Mac or Windows for College?

So next year I will be in college, of course I will buy a brand new labtop for school. But I dont know which would be better for doing school work and send assignments to my professor etc which computer would be more compatiable Mac or Windows? and if Mac Air or Pro?

Actually I'll give a completely unbiased answer from my brother the Windows freak. "An Apple notebook is the best Windows notebook made today."
To which I'll add: With an Apple notebook you have the ultimate in compatibility. You know you'll have a computer that runs the software your professors demand whether that be Windows, Mac, or Unix.
That just leaves the question of which computer. My choice would be a 13" MB Air with 8GB RAM and a 256GB SSD preferred but 128GB should suffice. Add an inexpensive USB optical drive if you buy physical CDs or DVDs - no need to buy Apple's SuperDrive. Also buy an external drive for TM backups. If you elect to go with the 128GB SSD you will probably wind up buying another external drive for your media - music, video, and pictures - but you needn't buy that right away.

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Mac or pc for college

I was wondering if a Mac or pc would be a better investment for college. I will be having a few online classes that require working with windows but I know macs can run windows now. Also if you have windows on the Mac do you still need to get Microsoft office for word etc? What's the better choice?

In all honesty... I am a windows fan.
When you are going through college you will be interacting with quite a bit of different software throughout your years which will usually NOT be useable on a mac.
MACs are restricted on the software they support, but that is also a main reason they are "more reliable". But it will also limit your knowledge of a computer in my opinion.
You can still run windows within the MAC through other software you have to purchase, such as boot camp. You will also need to purchase a fresh copy of windows as well, which really just ADDS to the cost of the already overpriced MAC machines.
Is there a need for the MAC OS + WINDOWS OS? My opinion is no. You will benefit more throughout college with a Windows based machine and it will not hurt your pocket nearly as much. But if money is not an issue for you, then yes a MAC computer with some software to run windows would be ideal, but not worth the $$$ in my opinion although it would provide you with the flexibility and power of both operating systems.
My opinion is just to pick a reliable PC manufacture and a good model. You will use windows a lot more frequently than MAC or it's software.
A windows based PC can do everything a MAC can... and more, but because of that there may be a few future head aches such as software problems.
Window based PCs are extremely flexible and changeable and thats why you hear a lot of problems and people complain because they change things without even realizing it and it sometimes does not like what you changed as it conflicts with another setting/change.
MACs are bit restricted and thats why you do not hear about the problems nearly as much.
Summary: Grab a Windows based computer for college. You are there to learn, might as well learn a bit about a compute aswell. They are everywhere.
Geek Squad Agent
Although I am currently a Best Buy employee my involvement with these boards are voluntary and on my own time. I am not representing Best Buy. My comments/posts have no affiliation with Best Buy in any way and are strictly MY OWN words & opinions.

What's the best Mac to get for college?

My daughter is getting ready to attend college in the fall and I would like to get her a MAC. Which one do you recommend and why?

She'll certainly want something portable and while the MacBook Air is the lightest, I would be more prone to suggest a slightly heavier (but not too hefty!) entry-level MacBook Pro. If she needs to run Windows apps, she can, and there are a number of applications that are cross-platform (the ubiquitus MicroSoft Office for example).
See -> http://store.apple.com/us/buy-mac/macbook-pro?product=ME293LL/A&step=config.
Good luck!
Clinton

Switching from Mac to Windows for CS5

I need the wisdom of the crowd...
I own the CS4 Production Premiere bundle for Mac. With CS5 coming out, I'm thinking of switching (back) to a Win7 PC - specifically for video editing. My footage is predominantly from the Canon 5D2 and I mostly edit on a Macbook Pro. I have not seen any literature that the CS5 version of premiere or the Mercury playback engine will stop my footage from stutterinhg in Premiere Pro. I can live with longer render times, but don't want to transcode media in order to edit/playback in realtime. Even previewing a clip in PPro on the Mac will cause stuttter.
Rather than deck out a Mac Pro with Cuda card I'm thinking of going back to Windows and building an editing station with an i7 core and cuda card. It also means going through the cross-platform licensing process again (I originally came from the PC world)
I'm really stuck with what to do here and would love the wisdom of the group
Thanks in advance
Tom

TomPerrone wrote:
I need the wisdom of the crowd...
I own the CS4 Production Premiere bundle for Mac. With CS5 coming out, I'm thinking of switching (back) to a Win7 PC - specifically for video editing. My footage is predominantly from the Canon 5D2 and I mostly edit on a Macbook Pro. I have not seen any literature that the CS5 version of premiere or the Mercury playback engine will stop my footage from stutterinhg in Premiere Pro. I can live with longer render times, but don't want to transcode media in order to edit/playback in realtime. Even previewing a clip in PPro on the Mac will cause stuttter.
Rather than deck out a Mac Pro with Cuda card I'm thinking of going back to Windows and building an editing station with an i7 core and cuda card. It also means going through the cross-platform licensing process again (I originally came from the PC world)
I'm really stuck with what to do here and would love the wisdom of the group
Thanks in advance
Tom
Going back to the PC is a great idea. I built a great system that would cost double what I put together on the MAC. No brainer really. I bet the difference in cost when cross-platform licensing changes you will still be ahead.

Using the Mac with windows for document imaging business is it practical?

I have incorporated my business in my state and the premise is to perform document imaging services. The problem though is alot of recommendations from windows people telling me its not practical to enter this arena using a windows xp on a mac and it would be more practical just getting a pc since the industry and all software for the business is done for windows. I am wondering if I do this using windows on my mac in a commercial atmosphere how much of a problem should Iexpect and should I just go ahead and use a pc laptop for the business. I was also going to use a company that has apple servers for my online backup of files.

"how much of a problem should Iexpect"
None. Why would you? Running Windows on a Mac is just like runnning it on any other PC, because Macs...are PCs.

Can the $100 Mac App store credit for college students be claimed anytime?

I am planning to get a Mac Book Pro for college, but money is a little tight right now and I heard that Apple is coming out with a newer MBP around Christmas this year, and I plan on getting it then. The $100 for the App store sounds enticing, and I am hoping I wouldn't forfeit it by waiting until December/January to get a new MBP.

Hi g,
No one here knows Apple's plans, and if they do, they're not allowed to tell. You can look at past history and make a decision based on that, or you can just take your chances.

Formatting 3rd Gen ipod from Mac to Windows

Hello.
I need to format a 3rd Gen iPod from Mac to windows for my Father in Law.
So please can anyone tell what the process is?
Many thanks,

The iPod is formatted for both PC and Mac, I used to use mine with a PC, bought a Mac, plugged it in and it worked with the Mac no problem. I'm not sure that this works both ways though, if you're having problems you could try this link for help: http://ipod.about.com/od/restoreandreformatipod/a/ipod_reformat.htmhttp://

I need to run windows program's like word and excel and PowerPoint etc on my mac for college , how can I do it?

I need to run windows program's like word and excel and PowerPoint etc on my mac for college , how can I do it?

You can install Office for Mac
You can install Windows using Boot Camp Assistant then install Office for Windows in your Windows installation
You can install Windows and Office for Windows using a virtual machine like Fusion, Parallels, or VirtualBox

Can I install windows 7 on a potable Hard Drive using boot camp? or any other way to do so?? need help for college please

I need to use windows in order to use Visual C++ for college but I don't have enough space in my internal Hard Drive so I want to install windows 7using boot camp or any other method on a portable hard drive and boot from it.
Please help I need it as soon as possible for school. Thanks

You can't boot Windows natively except on internal drives.
You can use a VM and put the VM image (VHD) anywhere any drive you want.
You are way too low on disk space, seriously so. And no room - even Windows and Mac OS should be warning and balking already.
"emulator" is an old-school term, even true, running a Guest OS under Mac's as a virtual machine, shared resources (RAM, processor) is easier but not the same performance level as running natively.
Comparison of VMware Fusion Parallels VirtualBox
This just posted, an FAQ for Lion and Boot Camp 4.0
Boot Camp 4.0, OS X Lion: Frequently asked questions

Programming for College with Windows Apps on bootcamp HELP?

Hello everyone I come to you for help after a long search for the perfect laptop.
Right now I am using a macbook late 2009 with multitouch. I love the features but after signing up for some programming classes for college I had to revise what laptop I should own.
My question is if I'll be able to program on bootcamp with Windows 7 with windows applications like Dev C++, Microsoft Visual Studio, Eclipse, an assembler and the like with 100% compatibility?
I am on a very low income but I think that Apple really gets it when it comes to mobile laptops. I haven't found anything comparable to a Macbook anywhere. I've seen some imitations like the HP Envy but when you look closely they do not come close.
Laptop PC makers just don't get it with their 2 hour battery life, "Desktop replacements" and heavy laptops. What is the point of all that if it's not mobile.
I can only own one laptop and I will upgrade to a 15 inch because I need the screen real state. I'm hoping that the answer will be YES to compatibility with programming applications on Windows 7.
One last thing, I've heard of Xcode but college teaches on Windows Applications, there is no way around it. I need to use what everyone else is using right now.
Thank you all.

Hi and welcome to Discussions,
running Windows with BootCamp on a Mac is like running Windows on any other given computer.
Those programs you mentioned shouldn't give you any kind of problems.
Only very low-level BIOS and/or hardware programming (in assembler) can arise problems due to some differences between Macs and 'other' PCs (like the lack of a full BIOS support).
Other than that you're good to go.
Have Fun
Stefan

I am interested in purchasing Adobe's Creative Suite 6 Master Collection for Mac and Windows (Single User Educational License) FOR STUDENTS & EDUCATORS ONLY.

I am interested in purchasing Adobe's Creative Suite 6 Master Collection for Mac and Windows (Single User Educational License) FOR STUDENTS & EDUCATORS ONLY. I am purchasing this program for my son who attends George Washington High School: The College Academy in New York, New York. He is a sophomore and is interested in web design. I would like to know if he is eligible to use/activate the Creative Suite 6 Master Collection for Mac and Windows (Single User Educational License) FOR STUDENTS & EDUCATORS ONLY prior to my purchase.

Peru Bob makes a good point. I just assumed the OP understood what the System requirements | Adobe Creative Suite 6 were.
Nancy O.

I purchased Adobe Creative Ste 5.5 Master Collection for windows for my college student daughter in '12 and she would like to install in on her iMac. Please advise on the process. Software has not been used yet.

I purchased Adobe Creative Ste 5.5 Master Collection for windows for my college student daughter in '12 and she would like to install in on her iMac. Please advise on the process. Software has not been used yet.

you need to exchange your win cs5.5 for mac cs5.5.
unfortunately, adobe only offers that for cs6, Order product | Platform, language swap

What format for my external drive allows use with Mac and Windows?

I got an external hard disk (1 tr) and i want to used it for my windows and mac, i read i can have two partitions one for mac and one for windows, but i dont really want to have two parts, and I read i can format it by fat32 and i can write and read on both os, is that true?
I want to use it for movies, os backups, and files..
Is it true that i can only save files up to 4 GB when the format is fat32?
please advise..

It this case you would need to to go to "Disk Utility" on mac and select 3 partions which will be under the Parition Layout in my screen shot below. "Current" is grayed out that will drop down select 3 partitions and make one NTFS, second Mac OS Extended, third FAT32. Using the FAT32 for both Mac and Windows but the files have to be under 4GB each.

I have an external drive - WD My Passport FOR MAC. I want to format it to work on both mac and windows. Which format do you think I should use? Will either one cause damage to the files on the hard drive?

I have an external hard drive - WD My Passport FOR MAC. I want to format it to work on both mac and windows. I also want to be able to connect it to my TV and watch movies.
I read up and I think I am supposed to use exFAT or FAT32? I also saw MS-DOS. Which format should I should use? Will any of them cause damage to the files on the hard drive?
My little memory stick uses MS-DOS and it works on both mac and windows.
Please can you just tell me a little about each and suggest which one to use.
I know how to change it once you tell me so don't waste your time writing about changing it.

Will any of them cause damage to the files on the hard drive?
WARNING: FORMATTING A DRIVE ERASES IT COMPLETELY !!
If you need to carry large files (e.g., larger than about 4GB) back and forth, you may need ExFAT. Otherwise MS-DOS works for smaller files.
The Mac can Read, but not write Windows New Technology File System (NTFS) without an add-on program such as Paragon NTFS.

I have partitioned my time capsule, but I can't get it to work as a Time Machine back up and permanent media server for both mac and PC. What format do I need to partition the drive to so that it works for both mac and windows and so that it will be visab

I have partitioned my time capsule, as I want part of it to act as a media server for both mac and windows. However I don't know what format that I need to partition it to. I also can't make it a permanently accesible drive. I want to restore the drive to the original format (which I don't know) and start again and re-partition the drive in a format that can be used for media by both mac and PC and for time machine back-ups and make the media part of it permanetly accesible so I can add and acccess my files.
Thanks

You are mixing up a couple of things here.
The TC drive cannot be partitioned without removing it.. did you do that?
If you partition it you must use a Mac disk utility and use the HFS+ ie standard Mac format. And GUID partition table not windows type.
You can select erase disk in the airport utility.. that will take the disk back to original format. No partitions. TC is deliberately not partitioned as it is not a media server.. it is a backup device for TM. Over time .. the disk will be filled with TM backups so you have a long history of file changes to your computer.
There is no media server in the TC.. it is merely disk storage.. you can serve files from it to a media device.. but the TC itself is dumb as dumb.
Now the actual format of the drive is irrelevant to the PC.. The TC offers SMB file services to the network. You can copy files to and from the TC as if it was a local disk without caring one iota about the format. The TC handles that .. it is not a local disk .. it is a network drive.
Although you cannot partition the TC. you can still copy files to it.. this does have implications for TM.. but as long as there is plenty of free space should not be a major issue.
You can create a disk image via the disk utility in a Mac.. and as stated you can create partitions if you do it on a Mac with the disk directly connected which means breaking warranty if any exists on the TC.

Mac or Windows for College?

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