Windows/Linux -> Mac

[Tonerl]

I live in the UK & have a PC with SuSE 10.1 & Windows XP Professional (under VMware) on it. Difficulties in finding a new PC that will run SuSE (or openSUSE) & the wish to avoid Windows Vista at all costs have led me to consider moving to the Mac.

My monitor is a Dell 2407WFP; so, I'm just looking for a system unit - Mac Pro. To keep the cost down while getting a usable machine, I thought of 2.66 Xeons, 2GB FB-DIMMs, 250GB HDD (will add others later), 7300 video (not a gamer!).

However, I have a few questions that I hope the experienced users here can help me with.

1 How reliable is Apple kit - in particular, the Mac Pro?

2 How good is Applecare? I don't want to be without my machine for weeks on end. In the UK, Apple has apparently withdrawn the mail-in service but did not tell its customers. That worried me, as you can imagine - I live in a country district & couldn't easily take a large computer to a distant repair shop.

3 Is Boot Camp good? I can't afford to ditch my Windows software just yet & need to be able to synchronize my Palm-based PDA.

Thank you for your attention and (I hope) help.

 

[speakerwizard]

1., i have always found mac hardware to be the best (reliabillity) i have ever used, never had any problems in about 7 macs (and other gear) you may read about bad experiences but this is due to the high expectations people get from.

2. applecare is good (generally) and you get the phone support throughout (and they speak english) stores / resellers will try their best to repair within 48hrs parts pending.

3. boot camp, although still a beta is fantastic, works like a charm and ive had not one [roblem with it, also checkout macdrive to go with it. Parallels im sure youve read about will noe access the bootcamp partition in the latest beta build so things will only get better.

good luck with you purchase and remember to wait till after macworld keynote 9th jan

 

[Tonerl]

Thank you for that comprehensive & helpful reply - as well as for the tip to wait! In the meantime, I'll read my copy of 'The Missing Manual;.

 

[tipdrill407]

IF you're just running SUSE and Windows, why not just buy a dual xeon machine from dell or hp?

 

[trainguy77]

3 Is Boot Camp good? I can't afford to ditch my Windows software just yet & need to be able to synchronize my Palm-based PDA.

You can synchronize your PDA with OS X.

 

[Tonerl]

Dell or HP
There are problems running SuSE or openSUSE on various motherboards & the developers are making changes that cause problems for users, e.g. the way that USB is accessed has changed, leaving VMware & some drivers non-functional in that respect.

Synchronizing with OS X:
From what I have read on various fora, this is not wholly satisfactory at present. The Missing Sync seems the way to go but I'll wait till it gets its act together. Then, there's the need to get my name-&-address data into MS Word - I have a copy of Office Pro 2003 & don't like the look of Office 2004 for the Mac (it's way too expensive, in the UK at any rate, & it lacks Access).

If only someone would wave a magic wand!

 

[Eraserhead]

You can use Office 2003 via Wine on a Mac, also if you got an iMac you would also be able to use you're 24" Dell to have two monitors.

iSync will also be improved with Leopard (due in the spring), so that may help your syncing issues.

 

[Sesshi]

1. The core hardware is fine I think for domestic and light office duties.

2. The support is the kicker - it's not on the ball compared to HP and Dell, because if you buy a similar machine (Dell Precision 490 / 690 or an HP xw6400 / 8400) it comes with next day on-site support which is good.

I've had fan problems with my Pro, and while I'm not holding that against the machine itself as I don't expect anything to be perfect, my Dell Precisions which had very similar problems were fixed the next day, on-site. For the Mac, I've got to send it in, cart it over to an Apple service centre, etc then wait for it to be turned around. It's just one of those major irritations I can do without.

3. Boot Camp is decent. Contrary to what some say you don't actually get a full-on PC on the same-class hardware as there still seem to be some driver issues but it works, and provided you don't rely on it 100% of the time it's very usable. The lack of PCI slots may be an issue - it was enough of a problem for me to purchase both a Precision and a Pro for home use, foregoing Boot Camp on the Pro - as well as some other minor gotchas.

I don't know enough about Suze but both Precision and xw are Red Hat certified, and both are based on the same motherboard layout as the Pro.

 

[Tonerl]

High-quality support is vital to me. It looks as though I shall have to go with Dell of HP. Thank you for the practical advice.

 

[trainguy77]

High-quality support is vital to me. It looks as though I shall have to go with Dell of HP. Thank you for the practical advice.

Well apple does have pro service. I do not know much about it. I have not heard of many people who have bothered to upgrade.