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Ask HN: Do I need a Mac in order to be taken seriously as a web developer?

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Ask HN: Do I need a Mac in order to be taken seriously as a web developer?

#1

Post by discountgenius »

People used to use Windows for business, Linux for programming, and Mac for art. The use of Mac for development has risen significantly since the advent of iOS and I seem to notice a growing trend of web developers moving to Mac. I have always considered Macs to be overpriced and representative of a "style over function" mentality, but I now accept Apple hardware and software to be of high functional quality. I am finding more and more web development tools, guides, and tutorials aimed at Mac OS X.

What trends have you noticed?

What trends do you anticipate?

Is it time for me to bite the bullet and go Apple as I attempt to break into web development in the next couple years?

Re: Ask HN: Do I need a Mac in order to be taken seriously as a web developer?

#3

Post by discountgenius »

janogonzalez wrote: post #2

Short answer: No Long answer: The computer you use is just a tool. To be taken seriously you need to have an impressive portfolio of projects, you will be judged by your results and not by the tools you used.

I guess my real questions are: Are Macs the best tools available? If yes, will they remain the best tools available? Will the trend of development tools and communities targeting Mac OS continue?

Re: Ask HN: Do I need a Mac in order to be taken seriously as a web developer?

#4

Post by staunch »

It depends what you want. If you're trying to get a job, then yeah, it might actually help to seem more like the cool kids. Get a Mac, use RoR/Node.js, insist on NoSQL, and wear a Afghan scarf too for good measure.

In practical terms it doesn't matter at all. The web is cross-platform and if anything I'd say Linux has the advantage as a development environment. It allows you to create a local environment identical to your server environment.

Re: Ask HN: Do I need a Mac in order to be taken seriously as a web developer?

#6

Post by thoughtsimple »

Hmm, tough question but if you don't have a Mac how do you test? With a Mac you can test easily on Windows and Linux. But if you just use Windows, then you need an alternate machine to test for Mac compatibility, you can dual boot into LInux.

Re: Ask HN: Do I need a Mac in order to be taken seriously as a web developer?

#7

Post by manuscreationis »

To answer the question posed in your title: Absolutely not.

If anything (like another poster here have mentioned), Linux seems to have the most advantage out of "The Big 3", but it really doesn't matter in the long term. You should try to be fluent in at least one environment (OS) , and capable in the others.

Thanks to virtualization, you can run Linux or MacOS on Windows, or any vice-versa-ed combination you might choose. Pick the platform that has the best tools for the language you want, and go with it.

One caveat: If you work in an office with all macs, don't be the guy with the windows machine making the rest of the teams life more difficult. Same goes for an all Linux or all Windows shop. For your professional development needs, you should strive to work in unison with your team.

Personal needs? Go with your heart.

Re: Ask HN: Do I need a Mac in order to be taken seriously as a web developer?

#8

Post by phren0logy »

discountgenius wrote: post #3
janogonzalez wrote: post #2

Short answer: No Long answer: The computer you use is just a tool. To be taken seriously you need to have an impressive portfolio of projects, you will be judged by your results and not by the tools you used.

I guess my real questions are: Are Macs the best tools available? If yes, will they remain the best tools available? Will the trend of development tools and communities targeting Mac OS continue?

Quit worrying about this crap and start making stuff. I know that sounds like a harsh non-answer, but it's true. I offer it because sometimes I have the same problem. Quit sharpening pencils and start writing.

Do as much as you can with whatever computer you have and a copy of gedit or something similar. If you hit the limits of this within the first few months, it's probably your limit, not the tools. If not, then by that time you will be able to determine for yourself what tools you need.

Re: Ask HN: Do I need a Mac in order to be taken seriously as a web developer?

#10

Post by manuscreationis »

discountgenius wrote: post #3
janogonzalez wrote: post #2

Short answer: No Long answer: The computer you use is just a tool. To be taken seriously you need to have an impressive portfolio of projects, you will be judged by your results and not by the tools you used.

I guess my real questions are: Are Macs the best tools available? If yes, will they remain the best tools available? Will the trend of development tools and communities targeting Mac OS continue?

"Best Tool" is highly subjective.

Don't forget the reason why Mac Development is so vogue right now really does have to do with the fact that the OS is based on BSD now, and thus it's a lot easier to get things from the wider Linux world onto the Mac platform. The Linux platform has really been exploding lately, and that's helped Mac out tremendously (In my opinion; Please let me know if I'm talking out of my ass here).

However, don't just go get a Linux box either.

Find what works for you, and go with it.

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