Personal Technology from The Wall Street Journal.
In the last 6 months, Walt Mossberg from the Wall Street Journal has sung the praises of Apple computers, especially the OSX operating system. In today’s article, Mr. Mossberg throws us a caveat when it comes to switching. He still feels that because there has yet to be a report of a successful, real-world virus for the Mac’s current operating system, and there is little or no known spyware for the Mac, it is a great choice for most computer users out there. “In general, the best candidates for a switch to the Mac are those who use their computers overwhelmingly for common, mainstream consumer tasks. These include e-mail, instant messaging and Web browsing; word processing, spreadsheets and presentations; working with photos, home videos and digital music; and playing and creating CDs and DVDs.”
He then gives us this advice.. “Still, you certainly shouldn’t consider switching to the Mac if you are happy with Windows and you aren’t much affected by viruses and spyware. Even if you aren’t happy with Windows, don’t consider switching to the Mac if you are resistant to learning new ways of doing things. The Mac and Windows are close cousins, but there is a learning curve that comes with switching. And don’t consider switching if your budget covers only the cost of the Mac itself. There will usually be extra costs. To maintain compatibility with the Windows world, you will probably want a copy of the Mac version of Microsoft Office, which isn’t included by Apple. And you may want a standard two-button, Windows-style mouse, which works fine on the Mac but isn’t included.“