurred to me a few weeks ago when using my friend's laptop: Spyware."
"Although the apple rock-solid foundation against viruses is often flaunted, I hadn't realized how much time I used to waste on my pc just trying to outsmart some spyware that had slipped into my system. I haven't had to deal with that in TWO YEARS. Anyways, aside from it's functionality, apple's OS X continues to exude a simple elegance that won't grow old.", said Jared D.
"I have worked with PC's and Macs for twenty years and CHOOSE to use a Mac - that's right - choose - every single time. I've gone cold turkey and used a PC before - and hated it - despised it - and will never go back exclusively.", says Kevin H. "The best of Vista are just Mac ripoffs pure and simple."
Barrett F. thinks "there is nothing that Vista can do that my Mac already can not do (at least, nothing a little freeware can't fix). All in all, the new Microsoft Windows Vista gets very, very close to the 'look and feel' of Tiger. If Tiger is already comparable, or better, than Vista, how much greater will Leopard be?"
We also thank Tiago R. and Francisco Javier Bucio for their contribution, and our special award for the funnies comment goes to...(drums): Sham R.: "One doesn't have to press start in Mac to shut down one's machine." Good point there. Makes you think, doesn't it?
Now read the alternative approach via this link.
These are our Tiger screenshots:
