h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

>Macs are not perfect, but they do crash less often...

I'd argue that point. In my experience, Macs crash at about the same rate as PCs, they're just more polite about it. ("I'm sorry, a serious error seems to have occured"...)

>Which OS to choose
>Macintosh X OS.

I suspect you mean OS-X, but for the purposes of generalisation you should use the term "Mac OS" (the name used by Apple, not "Macintosh OS")

>Linux is an open-source OS...it can use the same hardware as a PC, if there are the correct drivers for it.

It can also run on a 680x0 Macintosh, Power PC/Power Mac, various minicomputers, mainframes, some varieties of Palm Pilot, and at least one pair of sunglasses, amongst others...

>Finally, Windows 9x/ME, NT, 2000, and XP...

I notice you don't mention Windows 98 in your roundup, which many users buying second-hand machines will be using. For a single user with a single CPU it's still the best version of Windows, as long as you have either the most recent version or have installed all the "service packs".

>Hardware
>It's usually unproportionately more expensive than the previous version.

I think you'll find the word you're looking for is "disproportionately"...

>Components
>...Optical mice are great, but expensive.

Depends on what you consider "expensive". At the moment, a cheap "ball" mouse costs about £7 - £8, a cheap "optical" mouse costs about £24. Yes, that's three times the price, but the extra £16 is a tiny fraction of the overall cost of your system, and over the life of the mouse it will save a great deal of grief and stress with files being "dropped" in the wrong place because the mouse is sticking, and at least five minutes of your time every couple of weeks when you'd otherwise be cleaning your mouse ball and rollers... Optical mice just *feel* so much nicer to use, too!

>A Word about Macs and Other Things
>If you're going to be doing graphics, sound, putting movies together,...you will find no other affordable desktop or laptop computer capable of the feats that a Macintosh can do with multimedia, and OS X...

Unless, of course, you get a moderately specified PC running BeOS, which is an operating system specifically optimised for professional multimedia work...!

>As far as software is concerned, Macromedia products for web-stuff are fast becoming the standard. Adobe also has some good stuff, especially if you're a Mac-user...

All the mainstream Adobe and Macromedia products run equally well on Mac and Windows PCs. Windows based PCs are far less likely to run into memory problems when developing interactive content with products such as Macromedia Director - I speak from painful experience...

>Desktop Publishing
>If you're thinking of getting into the world of desktop publishing, Macintosh is the way to go.

Not neccessarily. Pagemaker, Quark and InDesign all run just as well on a Windows PC as on a Mac, often with less memory allocation problems. If you want/need multiple large screens to work on, you can achieve that more cheaply on a Windows 2000 PC than on a Mac.

>Hardware
>Computer - The PowerMac (nothing older than a PowerMac 7300) will read PC or Mac disks,...

You're implying that older Macs can't read PC disks, which isn't the case. Perhaps that should read "(don't buy anything older than a PowerMac 7300)"...?

>Storage Device - While being able to burn a CD to give to your customer looks pretty classy, it's not very cost effective...

As I pointed out on the original thread, a blank CD is currently cheaper than a second-class stamp! What's not cost-effective about that?

>Software
>Publishing software for the Mac is pretty expensive, and most of it's made by Adobe. Which is why if you can find a Mac in the classifieds with these programs on it, purchase it quickly!...you can buy upgrades...

Technically, if the original owner has registered the software, you can't get the discount upgrade, as they check the serial number against your name and address. The licences are invariably non-transferrable.

>A good virus program...

I hope you meant "anti-virus"

>Computer Fairs and Other Pearls
>Computer fairs can be fantastic...Smaller shops...offer better rates....

Nope, Fairs are always cheaper than any shop - the dealers cut prices to the bone, and don't have heating, light or rent to pay for!

>In general, never take an offer that seems too good to be true. Equipment that is far more expensive than the competition may be plagued by quality issues or could even be used equipment that's been repaired. You'd be surprised what's in the fine print on 'super' deals.

In this context, shouldn't that read "far less expensive"?