I am a Windows user for over 10 years and a Mac user and a one year and half, and I quote here the advantages and disadvantages of both systems WITHOUT BEING BIASED.
Topics: Virus Programs, Customization, Games, Peripherals, Navigator, carelessness, Errors, Control Panel, Package and Programs Useful Console Emulators Emulators Systems, Software emulators, video codecs, Disk Image, old programs, Uninstall.
Windows:
Advantages:
- If you are a careful user, you won't have problems with viruses.- You can find programs to do what you want on Google search (but sometimes patience is required).
- It's personalisable. There are programs on the Internet to change any part of Windows:
- Mouse Cursor needs a program to create it, but not to use it
- Desktop don't needs a program to change the background image, but it needs to edit the start menu
- Icons Folder needs a program to create, but not to use it
- Boot Screen needs a program to edit
- Login Screen needs a program to edit
- All Games have a Windows version
- All external peripheral devices (printers, scanners, etc.) comes with drivers for Windows
- Installing K-Lite Codec, you can open any video format
Disadvantages:
- The default browser, Internet Explorer, is said by all tests as the slowest of all (and I reiterate)- If you are careless in sites like Orkut and Facebook or your own e-mail, you may have problems with viruses
- Sometimes you can encounter errors, maybe involving the "Blue Screen of Death", but it's easy to find a solution on the Internet
- The control panel is confusing, and even knowing it, you can easily get lost
- To run Mac on Windows PC, you need to make a Hackintosh, which is a complicated process
- You can't emulate Mac programs on Windows
- To create a disk image, you need a program (eg BurnAware Free | Format: ISO)
- You need an uninstaller to remove a program (in most of the cases)
Neutral:
- The package of useful software, Windows Live, must be downloaded from the web, but it's free- Emulator consoles are easy to find, but with the exception of the GBA, the PSX and the N64 ones, most of them don't work
- Windows XP can run programs from older Windows (95, 98, Me, 2000), but Vista and 7 may have problems
Mac:
Advantages:
- You don't need to be a careful user to don't have problems with viruses, but the threat exists.- You can find programs to do what you want on Google search (but sometimes patience is required).
- It's personalisable. There are programs on the Internet to change any part of the Mac:
- Mouse Cursor needs a program to decorate, but you can't change it
- Desktop don't needs any programs to change
- Icons Folder needs a program to create (in most of the cases), but not to use it
- Boot Screen needs a program to edit
- Login Screen needs a program to edit
- Few games have Mac version, but you can emulate Windows with these programs:
- CrossOver Games is shareware, but very consistent and easy to use
- PlayOnMac is free, reasonably consistent and easy to use
- Wine is free, usually not very compatible, but easy to use
- winebottle is free, reasonably consistent and easy to use
- Wineskin Winery is free, very compatible and medium difficulty
Note: Even with all these emulators, there are Windows games that don't work on Mac for now.
- The Control Panel is evenly divided, making it easy to change any settings
- The default browser, Safari, is said by tests like the 2nd or 3rd fastest of all (but from personal experience, I think it is the 1st (on Mac))
- To run Windows on your Mac, you can use Boot Camp, Parallels or VirtualBox Desktop
- It is possible to emulate Windows programs on Mac with some programs:
- CrossOver is shareware, but very consistent and easy to use
- Wine is free, usually not very compatible, but easy to use
- Winebottler is free, reasonably consistent and easy to use
- Wineskin Winery is free, very compatible and medium difficulty
- To create a disk image, Mac comes with a program (Disk Utility | Format: CDR or DMG)
- You do not need an uninstaller to remove a program (in most of the cases)
Disadvantages:
- If you're too careless in sites like Orkut and Facebook or your own e-mail, you may have problems with viruses on Mac- Sometimes you can encounter errors that do not know how to solve, mainly involving the emulation programs, and maybe difficult to find the solution
Neutral:
- The package of useful software, iLife, can be purchased with the computer, but is shareware- Much of the external peripheral devices (printers, scanners, etc.) comes with drivers for Mac, and the ones with don't have, you can find and download from the internet. But there are exceptions, such as the Leadership Video Capture Device, which cannot be used on Mac.
- Emulator consoles are fairly simple to find, but with the exception of GameCube, GBA, NDS and PSX, most of them don't work.
- To open any video format, you must install at least Perian, VLC and Flip4Mac.
- Snow Leopard can run the programs of Tiger and Leopard, and Leopard opens the Tiger ones, but none them can open programs of the previous Macs without being recompiled because they used other processor (PowerPC). I don't have information about Lion in this topic yet.