Leopard wins title of "best"

You might be aware of the long-running debate known as Mac vs. PC (personified by Justin Long + John Hodgman on the humorous "I'm a Mac" commercials). And you may be aware that there's a debate whether XP isn't a better OS than Vista. And, you may be aware that there's a free OS, known as Linux, which has a few proponents who claim theirs is the best.

Which one's the best? There's an awful lot of opinions out there (and if you agree with mine, you're really smart!), but has anyone every done a true, impartial test to determine which one really is the safest/fastest/most features/cost-effective/easy-to-use operating system today? Well yes, someone has-- and the latest comes from PC Magazine's March issue.
[Yes, PCMag has long been accused of being a Microsoft puppet and/or shill. Look at the name, though: it's "PC", not "Mac Magazine" (and, yes, there's one of those, too). But how do you write about personal computers and NOT write about Microsoft? Hmm?]

The article compares Mac OS 10.5.1 (the latest "Leopard"), Windows XP SP2, Vista, and Ubuntu 7.10 , and it compares them in these areas:
*Price
*Installation (ease)
*GUI (the graphical 'look')
*Bundled Software
*3rd Party Software
*Drivers/Hardware
*Networking
*Security

As you might expect, each OS won some categories, and lost in others; for example, Ubuntu is free, so it will clearly win the Price category, and since it doesn't have a huge budget for graphic artists (and Linux folk aren't afraid of the command line) it loses the GUI category. To see the results chart, click here.

The scores in each category were totaled to produce a winner, and the "Microsoft shill", PC Magazine, proclaims Leopard the winner. (And, perhaps more interestingly, XP and Vista tied.)

My two cents: There are a few flaws in this comparison 'test' that shouldn't be overlooked.
*Vista was tested before Service Pack 1
*The first three categories are largely non-factors: Price and Installation are largely irrelevant to most people. Most people buy a new computer, not an OS Install CD/DVD. And a GUI is a GUI-- how pretty it looks has nothing to do with your computer's operation.

I believe the most important factors are Security and 3rd Party Software.. followed by Drivers/Hardware.
In Security: Leopard wins.. not because its armor plating is more bulletproof, but because less than 3% of the worlds computers are running it and so hackers ignore it.
In Drivers/Hardware: XP SP2 wins.. but time will move Vista ahead as more drivers get written and pass MS's WHQL.
In the all-important 3rd-Party Software category: XP SP2 wins.. but again, time will move Vista into the lead.

So clearly PC Magazine is wrong. XP SP2 is the better OS.. for now.

How can I say that? Games, baby. Games. There aren't any for Macs.
And of course.. other programs. Walk into a store that sells software some time and look at the size of the Mac section and then the size of the PC titles. That tells you all you need to know.

OS's and you: But which one is best for YOU? I agree totally with the author of the article in PC Mag (Eric Griffith): it depends on what you use your computer for.
If all you do is surf the Web, and you're on a budget, Ubuntu is probably your best choice. If you're a cutting-edge gamer, you probably will have to struggle with Vista for Direct X 10 titles. If you're a network admin.. Red Hat is probably your OS (are you ready for Server 2008?).

But the fact remains, the OS you use will be the one that came with your computer. And as I mentioned in "Mac Myths", which brand you decide to buy will probably be decided by which 'camp' you joined.. way back in the early days.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

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Mac myths

Some folks are Mac loyalists (I refer to them as "iPeople"). And some folks only use Windows. For a very long while, in the "early days" particularly, you pretty much had to choose sides -- you ran one OR the other. And once you chose, and bought your machine, (and learned how to use it) you stayed with it.. probably right up to today.

Up until fairly recently (Historically speaking), Apple went to some effort to remain apart (aloof?)-- they chose to use hardware standards, software formats, and such, so that you had to purchase "Mac" hardware, software, and peripherals, and floppies. You could not take your files from an Apple computer and work on them on a Windows computer.

All that has changed. (But the loyalties remain!) Macs no longer run unique CPU's (nor use SCSI), and the software is not written to exclude certain formats. A while back, they switched from "AppleTalk" to TCP/IP as their networking protocol. Yes, Apple is still "different" than Windows, but it far friendlier than it used to be.

It is partly because of these changes that quite a few people have (shudder) switched allegiances from Windows, and purchased a Mac. (If you are a Windows user, and are considering a Mac as your next computer, you may want to read this article of mine.)
Many people are taking advantage of either Parallels or Boot Camp and running both OSes on their Apple machines, essentially allowing them to enjoy the advantages of both camps.

Tip of the day: Forget those old ideas you may have had about Mac vs. PC's, as they're largely myths. Such as:

* Macs can't share files with Windows. Not true. As I mentioned (above), Macs (as of OS X 10.2) use TCP/IP for networking and support Windows' SMB. Adding a Mac to your Windows network (and visa versa) is basically as easy as plugging it in. You can exchange files over your network (in either direction) just as you do between your Windows machine.
And, you can access (use) networked printers, too-- whether they're attached to a Mac or a Windows machines.

Specially formatted floppies are gone too. Thumb drives, USB hard-drives, CD's and DVD's are the modern tools, and they are "universal"... you don't buy a "Mac thumb drive", you buy a thumb drive.

* You can't right-click on Macs. While it is true that Mac mouses have only one button (and you hold down the Ctrl key while clicking to open Context menus), you are not limited to using Mac hardware and/or peripherals any longer-- simply plug any USB mouse you prefer into your Mac machine.
As a "Windows guy", the biggest mental adjustment I have to make when sitting at a Mac is my compulsive need to right-click, and so I plug in a Kensington PocketMouse that I carry in my toolkit, and shazaam! I have the three-button capability I'm so used to.

Yes, it is true that some programs will only run on Windows, and some will only run on Macs. So far, the "workaround" for this is either virtualization (such as Parallels) or dual-booting. That is because Mac is founded on OpenBSD and Windows on MS-DOS. That said, "making the switch" from Windows to Mac has never been easier and, you don't have to completely switch loyalties-- you can run both; even on the same machine!

Today's free link: For those of you who like to download Flash games, or YouTube videos, Orbit (a download manager) will simplify your tasks. From site: "It is a free all-in-one downloader which can download streaming media, social music or video from anywhere include youtube, myspace, imeem, pandora, etc. It is famous for its super light, great speed and rapidshare supported." Today's link also includes reviews on C/Net.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

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