out of interest, what is it that PCs actually *can't* do? I'm pretty sure 'can't' got supplanted ages ago by 'can, but arguably in a less efficient manner', which is generally mitigated by the increased amount of processing you can chuck at a job for the same amount of cash.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 3 Oct 2010, 22:09, 2 replies)

They can't do much without pissing you off
when you're used to the Mac just getting out of the way and letting you work.

Speaking as a Windows domain admin of 15 years experience, currently for about 400 machines, it's Mac all the way when you want to actually get something done.

*Unless* what you want done is best done by software that doesn't run on a Mac, of course. That's something that doesn't happen much any more.
( Fronds are waving gently on, Mon 4 Oct 2010, 1:17, closed)

Yes... Out of passing interest, I did a quick search for "what can Macs do that PCs can't", and it was mostly this sort of unquantifiable nonsense, taken and repeated almost verbatim from the various Mac ad campaigns. That, and 'well, they look very pretty!" - which is more or less the same logic my three-year-old daughter employed when choosing her Fisher Price faux-computer tat.

If Macs really do 'just work' - why are there forums devoted to their various errors, and why do they have a repairs department? Why does their marketing strategy seem to hang itself on being some kind of nerdy lifestyle choice, rather than telling you what the things can actually accomplish better than a cheaper, generic alternative?

I'm cheerfully ignorant of Macs, which was why I was asking an honest question on the matter, and I'm genuinely interested in finding a decent answer. I've never, ever had the vaguest hint of a problem getting a PC to do exactly what I wish it to do, and tend to lump complaints that other people can't as irrelevent PICNIC errors.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Mon 4 Oct 2010, 1:52, closed)

One thing for me justifies the extra cost
Spotlight search: instant response, full-text searching across every document, email, past-visited website or any other file on the computer. My job involves very long-running engagements with clients and being able to bring up ancient correspondence, specifications or code is essential. I can find things with a single word and it really is instant. I'm not sure how it does it but it's saved my job so many times.

Windows has search, but it's incredibly slow as it chunks through each file on your hard drive, and the indexing service slows everything else down. It doesn't seem to find things that I know are there either.

This feature alone saves me hours a week and more than pays for itself. There's nothing particularly special about Apple hardware, but the operating system is outstanding.
( Scrumper, Mon 4 Oct 2010, 14:04, closed)