Asus motherboard with Intel Core 2 Duo processor, with 2 gigs of ram, 500 Gig of hdd, and Windows XP !

This is the right choice ! :D

Never go for a mac my friend! If you wanna buy a mac but install windows that will be fine (having both os). But don't believe what they say in their ads. They say "Think Different". Thinking different is NOT enough! Mac is for people who don't know any thing about PC or trouble shooting. They just want something that works that they can check their email, chat, use iBlah to make pretty stuff to show off for their friends. But the truth is there is yea it just works, But there is not much to work with! You can't make a website with .mac and sell it. Cuz it's SO DAMN ugly and it's SO limited in designing. For video/Music editing/compositing people use mac in the industry. But I don't get WHY? There are A BUNCH of programs that are WAY better than the ones are used in mac. In Animation industry people use Windows mainly. For programming, .NET, ASP and PHP people use mostly Windows. For hosting is 40% Win and 60% Linux and I prefer linux in this case (not mac). And finally in HARD CORE realtime editing people use windows but mostly Unix systems like IRIX.

@leomoon,

RIght on the button.

Stay with Windows build yur self a nice rig. Windows has all the gold in the world in terms of software and gadgets. In other words windows is for young at heart. Mac...well, is to plain and boring.

Ditto...

stay away from mac...unless its a Big Mac and even then it's not that good for you.

Man, its only critics... think of what is the easiest way to use for your everyday damn life. Mac or Windows are still the same OS they ads. but the heart point is, which one you have already use and master... right? Windows/PC. if Mac, then go on, buy a New Apple Computer.

well, i hope your decision is clear to which one to use. listen to the veterans. haha... peace out bro's!

www.imarkdesigns.com

XP pro..lots of ram and way too much HD.....Macs would fare better if you got what you paid for...Also on that note...Im bringing back my stupid IPhone and getting back a Blackberry..there ya go..Keep your stick on the ice !!

FIRST OF ALL WE HERE TO TALK ABOUT ( Leopard OS X or Vista ) NOT XP PLEASE PEOPLE COME ON . AND 2 XP ONLY RUN 2 GG OF RAM.

MAC VS VISTA I WILL GO TO MAC. MORE FASTER AND MORE SECURITY .

HACKER ARE MORE IN TO WINDOWS THEM MAC.

VISTA VS MAC AND XP , I WILL GO TO = XP

Steer clear of vista for the meantime.. most IT professionals I know are.

I'm pretty sure you can be more productive with your 'collection' on a nice specced up PC. A mac would not add value to your computing experience.

actualy luis, xp with sp2 runs 3.2 gig of ram and not 2 :P

YM2149 ,go to M$ WEB SITE AND CHECK HOW MUCH RAM WINDOWS CAN RUN. THE MUCH CAN RUN IS 2GG, YOU CAN ADD UP TO 4 GG OF RAM IN YOUR COMP BUT WINDOWS XP ONLY RUN 2.

Some one how has used a PC for 15 years should know better than to ask if Apple is even a serious contendor!

luis i prefer facts over rumors

put 4 gig of ram and you will see for yourself

that windows xp (sp2) reckognises and uses 3.2 gigs

It's not the machine as much as what you can do with it. The obvious limitation I see is market share.... That will effect everything from number of software releases to number of vender's and accessories, Software and Hardware. While both machines theses days can do all one night ask. Macs have a substantially smaller percent of the market and that equals less support in all areas.

So IMB clone... besides you got all that software... ohh and at this stage it's still better to use XP........ Vista is still questionable in my humble opinion...

In anycase enjoy your new 'puter n let us know how you make out... regards

Palko is right as long as you are not getting a top of the line system that is totally maxed out it is not worth bothering with Vista.

why don't u go Linux its free and works good..

[ link ]

YM2149. i do have 3 gg in my personal computer look it your self in this link..

i took a pictures of my desktop so you can see that i have 3 gg of ram running in my pc, but windows only run 2 take a look

[ link ]

Have used Vista on two machines (Desk & Laptop) since it came out - No problems whatsoever. Why do people keep knocking it when they have never tried it! - Dont listen to all the negative comments that you here!!

Do yourself a favour and DO NOT go to Vista. The entire operating system gets in your way, rather than helping you. You'll soon get tired of "Are you sure you want to do that" "The program X is trying to run, are you sure?" "Are you sure?" "Are you sure?" etc. etc. Soon you'll just click OK every time and so the whole point of these so-called security dialogs is lost anyway!

Stick to XP or migrate to Mac. What people have said here is true to a point - Macs do "just work". Look at what apps you use and whether there are Mac equivalents. If there are, they'll be faster and more stable than the Windows counterparts.

Oh and this is from someone who's used Windows AND Macs since the 1980's so I *do* know what I'm talking about!!

Well Moosh101

Only thing guaranteed with a question like that is a 101 different answers. For some its as easy as deciding between a Trabant and a Mercedes. Problem is that for some the Mac is the Mercedes and for others its the PC.

Is this the right place. This is the place for sharing PC PPC Music and Movies. Not really Mac orientated, so likely to get more PC bias. Also since this is the place to share software, then thats an important interest for those here. the more the merrier, whereas Mac users aren't so interested in 10 variations of Video ripping software, they are happy with the one that works. (or the one thats available)

Your about to graduate and you ask such dumb questions...geez, you got a big shock when you try and get a job, buddy.

London

PS. Hint: you want XP or Linux. Anything else and you really are a gimp

Why don't u use Linux on PC ?

To get xp or vista using the full 4gb you need the 64bit version, otherwise it will use 3.2gb

I have Vista since it came out and i have never had any problems with it.

Stop ragging if you haven't used it regularly..

Peace...

Funny, I have a feeling that none of you critisizing have a Mac at home. Cause you keep saying the same things as i did, before my GF bought one. As far as running Windows is concerned, they run well enough, but expect occasional glitch. The software possibilities that Mac can offer in terms of graphic design, audio editing and video composition are second to none. I even believe that it's far superior (you have a lot of Win software and a lot of native OSX), after all Macs have been used for video and design far longer than ordinary PCs.

However, if you're like me (developer who programs on .net platform as well) it's best to stick with Win, cause i like to see the intrails of my system while it's running (I wonder if it's a good thing). A word of wisdom - i have downgraded the machine i use for development back to XP (and i don't even dream of migrating production servers to Vista anymore). It's just not effective enough and i'll have to wait for server edition that should come out this year.

As far as I'm concerned Vista is a RAM devouring, nagging, unstable DEP enforcing piece of 3d accelerated crap (if you want to say goodloking, check new KDE or Leopard again), and although the overall performance has been greatly improved over last 6 months, i don't think it's suitable for anything more than reading mails and playing games. The verdict - mine and 80% of other professionals worldwide - NOT GOOD ENOUGH. Hope it helps to hear from a person that's tried both... As for Linux, someone else will have to say, cause I don't like any of 'em for my own personal reasons.

Hi everyone. Moosh101 here. Thanks for all your comments. Yep, I have been using Windows for around 15 years now, and until just recently I have never really given Mac a second thought. The main reason why I have been seriously contemplating a Mac is the troubles I have had with Vista. Issues such as audio recording latency, 4 services running to enable audio, as opposed to XP's single audio service. Yeah, it sure looks good but its performance doesnt seem 'as' good as XP when running certain (mainly audio/MIDI/VST) applications. Also, the fact the XP is in its last stage of its life - yes SP3 is just around the corner but there's no denying that its end is in sight (Perhaps only another year of Micro$oft support and then its dinoware!)

Yes, I can build a pretty awesome PC for the same price as a new iMac, but at the end of the day its the software I want to run that determines the hardware I buy. For example, if I want Windows or Linux its a PC, or if I want OS X its a Mac. While Linux does have its advantages, such as stability, security and being open source, it does not have the availability of audio recording software that Windows , and possibly Mac, does.

So I guess I am back where I started but with a more refined choice. Buy a fancy new PC with great specs and stick with good 'ol XP - a potentially soon to be outdated OS (if its not already) or switch to Mac. What to do???? I guess I'll have to toss a coin, heads for PC, tails for Mac.

Just have a toss - you'll feel better for it :-)

Lon

Luis

XP does run 3.2 gigs of ram. I have 4 installed.

Everest and SiSoft Sandra both show 3.2 gigs running.

Linux will be anther option in a few years.

It's open source and can be developed freely. but will take a bit longer to be as easy to use as MS.

And,.. it will pass Mac as an OS.

I say forget Vista & Forget MAC, and use XP or Linux. XP-SP2 is the best OS that has been made by Microsoft to date, followed by 98 & 200.

The only vista to buy is Ultimate and then you need to tweak it to death or it will send you crazy with all of its brain dead user messages. It is still way too buggy for my liking. But don't even contemplate buying it until vista SP1 has been released on 28 Jan.

Linux has changed so much in the last 4 years and is now sitting right up there beside MAC and Windows. But you will need to learn to use Linux to get it to run at its full potential. Most people are too scared to try it because they think you have to be a Computer genius to use it, but that is not the case at all. Yes it is different from Windows but it is no harder to learn, unless you are a total moron.

It's worth taking the time to learn it and quite a rewarding experience when you get the hang of it. Most of the mainstream Linux distros are top class these days and look nothing like the boring versions of days gone by. You should be able to find one to suit your needs and personality. These days with Linux everything works straight out of the box. I have not been able to get any version of Windows to do this, including Vista.

But it all boils down to what suits you best.

Vista is a pain but it will be fixed and it can be made better by tweaking it, MAC is just a pain unless you like that sort of No Brainer OS but at least everything will work when you fire it up, Linux has a learning curve but is in most instances better than either of them. Free is not always Bad.

I bought a Dell loaded with Vista.

After 2 months of aggrevation I downgraded to XP.

Does that tell you anything!

Hi everybody,

Luis, please, grow old, 2, 3.2 or 4 gb of ram, who really cares? Nobody is talking about ram reqs. I can guess that all the ppl here are aware of memory hogs OS. That's why somebody didn't use vista at all.

The main question is Mac or PC? Some have a point when they said Mac looks good, but don't forget that the bigger universe of warez lays over PC. For example, are you aware how many good torrent clients are available on both platforms? on Mac you can found about 4, while on PC you can get over 20 to say a number, 'cause every week some one release a new good enough one.

Some said that Mac was good on video/audio, so I ask, how many 3d modelers you have on Mac 3d Studio is the only answer I may hear, to be honest it is not the very best choice, maybe the more popular, but not the best. And for audio edition? What can compete with Adobe Audition?

I think it's an easy choice if you look before over the software than the OS itself. And of course the knowledge you already have.

So, my choice is PC with XP or Linux both will do the work.

If you are willing to try "new" concepts, then try Amiga One with Workbench 4.0. Do you remember Babylon 5, it was rendered with an Amiga 4000 with video toaster... greater work... nice times... look here [ link ]

To all those recommending Linux: the OP said he used audio apps... what audio apps are available for Linux that are production-strength?

(btw, this is a serious question, not a leading one!)

Anyone who needs to toss a coin on this one is dead from the neck up!

Just because XP is no longer the "hottest" OS on the market does not stop it being the most stable and versatile OS ever. Even when it officially becomes "obsolete" (when BG really starts twisting peoples arms to buy Vista or whatever Win OS is the flavor of the month by then) XP will be no less stable!



Software does not change overnight. A large proportion of software that is available today will still run on Win98 - which has been "dead" for 6 years! So it is safe to assume that the majority of today's software will run on XP for probably another 10 years, and in 10 years time, the "super-fast multi-processor" folks are currently building will be museum pieces (such is the pace of technology).

Conclusion? The whole debate is moot: why the f*ck does anyone need to make such a "big" decision? What is actually changing?

If you judge from 1 to 10:

OS

Vista 5

XP 10

Leopard 10

Linux 7

Software for above (must have - like word, security etc):

Vista 4

XP 10

Leopard 9

Linux 6

Games:

Vista 3

XP 10

Leopard 7

Linux 0

Audio:

Vista 3

XP 10

Leopard 10

Linux 0

Video & graphics:

Vista 3

XP 10

Leopard 10

Linux 3

Go for MAC with boot camp 1.4 and install XP (works amazingly well but not for games 1-10 give 8).

Or buy PC install XP and on second partition or HDD install Mac Osx For Intel-amd Pcs, Run Macintosh Osx On Your Pc!!! (works miracles on intel dual core PC).

I got MAC (second hand laptop - intel based) and PC (desktop) with above combinations and no Linux no Vista.

Go for PC with dual boot and you will be happyyyy!!!

Best regards.

Hi Moosh101:

I computer is like a woman. You leave what you Know and you change, but a few days after you remember what the first was good and so on. Well if you want start all and forget what you learn in the last 15 years go Mac. If you want start searching for nothing go Vista... but if you want be happy and don't worry go XP SP3 now.

In the end, when you come down to it, it's all about personal preferences, and what you plan on doing on it.

Apart from Vista. We can all agree that it's just a pain.

Personally, I'd suggest good ol' XP, but I haven't used any of the others in anywhere near the same amount, so I'm not an impartial judge. And with SP3 hopefully soon to become more than an RC version, it is hardly outdated. As it stands, it is the most widely used OS, so you'll have the most support for it if something goes wrong and you don't know how to fix it. The MSDN site is extensive, if a bit confusingly organized at times, so you can be sure to find whatever you need with a bit of digging, and that's without the power of Google.

It also depends on what you're used to - more specifically what you're used to doing with a specific OS. If you've been using audio/video editing software on the Mac, then obviously you're going to say that it's the best. Same if you use them on Windows.

I'd suggest a PC, as there are many more OSs that run on it, and for the love of all that is holy in this world, don't get a MacBook Air.

During the past 2 years I became familiarised with MAC, and went so far to purchase a high end G5. I used over that time both Tiger and Leopard OS Xs.

I also possess 2 high end PCs on which I run XP SP2 and VISTA.

My conclusion is that neither Leopard nor VISTA is ready for "primetime".

Furthermore, I have recently sold the G5.

Working with both audio and video softwares I prefer the easy accessibility of the PC with XP.

MAC is for the ,I know I shouldn't say this, but, what the hell, pretentious twits who go to wine tasting events and woul not actually know if they were savouring wine, grape juice, or beer.

Mac OS could wipe out Microsoft if Microsoft didn't own Mac.

They simply make The Mac OS working on PC and more people gonna try.

If more people gonna try more apps will be made working on the Mac soft

and you wouldn't have the problem with bad or very limited Mac proggiez.

This still could happen if Microsoft keeps fuckin up there OS by putting old

wine into new bottles instaed of real devolpement in the OS.

Why are there still things working in windows like in win 95?

Not because it was as good as it could be!

I forgot to say : XP with SP3 (Cause of the many appz and more the stability of win 2000 and more)

Linux (Cause it is fast and never fails cause you programmed your software yourself ;) )

piss on windows(ESPECIALLY Vista) and piss on mac....

Set yourself up a linux box with ubuntu, you will have all the software to do anything you want. Very few(almost nonexistent) security worries, I have never had a lockup or crash or saw a blue screen, everything runs SO much faster, no worries about registry problems or file fragmentation...very short learning curve as ubuntu has made linux nearly pont and click, you need to know some command line but not a lot.....I could go on and on.

piss on gates and jobs....leave them with the xbox and ipod.

Quoting Spyke: To all those recommending Linux: the OP said he used audio apps... what audio apps are available for Linux that are production-strength?

(btw, this is a serious question, not a leading one!)

What a tard!!!!

Audacity, Ardour, Galan, Aeolus, Super Looper, FluidSynth, man there are quite a few "production strength" audio apps for linux. Nord, LMMS, AMUC....these are just the ones I know about. I'm sure there are many more.

(btw, this is a serious answer, not a leading one!)

Steve Jobs is a salesman...I want to buy my computers from a computer expert, not a salesman and the two are not one and the same about 99.9999999 percent of the time.

Win XP is plenty of software and this OS is quiet stable on the other hand new software in not anymore for XP but it is for Vista. Which eventually will run smooth.

My choice is run a PC with XP and install Vista over a virtual machine (VMWare for example). If it is the case RAM should be at least 2G, bigger it is better. Virtual Machine should run with >1G. Do not try a double boot (HD) config because Vista kernel is different that XP and boot.ini are not compatible.

In this way you could have the best of two worlds!

@timd35b: Nice attitude with the tard comments. We're not all Linux experts.

I was asking a question because I was genuinely interested in the answer. Well done for confirming the elitist attitude Linux users have that keep the rest of us for wasting our time trying to learn about it. No wonder Linux is, and always will be, a distant third in the O/S world.

Not at all elitist. I interpreted, and evidently misinterpreted, the usual sarcasm in your post. I ma just so used to people...well you know.

I apologize.

btw, if people wouldn't shy away from learning or at least trying nix, it would be a distant first in the OS world.

@timd35b: not as distant as you can think... I read somewhere that the well know and stable Mac OS X is based on a very popular nix flavor. So you can double think now why it's so stable.

The nix universe is very close to us, so close that a lot of tools, very nice ones, are ported to other OS including Windows and Mac, some examples are The Gimp, Audacity and Inkscape, to name some and don't forget the best know Open Office a very capable office suite.

Go with Vista Ultimate IF you can afford 2 GB RAM. Forget the Mac, too expensive and not enough spftware.

LPG

I bet you're more confused now than you were before you asked the question!

My input is that an operating system is supposed to enable your computer to run the various application that you want to use. If the OS is taking up a large amount of resources before you run any apps then there is something wrong somewhere.

I use XP Pro SP2 and will install SP3 when the final version appears. It's what I know and have used the most. Better the devil I know.

I won't be changing to Vista in the near future but the next time I spring clean my system and reinstall my OS, I'm going to try XP Pro 64 bit and see if the once scarce drivers for 64 bit OSes are now available. Failing that I'll try Windows Server 2003 or the latest version (Not Home Server because it corrupts data if more than one hard disk).

I will be trying to learn Linux on my old PC when I can find the time.

Another option is Etchascetch 2008. It has the simplest command system of all.

Delete: Pick it up and shake it.

Refresh screen: Pick it up and shake it.

Reboot: Pick it up and shake it.

Recover from Crash: Pick it up and shake it.

Cancel: Pick it up and shake it.

Save: Don't pick it up and shake it.

Vista is good if you like to use a lot of resources, buy a computer that has powerful hardware, and quite willing to start from scratch if it crashes and believe me when it decides to crash properly there's no chance of repairing just using a 3rd party software to format and the start again.

Like most people have said Linux is a good OS No.1 most of the distributions are free. Second The amount of software you get free, 3rd there is plenty of audio and graphics program out there for you to use. and Contridictory to what most people say you can play games from linux and most of the times you get better fps due to less resources.

As far as windows is concerned XP is the right choice, No.1 its a lot more stable and tested OS. 2 if you use the 64bit OS you may use upto 8GB if you motherboard can take it. 3 DirectX 10 isnt the end all of anything and you dont need as powerful system to run it. Last of all it uses less resources and is easier to repair.

I cant comment on Mac due to the fact that I have very little knowledge on that OS and have only briefly used it.

Varido

Understand your dislike of Steve and his "salesmanship", but buying from a computer "expert" is not a "recommendation"

Where does this "expert" get their qualifications? - Microsoft? Intel? the local repair store, a university? a book? - how do you define this "expert".

Are they experts in all PC's, Mac's, Linux?. Who pays their salaries. If they sell computers - are they not "salespersons"?

Do you pay this expert for advice? If so how much? is that more than the cost of the computer?

Of is this a expert one who knows how to fix computers, like the repair person who fixes chevy's rather than Honda's which don't need repair at all. So if they don't see Honda's in their shop how can they be expert in repairs?

And is my expert more expert than your expert. X = an unknown factor, spert = a small drip!!

And then Steve is not a salesperson, he's a CEO.

Really as i said before this is a useless debate as we are all experts and we all disagree. For the record I have owned Macs for 25 years and PC's for 27 and i can't say which is better as it depends on what i want to do.

For everyday computing - browsing, emails, spreadsheets and letters the Mac is easier and more intuitive. For games especially fast action, its PC. for safe computing its Mac, for variety of software and technical apps it's PC. For pirated software - and thats why we are here - inethouse, its PC

For playing techo, and hacking into the computer its PC, for just doing things it's Mac

But in all cases I have never trusted the so called expert, they only know how to line their own pockets - more so than a salesman, and more sneakily as you think you can trust them.....

! XP Pro SP2 !

My recent experience with OSX Leo...

I've worked for quite some time, over 5 years, with networking. The only problem I've ever had with MS OS (98, 2k, or XP) was finding drivers for LAN or modem cards. Any other fixes for glitches were easily 'Googleble'.

I have short experience with Linux. Once it found drivers for hardware it run OK.

OSX is pain in the ass. I was hardwired to a home network. Plugged in wireless card. Airport took over and now I cannot get back to wired LAN. No information on the internet how to fix the LAN. I am still trying to get back on the horse but it looks to me that if you have a hiccup with OSX you have to reinstall the whole OS. I am sure that a Unix expert can fix some problems but the info is not easy to find on the net.

In my opinion OSX is an astonishingly looking Linux box. Waste of money considering you can get, other than OSX, Unix-based boxes for free; Fedora, Ubuntu, etc.

They all suck Balls. Give up computers, Drop out & become pot smoking Hippie

"Vista is good if you like to use a lot of resources, buy a computer that has powerful hardware, and quite willing to start from scratch if it crashes and believe me when it decides to crash properly there's no chance of repairing just using a 3rd party software to format and the start again."

Actually, this is not true. You can use Rollback Rx to recover from most problems on Vista. I have been using it on Vista Ultimate and I have messed up my computer to the point where it would do a continuous loop reboot and gout out of that problem with Rollback. I try a lot of new software and some of it is quite unstable and "rude" to other installed software so, I have had quite a bit of experience in getting things to co-exist and work properly without having to start from absolute scratch.

The killer combo is using a decent uninstaller like Ashampoo UnInstaller Platinum 2 along with Rollback Rx and do frequent backups of the data to prevent loss. This strategy along with the built in Generate System Health Report in the advanced tools section of Vista Ultimate allows me to keep an eye on safe, secure, and stable performance of my system. Of course, don't forget decent security apps along with that as well and you should be sailing uninterrupted.

vista 64 bit