Macs vs. PCs: the immortal problem of which is better has long been debated by the people. It’s difficult to say which is objectively better; the performances of the two operating systems vary depending on what you judge them by, such as user interface, aesthetics, and programming. Nonetheless, it is quite easy to shed light on the various merits — and demerits — of Macs and PCs. Whichever set of problems you’d rather be saddled with, well — we’ll leave that to you to decide.

User Interface and Navigation

This is one category where Apple definitely falls short. As nice as all their windows might look, they are pretty hellish to navigate, because their way of organizing everything makes no sense. You’d think that such a popular product would be more intuitive to use, but Apple’s got to be unique in everything they do, even at the cost of clarity and common sense. I have so many complaints.

First: the file system. It’s impossible to find anything. What Apple does for you is pull up different folders under categories such as “Favorites” (commonly used folders), “Devices” (anything you connect to the computer), or “Tags” (things you have flagged before). And sometimes that can be convenient! But if you want to find a file that isn’t in one of the four or five folders that Apple automatically pulls up for you, you’re out of luck. There’s literally no way to navigate and see every folder on your computer. If you want to make sure your file isn’t lost to the nethers of your computer forever, you have to leave it in a common folder or drop it on the desktop. It’s hell on any attempts at organizing files yourself. Don’t even get me started on the struggle that is attempting to import files without losing them immediately. Frankly, Apple should take a lesson or two from PCs on making their file finder systems easy to navigate.

And second? Apple’s menus make no sense. They seem to have this compulsive need to change the names of different options, completely unnecessarily. For example: the perfectly sensible “Create a shortcut” option is changed to the awful “Make alias.” Would anyone reading an Apple menu for the first time even have any idea what that means? It’s stupid. Plus, half the time when you “make an alias,” it doesn’t even work anyways. And more than that! For every window you open, Apple — for some cryptic, indiscernible reason — attaches the navigation bar to the top of the computer instead of to the browser it corresponds to, like any reasonable person would. It’s so unnecessary and makes navigation incredibly awkward. My professional diagnosis is that it’s bad. I would highly recommend not using a Mac simply because the user interface is ten different kinds of awful, boiled in the seven rings of hell, and then coated with a thin veneer of shiny metal and nice technology that tries to mask how broken the entire system is.  

PCs however, thrive on simplicity. Everything about the computer is explicitly expressed when you receive it; you know your operating system, your processor, your graphics card, and the assorted drives your computer has. Everything has its own label, and the only end to the relative ease of using a PC comes when the user feels the urge to complicate the computer themselves by way of customization; another feature the PC format offers in incredible variability. With the press of of the gorgeous Windows 10 emblem, followed by a click of the settings button, a variety of options arise. Want to customize privacy, security, language, or your internet options? Look no further. Each of these paths even gives a new set of simple options to choose from. It is easy to get distracted by the maze of options, yet it is impossible to get lost. While one may have only accomplished connecting to their wifi and setting their background picture, the suspicion that one has always been a closet computer genius begins to creep in.

Possibly the most important option the settings tab offers is the “system” option. Before receiving my first high quality PC, I knew close to nothing about how to manage the multitude of downloads already in my PC, as well as any new content I would come across. However, through my first couple months of trial and error it has become evident that the PC essentially manages for you. Upon entering into the realm of “storage”, the PC broadcasts ways to set default drives for videos, pictures, apps, documents, and music respectively. Possibly the best feature of all comes from the warmingly familiar folder system that we have grown to love as Windows has matured. It’s easy, it’s simple, and it makes saving anything utterly serene.

Aesthetics

Apple does fairly well in this, actually. Their products always look very sleek, minimalistic, and high-tech. Very shiny. Comparably, PCs come in every shape and form, oftentimes clunkier and not as slim or light as the equivalent Apple laptop. Based simply on their physical form, Apple’s products win, 8 out of 10 times.

If you enjoy the same sleek, minimalistic look for your desktop, you’ll probably like Apple. PCs tend to be more blocky. There’s something to be said about the uncomfortably sterile quality of an Apple product, though. PCs are more comfortable and easier to customize. They feel like they are your own.

Softwares/Programs

I hate Macs because their systems are so annoyingly restrictive and specific that software developers have to write an entire, special version of their programs specifically for them, because Macs are apparently incapable of running the same programs as everyone else. PCs aren’t so restricted when you’re hunting for new programs; they’re more flexible, at least in my opinion. In that respect, I think they’re far superior to Macs.

One thing that is really annoying about PCs that run Windows 10, though, is Cortana — you have to go through in order to search for anything on your computer. I don’t need a Siri doppelganger to tell me where my download files are, thanks. Also, there’s some terrible Windows Search function that hogs an ungodly amount of CPU and starts automatically, and it slows the computer down way too much if you don’t go and turn it off yourself. Actually, Windows 10 saddles you with a lot of completely unnecessary functions that basically don’t do anything useful except eat up your CPU.

While it is true that mac systems are like the tetris piece that just never seems to be compatible with the rest of the design, Windows users must hold back their chuckles. Mac puts PC to shame when it comes to apps. The all too familiar apple store offers familiar named and tested applications including Indesign and Photoshop, along with other lifestyle apps in the social media category. The windows store broadcasts nothing but Video games. When looking for an editing software, it’s hard to be quite as impressed by the Xbox related action. One is hard pressed to find any notable and trusted application once they pass by adobe photoshop on their long scroll down.