PC vs MAC....thoughts & experiences appreciated

[Anonymous]

Hi people.

I am currently a PC user user..newbie status.

Is there any major difference working in MAC as apposed to PC. Which do you find works better for you and why?

Does the software run any better on one type than the other or is it much of a muchness?

Apart from the fact that MAC's are really expensive....is there any disadvantage in switching to it?

Your thoughts would be very much appreciated

[Eduardo Rolon]

Just to clarify my other machine is a thinkpad A31p, 756ram P4 1.7 and I like it a lot, AC works great and I can run 3D Viz and all Autodesk's apps.
But after 6 years of only windows I got tired of the system and decided to go back to mac after seeing 10.3 in action also my 17"PB is a lot lighter than the 15" TP and I carry one or the other to work.

Subjective wise I feel more productive using the mac
Production wise they are even
Money wise pc's can be cheaper
OS wise Panther is better than Xp

P.S. the Thinkpad cost me the same amount than the PowerBook

[__archiben]

Pete wrote:
(2) Being able to open more than 1 session of Archicad at a time is really useful, especially when updating hotlinked files (never been able to do this on a Mac).

you can quite easily have more than one session running on a mac - it's been discussed somewhere on this forum in depth if i recall correctly.

as far as your other points go - yes, i hate to admit it, there is an archiCAD speed advantage on PCs. but graphisoft are obviously working on this: compared to 8, 8.1 was fast, but 8.1v2 was blindingly quick.

i think that much of the performance also comes from the quality of the graphics card: apple have always been rather stingy when it comes to loading up their machines with memory - RAM and graphics card - but they have bumped up their graphics chips quite a bit recently.

i'd wait until the new apple range is launched and check the specs. remember also that archiCAD is just one part of your workflow and in this regard, matthew's comments (as always) hit the nail right on the head:

Matthew wrote:
As a power-user of both platforms ....... Macs have always been consistently easier to set-up, use, and maintain than PCs and this discrepancy is only increasing with the rapid improvements of OSX

HTH
~/archiben

[stefan]

Yes, another Mac vs. PC debate...

I'm 100% PC based and there is no reason for me to switch.

I can run all applications I want, it's not too expensive and I am running three year old PC's without much problems.

I loved Windows 95 (I think it was a revolution).
I hated Windows 98 (it was never stable to me).
I liked Windows 2000 (did not support everything, but stable and solid).
I love Windows XP (the stability of Windows 2000 with the multimedia from Windows 98).

I worked on Mac's for 2,5 years (Mac OS 8.1, 8.6 & 9.0 - left the office before OSX was released) and did not find reason to switch. Sure, some things were easier, but a lot of things were impossible. And they sure weren't more stable then Windows.

[Anonymous]

Thanks all for your comments.

My appologies if this topic (I'm sure it has) been exhausted. I looked through all the previous posts in here but never really found anything of much significance....perhaps I'm looking in all the wrong places.

I guess I am interested in how ArchiCAD performs on the two diff platforms and if the MAC had anything over the PC in performance. It would seem that apart from the bells and whistles that both platforms offer...there is not really a hell of a lot of diff in performance when working in ArchiCAD.

Thanks again for your thought...it's very much appreciated

[stefan]

I suggest you choose your software first and then follow the platform for which they are available.

If your office needs particular PC-applications that don't exist on Mac, you don't have much choice. You can go all-PC or you can add one or two PC's in a Mac-network.

If all the tools you need are available for Mac and you like Mac's, then use them.

The investment into hardware and software is not cheap, but labour hours cost a lot more, so efficiency is more important then initial investment.

ArchiCAD is more expensive then some other tools, but if you can work more efficient, it'll be a good investment. Just don't do what I did: buy ArchiCAD and stop working as an architect two years later... 😉

[Eduardo Rolon]

To summarize again:
1) at this point AC 8.1 runs well in both platforms
2) the only real difference in platforms is that XP is more vulnerable than OS X, so you need to invest in antivirus, keep the software updated and it is recommended that you use another web-browser (firefox, camino, myie2) instead of explorer.
3) if the software you want to run is platform specific then use that platform as Stefan wrote.

guess I am interested in how ArchiCAD performs on the two diff platforms and if the MAC had anything over the PC in performance. It would seem that apart from the bells and whistles that both platforms offer...there is not really a hell of a lot of diff in performance when working in ArchiCAD.

If that is your only criteria then it is true that there are no visible differences and in the end it is a question of preference. As was said before A Dodge Caravan will get you to the same place as a Mini Cooper, but the Mini is more fun

[Ignacio Azpiazu]

Pete wrote:
(2) Being able to open more than 1 session of Archicad at a time is really useful, especially when updating hotlinked files (never been able to do this on a Mac).

I can't imagine why you never could. I am routinely using three sessions of ArchiCAD (one for a supermegasitemotherofallplns pln, one for individual building plns, and one for modules and stuff). I just duplicated the application file (so that I have ArchiCAD, ArchiCAD copy1, ArchiCAD copy2).

A couple of weeks ago I ended up working on three sessions of ArchiCAD, two of Plotmaker, and two of Artlantis.

[Anonymous]

If this topic hasn't gone dead by now, can I add the following observation.

On a MAC, you have no right click button on your mouse.
Nor do you have a wheel on your mouse.
Function keys may or may not function.
Be prepared for an RSI trying to work the "APPLE" key.
Be prepared for the fact that @ and " are reversed on the keyboard.
The delete key doesn't always delete the character at the cursor!
The delete key doesn't delete files.
Mac OSX doesn't log you on to a 'job' folder - instead, if you open a file in one folder and then try a 'save as ..' , your MAC will try to save to wherever it was you last 'saved as'.
Nor does Mac OSX display the path of the folder you're in. Result - a nightmare keeping track of files.
Go for a Proper Computer every time!

[Anonymous]

Be prepared for the fact that @ and " are reversed on the keyboard

no, they're reversed on YOUR keyboard

yah boo sucks

[Eduardo Rolon]

On my mac
logitech's Mx900 mouse with its 8 buttons and scroll wheel works fine
function keys work fine
the delete key always works even for the character at the cursor
the finder always opens to my project file
path to folders are an "option" key away

...Hmmm I should try using OS 7 to see all the problems or maybe Windows XP to get my share of viruses, service packs, driver problems etc...