Windows 7 From a Mac User Considering a Switch to W7

craigshinney

New Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2009
This is more for the Windows developers than others reading this because I know I'll get alot of negative replies about me being a "high and mighty" Mac user. The truth is, I was a HUGE Windows advocate for years until a Mac came into my possession by mere chance. (My laptop died, I had no money, and I found an amazingly cheap deal on a Mac). The fact is, Mac simply gives the user a better experience. If you've never used Mac, please don't bother to comment. But I am at the point where I need to upgrade my computer again and I have been seriously considering a switch to W7. But to be honest, I've been reading alot of reviews that remind me of why I decided that Mac was better in the first place.

1) The expose feature. People mention that an app called "Switcher" is available, but the last update for that was in 2007 and it is no longer being developed. This is the single biggest reason I would not want to switch to W7. Expose makes it so much easier to handle a large amount of tasks, and Flip 3D just doesn't compare for usefulness.

2) The messy control panel. Seriously, what's up with this?

3) One reviewer wrote: "Why they cannot add RAR management like they have Zip management still baffles me, when other developers can incorporate the source code into their programs. And surely they can put in ISO mounting into their own shell as well so I don’t have to install my own ISO mounting program."

4) The same reviewer also wrote:"Last on my list are the annoying “Do you want to scan and fix?â€Â￾ boxes that come up when I plug in some devices, like my PSP. Then when I do click Scan and fix, and unplug it and plug it back in again, the same dialogue box comes up again. Annoying!"

To be perfectly honest, the LACK of annoying pop-up boxes (that plague the Windows operating system) were the single biggest thing I noticed when I first switched to Mac. However, I've also heard that W7 has made some improvements in this area.

Anyway, these are just my humble thoughts. I don't need any comments telling me "Nobody is forcing you to switch to Windows 7". I'm only saying this because I still have a soft spot for Microsoft and Windows and spent so many years defending it. I just wish I could say it lives up to my Mac experience...
 
ok, i will do my best to address your concerns. first of all, the more you know about using a pc or a mac, the easier it is to alleviate most of those problems. for instance, if you know how to use a pc, then you would understand that going all the way back to xp, you can turn off, the "user account controls", which is what sends all of the pop up messages. so many people complained about this in vista, when three click's could have relieved the problem. second, expose isn't nearly as nice as the new window funcx's of windows seven. being able to maximise, split screen two windows or shake the title bar to minimize or maximize all open windows is awesome. add to that the ability to "tab + windows" for the flip 3d funcx, and it is a really nice inter-phase. also, the jump list's in win 7 are so much more useful than what i have seen on the new mac systems. my dutch friend has a mac, and we compare all the time. my windows seven is much faster when we use the same programs, and easier to navigate. the control panel is now well organized, and easy to use. another great feature that comes with win 7, are the libraries, which make it possible to link all like files in a single window, which makes win 7 even easier and faster to use.
finally, personally, i put the taskbar on the top of the screen, and hide it when it isn't in use, and have zero icons on my desktop. then i loaded a program called objectdock by stardock, and put it on the bottom where most people leave their taskbar. i also hide objectdock, when it isn't needed, so i have a full desktop when i am working. this setup makes windows soooooooooooooooo much more efficient to use, and convenient in every respect. however, one feature that i really do like on the mac, is the multifinger mouse funcx's. that is a cool feature. while i don't prefer to use a mac, i actually like that mac is doing much better now, because it pushes microsoft to continue to advance to better and better software. competition is always good for the consumer! i hope this helps.
 
Its personal preference, each OS has it's own pros and cons, most of which have been discussed on this thread already.

Mac-
Quick boot
Integrated features (PDF, rar, quicktime, dvd, etc)
Virus/Spyware free
Expose

Windows 7-
-New taskbar (preview features are great)
-Snap and Shake (although I find the "shake" feature useless)
-Snip tool (similar to Snag it)
-built in drivers

Personally, I use Mac for my laptop, XP x64 on my home desktop, and 7 at work. I think I'll switch from XP to 7 for my home desktop soon..
 
It's simple really.. Think about what you personally do with a computer then realize which will meet those needs in the best possible way... ;) I mean really, you could spend days arguing the pros and cons of Windows and Macs but when it comes right down to it, it's personal preference.. ;)
 
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