not perhaps the structured reasoning i was after

i'm minded to, i must admit. thinking of the base level 13" model.

are the plush apple stores a good place to get them or would i be better off on-line?

i take it that it's fairly easy to transfer my files/photos/emails/itunes library over using an external drive?

I'm also thinking about getting a Mac, they do cost quite a bit more though.

Easy enough to transfer the files, Mac's support USB devices so it should be as simple as it is with Window's computers.

not sure i'd want to run office at all. i'm looking at sticking with the base software as much as possible, and not getting involved with all the noise that comes along with anything that has microsoft on it in any way shape of form.

i assume that the mac comes with mail software (with spellcheck - unlike outlook express where you have to purchase full outlook) and that open office is availible for reading the odd word doc that gets mailed though?

not got a clue about the OS. hence the question of what to buy and where from.

i was thinking of the apple store but have no idea whether they will actively look to "sell-up" or whether the likes of amazon/pc world are equally good value. i'm looking at keeping it for 8 years, which as you allude to is no more expensive than buying a new pc every 3 years or so.

I started on a PC and found it frustrating and tedious to use,that was until a friend and work colleague sold me his Mac 4.
I am now using a MacBook Pro and enjoy what they were designed to do I.E what you bl**dy ask it too.
I have no anti virus, firewalls and such like as Apple send the pill when then the machine gets sick (Facebook "look at this" type stuff)
Easy updates and a joy to use. All the apps intergrate making life so much easier when trying to learn your way around the operating system.

In a nutshell go for it you'll wish you did it years ago.

Happy macking
Foz

not sure what you mean by apple send the pill? - is this by way of a software update - so no need for antivirus software at all?

you reckon the mac book pro at base level is worth going for?

No nee for anti virus software, firewall is fine and updates automatically.

This is because Apple licence the source code making it difficult to write the dodgy virus riddled third party software found on PC's. Nothing is bullet proof but ever since Macs went from OS9 to OSX I've not come across a virus or a software clash in 10 years.

I've had the misfortune to make frequent visits to the Apple store in recent months, thanks to falling for the 'all coat and no knickers' phenomenon that is the i-phone; each visit has been an infuriating and lengthy experience, akin to having ones fingernails peeled off.

I have no idea if they'll try to sell you things you don't want but from my own experience, I'd avoid it like the plague; I'm considering switching to a Mac myself, for all the reasons that Vastman has described, but I'll be buying online, without setting foot in an Apple store, thus avoiding the need to a) make an appointment (in a fricking shop??) and b) spend time being patronised by a spotty teenager labelled as a 'genius.'

I'm a PC

When I went to the apple store in London, there didn't seem to be a problem, there seem to be more blue T-shirted spotty teenagers than customers, there seemed to be 100's of them

seriously? an appointment?

i guess i want that whole chat to them, then look them in the eye and see if they're lying experience, before retreating off and working out whether to buy online (if it's cheaper) or in store!

oh and i think you're right about the i-phone. however, we're getting them at work anytime soon much to my horror.

Indeed - I've been in a grand total of 7 times on a futile quest to get the i-phone to reliably make phone calls and yes, an appointment is required; woe betide if you're late for that appointment by the way - a vaguely geeky looking youth with a wispy beard and a blue t-shirt will make a few swipes on his ipad before advising you that you can't be seen for another couple of hours. "Can you go get a coffee or something and come back later?" "Yes of course but before I do, can I punch you in the face repeatedly until my rage subsides?"

Maybe it's just me.

Being a professional Mac user I've never used Apple stores. I am not the least bit surprised that you have had issues as there is no doubt that the Mac world attracts a certain level of condecending snobbish attitudes. Hoever the same seems to apply to PC's and other gadgets, geeks are always shard work no matter what the situation. This flies in the face of Steve Jobs own philosophy of simplicity and I reckon like every great visionary company Apple will decline without his leadership.

Thankfully for now at least you really don't need the support of Apple Stores to enjoy what are still IMHO the best computer products available. I also think the iPhone is possibly a law unto itself with it's own little clicks and the way it's sold etc is not typical. Apple need to watch themselves that's for sure.

As I say for now the computer side is just fine and you can get really good on line support not that you will need it. I will always offer advise to anyone who wants it, and hands on support but I charge for that (this is not an advert by the way).

Far too expensive and so are the parts when you come to upgrade, I also build my own computer which I really enjoy and you get far more for your cash. Never really got in to MAC's although I've tried OS X on a PC but just didn't get used to it, can't beat a PC as far as I'm concerned. As far as Virus', haven't had one in over 3 years since I moved to Nod32

Have always used PC's but bought an iMac last year. Was running a PC in a different room at the same time, and so I was able to compare and contrast.

In terms of cost, to see if it was good value, I went on the Dell site and tried to assemble a PC of the same spec, with a large monitor (the iMac is 27" screen). The PC worked out more expensive. So Macs are expensive, but only because they are good spec.

Pros for Macs:
1. Look good.
2. Quiet. Silent, in fact, most of the time, just the occasional hard disk chatter when doing stuff in the background.
3. Stuff looks good on the screen because of the high pixel ratio.
4. Seems reliable.
5. App store is a very convenient way of getting software.

Cons for the Mac:
1. Not as much software, and not as much good free software, as for every paid-for PC software, you could easily find a free alternative
2. The Mac version of Word seems a bit glitchy compared to the PC version
3. Some of the native software isn't as good. Microsoft Movie Maker seems to produce better results than IMovie, and IPhoto is good but takes forever to load.
4. It does things differently, which eats up hard disk space. For example, if I understand it correctly, PC's work by links to files, and so if you have photo-organising software, it will generate links to the photograph files. Macs seem to do it by copying, and so I have my pictures in the pictures folder, but if I import them into IPhoto, it seems to copy the pictures, and so they are in two places, which soon eats up the hard drive space.

On balance, I like my IMac, and would get another, certainly over and above a PC of the same spec. The problem is that I could get a PC that would do what I need to do, surf and use Word and store photos and music, for a quarter of the price.