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Would you use a Linux based computer, better or equal to a mac in quality?

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Re: Would you use a Linux based computer, better or equal to a mac in quality?

#91

Post by DanBC »

tarminian wrote: post #90
Htsthbjig wrote: post #57

Of course but DO NOT BELIEVE that you can make something of better quality than a hundred billion dollar company can do. Apple has lots of legacy code, you know, when you see instant vector graphics in apple maps, Apple is using decades of software done by dozens of genius programmers over time when efficiency mattered(for example for drawing fonts on the screen). This code, then, became accelerated. Apple bought a h…

"Apple sells millions of devices and this means they have access to a supply chain and prices you can't get. period." How does that explain the higher cost of Apple products?

i) they tightly control the chain thus demand higher quality

ii) every business wants bigger margins. Either increase price of product sold; or reduce cost of making the product; or do both.

Re: Would you use a Linux based computer, better or equal to a mac in quality?

#92

Post by Satoshietal »

As a consumer family, during 2014 we bought several used Win 7 i5 Lenovo T410 and T510 from a simply-lovely and adorable eBay vendor. $200-$250 price class.

The ones with video GPUs chips went to the kids. They're extremely happy, so the laptoos must be good enough. They use them daily. I got The Beast, and added an SSD and BluRay player drive. I'm very happy too.

It's been a great year for used computer hardware. The available used hardware with Win 7 is great. YMMV.

Merry Xmas!!

Re: Would you use a Linux based computer, better or equal to a mac in quality?

#96

Post by ebiester »

zanny wrote: post #63
iron_ball wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Completely agreed. I've been able to work quite effectively on a T520i -- but I've also experienced occasional frustration with the hardware integration. Every time I upgrade Ubuntu, I worry that I'm about to knock my system's stability off its precarious perch, and sometimes it happens. Things just aren't bulletproof. For my next computer, I'm willing to spend the extra $1000 for a Mac, where I can believe that thin…

You can buy a system76, thinkpenguin, Dell XPS 13, or Zareason computer and expect Ubuntu to just work™. Stop buying Windows computers and saying its the Linux distros fault the hardware isn't fully supported or stable, it is the same thing as trying to install OSX on a Windows computer and complaining nothing works. You gotta get supported products, and they do exist now, they are just a small and growing market. Bu…

http://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/1pwwr0/system76_is_sc...

When I last checked the reviews of the system76 laptops, there were more problems than the T420. The Zareason systems have those awful keyboards from the looks of it, and even the "UltraLap" looks bulky. And it includes a terrible resolution screen. (Why is anything shipping with 1366x768 anymore?)

They either aren't thinking of programmers, or they don't have the money to compete.

I'm considering the XPS 13, but the screen is too small. I want a thin 14 or 15 inch laptop. (The T420 doesn't quite make it in that regard, but it's old technology at this point.) And, of course, the XPS 15 doesn't have a ubuntu edition.

I'm willing to make a sacrifice for weight if the keyboard and monitor are top notch (like the T420) but nobody is taking keyboards seriously anymore. And as far as I can tell, the best keyboard and screen today is Apple.

I've spent the last 3 years with my personal laptop running Linux. I'll probably stick with this until I can't anymore. But I'm not willing to sacrifice my productivity "to make a point."

Re: Would you use a Linux based computer, better or equal to a mac in quality?

#97

Post by jsta »

Not really.

Just thinking about general use personal computers (not remote boxes, servers, etc.), the only thing I feel like Linux adds to the OS X experience is tiling window managers.

But I only care about them on my giant 4K screen at home, where I only /need/ to use OS X for certain non-linux apps and where similar functionality comes from 3rd party apps. On my laptop(s), I tend to full-screen basically everything anyway, which works about the same on every system.

So, desktop PCs....no. You can build something better than any company can offer for similar or less money and with the compromises you want instead of the ones someone else decided on.

And for laptops, no. I find that I can get what I want from products that are already on the market. I /would/ pay for an Apple Laptop with a 12" 16:10 very high resolution screen and a trackpoint without thinking, though.

Re: Would you use a Linux based computer, better or equal to a mac in quality?

#98

Post by rifung »

tarminian wrote: post #90
Htsthbjig wrote: post #57

Of course but DO NOT BELIEVE that you can make something of better quality than a hundred billion dollar company can do. Apple has lots of legacy code, you know, when you see instant vector graphics in apple maps, Apple is using decades of software done by dozens of genius programmers over time when efficiency mattered(for example for drawing fonts on the screen). This code, then, became accelerated. Apple bought a h…

"Apple sells millions of devices and this means they have access to a supply chain and prices you can't get. period." How does that explain the higher cost of Apple products?

I don't agree with the premise that Apple products have a higher cost, at least here in the US. As far as I can tell, if you want something similar to a Mac you'd have to pay just as much if not more, and it's honestly hard to find something that can compare.

I think if you only look at the "computing relevant" specifications it might be possible, but what I think is much more difficult to find is other products that offer the same quality for the other things. For example, I haven't been able to find another laptop that can offer the combination of good battery life, keyboard, screen quality (not necessarily resolution), and trackpad. They are also quite nice looking although that's subjective obviously.

If you know of another laptop that has all these things please do recommend it as I am looking to upgrade soon! Preferably Linux compatible =]

Re: Would you use a Linux based computer, better or equal to a mac in quality?

#99

Post by MrQuincle »

MrQuincle wrote: post #5

Most often you get more bang for your buck if you do not need to limit yourself to Apple hardware. So, if you use Linux you - very likely - have already more hardware to your disposal for lesser cost. So, I think the answer to "Does that appeal to me?" is yes. :-)

I've been checking the laptop I bought in October 2012 for under a 1000 euro, an Asus N56VZ-S4044V. Let me compare it with the Mid 2012 MacBook Air, say the 1400 USD model (although they are usually 1400 euros). Help me if this is the wrong comparison!

http://support.apple.com/kb/SP670 http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Asus-N56VZ-S4044V-Notebo...

First MBA, then Asus:

* Screen estate: 13" vs 15"

* Resolution: 1440 x 900 vs 1920 x 1080

* Processor: Dual Core i7 on 2.0GHz vs Quad Core i7-3610QM on 2.3 GHz

* Memory: 4GB DDR3 vs 8GB DDR3

* Storage: 256 GB vs 1 TB

* Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 4000 (no other?) vs Nvidia GeForce GT650M plus the HD4000 GPU

All the other things might cancel out a bit. Bang & Olufsen speakers I don't care for so much. Or Bluetooth 4.0 on the MBA. Ah, the battery life. That one might be a pro for the MBA.

But perhaps things did change in the last two years! If I buy a new one, I probably will go again for a laptop that ends up high at http://www.notebookcheck.net/ though. I always go for good hardware.

Re: Would you use a Linux based computer, better or equal to a mac in quality?

#100

Post by pritambaral »

darkhorn wrote: post #56
drivingmenuts wrote: post #10

No. Linux makes for a good server setup, but the desktop side is lacking in high-quality applications that are considered standard on other platforms. Linux simply has too many cooks to ever achieve the mostly homogenous experience of Windows or Mac. That is both it's blessing and it's curse. Besides, I get 90% of what I need from Linux on a Mac and the other 10% I can get from a VM running Linux or a remote box.

Few days ago I've installed Ubuntu on at work. I cannot open folders under many directories because I don't have permissions. Then I gave permissions, with the terminal. And guess what? I has started to reset its static IP. I wanted to ad cron jobs, they didn't work, also you write them as text, I have no idea how they work. When you shut down Ubuntu from terminal the PC goes for sleep, it doesn't power off. You don'…

While reading this comment, all through it right until the last word, I thought you sounded like an accustomed Windows user fresh into Linux territory, wayward and misguided by some unknowledgeable sources.

Every single pain point you listed can be summed up simply by, as you said, "I have no idea how they work".

At that last word: it all went further confusing. I don't see how FreeBSD doesn't have a permissions model, or text-edited configs, or has installer wizards (yuck!). Did you mistype 'OS X' as 'FreeBSD'?

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