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Ask HN: Is it worth switching to a Mac?

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Re: Ask HN: Is it worth switching to a Mac?

#11

Post by bprater »

MrFantsyPants wrote: post #10

I do a fair bit of coding on Mac, Windows and Linux (usually ubuntu) If you switch, be prepared that it will take you a bit of an adjustment, as many of the basic actions that you do without even thinking about it will change. However, I think over time you'll find that it is not a change you'll regret. I find that in general, you'll get things done faster, and learn new things quicker. It's definitely the platform t…

Important point here: you WILL have an adjustment period.

You'll have to learn the quirks of the OS. (Where's the damn menu bar!)

You'll have to find similar apps to the ones you've used in Windows. (Assuming you don't want to VM everything -- and if you do -- maybe you should question why you're moving to Mac.)

Re: Ask HN: Is it worth switching to a Mac?

#12

Post by ericb »

I switched from Windows to a macbook pro about 9 months ago and have mostly been happy. I'm irritated by the behavior of cut and paste regarding subfolders and files, and the different hotkeys slow me down. On the plus side, Terminal and shell scripting make the dos prompt look like a cheap toy. The hardware itself is beautifully done. There are far fewer instances where OS X annoys me, and I've yet to have a virus or spyware issue on OS X, and I haven't had to pay the antivirus "tax" of speed and money.

Overall, I prefer it to Windows, but I'm still thinking of switching to Ubuntu.

Re: Ask HN: Is it worth switching to a Mac?

#14

Post by tortilla »

Yes it's worth it to switch. Took me about a month to get completely comfortable, but a lot of it is trial and error. It's like learning to drive on the opposite side of the road.

The keyboard commands aren't hard to master but by default, a lot of the keyboard options are turned off in OS X. System Settings > (Full Keyboard Access) [x] All controls

I can't live without Quicksilver, but the learning curve for it is pretty steep (more advanced commands).

http://osx.iusethis.com/ Hey if you have specific questions, email me and I'll be happy to answer them. I've helped a lot of people switch. Lots of times, you just need some tips to feel comfortable.

Re: Ask HN: Is it worth switching to a Mac?

#15

Post by guruz »

Except some stuff like proper java 1.6 I am very happy with my Mac. Switching from windows to mac is a good choice. If you would have been a Linux user, I'd say maybe stick with it :)

Eclipse works like a charm on OS X.

Instead of VmWare you might consider http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallels,_Inc. ... or well, actually you don't need any virtualization at all for what you are using?

Re: Ask HN: Is it worth switching to a Mac?

#16

Post by bprater »

If you want to go native, this list of Mac counterparts might help you:

  Eclipse - There is a Mac version.
  UltraEdit - Coda or Textmate.
  SQLYog - Sequel Pro.
  WinSCP - Cyberduck, YummyFTP. Tons of clients. Check out ExpanDrive for some real fun. 
  TortoiseSVN - Syncro SVN.
  Adobe CS3 - There is a Mac version.
  Camtasia Studio - Screenflow. 
  MS Office - There is a Mac version.
  WAMP - There is a similar MAMP. Then again, you are running on a platform 
         that has all those goodies pre-installed and ready-to-go!
Anyone have some additional suggestions?

PS: Virtualization has a cost associated with it. I only fire mine up for testing. Make sure you max out the RAM you get on the machine.

Re: Ask HN: Is it worth switching to a Mac?

#17

Post by jmtame »

I recently made the switch and my #1 objection to doing it: the keyboard shortcuts. I've actually mastered most of the shortcuts in about 1-2 days.

The main reason I made the switch is because I am going to do iPhone app development and that's pretty difficult on a PC.

So far it's been pleasant. I am pretty impressed by OSX, definitely some advantages over XP and this is pretty much understood and repeated, but Apple goes out of their way to make everything work nicely. My freakin' keyboard lights up when the room gets dark. That's pretty cool.

Re: Ask HN: Is it worth switching to a Mac?

#18

Post by minalecs »

I recently switched from linux to mac, and I would not pay the apple tax again. I force myself to use the fisher price os they call osx, to justify the apple tax i payed for the hardware. But being a windows to mac user may be a better transition. For those that say use Vmware.. why not just buy the cheaper hardware and run windows. The hardware is all commodity, and you are not getting any benefits from the hardware, compared to x86 vs ppc days. Mainly is a software point of view. From what I've found in ubuntu repository any software I ever wanted or needed I could find for free. To make osx usable for me, I've had to pay for quite a bit of software. I find it much less productive.. my best example is .. on standard keyboard layout .. press ctrl + c , and notice how your hand is shaped. Its already in an extended position for the next key. Now on mac to copy its command key (apple or win key) + c ... you hand is curled into like a ball.. and no matter how long you use it, its still awkward, and not as natural when typing. For me I wanted the *nix environment + the stability, and osx does deliver, but the price is your computing freedom.

Re: Ask HN: Is it worth switching to a Mac?

#20

Post by neovive »

Jasber wrote: post #7

As a developer I like running software that is similar to my production environment. OS X is close enough to Linux that most applications work the same. This makes me more productive and makes development easier. When I switched it was frustrating. It took me 2 weeks before I felt comfortable navigating the OS. After that 2 weeks things began to feel comfortable. I feel much more productive on my Mac now than I ever…

The OS X UNIX backend is definitely compelling as all of my web apps are hosted on Linux. I was thinking about just switching to Linux, but the Linux desktop just doesn't seem as polished as Mac or Windows. Although, I will be switching my old Dell into a Linux test server running CentOS.
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