by Calder Morton-Ferguson

Created on: February 13, 2011

"Hi, I'm a Mac", "And I'm a PC". You may have heard these two funny characters on TV many times. The computer industry is growing, and there are two main rivals: Mac and Windows. As much as you favour one of these operating systems, no one can say for sure that one is "better" than the other in all ways. There are many upsides and downsides to both of these operating systems. Read on to find out the pros and cons to both Windows and Mac.

Currently, the most widely used operating system is Windows. Bill Gates, CEO of Microsoft, dropped out of Harvard university, one of the most prestigious education instalments in North America, to pursue his fantasy of creating Microsoft. Today, that fantasy has turned to reality, with over a billion Windows computers sold as of 2005. There are many versions of Windows, the newest (As of early 2011) being Windows 7.

With its user count quickly increasing, Windows' main competitor is Mac, created by Apple inc. Apple is not only known for it's slick operating system, but it has also created the extremely popular line of "iPod" and the new "iPad". Macs have been around for a while, but in the last couple of years, it has been getting more and more popular.

I should mention another operating system that is used by some people. It's name: Linux. Linux is a very flexible operating system, but isn't quite as easy to use as Windows and Mac. Linux requires programming and commanding, and so mainly experienced computer users use Linux. When you get the hang of how to use Linux, however, you can do many things that you can't do with a Windows or Mac. Although Linux is a great free operating system, today we'll focus on Windows and Mac.

There are ups and downs to all machines, and here we'll explore the great features of both Windows and Mac, and we'll also unearth the things that aren't so great about these computers.

The pros for Windows: Windows is a very user friendly operating system that many people are comfortable using. It has a solid interface that won't lead you wrong. Some of the programs installed on it include Microsoft Office, and excellent set of programs that are easy to use and very powerful. Microsoft Word, Excel, and Powerpoint are just a few of these Windows-native software applications.

The pros for Mac: Mac is a very slick operating system with highly powerful processing. It has an awesome interface, with lots of freedom, which is also very pleasing to the eyes. Mac comes installed with some cool programs as well. These include Photobooth, a photo program, Garage Band, a music program, and Final Cut, a great video editing program.

The cons for Windows: Some aspects of Windows just can't compete with Macs. For example, don't even try to compare Windows Movie Maker with Final Cut. Windows is also not as slick, and focuses more on stability. Windows are arguably just not as powerful as Macs.

The cons for Macs: Although Macs have some great capabilities, many people say Windows is a lot easier to use. Windows has a stable interface with easy to use commands. Mac has these things also, but Windows seems to be simpler and easier for users.

The final say: Give it up for both of these amazing operating systems. Which one is really better? It depends what you want to use it for! If you're an experienced computer user who wants to focus on fast and powerful, yet complicated, programs and utilities, try Mac. If you're a beginner who wants a stable and simple interface with some great programs, try Windows. Both of these operating systems are definitely worth looking into.

Sources: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/history

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