The fast-evolving technology has created ripples that have reached all aspects of life. Multi-billion businesses were turning over several new products each year. Aside from the old-fashioned tandem of text software and internet capabilities, existing applications today boasted features perceived to be impossible some five years ago. The Macintosh which is brought by Apple, and Windows, by Microsoft, will go straight head to head in terms of competition for the best operating system.
Before delving further, it is only pertinent to understand the basic knowledge regarding an operating system. An operating system holds the highest importance among the groups of software installed in a particular device. It serves as a medium to control and communicate to the different software and hardware inside the Central Processing unit or CPU. The job of storing and safe-guarding data, as well as running vital processes and optimizing of computer performance, greatly relied on operating systems (GCFLearnFree.org, 2014). It could go as far as being called the heart and brain of any computer. The differences between Macintosh and Windows vary in accordance to the consumer’s preferences. Nonetheless, Macintosh and Windows can be differentiated in terms of design, specifications, software, and user interface.
Macintosh showed a minimalistic approach to outward appearance which contributed to its popular high-end look. However, Window’s collaboration with third party brands provided a large scale selection of designs offered from each different manufacturer (Techadvisory.org, 2014). Apple’s lack of partnership is currently being addressed by the company. Negotiation with Intel company are being made to have the operating system accept and enable editing functions on all forms of file formats besides that of Apple’s. Software-wise, Windows was generally thought to cater to a larger set of programs especially featuring business-oriented ones. Apple presented applications which can compromise to their exclusive copyright concerns. Programs were developed to recognize and fix compatibility with other file extensions outside the Apple diaspora. On the other hand, Windows have not yet made any actions towards having files, designed and opened by Mac computers, to be readily recognizable by Windows operating system (Ischool.utexas.edu, 2014). Mac users appreciate the graphically pleasing and user-friendly interface offered, while Windows focused on the functional aspects rather than appearances. Although, according to an article, the period between 2007 and 2009 put Microsoft’s Windows Vista below Apple’s OS X. This was highly due to the Vista’s inability to deliver with regards to speed, ease of access and smooth operation as opposed to the reliability demonstrated by OS X (Pumphrey, 2014). This was rectified by Windows by releasing a more stable version they called Windows 7. Due to cooperation with Dell, Toshiba, and many others, Windows enjoyed ninety percent share of the computer market and Apple below ten percent (Differencebetween.info, 2014). Windows was preferred among majority of the gaming community because of several manufacturers’ sole accommodation for performance (Germain, 2009). Conversely, this popularity made Windows the target of malware and digital viral attacks as compare to Macs (Kis.kellogg.northwestern.edu, 2014). To this date, Apple pitched in their latest operating system, OS X Yosemite and Microsoft with Windows 8.1.
Most users can attest to the small differences from previous versions of both systems. Still, it is worth noting about the upgrades which had been made by Apple and Microsoft with regards to notification alerts, cloud storage, as well as seamless simulation with handheld devices (Gruman, 2014). OS X Yosemite featured the ‘Handoff’ technology which integrates and detects all nearby apple devices and sync data such as email, messaging, or phone calls with a tap of a button. Microsoft did not have a problem with this criteria as the OS was primarily built attuned for both handheld and desktops. The Notification Center and Search box of the latest Apple OS was made cleaner and more functional as opposed to its predecessor. Windows opted to just polish the efficiency of searching for files at the click of the start icon while glitches and bugs were reduced for alert centers. Apple made changes to reduce the difficulty of storing and opening files from virtual disks as to match Windows’ ‘One Drive’ disk storage. But, it can be said that Mac had a generally tidier and simpler style versus the startup guide and troubleshooting dilemmas of a Windows operating system. Upon starting windows 7, the user is greeted with driver updates as soon as internet connection is secured, not to mention bloatwares. (Kb.iu.edu, 2014). Should a windows user encounter an error, the windows diagnostic tools may be able to fix it automatically (Shultz, 2011). Most frequently, it is a common scenario where diagnostic tools were not able to identify the causative source of problem, thus, few manual tips such as rebooting, logging off the system, or killing tasks via task manager were suggested by some computer experts (Searchitchannel.techtarget.com, 2014). The most basic step in fixing computer malfunctions is to discern whether it was hardware of software-related (Shinder 2010). Fixing serious problems such as repairing the boot problems can be solved by Windows Startup Repair which attempts to recover and restore files from a back-up system (windows.microsoft.com, 2014).
In the end, contrary to popular belief that Apple was just an expensive eye-candy, it still delivered unmatched quality and class that somewhat justified its asking price. However, the scope of availability of Windows made it a much practical choice. The freedom to select a specially customized computer that can meet the demands of a specific person is highly improbable with the uniform standard of a Macintosh operating system. Apple has still ways to go in claiming domination over the tech scene as Windows prevails to be a formidable opponent.
References
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GCFLearnFree.org,. (2014). Computer Basics: Understanding Operating Systems. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Germain, J. (2009). Mac OS X vs. Windows: Does Soul Matter? | OS X | TechNewsWorld.Technewsworld.com. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Gruman, G. (2014). Deathmatch review: Windows 8.1 vs. OS X Yosemite. InfoWorld. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Ischool.utexas.edu,. (2014). Intro to Macs for PC Users :: Darby Tober. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Kb.iu.edu,. (2014). What should I do immediately after installing Windows?. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Kis.kellogg.northwestern.edu,. (2014). Windows and Mac Comparison Guide. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Pumphrey, C. (2014). 10 Differences Between Macs and PCs - HowStuffWorks. HowStuffWorks. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Searchitchannel.techtarget.com,. (2014). Windows 7 troubleshooting tools and tips. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Shinder, D. (2010). 10 tips for troubleshooting PC system slowdowns. TechRepublic. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Shultz, G. (2011). Troubleshoot instantly with the Windows 7 System Diagnostic Report. TechRepublic. Retrieved 25 November 2014
Techadvisory.org,. (2014). What’s the difference between Mac and PC?. Retrieved 25 November 2014
windows.microsoft.com,. (2014). How do I fix a boot (startup) problem?. Retrieved 25 November 2014
