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Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

jeffgeerling.com

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Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#231

Post by cup-of-tea »

shittyadmin wrote: post #197
eknkc wrote: post #36

What I'm mostly curious about these posts is, how the heck do you guys switch operating systems that easily? I guess it would work if you are already using Linux or Windows on a Mac hardware but that's gotta be rare. I mean, hardware is nothing compared to the OS.. I can switch to any other Mac and it would take me a couple hours to be comfortable. That would be it. If I'm switching to a Dell XPS, I don't really care…

Maybe I'm alone in this, but I really don't see what anyone likes about Macs or macOS, I bought a rMBP a few years back and it's to this date one of the worst purchases of my life, I hate the touchpad (the clicking thing is much slower than tapping), I hate the keyboard (feels really cheap) and macOS too, mostly due to Finder and Objective C being absolute garbage like nothing else I've seen. Wound up bootcamping it…

You're definitely not alone. I agree with everything you said. I'll add that MacOS is like a weird, slow toy rather than a serious work environment. Everyone uses homebrew to do development but that's just a painfully slow version of package managers that have existed on Linux for decades. It might "just work", but it doesn't work at all the way I want it to.

Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#232

Post by deepspace »

morley wrote: post #86
eknkc wrote: post #36

What I'm mostly curious about these posts is, how the heck do you guys switch operating systems that easily? I guess it would work if you are already using Linux or Windows on a Mac hardware but that's gotta be rare. I mean, hardware is nothing compared to the OS.. I can switch to any other Mac and it would take me a couple hours to be comfortable. That would be it. If I'm switching to a Dell XPS, I don't really care…

I'm surprised no one has mentioned keyboard portability. I find it incredibly hard to switch from ctrl on Windows to cmd on Mac. In college I had to switch frequently between Windows and Mac, and it was a nightmare. Since then, I've committed to only use MacOS on a Macbook and Windows on a real keyboard. That seems to preserve my muscle memory the best. But things can be rough when I use a Windows laptop or a standal…

My solution is to map Ctrl to CapsLock on Windows and Cmd to CapsLock on MacOS. Not perfect by any means but seems to be an ok compromise muscle-memory wise.

Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#233

Post by abrookins »

gecko wrote: post #210
abrookins wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've been hearing this about WSL for a while now. However, I just spent a ton of time (like weeks) actually trying Windows 10 and the Windows Subsystem for Linux (for those who don't know what WSL is), coming from a Mac, and I gotta say, WSL isn't there yet for the code I work with. Specifically, it worked fine for some Python stuff, it built some Go code decently, I figured something out for Docker, but then it blew…

Would I be correct that you tried WSL in late summer/fall last year? I'm asking because WSL got a pile of new syscalls, a couple of which (if I recall correctly) fixed the unicorn issue you hit. Likewise, there are now standard GPOs you can distribute that exempt WSL from Defender. I 100% agree that running a Linux VM can sometimes be a lot better (and it's not exactly hard, given that Hyper-V has been in Windows for…

Actually, it was as recently as this very week! Running with all the latest updates on a new Surface Book 2, I ran into a variation of this open issue: https://github.com/Microsoft/WSL/issues/1982.

That was only the last and final blocking issue I ran into, after a series of minor (or at least, not serious) problems that I powered through during too many late nights.

Couple of things:

- Hyper-V. Was excited for this and tried it, since I had already set up Docker for Windows and pointed the CLI tools in WSL at it. However, Hyper-V didn't appear to have any support for the "shared folder" concept that VMWare and VirtualBox do. Is your only option here to set up Windows share and use Samba?

- I dislike running VMs generally, but would have gone that route if I could have gotten a setup I liked. However, after reconfiguring everything to use VirtualBox (including Docker) and creating a single VM there to do Docker and Linux stuff on, it seemed to tax the machine too much (i5 8GB SB2). With a beefy machine that would have worked better, but Windows 10 isn't that appealing if I have to buy the highest-spec machines and run VMs... that's exactly where it was 5-10 years ago.

I have a lot more to say about WSL and Windows 10, and it probably deserves a blog post. I haven't returned the Surface yet because I'm kinda in love with it, but also if I can't do all my work on it, then it's not something I need to own.

Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#234

Post by pdq »

grimgrin wrote: post #220
Clubber wrote: post #213

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe Dell should fix their trackpad.

Who has a useful trackpad anyways? An actually great one, besides Apple? I have no idea why this is the case? Patents or too expensive to justify? Genuinely curious

I've heard the Microsoft Surface is very good.

Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#235

Post by rsynnott »

oarsinsync wrote: post #222
SyneRyder wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mac user since 2006 here, who often tries switching back to Windows. The biggest deal breaker for me has been the Windows 10 update system, where it will sometimes start installing updates when you shut down your computer and tell you "don't turn off your computer". There's been times when I've been stuck at a cafe for 45 minutes & nearly missed a train home because Windows was still sitting there saying "Don't Turn…

The Mac has a snooze light? Where? I’ve been using a MacBook Air since 2010 and MacBook Pro since 2015 and haven’t seen anything resembling a snooze light. Would love to discover this!

Sadly, abandoned as of (I think) the rMBP.

Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#236

Post by prolikewhoa »

Clubber wrote: post #213
codegladiator wrote: post #211

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wish there are less people like you and more people who want to fix things. For reasons which should be obvious I guess.

Maybe Dell should fix their trackpad.

I have no issues with it. Macs may have a better trackpad, but there's absoultely nothing wrong with it. I'm using Arch w/i3 and use whatever stock settings there are.

Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#237

Post by pokemongoaway »

morley wrote: post #86
eknkc wrote: post #36

What I'm mostly curious about these posts is, how the heck do you guys switch operating systems that easily? I guess it would work if you are already using Linux or Windows on a Mac hardware but that's gotta be rare. I mean, hardware is nothing compared to the OS.. I can switch to any other Mac and it would take me a couple hours to be comfortable. That would be it. If I'm switching to a Dell XPS, I don't really care…

I'm surprised no one has mentioned keyboard portability. I find it incredibly hard to switch from ctrl on Windows to cmd on Mac. In college I had to switch frequently between Windows and Mac, and it was a nightmare. Since then, I've committed to only use MacOS on a Macbook and Windows on a real keyboard. That seems to preserve my muscle memory the best. But things can be rough when I use a Windows laptop or a standal…

Karabiner is a great app.

Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#238

Post by SiempreViernes »

codegladiator wrote: post #229
Clubber wrote: post #213

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe Dell should fix their trackpad.

I am really surprised with the down votes considering this is "hacker" news. I will soon loose all meaning for the term hacker.

Apple is a terribly profitable company, it does not pay karma to question them.

Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#239

Post by radicaldreamer »

The best laptop I've ever used (I mostly use Mac's at home and at work) is the Panasonic Let's Note S line of PCs. The closest you can get to a MacBook Pro 15" performance (minus discrete graphics) in a 12" form factor, with plenty of full sized ports and even a DVD writer. Lighter than a 13" MacBook.

Re: Dell XPS 13 Review from a lifelong Mac user

#240

Post by 013a »

grimgrin wrote: post #220
Clubber wrote: post #213

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe Dell should fix their trackpad.

Who has a useful trackpad anyways? An actually great one, besides Apple? I have no idea why this is the case? Patents or too expensive to justify? Genuinely curious

Most Windows PCs which ship with precision drivers and an oversized glass trackpad feel 90% as good as the MacBooks. The Surface line and the new Razer Blade 15 are two examples.

The precision drivers are key. Many manufacturers still haven't adopted them, and they are the main reason why Windows trackpads still get a bad rep.

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