Week 5

For a person who may have never seen a computer before, the basic operation of PCs and Macs would probably be difficult to distinguish. After all, both consist of, generally, the same hardware, excluding the tower vs. CPU-in-the-monitor feature, and operate in the same basic manner with a series of on-screen windows, icons and menus allowing access to various storage spaces and software.

However, this is where the similarities end. From an angle of aesthetics and feel, Macs are sleek, fast, refined and cool while PCs tend to be slow and clunky. PCs also require a greater understanding to operate since many functions are still performed in a very "computer-speak" way. Conversely, Macs are extremely user-friendly for individuals with a limited knowledge of computers. In other terms, PCs require prior knowledge to successfully operate while Macs tend toward a common-sense style of operation.

I personally prefer Macs, however, in my 16 years as a commonly accepted computer user, I have used a PC for all of about three or four years. And those years were fairly recent. So, to be fair, I am probably biased in my opinion.

Having said that, I find that Macs tend to facilitate my creative flow rather than impede it, as I have found with PCs. This may be due to the wider range of factory installed software, such as GarageBand, found on Macs or it may be due to the speed with which the common-sense operation of a Mac allows me to realize my thoughts. The truth probably lies in a combination of these factors.

So, for me, the advantage lies with Macs because, as a creative person working in a variety of different mediums, Macs allow me to process my thoughts and ideas into a tangible form with such speed and efficiency that my stream-of-consciousness pattern is hardly ever broken. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for PCs.

To note, however, I would appreciate a world in which various format types were compatible between both platforms.