[usbcd36]

It's not necessarily up to just what you prefer; there are little things that will make your life easy or incredibly frustrating.

Some things to verify:

Where you're going, are they friendly to both Macs and PCs? If they don't support Macs when connecting to basic network stuff, you really don't want one. If they do support/allow Macs, do they REALLY support them, or do they just say they do?

Do they offer any free software to students? They offered a free copy of Windows XP to all students where I go. This is useful either way; if you hate Vista, you've got something to tide you through until 7; if you want to dual-boot, you've got something to install. However, I think this is more of a boon to Mac users, who, if they absolutely need to run a Windows program, can do it. Living with Vista would be far easier, even if you hated it.

Are you open to the idea of Linux? I have many friends who run Ubuntu exclusively, or dual-boot for Windows apps. Linux has advantages and disadvantages compared to Windows and OS X, but I know that, for example, it happens to play nicer with our VPN than either Windows or OS X.

Consider that the most valuable resource is time. How often is a class going to require you to use proprietary software that will only run under Windows? If the majority of work is going to be Windows-only, what's the point of having a Mac? You don't want to be running Parallels/VMware ALL the time, or dual-booting every 5 minutes. On the other hand, if you need to do what I do, which is reboot once a week or so for SolidWorks or the occasional game, it's not so bad. Effectively, what is your major?

In terms of daily-life applications, I actually think there are more of these available for the Mac. Windows VNC and (good) FTP clients are frustrating to find and download. RAR is usually in the form of WinRAR, which is shareware. iTunes runs better on Macs, as does QuickTime Player, which, with a few extra CODECs (Perian, Xvid and DivX), can play a multitude of formats, up to the point where I don't open VLC anymore. I find the Mail e-mail client to be far superior to web-based interfaces. Safari on a Mac is a much nicer experience than Firefox.

Construction-wise, I've heard horror stories on both sides. One of my friends had her MBP overheat and melt. Another had a Dell, and it kept slowing down, which he eventually discovered to be an improperly attached heatsink.


I wish there was a simple, inexpensive way for you to try both for some time before deciding, because it would probably become very apparent which one was right for the way you work. I've always been a Mac guy, but I can't recommend them to all people.