We’ve all heard of Macs and Macbooks. Apple’s stab at the personal computer has a run rate of $25 billion, which makes it almost big enough to be considered a Fortune 500 company by itself. The popularity of the Apple Mac, however, isn’t built on sheer numbers but rather something akin to religious devotion. People love their Macs. People love their Macs so much, Apple can make an incredible amount of money selling them despite the fact that Mac OS has less than a 6% market share when it comes to desktop operating systems.
Interestingly, Steve Jobs used to wince when he’d hear somebody calling an Apple Mac a computer. He saw Macs as fundamentally different machines to personal computers and worked hard to create a distinct product to the machines that were running Windows. Even though today it has never been easier to switch from a Windows PC to Mac or vice versa, they do still offer distinct user experiences.
This means that if you are considering switching from a Windows PC to a Mac you might have a few questions you’d like answering first. Let’s go through some of them now…
Why do people prefer Macs to Windows PCs?
Macs are popular for a number of reasons. They are intuitive and easy to use machines and even though it might take a while to get used to the new ecosystem but Mac users swear by things like the Mac keyboard shortcuts and the increased productivity they offer. Other reasons include the high-end materials that go into building Macs, that they last for years and that they also hold their value really well. Add to that the decent photo and editing suites that ship with Macs and the removal of the need to deal with annoying drivers and you start to see why people feel so strongly about their Macs.
Will I need antivirus protection?
Macs use a Unix-based operating system, which offers a number of built-in security features. On top of this, Apple works hard to implement its own security protocols so that Macs are widely regarded as being much more secure than Windows PCs. A lot of this is down to the closed environment that Apple manages around its products. Programs like Gatekeeper block all programs that haven’t been digitally approved by Apple from running on a Mac without prior approval from the machine’s admin. Many Mac users don’t use antivirus but the prudent ones do, which means there are a lot of great Antivirus programs available for Mac.
Will I be able to upgrade my Mac?
It is generally easier to upgrade a Windows PC or Laptop than it is a Mac or Macbook. The task is even harder on the latest generation of Macbooks. Apple’s decision to solder the RAM and Solid State Hard Drives into their newest machines makes it virtually impossible to upgrade your Macbook at home.
How do I transfer my files from my Windows PC to a Mac?
If your PC has Windows Vista Service Pack 2 or a later version of Windows installed then the process is simple. All you have to do is download the iCloud Control Panel. Once you’ve logged into the iCloud control panel using the Apple ID you’ll be associating with your new Mac you’ll be able to sync all your PC files with the iCloud service. These will then sync automatically with your new Mac. Users with older versions of Windows will have to use third party cloud services like Dropbox or Google Drive.
Can I right-click on a Mac?
With a distinct lack of buttons on Apple’s Mouse and Trackpads you’d be forgiven for wondering about whether the extremely useful right click is even possible on a Mac. In fact, there are a number of different ways to right click on a Mac. The first is to hold down CTRL when you click. Another way is to go to System Preferences, then to Trackpad and enabling Secondary Click. You can now right click by tapping with two fingers.
How can I recover the system if it crashes?
CTRL-ALT-DEL is synonymous with rescuing your frozen Windows PC from a stalled application. The problem for Windows users moving to Macs is that the Mac keyboard doesn’t have a DEL button. Now many Mac users will say that the CTRL-ALT-DEL function isn’t needed on a Mac because the system is so much stable than Windows but sometimes bad things happen on Macs too. When they do, you need to press CMD-ALT-ESC to get yourself back on track.
Can I use Windows on a Mac?
Some things, like certain printer drivers, just won’t work on Mac OS. Windows 10 is the undisputed king of gaming too. For these cases, you might be wondering about whether you’ll be able to run Windows on your new Mac and the answer is yes. In fact, some believe that Windows on a Mac is much more stable that it is on Windows PCs. To run Windows on a Mac you’ll need a virtual machine like Virtual Box.