I can’t stand using a PC to design. It’s like a friggin’ haunted house. Every time your turn around, some thing is popping up here and there…*pop!* “updates are available for blah blah blah!”… *pop!* “did you know that you can add shortcuts to your blah blah bar? simply blah blah blah!”…. *pop!* “Adobe Photoshop has encountered an unexpected error, please restart your computer!”… *pop!* “error with file crappymicrosoftos.dll”… etc. Constantly. Using a PC is a minefield.

Macs might be more expensive, but in the end you absolutely do get what you pay for. And the last thing I need when I’m neck deep in a project is some stupid driver error, sudden bizarre file corruption, or parts of my software suddenly not working anymore.

Mac. NOT pc.

But yea I would deffiently go for Mac on this situation!!

i am a industrial designer and i LOVE mac the design of the machine + the operative system, is a wonderful piece of engeniering, besides is very stable and has no viruses i will NEVER go back to a crapy PC.

yes is more expensive BUT is worth.

So, this is not an option for serious business.

Yet, I do have hopes for the new Windows 7 and even the Linux platform.

There are really interesting times comming, that’s for sure.

I appreciate being able to go back and forth between the two with little struggle, I would love to use both. But I feel like my hands are tied, the “industry standard” is Mac, so I am told and I have gotten a lot of flack for not using a Mac, even accused of “not being a serious designer.”

One gripe I will name:
I have heard many stories of hardware issues regarding both, but it disturbs me that a friend of mine couldn’t be told what the problem was with his mac…This is unacceptable, whether it’s your car, or your dish washer- why is it acceptable for a tool that is essential to your profession?

Certainly money is a huge factor, but recently I’ve learned that Final Cut Pro is only made for the Mac OS….so I am undecided on what will be my next purchase.

I have seen a comment on running both OS’s, was that on Pc hardware?

Regardless, I think I would prefer having each physical computer, “the best of both worlds.”

I purchased Adobe CS4 for my quad core workstation (Windows) and could not then justify having to buy it again for my much needed laptop, so I bought HP.

Whether I have a PC or Mac will not change my work and as the common applications used do not vary greatly between platforms, I have to agree with others that it comes down to personal choice and budget.

But Macs are better for page design because of two reasons: typography and color management. Seriously, try and tÿpé a buñch of àccent marks, curled apostrophes and em dashes on a PC — you’ll see what I mean about how it’s a lot easier on a Mac. Macs also have system-wide color management that simply runs better than on PC (in a strict color management workflow, you’ll see).

And take into consideration that most agencies and press houses have been using Macs for decades, what reason other than cost makes the PC a better choice?

All I meant was the Mac’s have the ability to calibrate and manage colour effectively built into the OS, if you bother to set it up. Window’s as an OS is still lacking in that ability at the moment, however with the adobe gamma utility you can however get a reasonable result out of windows.

For any designers having problems with their output not matching what’s on screen, i recommend this pdf.

http://www.adobe.com/education/pdf/cib/ps7_cib/ps7_cib17.pdf

At the end of the day, I think if Microsoft can just handle their fonts better they can power back into the designer market. I find that I prefer PCs cause I work much faster on them, but that’s all it is, using what you’re comfortable with. Not being told Macs are for designers and therefor use a Mac and tell all your STUDENTS THEY NEED MACS, as is happening in my university at the moment. It’s quite simple if you know a bit about computers that you don’t NEED a Mac, but if you like em go for it.

I think the most interesting thing that no one has mentioned is colour management. From what I have read, screen colour calibration is only, finally, being introduced nativly in windows 7 and it seems colour profiles are a bit dodgy in windows still. Mac’s have always had very good colour management technology built in.

I have a power mac G5 and i work on a new dual quad intel tower at work.

However in saying that, I want to replace my home computer, which i use for digital illustration (colour management is crucial in getting a good output for my art) and gaming, but i just can’t justify dropping $4000 Australian Dollars on a new mac tower. Esp when the graphics card sucks dogs balls and it would cost me $1590 bucks to custom build a new i7 PC with 1gb 4870 video card.

Not what you use, will make you a great designer, but what you’ll do. Your work is your mirror. This has nothing to do with, whenever you use a Mac or PC.

About 20-25 years (or should we go even further back?) ago most designers didn’t use any type of computer here in Eastern Europe. And even then, they made many extraordinal great pieces of graphic work. With their hand and mind.

But my grades showed them in the end who was better =)!

Its a bit like good beer – Budweiser is beer it’s just not a real beer like Carlsberg

This one is one that will run and run