When trying to discern the differences between the many computing system choices out there, it becomes clear very quickly that this is no easy task. For one thing, there are questions of what sort of form factor makes sense (i.e., netbook vs. laptop vs. desktop), what sort of power you need, and what it is that you’re going to be doing with your machine. Additionally, it can be maddening trying to distinguish the operating system from the many add-ons available and that come prepackaged with a machine bought at retail.
So I’ve decided that the best way for me to get a grip on everything, I will start with a comparison of what you would get if you obtained only the operating system. In other words, what would you get if you went to a store and purchased, say Windows Vista Home Premium, or OS X, or downloaded a Linux distro. What, in other words, is built in if you had only that installed on your machine and nothing else. It isn’t necessarily the most logical place to start. After all, if you don’t have Apple hardware, you can’t install OSX legally. And it is unclear to me that many people buy Vista at retail. (And to top it all off, Vista is a dead brand, soon to supplanted by Windows 7 and all of its many flavors.)
The reason I’m starting here, however, is because I want to get at the heart of what you get with the operating system, and what the value of the software is from that approach.
I think it’s important to look at what you get from the following categories: internet capability (i.e., built-in browser(s)); general productivity applications (i.e., word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, non-web-based email, et cetera); data backup; entertainment (i.e., media playback and games); photo management (i.e., ability to display, manage, and edit digital photos); and content creation (i.e., ability to create music and/or movies). Additionally, I have looked at miscellaneous goodies that are built-in, that aren’t necessarily things that are deal-breakers, but nonetheless may factor into a decision.
Windows Vista (Obtained from Microsoft.com)
Note: I’m not considering Vista Enterprise Edition or any of the Server packages, as the point of the exercise is to look at general consumer purchases.
|
|
Vista Home Basic |
Vista Home Premium |
Vista Business |
Vista Ultimate |
|
Price (MSRP / Upgrade) |
$199.95 / $99.95 |
$259.95 / $129.95 |
$299.95 / $199.95 |
$319.95 / $219.95 |
|
Internet Capability |
IE 7; Networking Wizards; |
IE 7; Networking Wizards |
IE 7; Networking Wizards |
IE 7; Networking Wizards |
|
Productivity |
WordPad; Windows Mail; Remote Access; Windows Live (Instant Messaging) |
WordPad; Windows Mail; Remote Access; Windows Live (Instant Messaging); Windows Meeting Space |
WordPad; Windows Mail; Remote Access; Windows Live (Instant Messaging); Windows Meeting Space; Windows Fax and Scan; Remote Desktop Connection |
WordPad; Windows Mail; Remote Access; Windows Live (Instant Messaging); Windows Meeting Space; Windows Fax and Scan; Remote Desktop Connection |
|
Data Backup |
Automatic File Backup (very limited) |
Automatic File Backup; |
Automatic File Backup; Complete PC Backup and Restore; Shadow Copy |
Automatic File Backup; Complete PC Backup and Restore; Shadow Copy |
|
Entertainment |
WMP 11; Games (such as solitaire) |
WMP 11; Windows Media Center; Games (such as solitaire, mahjong, and chess) |
WMP 11; Games (such as solitaire) |
WMP 11; Windows Media Center; Games (such as solitaire, mahjong, chess, Hold ‘Em Poker, and Tinker) |
|
Photo Management |
Photo Gallery (basic editing) |
Photo Gallery (basic editing); enhanced slideshow themes |
Photo Gallery (basic editing) |
Photo Gallery (basic editing); enhanced slideshow themes |
|
Content Creation |
|
Windows Movie Maker; Windows DVD Maker |
|
Windows Movie Maker; Windows DVD Maker |
|
Miscellaneous |
Windows Sidebar Gadgets; Sync Center; Parental Controls; Improved search |
Windows Sidebar Gadgets; Sync Center; Parental Controls; Improved search; Aero Interface; Windows Flip 3D; Windows SideShow; |
Windows Sidebar Gadgets; Sync Center; Improved search; Aero Interface; Windows Flip 3D; Windows SideShow |
Windows Sidebar Gadgets; Sync Center; Parental Controls; Improved search; Aero Interface; Windows Flip 3D; Windows SideShow; BitLocker & EFS; Language Packs; DreamScene; enhanced Sound Schemes |
I think that pretty much covers it. Clearly, the most bang for the buck is Home Premium, and that should meet most needs for most people. Vista Business is strangely limited in its security features (for some reason, BitLocker and the Encrypted File System are left out, though they’re present in Vista Enterprise and Ultimate), but for the most part, Home Premium will get the job done for most purposes. Of course, Windows Mail is hampered, and WordPad isn’t good for much at all, other than very basic writing, and there is no spreadsheet program to speak of. The question, then, is how does OSX stack up in built-in features?
Apple OS X.
(A quick note: it is clear from visiting Apple.com, that Apple is about hardware. Whereas Microsoft.com prominently displayed its operating system options, it takes an enormous amount of digging to find information on OS X. You have to click on “Store,” scroll down to bottom for “Software,” click on “Apple Software,” and then finally you can click on “Mac OS X v10.5.6 Leopard.” If you Google “OS X,” you can land on Apple.com/macosx, though, so…)
|
|
Apple OS X Leopard |
Apple OS X Box Set (Leopard with iLife ’09 and iWork ’09) |
|
Price |
$129.00 |
$149.00 |
|
Internet Capability |
Safari; Networking |
Safari; Networking |
|
Productivity |
Mail; iChat; TextEdit |
Mail; iChat; TextEdit; iWork ’09 (Pages ’09, Numbers ’09, Keynote ’09) |
|
Data Backup |
Time Machine |
Time Machine |
|
Entertainment |
iTunes; DVD Player; Front Row; Games (but I’ll be damned if I can find what they are) |
iTunes; DVD Player; Front Row; Games |
|
Photo Management |
Photo Booth |
Photo Booth; iPhoto ‘09 |
|
Content Creation |
Nothing readily apparent. |
iMovie ’09; GarageBand ’09; iDVD |
|
Miscellaneous |
Parental Controls; Desktop Stacks; Finder; Quick Look; Spaces; Boot Camp; Dashboard; Bonjour; Spotlight; Unix Certification; |
Parental Controls; Desktop Stacks; Finder; Quick Look; Spaces; Boot Camp; Dashboard; Bonjour; Spotlight; Unix Certification; iWeb ‘09 |
Hands down it is clear that the OS X box set is a better bang-for-the-buck proposition than any of the Windows Vista flavors, for the simple fact that it includes iLife and iWork. Yes, you can get Microsoft Works at retail for about $40, but you can’t go get Vista and Works bundled at retail. And Vista has nothing at all like GarageBand. So Apple-ites are absolutely correct to crow about OS X’s cost-to-feature dynamic. But, again, unless you already own Apple hardware, you are forbidden by the EULA from installing it on your own system. And therefore, this isn’t an especially apt comparison, because it is simply impossible to go out and install OS X on any bit of hardware you happen to have lying around.
Linux
Leave the nuances of what Linux actually is (i.e., a kernel) aside for now. The thing about Linux is that there are an awful lot of varieties out there. Hundreds and hundreds. What I have done is taken a few of the more user-friendly and feature-rich distros and put them here. Generally speaking, Ubuntu is considered the most user-friendly, and in my own experience, that bears out. It has issues, to be sure (such as not playing especially nice with Broadcom wireless adapters, but that’s true of almost all distros), and I happen to find it exceptionally ugly to look at. That being said, it is a very sturdy environment, and very easy to install. Another consideration with Linux is whether you go with a Gnome desktop environment, or a KDE environment. There are pros and cons for each, and I’m not going to get into them. Just know, for example, that Ubuntu is the Gnome-based version, while Kubuntu is the KDE version. Also, I’m basing the feature comparison on the most recent stable release as of the date of this writing. The world of Linux can be very confusing, but it can also be very rewarding if you have time and patience.
|
|
||||
|
Price |
Free |
Free |
Free |
Free |
|
Internet Capability |
Firefox |
Firefox |
Firefox; |
Firefox; networking tools |
|
Productivity |
OpenOffice 2.x; Evolution (email); Tomboy (note-taking) |
Giver; OpenOffice 2.x; Tomboy |
OpenOffice 3.x; Thunderbird; Evolution; Tasque |
OpenOffice 3.x; Thunderbird; Empathy; Ekiga |
|
Data Backup |
Not built in |
Not built in |
Not built in |
None built in. |
|
Entertainment |
Rhythmbox; Totem; Games |
Rhythmbox; Totem; Games |
Banshee; Kaffeine; Games |
Rhythmbox; Amarok; Kaffeine; Totem; Games |
|
Photo Management |
Image Viewer; F-Spot; the GIMP |
Image Viewer; F-Spot; The GIMP; |
F-Spot; the GIMP; Inkscape |
The GIMP |
|
Content Creation |
Sound Recorder (very basic); Brasero Disc Burning |
Sound Recorder; Brasero |
Audacity; k3b; |
None listed, but probably exists. |
|
Miscellaneous |
Simplified access to vast repositories of open source software |
Simplified access to vast repositories of open source software; mintNanny; simplified multi-booting; |
Integration with Android; Wine; Torrenting software; Ekiga (VOIP); Instant Messaging; simplified access to repositories |
Automatic removal of unnecessary software after installation; parental controls; automatic repository creation; Plasmoids; FBReader; Google Gadgets |
The thing about these distros, and there are hundreds of other ones out there, is that there are lots of programs to which you have access at installation, that aren’t necessarily discussed on the distro’s web page. And so if I have misrepresented something, I surely didn’t intend to. Furthermore, Linux isn’t necessarily about bells and whistles (though there are certainly ways to get them), but rather about having a functional workspace, which is easily enhanced—once you figure out how to do it—with access to a vast array of open source software via the repositories. However, there is also a lot of open source software available to Windows and OS X users, as well, and that wasn’t the point of this exercise.
All that being said, it’s clear that Linux offers something that neither Microsoft nor Apple offer, and that is a way to operate your computer for free, and that doesn’t count for nothing. There is admittedly a steep learning curve associated with Linux (though I suspect it would be easier for someone migrating from OS X than it would be for a person migrating from Windows) and there aren’t a lot of bells and whistles. Empirically, too, a lot of the software lacks the polish and appearance that people are probably used to from Windows and OS X; a lot of the games, for example, look like they were designed in the late 1990s. But there are amazing improvements being made in Linux, and it’s exciting to see that there are viable free alternatives out there.
So, in conclusion, Windows clearly offers less in the way of productivity than either OS X or Linux, and from a sheer cost standpoint, it’s awfully difficult to compete with free. But this analysis is far from over. Next up: what are your real costs when you buy a new desktop computer?
