OsX compared to Linux and BeOS

Ciao Tony Polson, nel tuo messaggio dicevi:

Hi. I'm getting away from the Windows thing and I would like to get a
new desktop...either a Mac running OsX, or a PC running Linux or BeOS.

Which one should I go with?

I am currently a osx and linux user, and gave a shot to BeOS, although
very *very* superficially.

OSX: You buy a good but overpriced machine at apple, you have a rock solid
proprietary OS with a lot of apps and some support from hardware vendors.

Linux: You buy the hardware you want and can afford, right after having
checked it is supported by linux, you install any of the distributions
(from the very easy - Fedora, Mandrake, Ubuntu, SuSE - to the very hard -
Debian, Slackware, Gentoo, LFS) and you have a HUGE load of apps and NO
support from hardware vendors.

[please BeOS people don't bash me for this, just correct me if I am wrong]

BeOS: Same as for linux, but you get a more limited choice of apps and if
saying you run linux on your box will make most people say "what?", by
saying you run BeOS they will probably call the police, cause you are some
sort of terrorist.

My two cents: if you have money to spend and NO time to play the hacker,
go for the mac. If one (or both) of the two conditions is not satisfied,
think about linux and BeOS.

--
On Oct 5 1991, 8.53 AM; Linus Benedict Torvalds said:
I can (well, almost) hear you asking yourselves "why?". Hurd will be
out in a year (or two, or next month, who knows), and I've already got
minix.

On Sat, 12 Feb 2005 08:56:26 -0800, Tony Polson wrote:

Hi. I'm getting away from the Windows thing and I would like to get a
new desktop...either a Mac running OsX, or a PC running Linux or BeOS.

Which one should I go with? I know that Mac would cost me the most
because of the proprietary hardware, but would the benefits outweigh
the extra cost if I bought the Mac? Is OsX as stable as Linux and
BeOS? Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

TP (leaving the Gates Empire)

BeOS has been dead for years so forget about that one. Your choice of OS X
vs Linux is dependent on your needs and capabilities. Both are solid
stable virus free operating systems. There are hundreds of Linux
distributions all with different focuses. Some are optimized entirely for
performance, others for ease of use, most try and strike a balance. The
major Linux distrobutions like Mandrake, SUSE and Fedora Core (the free
Redhat) come with a huge collection of free software. They are all
reasonably easy to use by anyone who has a modicum of computer knowledge.
However they aren't completely painless in the way that OS-X is. Linux
is about flexiblity and choice which comes at a price of complexity. You
also won't be able to buy any commercial end user applications for them
unless you use Win4Lin to run Windows applications in a Windows env that's
hosted on top of Linux. Linux applications fall into two categories, free
and very expensive applications aimed at corporations like databases and
engineering tools. For Office, e-mail, and web applications Linux has
excellent free solutions. For other things like tax programs you are out
of luck on Linux unless you have Win4Lin (that's what I use).

The Mac has always aimed at the greatest possible ease of use. If you go
with OS-X that's what you'll get, a system that doesn't require any
fiddling to make things work. You can also buy commercial applications
although not nearly as many as Windows. You won't have the same freedom to
choose every aspect of your environment the way you would on Linux but the
environment that you do get is well thought out and will do the job for
you.

"Tony Polson" wrote:

Hi. I'm getting away from the Windows thing and I would like to get a
new desktop...either a Mac running OsX, or a PC running Linux or BeOS.

Which one should I go with? I know that Mac would cost me the most
because of the proprietary hardware, but would the benefits outweigh
the extra cost if I bought the Mac? Is OsX as stable as Linux and
BeOS? Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

TP (leaving the Gates Empire)

Apple hasn't used proprietary hardware for YEARs... everything is
standards based, USB, IDE, SATA, FireWire, DVI, VGA, 802.11b/g, DDR Ram,
on and on...

Prices have dropped too... You can get a rather speedy Mac for $499.
Don't be fooled by Mhz or Ghz... The Mac uses a more modern processor so
as a general rule double the Mhz/Ghz number to arrive at a similar
Intel/AMD processor speed. Intel is kinda stuck, they have to put their
old processors in a higher gear to match what IBM/Apple is doing. That
makes it HOT and run poorly. Just like a car always in 5th or 6th gear.

Depends on what you want, the eMac is good for $799. or the iMac G5 at
$1,299 or $1,799 with a very nice 20" flat panel. Don't waste your
money on the G5 Tower, although Apple has recently dropped the lowest
end version of that to $1,499. Not a bad deal but.....

eMac is fine for most work, G5 iMac is a stellar box too...

http://www.apple.com/emac
http://www.apple.com/imac

Then the mini is Apple lowest model, but for $499, you really can't go
wrong... Get a KVM switch and you can "flip" between your PC and new
Mac... nice!

http://www.apple.com/macmini

--

Linux is mainy for nerd, not for people that want to get something done.
BeOS is a waste of time, no longer in development.

OSX is the KING of all UNIX OS's. 1 million sold every 90 days! By far
the largest, most stable os there is.

http://www.apple.com/macosx

paul

There are many variables to consider he

1. Budget?
2. Lifestyle? (Are you an Apple consumer, i.e. iPod/Shuffle, etc.)
3. What exactly will you be using the computer for?
4. Software limitations? (Free/pay, availability, etc.)

If I were gonna get a Mac (and this is a consideration for me, but I just
love to tinker with OSes) I would either go for a PowerMac G5 (High cost)
or a Mac Mini (toy). For the cost of that Mac Mini, I could have a serious
non-mac machine though....

Just thinking out loud...

Tony Polson wrote:

Hi. I'm getting away from the Windows thing and I would like to get a
new desktop...either a Mac running OsX, or a PC running Linux or BeOS.

Which one should I go with? I know that Mac would cost me the most
because of the proprietary hardware, but would the benefits outweigh
the extra cost if I bought the Mac? Is OsX as stable as Linux and
BeOS? Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

TP (leaving the Gates Empire)

Tony Polson wrote:
Hi. I'm getting away from the Windows thing and I would like to get a
new desktop...either a Mac running OsX, or a PC running Linux or BeOS.

Which one should I go with? I know that Mac would cost me the most
because of the proprietary hardware, but would the benefits outweigh
the extra cost if I bought the Mac? Is OsX as stable as Linux and
BeOS? Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

TP (leaving the Gates Empire)

BeOS was quite a good OS...
unfortunately it's essentially dead

just go with some current Linux distro such as fedora core 3

"Tony Polson" wrote in post
on 2/12/05 9:56 AM:

Hi. I'm getting away from the Windows thing and I would like to get a
new desktop...either a Mac running OsX, or a PC running Linux or BeOS.

Which one should I go with?

Gee, welcome to *Mac* Advocacy... which do you think we will suggest.

I know that Mac would cost me the most because of the proprietary hardware,

Often that is not the case. I keep a list of every comparison folks can
find... the Mac often does very well:

http://myweb.cableone.net/snit/csma/prices

but would the benefits outweigh the extra cost if I bought the Mac?

The general answer is yes, but it depends on what do you plan on using it
for. If you are looking to play the newest / best first person shooter
games, or have some other specialty need (i.e. quilting software) that may
not be the case.

Is OsX as stable as Linux and BeOS?

OS X is very stable - I do not have much recent experience with Linux or
BeOS, but with daily usage of OS X I almost never see system crashes (though
I have seen a few).

Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

TP (leaving the Gates Empire)

On Sat, 12 Feb 2005 08:56:26 -0800, Tony Polson wrote:

Hi. I'm getting away from the Windows thing and I would like to get a
new desktop...either a Mac running OsX, or a PC running Linux or BeOS.

Which one should I go with? I know that Mac would cost me the most
because of the proprietary hardware, but would the benefits outweigh
the extra cost if I bought the Mac? Is OsX as stable as Linux and
BeOS? Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

TP (leaving the Gates Empire)
First, congrats on a wise decision.
Second,
IMHO!
I would say if you don't want to have to know anything and just hate
windows, or are trying to make a political statement, go with a MAC.

If you like knowing your PC, and consider yourself at least somewhat
acquainted w/ your machine, give Linux a try. I would say right now Fedora
has the best automated install.

--
DW

Tony Polson wrote:

Hi. I'm getting away from the Windows thing and I would like to get a
new desktop...either a Mac running OsX, or a PC running Linux or BeOS.

Which one should I go with? I know that Mac would cost me the most
because of the proprietary hardware, but would the benefits outweigh
the extra cost if I bought the Mac? Is OsX as stable as Linux and
BeOS? Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Here are the pros and cons, from my point of view:

Mac OS X:

Pros: Already setup with the machine, no configuration hassles, hardware
available has support, solid and reliable, very...very...beautiful Quartz
(former PostScript) rendering engine, and very...very...beautiful artwork
in the window decorations/styles/icons, BSD Unix based, new software
installations a snap, excellent applications available - especially from
Apple, and legendary ease of use and consistency.

Cons: Pricey(!), not a true Unix experience, holds your hand too much,
limited customization possibilities, limited hardware availability,
applications cost money, hardware upgrade possibilities very limited, Apple
outdates hardware with new OS releases with absolutely no remorse, and did
I mention pricey?

Linux:

Pros: Runs on older hardware, very cutting edge, fast response to security
issues and bugs, very secure, hardware is much cheaper, can install on
current PC hardware, choice of AMD or Intel and 32 or 64 bits, can be
installed on homebuilt machines, surprisingly fast on older hardware,
unbelievable customization possibilities, choice of environments from text
to spartan GUI's to the very beautiful but resource heavy KDE, relies on
standard filetypes, a wonderful adventure to use, many flavors of Linux
from the very easy to use Mandrake and SuSE to more technically involved
Debian and Gentoo to building it yourself (Linux From Scratch), runs on
other platforms such as Sparc and Macs, all necessary applications either
come with a retail version of the distro or are available for free
download, can be dual booted on a Mac or a PC, available completely free if
you're willing to put in a little effort to install commercial applications
and drivers on your own, retail versions are an incredible bargain
considering what you get with it, MandrakeClub silver members can download
complete retail releases of Mandrake Linux twice a year, and you can pass
out copies to your friends and install it on all of your machines because
there are no licensing issues.

Cons: Doesn't like cutting edge or unpopular hardware, lack of OEM support
for hardware, installation and setup headaches for some hardware, may be
forced to replace some hardware for something supported by Linux, Linux not
completely the same from distro to distro, package handling can be archane
on some distros, lack of consistency in UI between KDE, Gnome, and X based
applications, so many possibilities and complete control enable a wreckless
user with administrator (root) privileges to hose the system, almost no
high quality commercial applications available, mixed bag of quality in
applications - some outstanding while others need polish, experienced users
become obsessive, and culture shock to new users used to getting their hand
held and burped after each feeding.

Why not install Linux on your current machine? You could even dual boot it.
SuSE is offering a limited version of their retail Professional version
they call an Eval version for free download, which would give you the OEM
drivers for nVidia and Flash, Java, etc.:

http://www.novell.com/products/linux.../ftp/eval.html

Then your could test drive it for free, and buy the retail version if it
works out for you. The retail version includes a lot more software, but
most of it is available for free on the internet. SuSE, however, still uses
an archane packaging system which requires a little work on the users part
to get all the dependent applications installed, too.

Alternatively, you can install the download edition of Mandrake Linux, but
get all the OEM stuff from their websites, like ATi and nVidia drivers,
Flash, RealPlayer, Java, etc.:

http://www.mandrakelinux.com/en/ftp.php3

Mandrake will release a newer version in another 2 months, or so, so
improvements are on the way. Mandrake uses URPMI, which is a very good
modern package manager that automatically takes care of dependencies,
though it has to be setup:

http://easyurpmi.zarb.org/

SuSE can use Apt and its companion Synaptic GUI, once it's installed, which
is also good and does automatic dependency installation, but easier to hose
the entire system with. It's also a real treat to get configured for a
first timer (sarcasm), but with a little help anyone can do it:

http://linux01.gwdg.de/apt4rpm/home.html

I have never used BeOS, but I do know that it has nowhere near the
popularity of Linux, and therefore, nowhere near the support by either
users or OEM's.

If you like Linux, and plan to continue using it, do something to support
the effort. You can purchase a retail copy, join the Mandrake Club if you
use Mandrake Linux, or do something that doesn't require money at all like
become a beta tester, developer, or just an advocate. But, whatever you do,
it's a community effort, so please contribute in some way. Since you're
into digital photography, obviously, you could learn to use The Gimp
(somewhat of a Photoshop clone) and setup your own website to give
tutorials to others or something... Just a thought.


--

Registered Linux user #378193

First of all BeOS is dead. Be company got out of the business a few
years ago. So you can forget about this one ( It's a shame as it was
damn great OS.

MacOS X is based on some BSD Unix. It's very stable and really good OS.
Very easy to use but it will cost you an arm and a leg ;o) But if you
want work with some multimedia like photo-, audio- or video processing,
this is the way to go. If you want to know what Windows will be able to
do and how it will look like in 10 years or so - take a look at MacOS X.

Linux - is free and there are plenty of distributions to choose from.
Hardware is cheap as it is just PC. Plenty of programs both open source
and proprietary to choose from. You can set this one up as you want.

If money is no object go for Mac, otherwise I would go for Linux.

But this is just my $.02


Barney :O)

Tony Polson wrote:

Hi. I'm getting away from the Windows thing and I would like to get a
new desktop...either a Mac running OsX, or a PC running Linux or BeOS.

Which one should I go with? I know that Mac would cost me the most
because of the proprietary hardware, but would the benefits outweigh
the extra cost if I bought the Mac? Is OsX as stable as Linux and
BeOS? Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

TP (leaving the Gates Empire)

As the other peeps say, no need to hand out the dough for a Mac yet, if you
already have a machine running Windows, that'll run Linux. Check that out
before you depart with any money

I use Linux on a PC, and my brother uses OSX on a Dual G5. OSX is a very
nice OS for the non-technical user, but personally, it drives me absolutely
insane. I need things _my_ way, and OSX just doesn't do things _your_ way,
it does things the _Mac_ way. Which is fine if you're a Mac user, not
arguing about that.

Stability-wise, my Linux has never crashed on me (not once). My brother has
had his share of kernel panics (although he lies about them happening,
hehe), I would say that I've seen about ten panics in the 2½ years we've
been running our business together. Plugging in a Maxtor USB drive produces
one immediately. So AFAICT, Linux has an advantage there.

About the eye-candy, OSX is hard to beat. Still, they don't support
sub-pixel hinting, so font rendering on LCDs is not very pretty. With a
little effort and the right theming (e.g. knifty + mosfet's liquid + lila),
it looks really sweet.

OSX definitely has the edge in user-friendliness compared to any other OS
I've tried. But I wouldn't use it unless forced to.

--
Why do cats jump out of windows? Because it sucks!