Macs are now shit.

cya!
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Visit Creative Guy for graphics and Mac OS tips, tricks, tutorials and commentary

I've seen many complain, but I don't think it's a trend. And I think people are more happy with their macs than with any other computer brand. You may just have been unlucky.

I'm with Ivan. Just bad luck.

N.ROLDAN

I have noticed alot of problems with the intel macs... i'm still on a ppc. and I have only had a problem when doing a 18x9 foot banner in photoshop... I've been using a friends macbook and it seems to be buggy all over the place..

Well, Windows operating system is bad, but their hardwares are much better in terms of build quality. Especially the latest Intel based Macs are truly shitty. I think it's a quality control problem, since many around me are using Macs without a single problem, then there are a few who are having a hell, including myself.

I used four Windows based laptops before buying my current MacBook a year ago, and had never had this much trouble - numerous visits to Apple Store for various fixes, four hardware troubles that needed part replacements, one occurring within the first month of purchase, and now the monitor screen is dying (blinking badly), the power button needs double clicking in order to turn on/off, and all kinds of small hardware build quality related troubles are there.

Try holding down the F12 key for 3 seconds or rebooting while holding down the same key.

You might want to try returning your computer for a new one. Most states (in the US) have pretty good rules on warranties; companies cannot sell products that don't work and this is enforced.

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Powerpoint is not a design application

This statement has no validity.

"My car's CD player stopped working. [Insert Car Brand] suck!"

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Perfectly Lost Designs
"…the Web design community is hopelessly distracted by technical fetish." ~Andy Rutledge

I'd rather have a faulty drive Mac than a virus infected, non stop pop ups, ugly ass designed PC. LOL. But hey, that's just me.

Yep, even though you're throwing a fit about it, you still haven't convinced me that because your computer won't spit out a CD, that all computers of that brand suck, sorry.

Even if you were saying your car's transmission died and so you hate that brand of car - maybe you were the one in a million who got unlucky, or you were the one treating it like shit.

Calling the developer a bastard is what gets me. /rollseyes I suppose when you buy a new windows machine instead and it gives you the blue screen of death, you'll hate Gates too. Hmm after you hate every developer. . .then what will you be working on?

Maybe I would respect your post if it was even slightly pro-active about fixing your problem.

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Perfectly Lost Designs
"…the Web design community is hopelessly distracted by technical fetish." ~Andy Rutledge

Havnt seen one of those for years now. and as for pc's being ugly, having constant popups and being virus riddled, you obviously havnt used vista or IE8 and you havnt had a proper look at the hardware available in shops or online you can customise a pc as you like. dont get me wrong, i actually like mac OS. but i refuse to pay through the nose to own a product that favours design over funcionality. i run dual boot. on a pc.

The difference I found most recently between a MAC and Windows was while taking an online course for Dreamweaver. Windows made a simple click-drag-and drop a five-step process. I don't mind paying the extra for a Mac as for me SPEED=TIME SAVED, and time is a precious commodity.

the problem its bad usage of the machine.

like othres, mac's needs special cares.
and have a good warranty system.

i use one powerbook g4 and a new imac and NEVER, i repeat, NEVER got any trouble that bores me.

good luck

Someone call the "wah-mbulance"! I agree with most people here. Its either bad luck or the result of neglect. Crying about it is not going to fix it. Take it to the apple store and get it fixed.

I design on a G5 Mac throughout the morning and afternoon, and on a Quadcore PC during the evening. I think both platforms have their own strenghts and faults. In my opinion, my PC can handle a heavier workload. However, Its a matter of preference....and budget. As far as efficiency goes, as long as you take advantage of hotkeys, you will save time on both platforms. :D

I've been using Macs since 1984. In that 25 years, I've had exactly one problem. A G5 I owned was one of the ones that had the "wind tunnel" problem where the fan would rev-up for no apparent reason. I took it to the Apple store, they gave me a new tower, end of problem. I ended up selling that Mac to get the Mac Pro I have now.

I don't install virus detection apps. I don't run disk utilites. I don't run disk optimization apps. I rarely install security updates. In fact, I do very little "maintenance" at all - other than I completely backup, erase and reinstall everything when Apple releases a new OS (10.3, 10.4, 10.5, etc.) - which is about every 18 months or so.

In my experience, 99 times out of a 100, any computer problem is generally the fault of the user - whether or not they know it or believe it. Every once in a while, you get a faulty piece of hardware - it sucks, but to brand an entire company as "sucks" because of a few glitches is just silly.

I also know plenty of people who use Windows that have no problems - but they're very knowledgeable and take many steps to remain virus and problem free. The only difference between them and me is that I don't have to take so many steps to get the same results.

My only issue is that they hold such personal value. I've knocked my macbook pro, dinked the corner off, bent the firewire socket in, scratched the lid release button...and it kinda pisses me off. If it was a £200 laptop I wouldnt care less.

Macs are good and bad. Overpriced. For sure.

-

lol @ all the mac fanboys.

First things first @ JimD

"I also know plenty of people who use Windows that have no problems - but they're very knowledgeable and take many steps to remain virus and problem free. The only difference between them and me is that I don't have to take so many steps to get the same results."

So do these steps include downloading limewire lite??? Are you fucking serious? You guys are supposed to be professionals, and I'm still in college and even I know that you don't get viruses for no reason, you actually have to do something to actually let a virus install itself on your computer.. so stop going to free porn sites and downloading key crackers and other illegal things people attach viruses to.

I don't run shit on my computer... and I have NEVER had a crash... and my computer is faster and better than yours.

And to all the people saying that hes the only one with mac problems, YOUR FUCKING WRONG AND IGNORANT. Macs blow, their quality control is shitty and I have personally delt with 3 macs that are buggy. First one was my dads G4 powerbook, the fan stopped working, and so did the screen, and now its hard drive clicks constantly. And this computer doesn't do much more than sit on a table and get used for an hour a day...
The other 2 had to deal with mac screens not turning on after the computer had been on idle. You were lucky to get the screen to turn on after hitting the power button a 3rd time....

anyways I have logged in way more hours on a pc than a mac (probably 1000:1 ratio), and the fact that I havn't been dealing with all of these problems on my PC's and others PC's is a testament to the QC is ms. I'm not going to sit here and say that I have never had a BSoD or ram errors (my fault because I was building a pc and fucked it up), but I've delt with more mac errors that inhibit the functionality of the whole computer forever until you go to the mac store and try to get it fixed....

so for a little recap
Macs suck
I've had a PC for years now and have remained virus free since I figured out 3kb porn files are viruses at age 13.
Macs suck and they require you to send in your shit for the smallest fix so they can charge you out the ass.

Macs blow so quit sucking on cupertinos cock and learn how to use an actual powerful machine.

Right now I'm running on a:

Phenom IIx4 OC'd stable at 3.4ghz
8GB of DDR2 800 (cas 4)
GTX 285 core clock bumped up 700mhz stable with a little help from a liquid coolant.

so you mac fanboys up your game, start thinking for yourself, and get respectable computers. Or maybe ill just have to take your money by designing these new, chic, cool, hip, linux notebooks for 3000$.. its an instant must have.

muscle... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pubococcygeus_muscle

You are heading for a stress related disease having to vent steam like that on a forum. At least have the courtesy to use you real name like we all do.

When you must resort to using foul language multiple times in a single sentence, it really is a great indicator of your intelligence.

Try holding space bar down when you restart. It worked for me.

Also what were you doing that caused this? The only time I had issues was when I tried to install a pirated version of Windows with Boot Camp.

I am a nobody but I do have feelings. Others do care. Really they must! Please don't read my posts unless you have something nice to say. Thank you. (Sorry this post is in the wrong place – I'm having trouble with my fax machine.)

The only difference between a Mac and a PC these days is the operating system.
If you are not happy with the hardware performance of your Mac,
then build a custom PC and install OSX on it.
As long as you research your components correctly, you can build a machine with better performance for a lot less cash.
In my experience Macs are just as problematic as PCs,
and suffer from less support and resources during times of need.

I'm far from a computer expert,
i just have a lust for knowing how things work.
But i'll need to say it again:
The only difference between a Mac and a PC, is the operating system.
They both consist of exactly the same internals.
All the components produced by third parties.
CPU, Mother Board, RAM, HDD, GFX, etcetera etcetera....

Forgot to mention, you can buy a PC with Mac OSX already installed for a fraction of the price of a Mac:

http://www.psystar.com/

If you are considering buying one, I'd make up your mind fast,
as Apple are trying to sue the manufacturer.

Jim D totally nailed it. I too have been working on Macs since 1984 and never have problems. When I worked for an Apple dealer (back when that actually meant something), we never had machines come back for service except for operator error. Of course there are going to be glitches when you're selling millions of machines, but in general I wouldn't trade a Mac for a PC if you paid me.

BTW... The "argument" that PCs are "cheaper" than Macs is laughable. Yes, a Kia is cheaper than a Cadillac too. "Cheap" being the key word.

Art D. Rector

Please go and find me a mac that costs $1200 or less (in fact just try and find me a mac) that is as powerful as the computer I built:

AMD Phenom 9950 X4 CPU (Macs are all dual core)
ATi HD4850 GPU (You can upgrade the top imacs to this)
750GB HDD (Admitidly u can get better than this but not at $100)
4GB of RAM (Admitidly u can get better than this but not at $60)
Liquid Cooled CPU running at 29c
24" Monitor
Dual Dvd RW Drives
Two Button Mouse
Keyboard
Speakers

Yes all prices quoted are what I payed, half a year ago.

My point exactly I can put whatever operating system on my computer (notice I always say computer not PC) that I like (except OSX cause of their sad little licence agreement unless the hacked version allows AMD CPUs) I challenge your statement about OSX being better too I run Windows 7 RC, Windows Vista & Ubuntu atm on my PC and am extremely happy. No crashes, excellent speed.

I bet that my PC would beat any Apple iMac in any benchmarking program that was designed to be run on both iMacs and PCs even if the apple operating system was better than Windows.

I will admit Apple's iPods are good though (once jailbroken of course :P)

P.S. Right Click :D

Actually, I never said the Mac OSX was better... Then again, I don't have to. ;-)

All kidding aside - if you guys are happy building your homemade... ahem... "Macs"... then I'm happy for you. But if you're going to do that, then you can't come crying to us folks using Apple authorized products because you can't figure out how to eject a CD.

JMHO.

bought a 17" Macbook Pro mid 2009.

It came with bad 2GB memmory.

I'll survive (like Cake's song) with 2GB by now

It's ridiculous because I paid 5 thousand dollars for this mac at my country.

Sorry, I wasn't really clear about what you meant by your Kia vs Cadillac I assumed as the components are the same you meant operating system, if you meant the build quality I can assure you that mine is much better than what is done in the Apple production lines.

Does the one peice aluminium body help with anything apart from looks? No. Im talking about actual skill in design, are my fans positioned for optimum heat flow? Is each part easy to take out? Is the PSU capable of coping with the load, and extra? Is there liquid cooling?

Of course if you want to talk about looks, my coputer is lit by 16 blue LEDs and has a rather alienware like design the liquid coolant is reactive to UV and glows a bright green, of course there is a clear side for you to see my computer's insides. I can without hesitation say my computer is unique.

Of course I am here forming an argument against all manufactured computers and tbh always was really Dells are overpriced, so are Alienwares, Compaq, HP etc just Apple are by the most.

"Is each part easy to take out?"

Yes... good thinking. If I were using a PC, I'd be planning on replacing a lot of parts too. :-)

well to be honest I was a bit MIFFED that I can't swap out the HD and the burner without "voiding my warranty" on the iMac 24" AND the MB pro (you can't replace the battery yourself either). . . all you can do is TAK OUT The Apple stock RAM and add new ones. . . i.e left with RAM that you can't use. . . :P

But I figure I UNDERSTAND why Apple does it that way. . . Lock down the engine! ;)

It ALSO has to do with Apple going green. . . parts that they CONTROL so that they can say "Yeah this is safer to dispose of" etc.

You do realize that when you have to swap out your CPU (about every 2 years) - that adds to the overall price of the computer, right? Wait... you know what? I should just let you talk since you're making my point better than I did.

Huh?

Exactly.

Once you've had Mac you never go back.

I found this site from TUAW and really like it, well done. Then I poked around here in the forum, seems there are a lot of knowledgeable people.

Then I read this thread, the poor guy had a stuck CD! I didn't even read the whole thread, but did he ever get it out? Did he find out why? What brand CD was it (it matters from what I've seen).

But 80% of the thread is caffeine-induced "my daddy can beat up your daddy".

Yes, Macs are better at more things than PC's. Not everything, but most things. The cost of ownership of a Mac is much lower over the life of the product and they save time.

But anyway, I look forward to poking around here on the site. Always some good tidbits, ideas to learn and teach!

"Macs are better at more things than PC's" Name them! PCs have better graphics, better processing power, run more applications, can be easily modified to suit needs, eg 2 HDs, 2 Blu-Ray RW drives, overclocked.

Btw lol:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ALvE2aEKoo

Moose...it's a he said she said argument you're in...forget trying to conform Mac-users. Some of us were once on PCs as once upon a time there was nothing else available, and for me, once the mac/desktop publishing came to be in the 80's there was no looking back. PCs have their place in the work/user world as do Macs. Macs are simply a better system to work on if you're a designer. PCs are great for biz applications and games. Macs are generally not the target of mass viruses. Macs can execute commands in one click, rather than five...or do a simple drag and drop; PCs can be cumbersome when it comes to this.

At the end of the day, it all boils down to what you really want out of your system. Mine are speed, a user-friendly environment, and an operating system that has been honed over the years to serve the design community.

Obviously there is personal opinion in this, I think the windows interface is better you the mac, thats fine, thought im afraid windows can drag and drop, and viruses only affect those who have little computing knowledge, I have no anti virus or firewall and go on many sites that others would manage to get infected from, do I have an? no.
As for speed well, I've already covered that my PC is faster than any mac in the entire world.

Yeah, but my daddy can beat up your daddy.

yup mac is degrading with quality, but still is the best deal when it comes to art based people. the best way for this things is to buy an apple care. the ppc versions from g4's down are tough machines that still works after 5 years thing of a past for mac's and agree to that.

well some major factor for me

MAC
base factor is:
1.) not prone to virus
3.) optimized for photoshop and other graphic software (it was tested with the same specs of processor and graphic card as well as ram)

dowside:
1.) expensive

PC
1.) cheap
2.) pirated sofware are available almost anywhere

downside:
1.) prone to virus, definitely needs to come with an anti-virus which greatly slows the computer.
2.) user friendly change every time it changes OS

=)

Actually there is another disadvantage of macs this is obviously personal opinion but, that Dock!!! I hate it with a passion. Imagine fitting 160 icons into that! (Yes I know you can put stuff on desktop but do you?)

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q308/TheMadMoose/Untitled-2.jpg

Good Luck! :P btw I'd be interested to know how fast ur Photoshop CS4 Start up on macs (that is from not running at all not from in the running state that macs automatically do from start up)

I see someone with that many desktop icons who's concerned about start-up time for Photoshop and I know that person doesn't do any real work. But if the dock is what really concerns you about the Mac... turn it off. "Problem" solved. :-*

And then how would I see running programs? And yes we are talking about photoshop start times because that is a good test on photoshop speed others are possible but harder. On my PC it took 2 secs.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080827141953AAkscyg

http://stephenzeller.wordpress.com/2008/04/28/os-x-vs-windows-vista-mac-vs-pc-for-photoshop-and-lightroom-continued/

Btw the only program I use for work is word so yes you are correct its not a working computer.

Thank god you have that super fast computer - we all know what a performance hog Word is.

Perhaps you should stop being sarcastic, gaming is why. Tho now you come to mention it word does seem to be pretty slow on a mac.

Wow, I can't believe you guys are arguing with children. Seriously.

Memorex DVD's and CD's tend to be problematic. I am rather upset though that the MB PRO is no longer as cool and exclusive...i felt on top of the world lol

I'm surprised (and then again not... because I've been there, too) at how deeply vested people are in protecting the good name of their tools.

Anyone been out to see a good movie lately? How's the family life going? Having fun with friends?

While it's not a very popular position to bash Apple, I too have had problems with multiple Apple products lately. After going through 2 different iphones and 2 laptops (and they always break just out of warranty) and sending back ipods due to the really crappy batteries, I have to say that I am disappointed in them also. Customer service, which is vastly different than it was years ago, is basically non-existent. They basically tell you too bad - that's the way it is. Although I have had three different customer service reps tell me that they are getting many more calls than they used to. Unfortunately, it seems that Apple is turning into Microsoft. It just makes sense that if you pay more money (and considerably more) for a product, you expect to at least have the same, if not better quality. Apple, like Microsoft is only concerned with their profit margin.

Personally I prefer Mercedes Benz (AMG over-clocking), but that's just me. Although, BMW does have a cool magazine and the doors make that perfectly engineered sound when closing. This sounds like a football forum!?! What I love is how (apparent) adults are getting into tiffs with (apparent) adolescents.

My mouse button is bigger than yours.

The simple truth is,
Macs are heavily over priced. Generally PC users understand this, as they have a deeper knowledge of 'computing' and I.T., over that of the their fellow Mac counterparts.
Whats even funnier is the fact that 'Creatives' get suckered in by the 'Marketing' spin. Derrrrr Derrrr. How ironic...
(Undoubtedly these pears of wisdom will go awash within this thread of fustian ravings).

I googled too and can't find it. But it was (is?) a common misconception PC users carried for quite awhile and Wired magazine said it too - that when the old macs bombed, you couldn't turn them off without pulling the plug. The reason behind the misconception was the machines were configured incorrectly out of the box by the owners (who were familiar with setting up PCs - not Macs) - they didn't realize what the interrupt switch was for and never installed it. Ergo, "no switch". But this is hardly the worst of Wired's misconceptions - remember the Apple of thorns cover? They were basically dancing on Apple's (alleged) grave. Ooops. Got that one wrong too. How about PC users claim that it was a "mistake" for Apple to quit installing floppy drives in machines? Two years later (always behind the curve), PC manufacturers quit installing them too. The examples are endless. For this guy here to claim he somehow has a "deeper knowledge" of computing is ridiculous. Sorry - don't take it personal - I make no claims on the skills or intelligence of the persons using PCs (except for this particular... ahem... "know-it-all"). I'm just pointing out that the PC world (in general) has always been two steps BEHIND Apple... not in front of it.

"Sigh" Wow, and I wondered why I hadn't checked in for a while... I hate facebook, but at least you have some control about who u talk to... Not a dig at the site, just some of the idiots that post here....

"Apple needs to concentrate on clinging to its niche: design professions."
Children really! This is a design site, real designers use Macs. Therefore as a PC fanboy you will get spanked. As for M$, they have been trying to recreate what they did with Windows and Office for years, and it just isn't going to happen again. I have too many friends who work there, or have worked there. I have used both, been a tech admin on PCs, and supported more Mac and PCs then I care to count. The bottom line is I almost never hear from my Mac users. My PC users...nuff said.

Apple is growing faster then M$ and at it's current pace could be both a more profitable company and have a higher market cap because it can walk and chew gum at the same time unlike M$. Guess which company currently has more cash on hand....Apple.

I'm glad some of you have perfect Mac and PC experiences, I have had my problems on both. The difference is that the ones on the PC have been far worse. As for cost -- it's a false argument that has been trashed over and over. The bottom line is that apple sells more than 90% of the computers costing $1000+. The reason is they sell quality, every survey done reaches that conclusion.

As for the drive failure, get over it. Grow up and realize that stuff fails no matter who builds it. Quit putting jelly incrusted CDs in it and it might work. Or you can spend a big $30 and replace the drive.

In the meantime enjoy your computer, no matter what OS you are running.

Personally, I prefer the Brother EPPF-775 Intellifax for gaming and the Bernina 830 for business. Mac vs PC really doesn't come into my design field (scrapbooking). However, Mac vs PC is one of THE most important debates of humankind. There IS a definitive answer as to which is better. So, as you were.