Microsoft spins it

Yes, Linux does involve finding the "inner geek," but there are incredible forums with people who have created scripts I can just copy-and-paste into a terminal shell to do what I need when there is no icon available in KDE or Gnome.

Also consider that for a lot of users, who seriously just check their email, surf the web, maybe IM, and sometimes might consider jotting something down in a word processor, Ubuntu, Fedora, and others, do all of that quite well right out of the box, and don't have to be encumbered with antivirus programs or inordinate license restrictions.

You really don't need to delve all that far into it, these days, to install and use linux, unless you hit a hardware issue, which doesn't happen all that often.

On the desktop I've only ever run into issues with winmodems and the occasional wireless adapter. On laptops I've really only had issues with wireless, though apparently hibernation has caused consternation on some. In those cases a competent computer friend, paid tech, or helpful forum (which abound), usually does the trick rather nicely.

Linux is a truly open system.

It amazes me that Apple has this kind of anti-corporate aura among the believers when it is a far more closed, corporate controlled system than Windows (Windows doesn't require you to buy their hardware)

Recently Apple has started making veiled threats to use DMCA against people who dare to mod their iphones to run non Apple apps. Even MS does not do that.

The expensive bit in the bottom one isn't quite right (at least in my case). I recently bought a new computer (as in still waiting for the bits recently) and the price difference between a PC and an equivalent mac was about $2000. So even buying a copy of vista 64, zonealarm, AVG, and a bottle of Lagavulin to get me through the setting up windows, it would still be cheaper.
Basically the support and software comes in the 50-100% premium you pay for buying a mac.

I agree with your final statement though; either find your inner geek, or pay more for a mac and stop harassing the family nerd.

When did iLife become free?

It is $79.00, as I just confirmed from Apple just before I wrote this. I can't recall if it was included "free" with my computer when I bought it (I use quotes since the cost is probably worked into the cost of the computer).

I do distinctly remember buying Quicktime Pro and iWork, however.

John,

You've stirred up the emotions here, I see.

This is, at a guess, why you indexed this entry uneder 'Religion.'

You may think that. I couldn't possibly comment...

iLife is free with new Macs. If you got it after (I think) 4 January you get a free upgrade to the 09 version (I have 08, but what the hell). I bought iWork too - at less than a quarter the cost of Office I get three very useful apps (and now Endnote is integrated into the new Pages, much nicer than it is in Word, I can finally stop using Word altogether, as I have OpenOffice if I need more than Pages gives me).

I never need to have a Microsoft product on my Mac ever again. Free at last! Free at last! Thank Jobs Almighty, I'm free at last!

I've been using Windows at work for almost 20 years (there was a brief blissful period where I ran Linux on my desktop at work) and Mac or Linux at home for a decade. The difference is in time spent using your computer versus time spent maintaining it. I suspect over 5 years or so the TCO is probably a wash: more upfront cost for a Mac in cash, more upfront in learning for Linux, more long term cost for maintaince for Windows.

I'd rather spend the upfront cost and spend more of my time *using* my computer. I do regular backups on my machines and monthly cleanup. Total time spent keeping the computer running at peak is less than two hours a month. I still run Windows at work, I spend more than that a week on keeping it running and I'm less productive on it than I am on either Mac or Linux. That's not to say either of those are right for everyone, but neither is Windows.

Ubuntu works for me right out of the "box" and I'm not a computer geek.