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It has nothing to do with the "look" of the interface. It's about how it runs. Windows is very different, and for folks who like the way OS X works, windows simply gets it completely wrong. It used to be that OS X was vastly more stable than Windows was. I have no idea how they compare these days, since I don't use the windows computer enough to really know and MS reboots it every few weeks for updates. I personally think OS X has become gradually less stable over the years so it's entirely possible that Windows is actually more stable than OS X...
for my use and what I support in corporations 10.9 was very stable, 10.10 was very stable, 10.11 is very stable. The fact Apple has a small computer base, a small assortment of computers and the control all the HW that goes into their systems and makes them nearly impossible to upgrade is a factor in this. As far as maintaining itself, and protecting itself OS X still runs circles around Windows. OS X needs no 3rd party maintained, and nearly all drivers for internal equipment and security are released by Apple, not 3rd parties, this practice becomes nearly exclusive the newer a system is.
Before you call me a fan I will admit Windows 7 was about the best damn OS ever released and I still use it for nearly all my production needs, but for what I support Mac is clearly the OS that does not cause me grief in my day to day.
I still have feelings of nostalgia toward the 2006 24" iMac. It was my first Macintosh computer. But I also have a 2013 27" iMac and a 2009 Mac Mini. I've just managed to find room for those computers.
I don't use my 2009 13" Macbook much because it appears to overheat from the moment I turn it on. I replaced the Hard Drive with an SSD. I am fairly familiar with working inside the Macbook. Unfortunately, my aging eyes have trouble seeing the screws, etc. I opened it recently to see if it needed cleaning. I didn't find any dirt. Maybe there is dirt trapped in the fan. I finally stopped, and put it back together. I found several "extra" screws, but didn't have the heart to open it back up. I consider myself lucky that it apparently still works, even if it apparently gets really hot right away. (134F)
I'm beginning to convince myself I'm better off having a home-built PC for DAZ Studio. I haven't used Windows since Windows 7. That was the last version of Windows I had before getting rid of the PCs I had at the time. I'd almost be tempted to try buying Windows 7 if it's still legally available. But I don't want to end up with what might be an obsolete version of Windows. Windows has always been, in my experience, an un-necessarily confusing and self-contradictory operating system. Microsoft will never "get it!"
You can still find Windows 7, StratDragon. I'm still on it. I still use Windows 2000 as well on my audio setup. It has a finicky sound card that works great but loves 2000.
Win 7 is a great OS and if you have an OS X version that supports it in boot camp or you use VMWare your Macs can be exceptional windows systems. While I have my fears of were Win 7 is and where it will go I can say many of my mac circle of IT users actually used the words "Microsoft Got It!" when discussing Win 7.
If I decide to build a new PC, I'd want to start with the most potential possible. I don't want an old version of Windows which has been or will be abandoned.
I don't have much interest in VM apps like Parallels Desktop. I have no need for Windows software on my Macs. I do use Crossover because it allows me to run some old PC "exe" DAZ installers. But they are still a minimum.
With all due respect, Kevin, this is bad advice. Windows 8.1 and (better yet) 10 have many infrastructure and performance improvements, not to mention security enhancements. It is time to upgrade, honest. Telling people that they can stay on Windows 7 is true, but it is a disservice to anybody who is trusting us for good advice.
Look, the choice is simple:
Option 1: Get an Nvidia GPU, and you will be able to have your GPU (or GPUs, if you have more than one like I do) help your CPU render (when rendering with Iray, Octane, or Reality/Lux).
Option 2: Get an AMD GPU, and your CPU has to do all Iray, Octane, and/or Lux rendering.
If you NEVER use an unbiased engine, then you could save a few bucks on an AMD. Maybe.
But even if there's even a SMALL CHANCE you might try a reality-based rendering engine (and decide you like it), then why would you cheap out on an AMD? Sure, your CPU can do the work, but WHY make yourself wait longer than necessary for your work to be completed? That's just signing yourself up for lower efficiency.
This (the GPU decision) is a one-time purchase (a good GPU can last you 5+ years if it's properly cooled). AMD is not THAT much cheaper. This hobby/career sometimes requires that we budget for big purchases, so do that!
The GPU decision is even more important when the system involved is a laptop, where you pretty much have to choose manufacturer or model based on the GPU. Apple, for example, does not put Nvidia into the MacBook Pro. I have no desire to carry a MacPro around with me, so Apple is pretty much disqualified for my rendering machine. Imagine that, I have rejected Apple purely on a technical hardware basis and it doesn't matter AT ALL that an Apple is supposedly easier to use.
If the machine ain't got it, then it ain't got it! Why sign yourself up for frustration? Buy right, buy once, and as always, budget accordingly. Then move on and make art.
I wish I could heartily endorse Windows 10, Subtropic, but upgrading to 10 has been problematic for friends who are pretty computer savvy. I can think of only one guy who had "minimal" problems and he's a computer wiz from way back. Maybe a new PC with Windows 10 is the way to go so there's no problems with older peripherals and software, but upgrading Nvidia cards has set me back enough for a few months. I have major car repairs in my future.
That has always been the 'Windows way'...basically even if the hardware has no problems with the new version of Windows, manufacturers stop driver support for old hardware...often several months before the actual release date, so the old hardware is left hanging without usable (read signed) drivers. Usually that's a real boon to those of us who run Linux...because fully funcitonal hardware that no longer has decent Windows support, but often very good Linux drivers, is now a lot cheaper...
Sorry, have to disagree here. We've seen Microsoft's history with so-called 'improvements' and 'security'. The whole telemetry thing is a big "RED FLAG" to anyone who knows about system security. Settings that won't stick because 'the OS knows better than you do' what settings YOUR system needs to have. And so much more....
I'm a software engineer of over 20 years. I've coded on Windows, Linux, Solaris, Irix, HPUX, CP-M, RSTS/E and more. I've installed machine OS's since the old PC-DOS days. So when I say Windows 10 is NOT a good OS, it's because it doesn't listen. It's like HAL9000...."I'm sorry Dave, but I'm afraid I can't do that." We know how that turned out. NOT good OS design.
The driver compatibility issues will be resolved, over the next 8-12 months, for the most part. But the underlying problems with the OS design in Windows 10 heavily outweigh the improvements.
Well, certainly anybody who wishes to can stay on Windows 7. But your lives won't get easier, they will become more challenging. Companies have begun making the move, and this is the main barometer for me. Corporate America didn't make the move to Windows 8 or 8.1 in great numbers, but they ARE moving to 10 (mine is). As a result, more and more end-users will eventually be more familiar with 10 than they will be with any prior version. And eventually, support for 7 will be ending, and not just support from Microsoft, but also support from 3rd party software and hardware developers. Driver developers. Kevin mentions his "audio computer's glitchy audio card." Doing nothing will not make this situation automagically get better, Kevin.
Windows 10 doesn't need "tweaks" when used for audio (or games or graphic work). Yay, no more messing about with the swap file or paging file, you can let Windows manage it and there are no problems with that! No more messing about with the placement of files on disk partitions, whoohoo!
We who do music and graphics can stop wasting our time with the piddly stuff, and get down to our art. Add to that, some DAW makers now require Windows 8.1 or 10, and they don't support XP or 7.
I suggest to all of you that the writing is on the wall, and we in these forums need to be careful about letting our biases get the better of us, especially for new people here who want to make good decisions not just for "right now", but for the next few years. A new computer today could be 7 years old by the time it gets replaced. Telling a user to "just get 7 for your new computer" does that person a big disservice not only in 7 years, but also for today because Windows 7 is very lacking in several areas.
For example, Windows 7 doesn't have the memory prefetch capabilities of its newer siblings. Windows 7 won't decrease the size of the paging file when warranted, but 10 will do this. There are TONS more good technical reasons to move away from Windows 7 than there are to stay on it.
Windows 10 is free for most people. But only for the next couple months; and after that it will be what, maybe a couple hundred dollars? That's the cost of a cheap graphic card, or a couple or treble of DAZ Genesis 3 characters, or 2+ years' worth of your PC membership. Some PAs here have made the jump to Windows 10 because this is their living. They need to have better support for their graphic cards and so that they can get their work done faster and without crashes. I'm not a PA, but I upgraded a 6 year old audio/graphics laptop to 10, and man I have a TON of VST instruments, plus all my DAZ stuff. There were a few bumps, and I did have to stop letting Windows do automatic updates, but by and large my upgrade went fine..
There is one good reason to stay on 7. If you are going to throw away your current computer in a year or two, then I'd say go ahead and stay with 7 if you like it. But we should not advise today's computer shoppers or builders to buy an already-obsolete version of the OS. I think everybody should seriously consider availing themselves of the free Windows 10 upgrade download, even if they don't decide right away to install it. That way, if you ever decide to sell or gift your current system, you can upgrade it for free for the new user. Something to consider.
If the experienced forum members here are stubborn and resist Windows 10 (or at least upgrading to 8.1 on an interim basis), then that's a personal decision. It may not be a good decision (Mac and Linux are less than perfect too), but it is YOUR decision. Mac isn't terrible. But Apple's current technology is "meh", and Linux makes you become an OS expert of a different sort (than Windows). Six of one, half-dozen of the other.
Suggestions for those going to try upgrading to Windows 10:
Okay, I've probably outstayed my welcome. Good luck to the OP, whatever you choose.
My new Windows 10 PC arrived yesterday and I'm busy making it do things my way. About some of the points made above:
Now, to get back to pondering on migrating DAZ3D.
Windows 7 is still deployed to over 40 percent of computers world wide. If Win 10 is a logical choice and it's free why have so many corporations have remained on Windows 7? Working in corporate IT circles the answer I've commonly heard was "stability" You want to prevent evidence that Windows 10 is superior outside of your option there needs to be a case to back this up. Windows 7 is still deployed more than Windows 10, 8.1 and 8 combined.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usage_share_of_operating_systems
Subtropic --- Sorry if I wasn't clear, but it's a "finicky" sound card meaning it doesn't like just any OS, since that was the topic of the post. It is not "glitchy" - it runs like a champ and is quiet as can be. But it's an older professional model you can't buy any longer, and there are no driver updates for years since it won't work on the newer versions of Windows (since Vista I think). It came out when Windows 2000 ruled professionally for PCs. I only use that for recording and editing sound, so it's fine, and I do not see any future gremlins waiting.
And Windows 7 is still being used at the places where I work (all 3 of them owned by big companies - iHeart, Fox and CBS), and on all the newer computers as well, except for those who need Mac and can justify the added expense.
Greetings,
Windows 10 is a solid operating system; it's not my preference, as I use OS X for everything I can, but it's better than it's been in a long, long time.
And for what it's worth, I work in the computer security field. The fear about the 'call home' stuff is just spreading FUD. It's never made sense to me how so few people have a grasp of actual risks. The odds are significantly higher that folks will be compromised security-wise by NOT upgrading to the latest OS. The danger is that actual, literally BAD people will take over a system because the owner was afraid of the 'call home' bogeyman and didn't upgrade.
Security is seriously hard; there's no really good answers, but the best we can do right now is tell people to upgrade whenever they can, because 90% of the users won't have any idea how to keep themselves secure if they don't upgrade, and security trends towards getting better. And if you're telling inexperienced users (or just non-technical users, like the majority of computer users are) not to upgrade to the latest, you're doing them a real disservice. If you're doing it in the name of a bogeyman like 'the software calls home', then you're doubly hurting them, by giving them a future fear of upgrading as well.
Always be aware of your audience and their capabilities, and don't play to their fears.
-- Morgan