What operating system should I get?
The top three options are Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac, and Linux. In this article I briefly summarize the advantages and disadvantages of each. We start with MS Windows.
Advantages of Microsoft Windows
There is a wide range of software available for Windows machines, including of course MS Office. Modern high performance games run fine on MS Windows. This is somewhat ironic given Microsoft’s image of a business-oriented software house. Microsoft Windows is used on many systems, so there is no problem getting advice and support, and also peripherals (printers, mice, etc.) to work with it. It is likely that you have already used or expect to use an MS Windows machine in your work, as they are ubiquitous in the business sector. Therefore, being familiar with Windows can be helpful in terms of your career.
Disadvantages of microsoft windows
Windows can be expensive, especially for the Professional and Ultimate editions. Windows has a poor (but constantly improving) reputation for security. Therefore, a comprehensive virus checker and Internet security program is an absolute must for all Windows boxes.
Apple Mac OSX Advantages
The main advantage of Apple Mac OS X is its beautiful user-friendly interface. Apple has a well-deserved reputation for making well-designed products, and this is reflected in OS X. Apple’s most prominent application area is computer graphics and multimedia applications (video editing, etc.). While Macs have a good reputation for security, it’s still recommended that you use some form of antivirus and Internet security software. The reason for this is twofold: First, it’s only a matter of time before a really nasty Mac or UNIX virus shows up, and without a good antivirus infrastructure, the Mac community will be very vulnerable. Second, even if your Mac isn’t negatively affected by an infected email, it would be embarrassing to pass the problem onto your Windows link partners. There is a more limited range of peripherals available for Macs than for MS Windows machines, but it is still a wide enough choice for most users. In terms of applications, a reasonable amount of software is available, including MS Office for Mac.
Apple Mac OSXDisadvantage
For all practical purposes, Max OS X only works with Apple hardware (I don’t mean peripherals here, just the core system). Regardless, this limitation isn’t too bad since the Mac’s hardware is pretty good and probably contributes to the reliability of Apple’s offerings. Cost, for a given machine’s performance Apples are cost-competitive with brand-name Windows machines, however, Apple doesn’t produce a netbook-level machine that tends to be cheap.
Advantages of Linux
The first advantage is its cost, it’s free for many distributions, although commercial uses usually get support packages that of course have to be paid for. Secondly, Linux is considered to be very reliable, it is open source, so many people test and review its source code. Third, performance, Linux performs strongly in virtually all benchmarks. Lastly, security, Linux has a good reputation for security, but as with Mac, most users are advised to invest in an antivirus.
There is a wide range of high quality open source free software available for Linux. There is also a reasonable range of proprietary software available, with an emphasis on scientific and engineering packages. Also, with the help of the wine package, it is possible to make many MS Windows applications work on certain Linux machines (capable of running Windows).
Disadvantages of Linux
The two most common Linux GUIs, Gnome and KDE, are still not as polished as Windows 7 or Apple’s latest offerings. Users are typically business or IT professionals, engineers or scientists, and students.
Summary
If you are a businessman who plays games, buy Windows. If you are an artist buy a Mac and if you are an engineer download Linux.