Which Computer for You?

Well being in the IT world, I quite often get asked the question:

What kind of computer should I get, Mac or Windows (or other)?

The bottom line answer is.... which ever you like or want, but most importantly which ever you are most comfortable with, but really it depends on what you need. I say this since most people know that I don't like Windows, and they know I use Linux, but when they see me with a notebook, I use a MacBookPro (and before that a PowerBook G4) and they know my wife uses Windows. So which is the best platform... which do I recommend.... well all and none! So like I said, it depends on 'you'. What do you want, like, know? But truthfully, what do you need?

What do you want:
Honestly if you know what you want, why are you asking? But that is not my point. If you really want something and are willing to learn something new, then go for it. The bottom line is that no platform is better than the other nor worse. Now in some cases depending on what you do, some platforms have more options that may fit you life style and requirements but all will do what you want (in some manner or another) and all will have some sort of solution.

What do you like:
If you like something, why? is it because it is trendy, is it cool, or do you just want to stand out and be 'different'? I personally like Linux since it is Open Source and I believe in the idea of Open Source (this does not mean I think all should be free, but this post is not about that). So since I have a personal like for the ethics behind Linux, I like it. Now does that mean that I should say that everybody should like Linux or that I think everybody should use Linux, no, just that I like there ethics. At the same time I'm a programmer, so people instantly think that I like Linux for that reason, and again no... I like it cause it is 'free' and because I develop apps for Unix/Linux, honestly, platforms like  HPUX, IBM AIX and SUN Solaris are much better and mature Unix platforms, but again Linux wins in my mind for the open source ethics reasons.
So back to what you like: if you like a platform for whatever reason, than like it and use it, don't switch because of what others think (including me)

What do you know:
What platform do you know the best and which are you more comfortable on? As you've guessed, I know Linux/Unix/Mac, but I actually know Windows pretty well too (well enough for what I use it for). Why I think 'what you know' is important is for 2 reasons: 1. you'll have an easier time figuring out problems if you are comfortable and have personal experience. Come on we've all had problems before... like installing a printer. If you know how to do it on a PC don't think that you can do it on a Mac or Linux box, its not the same on all (its not necessarily hard, but not the same). If want the fewest headaches, use a platform you know. My second reason is selfish.... if you know your system you won't be asking me questions as often.

But the bottom line question should be:
What do you NEED:
Why is this the most important question... because like I said earlier, any platform can you anything you want it to do. Just some will do it easier and some will take more work. Plus the question of what you need help tie in the previous 3 questions. Typically what you need will drive what you want, if will most-likely be based on what you like, if you need it, you've probably been doing it and there for it has been done on a platform that you are comfortable with.

So basically if you've guessed, I'm not a big fan of promoting 'switching'. If you 'want' to switch platforms, do it because you WANT to, not because you think the other platform is more trendy. The number of people I know who have chosen to go Mac or Linux because they want to be different or trendy... ugh... Macs are great, they will do everything you want and typically everything you need, but don't expect every piece of software you use on a Windows computer to be available, especially if you use lots of 3rd party Excel add ons... Similarly, if you like the way tools like iPhoto and some other Mac ONLY tools work, you won't find many of them on Windows (not yet). And if you want to try linux... well Linux is my platform of choice for WORK, not play. I can do basically everything I need to do for work on my Linux computer (with the exception of work with files made for Office, yes OpenOffice works great, but there are some things you need a comercial version of Word for, and yes you can install them via Wine or an emulator, but still not the same). So does this mean that everybody should use Windows, no!, just that for the most part, there are more 'applications' available for Windows, but there are almost just as many for Mac and Linux, you just have to look a bit harder.

So back to the initial topic (not that I've left)... what is the best computer for you? here are some questions to answer:

1. What do you use it most for (email, web surfing, word processing/spreadsheets, movies, music, photos, gaming....)?
2. What tools do you use to do such things?
1. what platforms are they available for?
2. are there alternatives that will work for me?
3. What kind of problems have I had?
1. how hard were they to solve?
   
4. What kind of stuff do I see myself doing in the future?
1. when is that future

So with these basic questions answered, you should know what you do most and what works best with them. If you are thinking about switching, you should also now know if you programs you use are available or if there are alternatives. Also you should know what you feel more comfortable on based on the kind of problems you have and how hard/easy they were to fix. And lastly you should have a basic idea of what kind of stuff you see yourself doing in the future, and on that topic you should look at question 2 again and see what you options are. If you are thinking about getting into gaming, it will really suck if you find out you can't play that one game you really want. One thing you'll also notice over the process is that everything you do is accomplished with the platform you HAVE, so why switch, and again if you really WANT to switch, you will be roughly ready.  But also remember that if you switch, you can always go back (well sort of, if you leave Mac, unless you have Apple hardware, you are not going back with out a cost). My brother decided to switch from Windows to Linux... about a year later, back to Windows he went (that said, I will make this suggestion, if you are a STUDENT, go with windows, most school tech departments won't help you with Linux and most software they give you won't always work for Macs). Based on the above list of questions I also came to suggest to my wife that she should stick with Windows for her MBA program, but I did essentially use that list of questions, and now that she is about to finish her MBA in May, I think she'd agree, that having a Windows laptop has made her education easier to deal with, especially with the software that was provided to her.

So which computer is best for you?, don't ask me, ask yourself. Now once you've decided, I will try to help you as best I can ...