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HELP! Thinking of switching from PC to MAC. Should I?

By
Real Estate Agent with Alain Pinel BRE 01367196

Whle visiting the Apple Store, I fell in love with the new MACs. The person I spoke with at the store was so knowledgeable and so personable (maybe I fell in love with HIM?).

Anyway, I'm still on the fence....but getting close. Should I switch?

Mac OS X Screenshots

Can someone share your experience if, and when you switched from PC to MAC...

  • Was it easy?
  • What problems did you have?
  • Does your local MLS system support the MAC?
  • How about use of the Microsoft Office Suite of programs like Publisher, Word, Outlook, Powerpoint, Excel. Were they converted?

HELP?

UPDATE: I went to the Apple Store last night, Even brought my computer and back up drive. I was told that I could run the MAC using the PC software which could be partitioned. And boot up to use (learn) the MAC portion. So with all the assurances that I can do this, I was READY to buy.

I picked out a Mac with 15 inch screen. But by the time we added up what I needed, including the 3-year warranty, solid state, software programs, etc. I was looking at almost $3K investment.

Comparing what I could get with Dell, I could buy a new Dell every year for three years before I match the expense of getting a Mac. And somehow, in my head, price and familiarity trumped the excitement of getting the Mac.

Then after talking with my brother in law who was a Mac person for years but who switched to PC, he told me that he had to switch because of the software and compatibility issues relating to his job. He reluctantly gave his Mac to his son and "settled" for the PC.

:(

 

Comments(31)

John Cannata
214-728-0449 http://TexasLoanGuy.com - Frisco, TX
Texas Home Mortgage - Purchase or Refinance

Pacita - The MAC is much better than the PC.  However, I still use both.  Unfortunately, I can not get my mortgage site to work on the MAC.  I should be able to use Firefox on Mac, but have had issues.  If I didnt have that issue, I would ALWAYS use a MAC.

Feb 03, 2009 03:04 PM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

John --- like you, sounds like Mac users truly love the Mac....but are hampered by compatibility issues. I don't know if I can risk making the change. I don't want to use two computers to be able to get work done.

Your experience is very persuasive.

Feb 03, 2009 04:11 PM
Mirela Monte
Buyers' Choice Realty - North Myrtle Beach, SC
Myrtle Beach Real Estate

The jury is still out on this one for me.  Several months ago I bought a Mac Air.  None of my programs were compatible with it, so I bought a bootcamp and Windows suite, so now it has two modes: the PC one and the Mac one.  I have to boot out to switch from one to the other.  It's a bit sluggish.  They told me to get a big one, not a mac air, but I didn't listen (now I wish I had). 

The only thing I have to say for it:  it's sexy and my clients are impressed by it. 

My next Mac will NOT be an Air...  It will be the full powered one that weights 4 pounds more.

Feb 04, 2009 01:44 AM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Mirela

Thanks for your feedback. Sexy I don't need, but compatibility is a major issue. Did it take you long to adapt to the Mac?

Still wishing there is a truly persuasive argument to switch.

Feb 04, 2009 02:32 AM
Lisa Long
Heather Roda Broker - Paso Robles, CA

I use a PC but all the or most computer guys use a MAC. I learned on a MAC and they are very user friendly. good luck

Feb 05, 2009 12:00 PM
Scott Rotheiser
Shelter Mortgage - Las Vegas, NV

Pacita,

I have used both PC's and Macs.  I first started with  a Mac (1980's), but as technology evolved for the Real Estate industry I had to switch to PC's.  I still used a Mac for my home. I was always frustrated with the PC, but had to use it for certain programs,  Act, MLXchange and most recently Top Producer.  I finally got tired of using two different systems. 

I decided to go with the new 24 inch Mac in Oct of last year.  I am glad I did.  I purchased VMware Fusion, which allowed me to install windows on my mac. I have to use windows for MLXchange and Top Producer. I am able to run both the mac and windows at the same time, side by side due to the size of the screen. I can drag photo's and PDF files from my mac into windows or from windows to my mac.  I use the Fujitsu ScanSnap s510m Scanner.  It is incredibly easy to scan multiple pages into my mac, where I store all my files.  If you do decide to a mac VMware Fusion is a must.

Feb 06, 2009 04:07 PM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Scott

Thanks....very good info.

I went to MAC's website, and saw that the 24-inch MAC is actually a desktop and weighs 25 lbs. Not exactly my idea of portability.

But I'm happy to see there is a solution for PC compatible programs.

Will definitely look into it.

 

Feb 06, 2009 06:23 PM
Christopher Johnston
The Johnston Team - Metairie, LA

Pacita,

Scott is using the desktop Mac. You can do the same thing with a Macbook or Macbook Pro. In fact when Apple rerleased their earnings and sales data a few days ago it showed that most of their sales are in fact laptops.

Feb 07, 2009 02:41 AM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Christopher --- THanks. I did google VMWare Fusion to get more familiar with it. Searching for a comments and feedback from users of this program. Liking what I'm hearing/reading. When you buy a MAC, which laptop are you going to get?

Scott --- Thank you so very much for the information that would have taken me  a long time to find!

Feb 07, 2009 02:59 AM
Sharon Alters
Coldwell Banker Vanguard Realty - 904-673-2308 - Fleming Island, FL
Realtor - Homes for Sale Fleming Island FL

Pacita, I LOVE MY MAC!!!! I've had it two years. It's true, it doesn't work with some software but VMWare Fusion is definitely what most people recommend. I have bootcamp like Mirela and don't like it at all. Having to reboot my computer is a pain. I have a PC at the office, so I just do that work on that computer. Macs are so intuitive and there are so many cool apps already in there - like iPhoto and iMovie and Garage Band. You won't believe what you can do with iMovie. It's so intuitive, just like the iPhone (just got one of those also).

If you're concerned about the differences, sign up for one-on-one time at the Apple Store. You and a Genius (that's what they call the employees) work together on whatever you choose. You can do it for your iPhone as well. I have managed to escape the entire Vista disaster for the last two years. Now I hear they're getting rid of Vista. I think Vista has propelled people to buy Macs.

I would recommend a lap top, not a desk top. I would not recommend the Air - wish I had been able to talk to Mirela - because it doesn't have a DVD/DVR player. I have the MacBook because I wanted something smaller but the MacBook Pro is great for screen size. My 2G MB RAM core-duo processor is lightning fast. Need I say more? The people above who pooh pooh a Mac just haven't used one. They don't freeze up like PCs do. Can't wait to see what you buy!

Feb 07, 2009 04:25 PM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Frank and Sharon --- I truly appreciate the additional information and endorsement about the MAC. I'm vacillating between jumping off the lily pad and get a MAC, or be safe and stick with the PC. Every bit of info helps immensely.

I'll look at the MacBook and the MacBook Pro. I like your suggestion of one-on-one with a MAC "Genius". Will definitely check it out.

Thanks!

Feb 07, 2009 07:11 PM
Ryan Hukill - Edmond
405home @ ERA Courtyard - Edmond, OK
Realtor, Team Lead

There's some great info here.  I plan to purchase my first Macbook some time this year, so I'm always curious which models get the most props, and it's entertaining to see die-hard folks defend their preferred machine.

Feb 12, 2009 06:07 AM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Ryan, I was truly READY to buy, and may still buy a MAC. But for right now since I do need to get another computer while my current one is slowly dying, I'll have to "settle" for another Dell. Perhaps when things turn around, and I have big escrow with lots of $$$, then I will spring for the MAC as a reward to myself.

But for now, guess I'll stay a PC-head.

Don't forget to blog when you get your MAC. I'd love to hear about it!

Feb 12, 2009 06:16 PM
Christopher Johnston
The Johnston Team - Metairie, LA

Well, I'm making the switch. FedEx called me and let me know that my 15" MacBook Pro will be available to pickup tomorrow morning at 9am at their distribution center. I couldn't wait for delivery.

Apr 20, 2009 02:39 AM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Christopher,

Congrats. Perhaps you can blog about your experience. I would certainly be very interested.

I chickened out and remained with what I knew....but in my heart, i am still "lusting" after a MAC.

 

Apr 20, 2009 04:25 AM
Christopher Johnston
The Johnston Team - Metairie, LA

I'm now using my new Mac and love it. I can't access my MLS because it requires IE so I have to boot up my Windows machine for that. As I learn more about the Mac I love it more and more. It did take a while to get used to but now I actually feel weird using the PC.

May 10, 2009 02:22 PM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Christopher

Congrats on your MAC.

I had feared that I would be challenged by learning how to operate the MAC, and also the compatibility issues with the MLS. Now, since I also got Office 2007, I am learning how to use the programs which are quite a bit different from the 2003 version.

I'll continue to lust after a MAC....Maybe next time

May 10, 2009 03:34 PM
Joe Schutt
Unit Realty Group - Boston, MA
Forward Thinking

Hi Pacita...I'm sorry you opted to stay with the PC. I am coming up on my one year with my Macbook and I love it. I should have switched years ago, but like most others I had found that most programs didn't work with the MAC. Well, when the aluminum came out I decided to go to the MAC store and talked to one of the salespeople. I found that more and more programs are working with MAC. He also told me about a little trick in Safari that allows you to change your browser to IE7 so you can use some of the functions for websites. Example: I have P2A and they were not compatible with any browser besides IE, but once I turned my Safari browser into IE7 I was able to do all except load pictures. That is when I pop into Parallels (same type of program as VMware Fusion.) I am just starting up back up with Top Producer and I know that it doesn't fully work with MAC yet, but they are working on that. In the meantime I will be using Parallels to access it.

Since switching, there have been about 15 people in my company that have.

As for going with the new PC, I am sure you still had the learning curve with Vista and the new Word. At least with the MAC you could have taken classes to help you out.

Go for it next time, Well worth it!!

Sep 04, 2009 04:00 AM
Joe Schutt
Unit Realty Group - Boston, MA
Forward Thinking

I reveived an email from Sharon about the Develop window on Safari, so I figured I would come back and share with all who may not know about it.

Keep in mind that not everything you want to do will work, but it did allow me to do more than I could without it. Here it is and hope it helps:

Display the Develop Menu In Safari

-Launch Safari, located at /Applications/Safari.
-Open Safari’s Preferences by selecting ‘Safari, Preferences’ from the menu.
-Click the ‘Advanced’ tab labeled.
-Place a check mark next to ‘Show Develop menu in menu bar.’

The Develop menu will appear between the Bookmarks and Window menu items. The Develop menu is particularly handy for web developers, but casual users may also find the first two items extremely helpful in their daily browsing. The ‘Open Page With’ menu item lets you select any installed browser to reopen an open web page from within Safari. The ‘User Agent’ menu item lets you see how an open web page looks in a variety of Mac and Windows browsers and versions.

Sep 04, 2009 11:46 PM
Pacita Dimacali
Alain Pinel - Oakland, CA
Alameda/Contra Costa Counties CA

Joe

What can I say, I was too chicken to try out a MAC that was going to cost me three times as much as my Dell. But at least I made it all the way to the Apple Store and even brought my Dell laptop when I went in, with the full intention of switching. Until I got the price quote...

Maybe next time......

Sep 05, 2009 05:10 AM