macbook?

[Sloane]

Macs are good computers and Winboxes are good computers. Any moron that shoots off propoganda otherwise is, well, a moron.

17" MBP sucks.

That's funny!

 

[Village Idiot]

That's funny!

Any moron that shoots off propoganda otherwise is, well, a moron.

Know what propaganda means?

Not because "Macs are sooo much better than everything else". 17" notebooks are heavy and large. Try carrying one around every where you go and using it. It's not very portable. I have a 17" dell that never leaves my house unless I'm going on vacation and need a "portable" DVD player. My 15" MBP is used for pretty much everything as far as traveling goes. Those 2 inches of viewing space make a world of difference.

As I said previously, 17" notebooks are basically desktop replacements.

 

[ANDS!]

There's nothing wrong with a desktop pc, that can be upgraded in the future..
from what i've seen about 95%
of PC problems are user error.

Quoted for truth. Apple sure as hell has done a number on graphic design in general where it has been accepted as THEE only product to use for photo/video editing. Photo and video editing is CPU/RAM intensive - none of which is Mac specific. For the cost of an entry level MacBook you can get an even more monstrous desktop (or if you need to be portal) ridiculous notebook. HP and Dell (yes Dell) make some stupid powerful laptops, specifically HP which have some VERY nice widescreen, dedicated graphic-card, laptops.

Please don't buy the hype.

 

[Sloane]

Any moron that shoots off propoganda otherwise is, well, a moron.

Know what propaganda means?

Know what otherwise means?

17" notebooks are heavy and large. Try carrying one around every where you go and using it.

I do! Every day, everywhere I go.

It's not very portable.

Portable enough: it works for me. Of course it's a trade-off. It always is. The 17" screen real estate is worth it to me.

As I said previously, 17" notebooks are basically desktop replacements.

Of course! But they are portable desktop replacements that I can use on the road!
The 17" screen real estate can't compare with the 20" and 24" iMacs I have at the office, though.
I.o.w. it depends what you need/use it for.

 

[ANDS!]

Know what otherwise means?

Two snarks don't make a right.

 

[reg]

And he still hasn't addressed the fact that "the fastest Vista laptop" is a complete lie fabricated by Mac fanboys.

It's also one of the most expensive! (Look, I refrained from using complete lies by saying "one of". It really works!)

 

[asfixiate]

Isn't there a 30 page debate already?

 

[Dweller]

The only reason to go with a Mac in this day and age (IMO) is because you prefer the OS. Otherwise a Mac is basically a PC in a different box.

do you have experience with OSX and prefer it over Windows?

 

[RyanLilly]

There's nothing wrong with a desktop pc, that can be upgraded in the future..

from what i've seen about 95%
of PC problems are user error.

Macs are good computers and Winboxes are good computers. Any moron that shoots off propoganda otherwise is, well, a moron.

Knowing how to maintain and operate your computer to safely get the most out of it is better than any mac/non mac arguement. It's really just a preference to the OS, unless of course there are platform specific programs.

The standard Mac Book would be fine, unless you're doing 3D graphics. If you are doing rendering, then you'll want the MBP with the 512mb GPU and the fastest processor possible. Get the least amount of RAM and upgrade it later. You can probably get 4gb's for about $200 where as Apple charges $700. I have'nt looked at 3rd party memory in about a year, so prices may even be cheaper.

I will agree 100% with everything above.

Even the standard macbook, will support alt least a 24" monitor, I have a cheap 22" but it needs to be calibrated(as all monitors do).

I use my macbook as my daily machine. I have an older XP box that runs rock solid. My moms computer runs like crap, because people load anything and everything onto it and its all junk, But the vista laptop that I helped her buy, runs perfect a bit slow because its the extreme low end, but just fine.

Yes you can buy a comparable windows laptop for several hundred less than a macbook, but what you are paying for is a (usually) refined, streamlined design. The keyboard and HUGE trackpad are very comfortable to use on my mac book, the same cannot be said for my moms laptop. Also, the "mega Safe" power connector, Its magnetic and when you trip over the cord, it pops off rather than dragging you laptop off the table. This feature alone have saved me many times. Very useful if you have a few 3 year olds running around. The question is, are those refinements really worth the extra money. That is a question that you can only answer for yourself.

Oh, As stated above, Never pay apple to install ram or HD's Its ridiculously cheaper to do it yourself. And Easy!

 

[Village Idiot]

The only reason to go with a Mac in this day and age (IMO) is because you prefer the OS. Otherwise a Mac is basically a PC in a different box.

do you have experience with OSX and prefer it over Windows?

Bingo. Personal preference. That or if there's certain OS X only applications. I bought mine so I could record with Logic as it's an amazing software suite.

And he still hasn't addressed the fact that "the fastest Vista laptop" is a complete lie fabricated by Mac fanboys.

It's also one of the most expensive! (Look, I refrained from using complete lies by saying "one of". It really works!)

There was an article that tested like five laptops and the MBP was one of them. It was the fastest out of those tested. Like I said earlier though, if those are the only five laptops on the market, then it's just skewing an article to prove a point. I know a lot of Apple "fan boys" that like to do that.

I work in the IT department at a gov facility. I've dealt with doing network admin with several servers and a SAN. I use Windows on my desktop computer. I have Linux on one of my Desktops, Windows (soon to be Server 2003) on another, one of my laptops is a 17" Dell that I use for games and I have a 15" MBP for editing photos and recording in my studio. I'm not biased and that's why it's annoying when threads like this carried away because if you're completely nuetral, you can see that both sides like to spit out what basically equates to lies.

I just hate Apple's marketing. It's brilliant. There's a ton of people running around saying buy it, "it just works" and then users don't know why they're having problems later on when their Mac isn't working because of hardware failure, their lack of knowledge, or plain incompatibility.

Every machine is capable of having problems and until Apple invents a computer that's smart enough to fix everything, including a dead HDD, then "it just works" is one of the most brilliant marketing slogans they've ever come up with.

There's also the stupid Mac vs. PC commercials. This so much misdirection in those, but people don't care. Apple is smart when it comes to selling things.

 

[RyanLilly]

These days there are VERY FEW, platform specific programs. The only one I can think of are a few Profesional Lighting visualization programs, ESPvision, wysiwyg, which are windows only, not a problem for macs these days! Any anything made by Apple.

So compatibility should not be too much of a problem. Find out what software you will specifically be running and that will hep you find the right system.

 

[Sandspur]

May we - Please! - get back to the OP's original question?

She said clearly, " ... the school suggests a Macbook Pro. ..."

So, here's my recommendation, lisa 13: Shop the Apple Store online. Look for either refurbished or student discounts, and try to get a Pro.

Do NOT, however, load it up with RAM from Apple. They ARE very expensive. You can buy RAM from other vendors for much, much less and install it yourself.

(Yeah, it really is THAT easy! I installed a new HD and upgraded both RAM cards in my Macbook in exactly six an a half minutes! If you really don't want to do it yourself, just take it to school with you. I'm sure, since the school recommends Macs, that there are tons of Mac nerds around who'll be more than happy to do it for you. Ask the Mac tech person in the department for a recommendation.)

I've had very good luck with Apple refurbs. I'm using one now.

Whatever Mac you get, I'm sure you'll be happy.

 

[Village Idiot]

These days there are VERY FEW, platform specific programs. The only one I can think of are a few Profesional Lighting visualization programs, ESPvision, wysiwyg, which are windows only, not a problem for macs these days! Any anything made by Apple.

So compatibility should not be too much of a problem. Find out what software you will specifically be running and that will hep you find the right system.

AFAIK, there's not a lot in the way of CAD programs that are OS X compatible. Logic and Final Cut are two big programs in the music and film industry and they're OS X only. I think MOTU's Digital Performer is also OS X only. Most of the programs like that are going to be big money top end programs or though. OSX isn't very good for games. EA said they were bringing a bunch over, but all they're doing is using a WINE type emulator to run them. They're not even writing native code for them.

And MBP HDD upgrades are a pain. It's either you take it apart yourself as the drive bay is inaccessible without taking the keyboard, top cover, and various ribbons and connections apart or out of the way, or pay an authorized service center to do it for you. DIY is warranty voiding.

$1700 vs. $2000
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?nplm=FB487LL/A

 

[reg]

Logic and Final Cut are two big programs in the music and film industry and they're OS X only. I think MOTU's Digital Performer is also OS X only.

While I can't comment on Final Cut, I can tell you that ProTools is the de facto standard for music production and it works on both Windows and Mac.

 

[RyanLilly]

AFAIK, there's not a lot in the way of CAD programs that are OS X compatible. Logic and Final Cut are two big programs in the music and film industry and they're OS X only. I think MOTU's Digital Performer is also OS X only. Most of the programs like that are going to be big money top end programs or though. OSX isn't very good for games. EA said they were bringing a bunch over, but all they're doing is using a WINE type emulator to run them. They're not even writing native code for them.

I forgot about game, but I was thinking "work" type programs. I use VectorWorks for cad,(its great for theatre stuff, pretty much the standard) but your probably right about many others, although I can open most other cad files and save in the most common formats. But, dual boot with windows fixes all of that I need it.