I’ve been saving my money to get a new Macbook. My desktop PC is 3 or 4 years old, and I need a replacement if I want to stay up to date with all the new operating systems that are coming out. My PC can’t even run Vista as it is (though I blame Vista for that more than my PC).
There’s a problem, though. I don’t make a lot of money, so it’s taking me a while to get enough to buy the mid-range Macbook I want. It’s likely going to take me at least another two weeks before I have enough. That’s a big problem, because I could spend my money now and get a good desktop PC. Just the other day, I saw Wal-Mart had a Dell XPS 420, with a monitor included (which I need; my CTR here is getting flaky) for under a thousand dollars (which is slightly cheaper than you can get through the Dell website).
I can argue both sides of this perfectly well. I fully intend on getting both a laptop and a new desktop, but I’m struggling with which to get first, because it’s going to take a long time to save up enough to get the other one later. What’s more, I’m not entirely sure I want another PC for my desktop. You get a hell of a lot more bang for your buck, but you can’t run OS X on a PC without hacking it, and that’s just too much hassle.
The decision I made a while back was that I should get the Macbook first because it will give me the ability to actually take my learning and blogging outside my apartment. For some reason, I just don’t like working when I’m home. If I can take that stuff out with me instead, I’m more likely to get it done. It will also give me the opportunity to actually experiment with an Apple computer, and see if I want one as a desktop computer too (I’ve never had a Mac before).
But most importantly, I figured I could use the Macbook to test out new operating systems. As I mentioned, my current desktop can’t run Vista, and I’d like to experiment with that, if nothing else. It also doesn’t run Compiz Fusion under linux as well as I’d like. The thing is: I could do that with a new PC just as well. And, on top of that, a new PC would be able to play modern games. I wouldn’t get to experiment with OS X, but I’ve lived without that my whole life thus far, and I think I’d be okay with continuing that trend for another few months.
But then I come back to the fact that, if I don’t get the Macbook first, I’ll end up putting off blogging and studying even more. I’m not in school, so studying web development is a recreational thing to begin with, but I’m just not likely to get it done here. And, the last computer game I bought was the expansion to World of Warcraft, and I don’t see myself really aching to get another one until Starcraft 2 comes out (yes, I’ve become a Blizzard fan). I’m a bit interested in playing Mass Effect, but I’m not about to spend a thousand dollars for a computer to play a game I could instead play on a $280 Xbox (not that I have one of those either…).
*sigh*
I’m sticking with my original plan. I’ll get the Macbook first. I suppose I just wanted to type out what was going through my head about the whole issue.
The Reclusive Geek 
How would you compare OS X to one of the better linux distros? I’ve lived with XP for quite awhile and have little reason to try Vista, but I want to keep my options open..and I am interested in Ubuntu.
What do you think of Ubuntu vs. OS X vs. Vista?
Thank you.
I don’t really have a lot of experience with OS X. I’ve never owned a Mac before, so I haven’t had much opportunity to toy with it. However, with what little experience I do have, I’m left with the impression that OS X is sort of a midway point between Ubuntu and Vista. A lot of the best things about Ubuntu are there in OS X too (security, community support, etc…), and though it doesn’t have the same level of corporate third party support as Windows, it has enough to where you’re less likely to need to duel boot your computer (which is what I need to do with Ubuntu and XP).
I’d highly recommend you try out Ubuntu for yourself. I’m assuming you have a PC, so I think installing Ubuntu on a separate hard drive partition would be your first step. Ubuntu is a great alternative to Windows, as long as you’re not into gaming.