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General discussion

Windows vs. Mac

Jan 27, 2005 11:22AM PST

Does anyone know the statistics or percent of Windows users vs. Mac Users? I really need this information ASAP as I am doing an essay in favor of Windows and need some facts to back it up! Anything would be helpful! I have been searching for the past half hour and was able to find nothing. PLEASE HELP! Thanks!

Discussion is locked

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It's some 3 to 5%
Jan 27, 2005 11:51AM PST
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Faulty Argument
Jan 27, 2005 8:18PM PST

You're proposing a bandwagon style argument, more commonly known as, "Everyone's doing it!" It's considered one of the (I think) 5 logical falicies for arguments.

Personally, I think it's summed up nicely in the quote: "There are lies, damn lies, and statistics." Which is to say, statistics can be tortured enough to say anything you want. Without any information about how you arrived at the figure, it's meaningless.

I was having a discussion with a friend last night, about Microsoft's Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) studies. None of which include the costs of cleaning up spyware, viruses, and other garbage. I personally spent 3 hours at work yesterday trying to eliminate some rather pesky spyware from a user's system. If you factored in those considerations to the TCO, you'd probably find that switching to say Linux, would actually be cheaper in the long run, since the spyware threat on Windows is still in its infancy. So you can see, depending on what variables you include in your calculations, only an idiot blindly believes statistics. Your paper would be much stronger the less subjective material you have in it. You might also want to look up the logical falicies I mentioned. Nothing drops the grade on a research paper faster than using a logical falicy.

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Faulty Argument
Jan 28, 2005 1:32AM PST

I tend to agree. I'm in charge of 60 PCs with Windows and 1 Mac G4, and I spend a lot of time keeping the Windows PC running. The only thing I have had to do the mac was update the OS to 10.3.0. First off in todays world there is very little difference in the hardware outside of processors. So in todays world why would someone pay alot more for Mac when they can get a Windows PC for a lot less? Many are fedup with MS Windows and are looking for somthing else. Maybe you might try doing some research on the real differecnes between the two, and why people that have Macs have them. If you just use the statistics you could end up with a one paragraph essay. I think it will be interesting to see what the $500 Mac does in the market
place. Also you might try asking this question in the MAC fourm and see what responces you get. John

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What about Virsus'?
Jan 28, 2005 3:28AM PST

It might be interesting to find out the ratio of virsus' which infect each OS as well. Maybe the fact that MACs are not in as much popularity as PS's, also means that they are not as vulnerable.

~Dave

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Not Quite
Jan 28, 2005 7:40AM PST

With the Classic MacOS, there might be some validity to that argument, but OS X is based on a Unix core. Set up properly, it should "sandbox" any virus pretty effectively, keeping it from causing the same level of damage common on Windows. Granted we are dealing with Mac users here, who generally are about as daft as Windows users about these sorts of things, but the fact that it doesn't happen often doesn't mean it's not possible.

And, even assuming your argument weren't logically flawed on a fundamental level, the Mac platform still wins. Whatever the reason, the fact remains that it doesn't have the same virus problem as Windows. So really, either way you look at it, the Windows supporter is pretty well buggered. Which I find particularly amusing since the main argument you hear is a rationalization based on a bandwagon argument, designed to put Windows in the best possible light.

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Switching to Linux
Jan 28, 2005 3:28AM PST

If you want to campare the TCO you must also include the cost of training users to the new OS. I have tried Linux over and over and I cannot ge to the point where I could use only it as my OS. I would at very least have to have both, and more likely I would just not use Linux at all for all the problems I have with it. For one thing I would no longer have Word Perfect and thus could not inmport all my WP files or my Corel Draw files.

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Persuassive Essay
Jan 29, 2005 5:32AM PST

Sorry guys. I probably didn't clarify the type of essay I am writing. I am writting a persuasive essay where I have to take a stance on an issue. Since I am a computer geek, I decided to choose the much fought battle of the Mac VS. PC/Windows. I am supposed to take a stance on which platform I prefer, which is tough because I have 2 Windows PC's at home and an Apple iBook at school, but I decided to go with the Windows. I was thinking that for my introductory paragraph it would be nice to use some statistics to get the reader interested. For instance, if they were a MAC user and saw that low percentage, they would want to read on to see why Mac was given such a bad rep. On the other hand, if a Windows User read the statistics, they would want to read on with pride.

Anyway, I just thought I would clarify where i was comming from. I am going to post a question on both the Mac and Windows boards on why they chose that platform so I will have great arguments. Please post on there! Happy

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(NT) (NT) OS Wars?
Jan 29, 2005 5:49AM PST
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All the more reason
Jan 29, 2005 8:35AM PST

Doesn't matter what kind of speech you're giving, you don't want to use logical falicies as part of your argument. It just sends your whole argument right down the crapper.

This is the sort of thing you should have been taught in any speech class from practically day 1. If you have to use a logical falicy to support your argument, it's not an argument to begin with.