[Eug]

Anand (the guy who runs AnandTech, one of the biggest PC hardware sites in the world) is buying a Mac.

Use a Mac for a month? - Wednesday, Feb 4, 2004 10:57 AM

It's an idea I've had for a while and I really wanted to do it during the height of the "Switch" commercials, but I always found a reason not to. My recent blog about Macs brought about two responses (by ViRGE and GL) that have sparked my interest in doing an article about using a new Mac for a month.

So I've decided to pull the trigger; in the next week or so I will begin a new category on my blog dedicated to the experiment (any ideas for what I should call it?) and then at the end of the month I'll publish an article on the whole thing.

I'm already seeing some issues that I'll have with the move but I'll save all the ranting and raving for my posts on it It'll be an interesting month, luckily I've got a couple of PCs in the house that'll still be operational just in case things get too rough

I'd like to hear your thoughts - anything you'd like me to focus on during the month?

[gorickey]

So, basically he is buying a Mac to bash it in writing to all his PC "friends" in a month?

Awesome.

[Eug]

Originally posted by gorickey:
So, basically he is buying a Mac to bash it in writing to all his PC "friends" in a month?

Awesome.

Give it a rest.

Anand is one of most fair and reasonable reviewers on the net, and his reviews are very readable. He runs a top notch organization over there.

[gorickey]

Originally posted by Eug:
Give it a rest.

Anand is one of most fair and reasonable reviewers on the net, and his reviews are very readable. He runs a top notch organization over there.

I look forward to the review, there again...it's going to be NOTHING we haven't heard before from other "PC IS GOD" type people a million times...

[ironknee]

it can only be good...i don't know the guy or site but panther is so awsome that i am using it on a bw g3 @350 mhz and i love it!

[Eug]

Originally posted by gorickey:
it's going to be NOTHING we haven't heard before from other "PC IS GOD" type people a million times...

Have ever considered you actually reading his articles before badmouthing him. Lame.

[gorickey]

Originally posted by Eug:
Have ever considered you actually reading his articles before badmouthing him. Lame.

Huh? Give me a Mac related hardware article before this he has written? You in love with this guy? You seem to have some sort of fixation...

[RooneyX]

Anand is into hardware not OSes. He'll probably love OSX but have something to say about the price/performance ratio of most of the range (apart from the G5s).

[Eug Wanker]

Originally posted by gorickey:
Huh? Give me a Mac related hardware article before this he has written?

Err... It's hard to write an article on a Mac if he doesn't have a Mac.

So he's gonna get a Mac so that he can learn about the Mac, and thus write about the Mac. Get it now?

[gorickey]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
Err... It's hard to write an article on a Mac if he doesn't have a Mac.

So he's gonna get a Mac to write about the Mac. Get it now?

Then don't tell me to read an article of his and claim all glory if he has not written anything Mac hardware related...I can be biased since I have nothing Mac-related to base off yet....

Ever heard of people having their own opinions?

[Apple Pro Underwear]

i dunno about that guy although his dog is starting to turn me on!!!!!


anyway, this guy is not like that asswipe over at winsupersite. if he said good things about the mac, it would be a real boon to the mac community.

[Eug Wanker]

Originally posted by gorickey:
Then don't tell me to read an article of his and claim all glory if he has not written anything Mac hardware related...I can be biased since I have nothing Mac-related to base off yet....

Ever heard of people having their own opinions?

What are you talking about?

[ghost_flash]

Originally posted by Apple Pro Underwear:
i dunno about that guy although his dog is starting to turn me on!!!!!


anyway, this guy is not like that asswipe over at winsupersite. if he said good things about the mac, it would be a real boon to the mac community.

My dog is better looking.

Anyway, these PC guys are all the same.
They cherish their floppy drives, and their
hard drives constantly crash prematurely.

[fizzlemynizzle]

You guys are acting insecure. Anand is a smart guy and has a good reputation when it comes to computers, not just PCs.

[gorickey]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
What are you talking about?

I've been trying to figure out the same with you, interesting...

[Rev-O]

Originally posted by Eug:
It'll be an interesting month, luckily I've got a couple of PCs in the house that'll still be operational just in case things get too rough

This is the part that makes me skeptical. No, I've never read any of his stuff before, so I don't know how fabu he is, but this statement left me thinking that he has a certain amount of negetive bias going into this. I'll have to check it out.

Your Dog ever have those "come hither" bedroom eyes? Boy, with a look likethat my dog is just askin' for... brb

[Scientist]

Originally posted by fizzlemynizzle:
You guys are acting insecure. Anand is a smart guy and has a good reputation when it comes to computers, not just PCs.

I second this. He's well respected by the geek community for a reason.

[Apple Pro Underwear]

so am i having sex with a dog or not?!?

i'll look into his blog during the month. i certainly respect him enough that I think he probably will bring about some OSX issues i never even though of.

[mitchell_pgh]

The only thing I get upset with is when they constantly compare OS X with how it "Should be" as in how it is on the PC.

For example... Networking... I actually had a PC person complain about my computer being on the network and how difficult the networking config was. Basically, after 5 minutes of going around in circles... it all boiled down to "It wasn't windows."

[The Godfather]

Anand will write a good article, even if he thumbdowns the Mac.

[reader50]

This sounds like a good possibility. I was going to write that the review would depend a great deal on which Mac he uses ... and that nothing in his article says he's actually buying one, just going to use one for a month.

But reading the comments reveals that he's considering a dual G5 2.0 with extra RAM. Another poster recommended he even wait for the next speed bump. I'll be following his posts.

[ASIMO]

One thing I want on the Mac from Windows is the slideshow-in-Finder option. Very handy/quick and dirty for my line of work.

Oh, and whatever it takes my business softwares (real estate, etc.) to actually think my Mac is Windows. Sorry, even VPC does not cut it for a couple of said applications.

Bring on Anand's review!

[insha]

meh.

[SouthPaW1227]

Awesome!!! This guy goes to my college!

woot! And we just dealt w/ Wake Forest!

[The Mick]

This should be a good thing. Anand is a very fair, knowledgeable, and thorough reviewer, and he will not bash it just because it's "not Windows". I'm sure he will find many good things to say, especially about OS X and the G5, just like he did when he gave the iPods high praise when he reviewed them.

[Eug Wanker]

Originally posted by The Mick:
This should be a good thing. Anand is a very fair, knowledgeable, and thorough reviewer, and he will not bash it just because it's "not Windows". I'm sure he will find many good things to say, especially about OS X and the G5, just like he did when he gave the iPods high praise when he reviewed them.

Anand's iPod review. Thanks for reminding me. It's a good response to this post:

gorickey said:
Huh? Give me a Mac related hardware article before this he has written?

[Eug Wanker]

DP

[pooka]

Originally posted by mitchell_pgh:
For example... Networking... I actually had a PC person complain about my computer being on the network and how difficult the networking config was. Basically, after 5 minutes of going around in circles... it all boiled down to "It wasn't windows."

Well, networking in Panther really is ****ed. No doubt. It's taken, what, two point release updates and it's still not working worth a damn.
"No, no, go to "Connect to Server"... yeah ... no, click on "Browse" ... yeah, I know it seems like it's not doing anything but a list of computers should eventually/maybe appear somewhere in that folder... nothing?... goto your utilities folder and double-click on "Directory Access"... still nothing... do you know the ip?"

[gorickey]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
Anand's iPod review.

Windows iPod. Windows iTunes. At least he'll enjoy his iPod if he doesn't like the G5/OS X....

[The Placid Casual]

Anand is a fair guy, and unlike some of the windows community,I'm sure his review and blog will be a fair critique...

I am now dual platform and can say may things about what I prefer in Windows, but can also do the same about Mac OS X...

For example,

Overall, I much prefer the networking set up in Windows, as well as 'film strip' file views, etc etc. I also love the upgradability etc etc.

Mac OSX has the edge in terms of usability and how things just work, not to mention sheers elegance.

I am a Mac Zealot, using my first PC for 12 years, but I can be objective.

Anand is a pro. Whatever he reviews I'm sure will be unbaised, whatever his conclusions may be...

Peace,

Marc

[- - e r i k - -]

Anand seems like a levelheaded guy. If an ex-machater like David Coursey turned around certainly Anand will be able to recognize the mac-platform as superior

[Twilly Spree]

Originally posted by pooka:
Well, networking in Panther really is ****ed. No doubt. It's taken, what, two point release updates and it's still not working worth a damn.
"No, no, go to "Connect to Server"... yeah ... no, click on "Browse" ... yeah, I know it seems like it's not doing anything but a list of computers should eventually/maybe appear somewhere in that folder... nothing?... goto your utilities folder and double-click on "Directory Access"... still nothing... do you know the ip?"

Exactly my experience as well

Thank you for a good point there pooka. Doesn't anyone find this to be strange?? Considering the computers always find each other when sharing music in iTunes w/rendezvous?

Why does that work so flawlessly but the networking in the Finders is FUBAR! /rant

[Link]

I found one of the easiest ways to fix the networking issue is to simply make up a "bridge" that manually fits the requirements exactly, so as to look like a "node" on the PC network if your mac is running/sitting on a wireless net as well..

So far that's worked great for me. I have it set so that it bridges the airport and wired networks

[Spliffdaddy]

Originally posted by The Godfather:
Anand will write a good article, even if he thumbdowns the Mac.

Indeed.

His opinion has merit and is recognized by 95% of computer geeks. A bad review of a Mac would carry a lot of weight - as would a good review.

[Eug]

Anand's month with a Mac has started

From the sounds of it he may have gotten a PowerBook or something, but he hasn't said yet:

With wireless Internet available in classes I'm seeing more and more students bringing in laptops, but what I find curious are the number of Apple Powerbooks being used. I'm not a big fan of Apple's hardware, although their ergonomics engineers have definitely earned their keep. The Powerbooks are far from the lightest devices around but they seem to have decent battery life and most of the users I've asked say that they are fast enough for what they do.

The seal on the deal however seems to be OS X, which brings me to my point - being a member of the group of the hardest of hardcore PC users, would you all ever consider not necessarily moving to an Apple but maybe adding one to your collection of computers? I've thought about it in the past, just as an experiment, but the hardware never excited me and the feel of the OS was just a little uncomfortable for me. Just curious as to what you all think.

Despite my issues with Apple's hardware, I am a huge iPod fan as well as a big Cinema Display advocate (although there are finally some more interesting PC displays available).

[Eug Wanker]

He has posted his first impressions. Some excerpts are below:

In the usual Apple style, the fit and finish of the packaging is superb - but for a ~$3K computer these days you'd expect that. I didn't bother with the default mouse; I've used it before, yes it only has one button, yes I can use the same Microsoft Optical Mouse I used on my old desktop with no problems (and all the buttons will work). The one-button argument against Macs isn't something I'm going to get into; it's entirely an avoidable issue now. Steve Jobs is particularly passionate about keeping the one-button mouse so I wouldn't expect that to change anytime soon (remind me to share the story about the famous game developer who challenged Jobs on the mouse issue). My solution to the problem: just don't use the mouse. I don't anticipate any power users would be able to function with only one button, and there's no way a hardcore gamer would touch it. The Apple optical mouse itself isn't all that great either, I prefer the Logitec and Microsoft solutions byfar.

When I'm writing an article, it's very easy to have anywhere from 20 - 40 windows open at any given time; as you can guess, managing them becomes a pain. The one feature that truly piqued my interest about OS X was Expos�. You can read about it at Apple's site but basically using a single hotkey (woowoo keyboard shortcuts) all the visible windows on your screen will automatically miniaturize themselves and tile themselves across the screen. You can then pick the window you want using the mouse and clicking on it will restore all windows to their original locations (and sizes) but with your selected window on top. There are a number of videos of Expos� in action, if you're a heavy multitasker I strongly suggest checking them out.

So far my experiences have been positive; I've been able to get up and running with very little effort. Being a DOS/Windows user all my life, getting accustomed to using a Mac hasn't been a difficult task at all. There are a few tweaks that you'll have to make to be happy with the setup (mainly mouse speed and dock icon size in my situation) but it's quite easy to switch. My laptop is still a Windows XP machine so going between the two OSes hasn't been an issue either.

[Lateralus]

Looks like it is going well. And I am very pleased with the calibur of Anand's review. Very unbiased. But, I expected that before hand.

Heres to hoping he comes out of this a changed man!

[ryaxnb]

Pretty good. But there are a couple of problems: he doesn't know how to set the desktop icon size and the scroll wheel speed.

[Eug Wanker]

Originally posted by ryaxnb:
Pretty good. But there are a couple of problems: he doesn't know how to set the desktop icon size and the scroll wheel speed.

The icon size has been corrected with a post by someone in the blog comments.

And I've suggested that he install that the MS mouse drivers for OS X.

[Steb Mad]

He haven't tried OS X fully before?

I find that hard to believe somehow.

[Eug]

Originally posted by Steb Mad:
He haven't tried OS X fully before?

I find that hard to believe somehow.

Why? It's not as if Apple is in the habit of giving dual Power Macs away to PC review sites or whatever.

[voodoo]

It's strange to describe onself as a 'hardcore PeeCee user' without having tried the Mac platform properly before. He should call himself a hardcore computer user or something. :/

[willed]

Originally posted by gorickey:
I've been trying to figure out the same with you, interesting...

:ROLLEYES:

[Eug]

Originally posted by voodoo:
It's strange to describe onself as a 'hardcore PeeCee user' without having tried the Mac platform properly before. He should call himself a hardcore computer user or something. :/

I'm not sure that's true. For instance, I betcha only a few "hardcore" Mac users here have extensive experience with Linux or Irix or whatever.

Given he made his name in the PC world, given that OS 9 was terrible by modern OS standards, and given that recent G4 Power Macs were grossly underpowered, I don't find that statement surprising at all.

Indeed, I never looked twice at a Mac until OS X came out, and now that the G5 is out, I'm considering getting a desktop Mac as well (Power Mac or yet-to-be-released G5 iMac).

[gorickey]

Originally posted by willed:
:ROLLEYES:

:SOLASTWEEK:

[Eug]

Macdate #2 is up: It's time for multimonitor.

[tsuki]

Originally posted by Eug:
I'm not sure that's true. For instance, I betcha only a few "hardcore" Mac users here have extensive experience with Linux or Irix or whatever.

Given he made his name in the PC world, given that OS 9 was terrible by modern OS standards, and given that recent G4 Power Macs were grossly underpowered, I don't find that statement surprising at all.

Indeed, I never looked twice at a Mac until OS X came out, and now that the G5 is out, I'm considering getting a desktop Mac as well (Power Mac or yet-to-be-released G5 iMac).

what type of mac do you have now?
thanks for the heads up on this great experiment, I'll be following it daily.

[Eug]

Originally posted by tsuki:
what type of mac do you have now?
thanks for the heads up on this great experiment, I'll be following it daily.

I originally bought an iBook G3 specifically because the hardware was a pretty good deal for what you got overall, and I wanted to check out OS X. However, ultimately I found the G3 600 too slow and the 1024x768 screen too constricting for my usage, so I upgraded to a 1 GHz TiBook when it came out. (I continue to use a Windows XP desktop at home however, when I'm not on my laptop.)

My next purchase will likely be a G5 PowerBook, but I anxiously await the next generation G5-based consumer desktop line too. (xMac?)

[mitchell_pgh]

Originally posted by Eug:
Macdate #2 is up: It's time for multimonitor.

I'm amazed that he hasn't gone for the standard weak points of OS X. I'm sure it will come up when he starts to look at the game situation under OS X. I was so tempted to put the following under the blog...

"I can't stand OS X!!! I normally take a coffee break during the time I hit the power button and am able to actually use the OS... I also explain my late submissions with "sorry, I'm having problems with XP..." Not that I've moved over to OS X, my boss doesn't believe me!"

[mitchell_pgh]

Originally posted by Eug:
I originally bought an iBook G3 specifically because the hardware was a pretty good deal for what you got overall, and I wanted to check out OS X. However, ultimately I found the G3 600 too slow and the 1024x768 screen too constricting for my usage, so I upgraded to a 1 GHz TiBook when it came out. (I continue to use a Windows XP desktop at home however, when I'm not on my laptop.)

My next purchase will likely be a G5 PowerBook, but I anxiously await the next generation G5-based consumer desktop line too. (xMac?)

I would say that you fall in the the "somewhat advanced" level of computer user when a 1024x768 screen is too restrictive. I'm not saying that it's not (I've got dual 1024x768 screens at home... and I could use an upgrade.