Ruby on Rails

It's been a while since I used a Linux laptop (I was a Linux on laptop
& desktop full-time user for 5+ years) but certainly one of the big
draws for me in Mac/OS X has simply been the *feel*. The fonts look
great (useful when you're reading them 10+hours/day): they're typeset
well, antialiased well, crisp, attractive. The Retina display is
amazing. It's obvious folks with serious design chops are behind it
all. For me, Linux & Windows have always felt clunky in comparison.

If you want to get a deep sense of this, watch
http://www.helveticafilm.com - there is a hilarious & epic
anti-Microsoft rant by Erik Spiekermann about how Arial was a rip-off
of Helvetica for MS to avoid having to pay Linotype,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=F691weEVpwc#t=291

Macs... A lot of stuff Just Works(tm): multi monitor, devices, swipe,
etc. If I could monetize the time I spent fiddling with xf86config
over the years I'd likely have paid for every Mac I've owned. (I'm
sure it's better now?).

For me, having a machine that wakes from sleep nearly instantly, has
reliable trackpad + gestures, consistent copy/paste behavior, and so
on, is worth the money.

Finally, there's the development environment - this is the massively
personal choice that is likely the big decision maker for most.
There's no point justifying what each person likes any more than their
taste in broccoli but ultimately if you really like OS X or Linux,
well... :)

Paul

On Tue, Feb 25, 2014 at 2:00 PM, Jason Hsu, Rubyist
<jhsu802701@gmail.com> wrote:
> I realize this is off-topic, but I understand that an overwhelming majority
> of Rubyists use Mac computers and not PCs. I currently use Linux-powered
> PCs. Yes, I ditched Windows years ago just like many of you. Using Linux on
> a used PC is the cheapest way to compute. (I've been able to buy a 4 or
> 5-year-old PC that works for as little as $40-$50.)
>
> I'm interested in purchasing a Mac to put myself on the same page as other
> software developers. (I'm used to Linux distros that provide the look and
> feel of Windows XP.) I will use the Mac for software development projects,
> but I intend to stick with my Linux-powered PCs for general computing. (I
> don't want to get locked into the Mac world, because it's so much more
> expensive. Also, there is a case to be made for being versatile.)
>
> I'm thinking of buying a new mini (starts at $600), a new MacBook (starts at
> $1000), or a refurbished MacBook (starts at $850).
>
> Some questions:
> 1. How much has OS X changed over the past several versions? Is something
> from 5 years ago obsolete? Linux, on the other hand, is free. Any current
> Linux distro will work very well on a 5-year-old PC, and there are even some
> Linux distros (like Puppy Linux and antiX Linux) that work well on PCs that
> are 10 or more years old.
> 2. Is it just me, or are used Macs so exorbitantly expensive as to defeat
> the point of buying a used computer in the first place? I looked at
> Craigslist and found a number of used Mac laptops selling for as much as a
> new one. Most of the Macs selling for a few hundred dollars or less were
> very old, such as G4s. (I understand that those are 10-15 years old. Good
> luck getting even $100 or even $50 from a 10-year-old PC.)
>
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "Ruby on Rails: Talk" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to rubyonrails-talk+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
> To post to this group, send email to rubyonrails-talk@googlegroups.com.
> To view this discussion on the web visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rubyonrails-talk/68ab588b-edb7-442a-9eae-7af0f19a1beb%40googlegroups.com.
> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Ruby on Rails: Talk" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rubyonrails-talk+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to rubyonrails-talk@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rubyonrails-talk/CAMEJyiuH%2B71TuA9J5SbiJfAGuvkB6U7AD_r_GsvCFoasbw%2BHqQ%40mail.gmail.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.