As a long time PC user and trying to keep an open mind, I just don't understand why you would put WinXP on a Mac? I realize Mac's are better at graphical applications and probably many other things, but I was always under the impression it was the combination of a better OS and better hardware. Now for a PC you can get more powerfull hardware and it helps, but with the flaky windows OS, it can't allocate resources like Macs. So why would you want to put windows on a Mac? Is the performance that much better? Or is it just the windows name that people have come to know, from flooding of the market by Mr. Gates? I just don't get it and I hope someone can open my eyes.
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why windows?
- Thread starter hockeyman102
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Existing software. If I already have a copy of some software package that runs on Windows and it is not available native for OS X, how else should I run it? (In my case this boils down to lots of edutainment titles for the little ones.)
It's a simple matter of a wider choice of software being available if Windows can be run.
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It's a simple matter of a wider choice of software being available if Windows can be run.
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So how does it compare? Does it run as well as a PC w/about the same specs? Is this an options for buying a new Mac - to have windows on it? what about PC system stuff on windows like defrag - does that even work on a mac?
7on - thanks for the wiki-slap... i had forgotten all about Chip's Challenge.
7on - thanks for the wiki-slap... i had forgotten all about Chip's Challenge.
Games, plain and simple. While yes i suppose most of the games I play are made for both PC and mac, i'm not going to go and buy a mac copy if i already have it on PC, and the way it is now, i can play the PC version on both my mac and my pc, while i can't play the mac on both. It's a damn shame to put all of my existing software on a shelf and have to buy duplicates of each one for mac and a waste of money.
hockeyman102 said:
I saw on MacMall that they were selling macs with windows pre-installed (for some additional money, of course
) but it's a fairly simple proceedure with ample support on macrumors.com should you need it. You do, granted, need to own a copy of Windows, which means buying a copy of windows from MacMall and then paying them to install Windows on it.I've been told that OSX defrags on the fly, or that it writes to disks more efficiently than Windows, but whatever the reason, unless you're editing videos or editing large files frequently, there won't be the gaps and noncontiguous files found on PCs. Do a forum search on this topic if you want more info.
Why play games on Windows when you can play most of the recent ones on OS X? OS X can play games around 20% faster than Windows. It's better at managing hardware, which is very important when it comes to games. I was just about to install Windows on my Mac yesterday, but after I encountered problems getting it to work, I decided against it. I was just being fussy about the fact I'm going to need to buy Quake 3 and Worms for Mac again. I don't want Microsoft polluting my lovely Mac more than they already have done. Office is great, Windows is most certainly NOT
Of late, a lot of games seem to be released for OS X as well as Windows, Macs are becoming more popular!!!
Of late, a lot of games seem to be released for OS X as well as Windows, Macs are becoming more popular!!!
I got parallels and run XP through that whenever i need a windows only application. Works very well. I installed Bootcamp on my MBP but i haven't done that on my Macbook yet. I don't really need windows that much on the laptop to waste the space (only 80GB). I might install it on my next desktop mac when i get it (come on apple give me a 2.0GHz 17" iMac!).
hockeyman102 said:
I would think a long time PC user would recognize some people use software only available for the Windows platform and don't necessarily want two computers lying around, or maybe some of us mac users develop software for Windows or Windows handheld devices (me), or some of us web developers like to test our site layout and functionality in a multitude of OS and browser combinations? I also wouldn't think a long time PC user would have done 36 shots of the Apple Kool Aid in one night, losing that ability to recognize why some of use need to use Windows...
Killyp said:
I'd be really curious what game is 20% faster on OSX than Windows given the same hardware, please elaborate, some benchmarks would be nice.
My game of choice WoW runs about 40% faster on windows than OSX with the exact same hardware (Macbook Pro) and video settings. I'd get mid to high teens running through populated areas under OSX and I get mid to high 20s under Windows.
Back to the original question. I put Windows on a Mac because it lets me support my customers with just one machine. I write plug-ins for 3D software and about 1/3 of my customers are Mac, the rest Windows. Before the Intel Macs I used a dell laptop for 90% of my work (Visual Studio.NET is my C++ IDE of choice). Because the stuff I do is threaded, I also kept a dual processor Windows desktop and a dual processor Mac desktop for porting and debugging those threading issues. One machine has replaced three, saving me a ton of money going forward and it lets me support all my customers on the road without lugging two laptops around.
hockeyman102 said:
It's pretty simple.
I'm a borderline switcher- I've got Mac laptops, Windows desktops. I can not simply replace my desktops with Macs- I've got some Windows only software that I'd have to repurchase.
If I tossed my Windows box out the window (no pun intended) and stuck an iMac in its place, I'd also be throwing out several hundred dollars, possibly over a thousand, worth of software that I'd be unable to use. Until I can afford Mac versions of that software (some of which, including 3d Studio Max and some games, is not even available on Mac OS X), it'd be a huge loss for me. I'd lose ALL my games, since only Blizzard puts Mac and Windows versions on the same disks- heck, I'd lose every application I own and would have to start from scratch.
But if I buy an iMac and dual boot it with Windows? I stick all my games on the Windows partition and reboot when I feel like gaming or the applications I already own. I have the Mac version of Photoshop I can use, or I can use my Windows version under DarWINE when I boot in OS X. And as I go my Mac library will grow until I boot into Windows less and less.
Someday my house will be all Mac, and I'll have my ol' iMac sitting in a corner with my last remnants of Windows software for old times' sake.
I'm just working on saving money for that iMac right now
GFLPraxis said:
You've actually been successful running stuff under Darwine? I played around a bit and couldn't get anything to load. Any tips?
For the ability to run the software that a person or a business needs. For example, there are plenty of applications that just do not run on OS X. Personally, I cannot find a decent GIS package or statistics package for OS X.
Why I run OS X and Windows via BootCamp
I run OS X 10.4.7 and WinXP SP2 (with all updates+patches+fixes+security corrections, etc.)
Why? 1) Because I can. 2) Although I prefer OS X for most applications, there are a lot more Windows games available. I was a switcher from Windows to Mac last year (around this time of year). Windows XP on my Mac (via Boot Camp) allows me to play all my existing games for Windows, several of which I still have and enjoy. It saved me from having to buy another PC just to run Windows when my old one bit the dust a few months ago too.
I run OS X 10.4.7 and WinXP SP2 (with all updates+patches+fixes+security corrections, etc.)
Why? 1) Because I can. 2) Although I prefer OS X for most applications, there are a lot more Windows games available. I was a switcher from Windows to Mac last year (around this time of year). Windows XP on my Mac (via Boot Camp) allows me to play all my existing games for Windows, several of which I still have and enjoy. It saved me from having to buy another PC just to run Windows when my old one bit the dust a few months ago too.
Sorry to be off-topic, but I've been looking for a while. I used to play it when I was little.7on said:
Thank you. You just made my year.
ham_man said:
You can encode lame through itunes with a script that's easily downloadable. Save you the hassle of running windows.
Unless you really like the way EAC extracts the raw data...
ewinemiller said:
I prefaced that sentence with "if I buy an iMac"
But a guy in this thread:
http://forum.osx86project.org/index.php?showtopic=8699&st=100
Got Quake 2 and Photoshop 6 to run, and they're officially supported according to the Wiki.
I too am a big fan or EAC as a secure ripper, though I like Quicktime and AAC better than LAME. Since EAC is claimed to work on Linux via Wine, one can assume that it might under DarWine as well...TBi said:
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