My PC Saga
AsSiMiLaTeD
Posts: 11,726
I'm not even sure what my point here is or if I have one, just rambling about my frustrations...
So after years and years of bashing and hating their products, I started slowly making my way over to the dark side and a year and a half ago I basically got fully on board with Apple products (phones, tablets, desktops, laptops, streaming boxes, home networking, and most recently I even bought an iPod, still no iTunes though they can suck it with their compressed music). You kinda have to go all in with their products to get the full effect of everything working seamlessly together so that's what I did and don't regret it one bit. There were some initial challenges of learning a new world after spending the last 20 years with Windows, but those were short lived and in the last year and a half I've had zero frustrations with anything computers, networking, streaming, etc. I'm a techie and tweaker at heart and to be honest maybe I kinda miss spending hours hacking my Linksys to install DD-WRT and stuff like that. In reality though, I really enjoy how everything works together and spending my time doing things other than dickering around with Windows. I know it's not the case for everyone and Apple stuf certainly isn't perfect, and the purpose here isn't to debate that (seriously, lets not turn this into another Apple vs the world thread, that's not the point), but for me, it all just works.
I say all the above because my perfect world of technological harmony and bliss was recently brought down in flames.
So my wife has been using the Macbook Air for the past few months, having moved from an Asus laptop that we absolutely hated (and I should note that madmax bought it from me and loved it). She's not a very technical person at all, does fine with the iPhone and her iPad Mini, and was ok with the Macbook but never really connected with getting the full use out of OSX. For example, she never got into using the gestures, which are a great way to move around. Recently, she's decided that she wants to go back to work and wanted to brush up on her computer skills just to get used to using a computer again before she starts seriously looking. Well, the real world doesn't use Apple gear, so that means we get to buy her a Windows machine. That's where the 'fun' started.
As is customary, I did my research and narrowed down to a few laptops that looked promising. One of my biggest sticking points with laptops is the feel of the keyboard, I'm used to the low travel amount on my Macs and I look for that in laptops, but that's a hard thing to research and tell just from photos, luckily more and more companies are using the low profile keys. So we started with an Asus that got excellent reviews, nothing fancy just a $600 laptop. I immediately returned it because the keys were too mushy and typing on it just wasn't comfortable. Then came the HP, returned that because the backlighting on the keyboard was really bad, almost like there were LEDs out. Then came the Toshiba, which is where 'fun with windows' started.
The keyboard feels pretty good, no backlighting but otherwise everything feels pretty good out of the box. So after a few minutes of giving a once-over we decided that this one may be a keeper, so then I send her off while I try to figure out how to use Windows 8. First let me be clear, I hate Windows 8. I'm not going to call it horrible, it may be just fine in reality but I'm not an objective viewpoint because I hate it so much. I not only hate the way it looks (my wife actually likes it), but I hate that everything is different. The way you control things, where the settings are, the way users are handled...it's all different, and I don't think it's very intuitive. Different is fine, as long as where things are makes sense. OSX is WAY different than Windows and I had very little trouble adjusting, Windows 8 is a much larger adjustment for me.
So once I learn how to navigate the OS I turn my attention to removing all the crap Toshiba applications and bloatware. I won't go into full detail but this process took several restarts and about an hour and a half, just to get the crapware removed. It took me another half hour to get all the icons worked out so that all the apps we need are on the first screen, because god forbid you need something that's on the second page and have to use the stupid little scroll bar at the bottom to navigate over there, horrible.
So at this point I'm 3 hours in and finally have a computer that I'd call fully functional. I still don't know all the nuances of Windows 8, but we can get stuff done.
Wait........what's that??? Windows Update? 148 updates available?!?!?!?!?!?! How is it possible that a brand new computer that we just opened (and a new model at that, not one from early last year) needs 148 updates right off the bat? Windows 8 has only been out a few months, how in the hell could it possibly already even have 148 updates available? It took somewhere around an hour to download and install all those updates, which included a couple of reboots and subsequent installation of more updates.
So now I'm 4 hours in, and FINALLY I have a functional PC.
Wait.........there's more. Now come the Toshiba updates! What??? Another half hour of Toshiba hardware and BIOS updates.
Then, just when I think I'm done I realize that I want to set the machine up to use a local user account instead of the Microsoft online account, which take another 30 minutes of navigating settings that I'm unsure are on the PC or online because it opens IE to change all those.
So I'm literally 5 hours in before the machine is fully functional and operating like we want it. That's 5 HOURS between when I opened the box and when I'm good to go.
FIVE HOURS!!!!
As it turns out a couple weeks later, we actually don't like that Toshiba so much after all. My main complaint with it is the dumbest thing, but you can't open the lid with one hand, it literally takes one hand to hold down the machine and the other to open the lid, that's a terrible design. The trackpad is not very good either, and the main issue is that the optical drive just opens by itself every so often. We can be sitting across the room and the drive will just pop open.
So now we're back in the hunt. I think this time we're gonna go with a smaller option though, something closer to the MBA in size though probably not quite as small. We spent a while in Best Buy tonight really picking through all the laptops and nitpicking each one to death and I think we have a winner. I can't believe it, but the one she actually likes the most is an Acer. Yep, you heard me right, ACER!!!
Since we're stuck with Windows 8 we're going to go with a touch screen, that'll alleviate alot of the frustrations I think, plus it's a cool feature not available on any of the Macs. We found a 14" Acer that we both really like, touchscreen, very nice feel to the keyboard, very sturdy and solid feel to the computer, backlit keyboard, DISPLAY THAT OPENS WITH ONE HAND, not super high end specs but good enough for what she needs. It's a good bit heavier than the MBA but lighter than the others we've been through recently. I'm sure I'll still have to fight through the bloatware and the Windows updates, but am hoping we'll like the hardware better on this one. We actually compared to a couple Asus models in the same price range, but the Acer specs out better for what we want to do. We're going to pick it up tomorrow, will report back.
One thing I will say after opening and unboxing the 3 recent laptops, Apple really does know how to package a product and eliminate frustration with getting things up and running. It took me 5 hours to get the Toshiba up and running, took me literally 5 minutes with the Macs. From the packaging to the setup routine, Apple has it down. I realize I have an Apple bias at this point, but I don't think many people would argue that point.
I called this the PC Sage thread for a reason, it's really just as much about the hardware and bloatware from the manufacturers as it is about Windows 8. I DO hate Windows 8 and it contributed heavily to my frustrations, but it's the whole experience that has been miserable.
I'm not giving up though. It would be easy just to go back to a Mac and bootcamp Windows on it, but I don't feel like a Mac is worth the premium if she's not going to get the full potential out of it, so we're gonna stick with it and hopefully the Acer will do the trick.
So after years and years of bashing and hating their products, I started slowly making my way over to the dark side and a year and a half ago I basically got fully on board with Apple products (phones, tablets, desktops, laptops, streaming boxes, home networking, and most recently I even bought an iPod, still no iTunes though they can suck it with their compressed music). You kinda have to go all in with their products to get the full effect of everything working seamlessly together so that's what I did and don't regret it one bit. There were some initial challenges of learning a new world after spending the last 20 years with Windows, but those were short lived and in the last year and a half I've had zero frustrations with anything computers, networking, streaming, etc. I'm a techie and tweaker at heart and to be honest maybe I kinda miss spending hours hacking my Linksys to install DD-WRT and stuff like that. In reality though, I really enjoy how everything works together and spending my time doing things other than dickering around with Windows. I know it's not the case for everyone and Apple stuf certainly isn't perfect, and the purpose here isn't to debate that (seriously, lets not turn this into another Apple vs the world thread, that's not the point), but for me, it all just works.
I say all the above because my perfect world of technological harmony and bliss was recently brought down in flames.
So my wife has been using the Macbook Air for the past few months, having moved from an Asus laptop that we absolutely hated (and I should note that madmax bought it from me and loved it). She's not a very technical person at all, does fine with the iPhone and her iPad Mini, and was ok with the Macbook but never really connected with getting the full use out of OSX. For example, she never got into using the gestures, which are a great way to move around. Recently, she's decided that she wants to go back to work and wanted to brush up on her computer skills just to get used to using a computer again before she starts seriously looking. Well, the real world doesn't use Apple gear, so that means we get to buy her a Windows machine. That's where the 'fun' started.
As is customary, I did my research and narrowed down to a few laptops that looked promising. One of my biggest sticking points with laptops is the feel of the keyboard, I'm used to the low travel amount on my Macs and I look for that in laptops, but that's a hard thing to research and tell just from photos, luckily more and more companies are using the low profile keys. So we started with an Asus that got excellent reviews, nothing fancy just a $600 laptop. I immediately returned it because the keys were too mushy and typing on it just wasn't comfortable. Then came the HP, returned that because the backlighting on the keyboard was really bad, almost like there were LEDs out. Then came the Toshiba, which is where 'fun with windows' started.
The keyboard feels pretty good, no backlighting but otherwise everything feels pretty good out of the box. So after a few minutes of giving a once-over we decided that this one may be a keeper, so then I send her off while I try to figure out how to use Windows 8. First let me be clear, I hate Windows 8. I'm not going to call it horrible, it may be just fine in reality but I'm not an objective viewpoint because I hate it so much. I not only hate the way it looks (my wife actually likes it), but I hate that everything is different. The way you control things, where the settings are, the way users are handled...it's all different, and I don't think it's very intuitive. Different is fine, as long as where things are makes sense. OSX is WAY different than Windows and I had very little trouble adjusting, Windows 8 is a much larger adjustment for me.
So once I learn how to navigate the OS I turn my attention to removing all the crap Toshiba applications and bloatware. I won't go into full detail but this process took several restarts and about an hour and a half, just to get the crapware removed. It took me another half hour to get all the icons worked out so that all the apps we need are on the first screen, because god forbid you need something that's on the second page and have to use the stupid little scroll bar at the bottom to navigate over there, horrible.
So at this point I'm 3 hours in and finally have a computer that I'd call fully functional. I still don't know all the nuances of Windows 8, but we can get stuff done.
Wait........what's that??? Windows Update? 148 updates available?!?!?!?!?!?! How is it possible that a brand new computer that we just opened (and a new model at that, not one from early last year) needs 148 updates right off the bat? Windows 8 has only been out a few months, how in the hell could it possibly already even have 148 updates available? It took somewhere around an hour to download and install all those updates, which included a couple of reboots and subsequent installation of more updates.
So now I'm 4 hours in, and FINALLY I have a functional PC.
Wait.........there's more. Now come the Toshiba updates! What??? Another half hour of Toshiba hardware and BIOS updates.
Then, just when I think I'm done I realize that I want to set the machine up to use a local user account instead of the Microsoft online account, which take another 30 minutes of navigating settings that I'm unsure are on the PC or online because it opens IE to change all those.
So I'm literally 5 hours in before the machine is fully functional and operating like we want it. That's 5 HOURS between when I opened the box and when I'm good to go.
FIVE HOURS!!!!
As it turns out a couple weeks later, we actually don't like that Toshiba so much after all. My main complaint with it is the dumbest thing, but you can't open the lid with one hand, it literally takes one hand to hold down the machine and the other to open the lid, that's a terrible design. The trackpad is not very good either, and the main issue is that the optical drive just opens by itself every so often. We can be sitting across the room and the drive will just pop open.
So now we're back in the hunt. I think this time we're gonna go with a smaller option though, something closer to the MBA in size though probably not quite as small. We spent a while in Best Buy tonight really picking through all the laptops and nitpicking each one to death and I think we have a winner. I can't believe it, but the one she actually likes the most is an Acer. Yep, you heard me right, ACER!!!
Since we're stuck with Windows 8 we're going to go with a touch screen, that'll alleviate alot of the frustrations I think, plus it's a cool feature not available on any of the Macs. We found a 14" Acer that we both really like, touchscreen, very nice feel to the keyboard, very sturdy and solid feel to the computer, backlit keyboard, DISPLAY THAT OPENS WITH ONE HAND, not super high end specs but good enough for what she needs. It's a good bit heavier than the MBA but lighter than the others we've been through recently. I'm sure I'll still have to fight through the bloatware and the Windows updates, but am hoping we'll like the hardware better on this one. We actually compared to a couple Asus models in the same price range, but the Acer specs out better for what we want to do. We're going to pick it up tomorrow, will report back.
One thing I will say after opening and unboxing the 3 recent laptops, Apple really does know how to package a product and eliminate frustration with getting things up and running. It took me 5 hours to get the Toshiba up and running, took me literally 5 minutes with the Macs. From the packaging to the setup routine, Apple has it down. I realize I have an Apple bias at this point, but I don't think many people would argue that point.
I called this the PC Sage thread for a reason, it's really just as much about the hardware and bloatware from the manufacturers as it is about Windows 8. I DO hate Windows 8 and it contributed heavily to my frustrations, but it's the whole experience that has been miserable.
I'm not giving up though. It would be easy just to go back to a Mac and bootcamp Windows on it, but I don't feel like a Mac is worth the premium if she's not going to get the full potential out of it, so we're gonna stick with it and hopefully the Acer will do the trick.
Post edited by AsSiMiLaTeD on
Comments
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Have you thought about installing windows on your Mac using Parallels or Bootcamp. This way you can just run it on the same hardware you are used to and do it in a VM.
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I have, not that I expected people to read all my rambling, but that's the last point in my post...Have you thought about installing windows on your Mac using Parallels or Bootcamp. This way you can just run it on the same hardware you are used to and do it in a VM. -
Just an option to save you frustrations, for a small fee, Office Max will do all that for you. You tell them what you want, bloatware removed, updates done, configurations, etc so when you pick it up it's ready to go. Think they charged me like 35 bucks for that service. Well worth the time and aggrivation.HT SYSTEM-
Sony 850c 4k
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Sony 4k BRP
SVS SB-2000
Polk Sig. 20's
Polk FX500 surrounds
Cables-
Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable
Kitchen
Sonos zp90
Grant Fidelity tube dac
B&k 1420
lsi 9's -
Interesting, I hadn't thought about that, I wonder if Best Buy has a similar service. I wouldn't mind paying an extra $50 to get all that done for me, I'll check into that.
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Darn. I thought this was a thread about power cords.
Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes
Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables
Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
Three 20 amp circuits. -
"You kinda have to go all in with their products to get the full effect of everything working seamlessly together so that's what I did and don't regret it one bit"
I use a macbook book pro, iphone4, ipad 1&2, itouch (1st gen), Airtunes and Apple TV2.
I use iTunes, iTunes Match, iCloud, and I have a Time Machine.
Itunes on the MAC Book isn't bad at all. You can convert your songs to AIFF files by right clicking and selecting AIFF.
The products together are great. If you want to do something you just switch it on. No configuring, no BS ( just lots of money). I like how all the products work together. I take a picture on my phone and it backs up to my cloud, gets sent to my other device and backs up on my time machine all in seconds. And all i had to do was turn a switch that says "photo stream".
However I am still a PC person. I build and program on a PC. Anyone who says OSX is better then Windows (7) is wrong.
Windows 8 is just as bad at Windows ME. I hate it. They should of left it on tablets, phones, and xbox.B&W CM9Classé Sigma -
I got the new Acer today and we really like it. The touch screen makes all the difference in the world with Windows 8. I still don't really like the overall look of Windows 8 and there are lots of things that should be easy enough to do like changing the sort options in the Mail app that I haven't figured out yet.
First impression though wasn't great, laptop came out of the box with zero charge on the battery and wouldn't turn on. That's so unusual that it actually took a few seconds to register that the issue may be no battery, can't tell you when the last time I opened a computing product that had no charge on the battery. The setup route wasn't as bad as the Toshiba, but did still take a couple hours to get all the way through.
This machine feels the most solid and well built of the 4 we've had, and it's just the right size and weight even with the optical drive. It has a small 20GB SSD buffer which helps it feel quicker than it probably is. The i5 and 6GB installed memory keep things running nice and smooth. The only negative would be on the display, it's not an IPS display so the viewing angles aren't the widest, but it's not an issue for us. The graphics are also not high end, so obviously not a gaming machine either. What strikes me the most is how well built it feels for the price, I wasn't aware that Acer built anything other than really cheap stuff.
I think it's a great middle-of-the-road laptop, definitely a huge step up from the entry level models while skipping the right features of the higher end models to keep the cost down. If you're looking for something in ultrabook territory under $800 or so this should definitely be on your short list, especially if you want an optical drive. I kinda went in last night thinking we'd end up with an Asus or Sony, but this one won out in the end.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Acer+-+Aspire+Ultrabook+14%26%2334%3B+Touch-Screen+Laptop+-+6GB+Memory+-+500GB+Hard+Drive+-+Silver/7648077.p?id=1218857084844&skuId=7648077 -
If you want to avoid bloatware, don't buy from a brick-and-mortar store. Consumer-oriented laptops will always have bloatware. The companies that own the bloatware pay the manufacturers to allow them to put it on there. Advertising.
Instead, go to the manufacturer's website and buy something from their small-business section. Much less (or zero) bloatware, less updates to perform, and much less bloatware. Did I mention less bloatware? I hate bloatware with a passion.
Me, I'm pretty well sold on Lenovo's Thinkpads. Thinkpad = business machine, Ideapad = consumer machine. I've never had to deal with any kind of bloatware on a Thinkpad. You get Windows with a few Lenovo tools thrown in--useful tools, that is--and nothing more. And their keyboards are great. You don't have to take my word for it, Google it. Lenovos are often praised as having the best keyboards, although the recent move to the "island style" or chiclet keyboard did ruffle some feathers, mostly because the old keyboard was so nice. I think the newer style is just as good--just a different shape to the keys is all.
I do agree, Windows 8 only makes sense if you have a touchscreen. Otherwise it's just Windows 7 with a bunch of unnecessary hoops to jump through to get to the same stuff you used to be able to get to with one or two clicks in Windows 7. Moving the mouse to a corner? F***ing ignorant. Hate that part the most. But all the Windows 7 stuff is still there, including the old way of adding and editing users, it's just harder to find. If you're in the Metro UI, "you can't get there from here."
RT-12, CS350-LS, PSW-300, Infinity Overture 1, Monoprice RC-65i
Adcom GFA-545II, GFA-6000, Outlaw Audio 990, Netgear NeoTV
Denon DCM-460, DMD-1000, Sony BDP-360, Bravia KDL-40Z4100/S
Monster AVL-300, HTS-2500 MKII -
I guess I'm wrong then. Actually maybe not because I'm not going to say one is better than the other, I just prefer OSX. There are things I don't like about each OS, but at the end of the day I can do everything I want in each OS. There are two things that really make the decision for me:However I am still a PC person. I build and program on a PC. Anyone who says OSX is better then Windows (7) is wrong.
- I just like the way you navigate around better in OSX. I use the apple trackpad and the gestures make navigating around much easier and more enjoyable. There are versions of this on some Windows machines, my friends had an HP that does it, but they're never implemented as well or works quite the same. Windows 8 closes the gap quite a bit in the area, and may in fact be just as good once I get used to it all, but right now OSX is still king IMO.
- Automator and AppleScript!!! The fact that I can build a task that will dynamically rename a bunch of files or replace text in filename or resize photos in great, and the fact that I can do that in literally seconds with no programming knowledge of OSX using a tool that comes free with the OS is awesome! I think this is a very underrated feature of OSX, albeit one that most people may not use.
I also prefer Time Machine to System Restore, but then I prefer the way networking is handled in Windows. So there are things I like more about each, but the two above are what set OSX apart for me. -
Geeze, in the half of that 5 hours it took you to setup that Toshiba (that you sent back), you could have downloaded a Win 7 Pro SP1 iso, did a clean install, load a matching certificate, and be done (except for some updates, maybe hundreds, not surprised by that).
I won't touch Win 8 either. I hate it. It may be a different experience with touchscreen, but it just cludgy and poorly thought out with a mouse.
As they say, every other version of windows is crap. Win 8 is the crap. Win 9 will probably be pretty good.For rig details, see my profile. Nothing here anymore... -
Toshiba doesn't have Windows 7 drivers for the model I bought, I checked into that actually thinking the same thing.
I don't know about Windows 9 being better, they're going to have to make radical changes to Windows 8 to get there and I just don't see them doing it... -
Start mini-rant. I bought my Mom a new laptop last week. She called and said she couldn't get it to work. I went over to check it out for her and I agree, Windows 8 is a PITA to use. What was MS thinking? The most simple tasks become a chore. I promptly returned it to the big blue box store and put her old computer in the shop for repair. I don't have the time nor the patience to learn Windows 8. End mini-rant.If you can't hear a difference, don't waste your money.
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If your wife is using this to prepare for an office job, it's doubtful they'll be using Windows 8 with a touchscreen interface. From what I've read, not many businesses are preparing to migrate to 8 at all.
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mdaudioguy wrote: »If your wife is using this to prepare for an office job, it's doubtful they'll be using Windows 8 with a touchscreen interface. From what I've read, not many businesses are preparing to migrate to 8 at all.
My company just migrated to 7 and is still working on getting everyone moved over. I dont see 8 ANYTIME in our future, thankfully!"....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963) -
My small business clients have started going to 8, simply because that's what's being sold currently. Surprisingly I have not heard any complaints yet. I guess if all you need to do is run Office, Windows 8 doesn't get in the way. From a non-technical end-user perspective, I can see how it might be an easier-to-swallow transition.
I'm getting used to it, begrudgingly. I spend pretty much zero time in the Metro UI. I launch the desktop the moment I see it, and have my most-used programs pinned to the taskbar. Occasionally when I need to run a program I don't use very often I have to go into Metro, right-click for all apps and hunt it down, but on a day-to-day basis that's fairly rare.
And while the UI can be a pain, I have to say I do enjoy the under-the-hood features of Windows 8 immensely, which is really what has been making me warm up to it. Mostly I suspect it's due to UEFI, but I've not educated myself much on UEFI yet. But bootups are mind-bogglingly fast, as in, I really don't understand how it is able to boot so fast. Shouldn't be possible based on my understanding of how things work, but obviously UEFI has changed the game somehow. Also, just a moment ago I pressed the reset button on my PC. But it didn't exactly reset. After I logged in, everything was exactly where I left it before the reset, like it just woke up from standby. Not sure how that works either--I have some reading to do.
So the overall impression I am getting so far is that Windows 8 + UEFI is faster to boot, more stable and smarter at recovering than Windows 7 was, and I had zero complaints with Windows 7. If that's the price of the Metro UI, I think I might actually be fine with that. Now to go bone up on UEFI...
RT-12, CS350-LS, PSW-300, Infinity Overture 1, Monoprice RC-65i
Adcom GFA-545II, GFA-6000, Outlaw Audio 990, Netgear NeoTV
Denon DCM-460, DMD-1000, Sony BDP-360, Bravia KDL-40Z4100/S
Monster AVL-300, HTS-2500 MKII -
I bought my 1st ever new pc from BB for the Mrs. It was a demo Toshiba laptop
that was missing the battery, so it was only $200. The laptop doesn't move around much
from her desk, and a new battery is about $45 to my doorstep. Yes, the Toshibas come
with a lot of useless crap loaded. I had to use the goofy reload thing to clear out all the
weird stuff, and then built a recovery thumb drive. I loaded the classic start on it, and
msoffice. I still need to clear off the other stupid stuff. All the other laptops I've ever owned
were bought used and broken. I have a full set of Dell OS disks ranging from 2000 to windows 7,
so dead Dells were the way to go. I almost went to a Dell d630, but the new Toshiba was
so cheap, I couldn't resist. Her old Acer mouse pad was shot, and not worth fooling with.
When it comes to MACS vs WIN-TEL, the MAC is easier, but the other is a LOT cheaper,
and normally easier to deal with hardware wise. Here in Dallas, Dell parts are a dime a dozen,
and if her old one had been Dell instead of Acer, the mouse pad change out would of been the plan."The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are twenty gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg." --Thomas Jefferson -
Like Enders our company is going to 7 from XP and we will probably never see 8. Although we are switching from Blackberry's to iPhones and iPads as an addition to our Dell laptops. Our laptops come pre-configured, but the HP that I bought for the wife was a pain to get rid of all of the crap.Home Theater
Onkyo PR-SC5508 Sharp LC-70LE847U
Emotiva XPA-5 Emotiva XPA-2 Emotiva UPA-2
Front RTi-A9 Wide RTi-A7 Center CSi-A6 Surround FXi-A6 Rear RTi-A3 Sub 2x PSW505
Sony BDP-S790 Dishnetwork Hopper/Joey Logitech Harmony One Apple TV
Two Channel
Oppo 105D BAT VK-500 w/BatPack SDA SRS 2.3 Dreadnought Squeezebox Touch Apple TV -
AsSiMiLaTeD wrote: »I guess I'm wrong then. Actually maybe not because I'm not going to say one is better than the other, I just prefer OSX. There are things I don't like about each OS, but at the end of the day I can do everything I want in each OS. There are two things that really make the decision for me:
- I just like the way you navigate around better in OSX. I use the apple trackpad and the gestures make navigating around much easier and more enjoyable. There are versions of this on some Windows machines, my friends had an HP that does it, but they're never implemented as well or works quite the same. Windows 8 closes the gap quite a bit in the area, and may in fact be just as good once I get used to it all, but right now OSX is still king IMO.
- Automator and AppleScript!!! The fact that I can build a task that will dynamically rename a bunch of files or replace text in filename or resize photos in great, and the fact that I can do that in literally seconds with no programming knowledge of OSX using a tool that comes free with the OS is awesome! I think this is a very underrated feature of OSX, albeit one that most people may not use.
I also prefer Time Machine to System Restore, but then I prefer the way networking is handled in Windows. So there are things I like more about each, but the two above are what set OSX apart for me.
I can agree that they both have ups and downs. Maybe it was a bit harsh for me to say that people are wrong if they think OSX is better then W7 (sometimes I cant hide the PC Gamer inside me). I also do Savant programing on OSX and know how awesome things like automator are( + I can run Parallels windows 7 and do Crestron at the same time from the same laptop). It does come down to what works for the end user.B&W CM9Classé Sigma -
John Megadeth wrote: »At SWA, we're just now migrating from XP over to 7.
My home PC has XP, and when I turned it off today there were 8 updates to be installed. When will it ever be finished?Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes
Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables
Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
Three 20 amp circuits. -
I did not like Win8 at first myself. I work in 3D software development though and we had to be Win8 compliant so we have been running Win8 for close to a year. I hated it at first but now have it fairly similar to Win7 (great OS). The very first thing I do with Win8 is disable "Metro" UI and install Classic Shell (this returns the start button/menu). From there some other tweaks it is much easier to use.---
Polk Studio Monitor 4.6 Series 2's, Polk RT1000p's, Polk LSi25's, Boston Acoustic VR-975's
Crown D-75, Crown CE1000, Crown CE2000 -
My home PC has XP, and when I turned it off today there were 8 updates to be installed. When will it ever be finished?
April 8th, 2014. Support for XP will end, and so will any further updates.
