Post by MartikOk, I will comment on each. I think many of these are differences between the
2 OS's rather than disadvantages.
First, let me thank you for the time you have spent looking at / reviewing
my site. Even where I disagree with you, you seem sincere in your critique,
and not just having a knee-jerk reaction as is common in here.
Post by MartikWin XP Disadvantages
Silly or almost inexcusable bug / missing feature common on XP systems
1. Big Brotherish registration restrictions Agree (Use a 'pre-activated'
version from Kazaa)
2. Child window oddities (MDI: Multiple Document Interface) Not significant
enough to be a disadvantage
This may not be particularly significant to someone who knows how to work
around it, but for new (or non techy) users it is a confusion and a pain.
For anyone, it often breaks the metaphor created by the "task bar". With
child windows, what is a task.
Post by Martik3. Control panels can not be easily added or removed ???
Where is the question here? When control panels are added by programs,
there is no easy way to remove them. For that matter, there is no easy way
to remove or replace them. While Classic Mac was even easier than OS X, OS
X makes that much easier. That and other customizations, really (except for
skinning, which is easier on Windows).
Post by Martik4. DLL hell (MS does claim
<http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/evaluation/features.asp> that XP
"helps to address [this]" Have not had a problem with XP in 2 years
Does not change the fact that DLL hell has gotten so bad that MS has adopted
the term
Post by Martik5. Dragged files follow weird rules
<http://myweb.cableone.net/snit/mac_win_detail.html#dragrules> Not
significant enough to be a disadvantage
Inconsistencies with common features makes a BIG difference.
Post by Martik6. Drives show up even when there is no disk in them, and are checked Agreed
7. Drive types handled differently (floppy vs CD vs Zip) Because they have
diff properties
Why should they?
Post by Martik8. FAT (8.3) legacy file names
<http://myweb.cableone.net/snit/mac_win_detail.html#eight3> Invisible to most
users
Look at the additional info on my page. Even now XP uses 8.3 names.
Post by Martik9. File associations can not be assigned to single files Why is this
necessary?
On my Mac, PDF's are generally opened by Preview. Some I want opened by
Acrobat Reader. On Windows, there is no way to set this.
Post by Martik10. File name limitations What limitations?
?\/!* and many others.
Post by Martik11. Files in use can not be moved or renamed This is an advantage!
At times it is. Look at the Mac disadvantages. I want the best of both
worlds, and there is no technical reason this could not happen.
Post by Martik12. Font folder oddities (have to rebuild, names change when fonts moved)
There are too many dam fonts
That is not relevant to the font folder not working as it should. Is true
even if you just have a few fonts.
Post by Martik13. Greater need to get new drivers It is amazing how many types of HW XP does
detect. I would call this a significant advantage
A tools need for greater maintenance is not an advantage.
Post by Martik14. Greater reliance on paths YES
15. Hardware compatibility errors are common Disagree, see 13.
16. Inconsistent close boxes (saves, cancels, or warns) Not significant enough
to be a disadvantage
Inconsistencies with common features makes a BIG difference. Perhaps I
should add that some Mac progs can stay open with no Windows and some can
not. That is sort of the Mac weakness that is comparable... Hmmm... Added.
:)
Post by Martik17. Inconsistent quick keys (example: Control-C does not copy in Telnet) Not
significant enough to be a disadvantage
Becoming less so than earlier versions of Windows. I will examine this one.
Post by Martik18. Install/uninstall; spews all over hard drive Agreed, but most modern
programs have an uninstall and XP tracks this fairly well.
Fairly well... To me not well enough. I have seen it fail on many systems
with many configs.
Post by Martik19. Left/right handed mice This is an advantage,
Having a choice is an advantage, one that is shared by Mac and Win.
Insisting on having mice which are set for left OR right handed people is
not. On a Mac, the default is to have a mouse that works for left handed
people as well as right. Esp in lab situations, this makes a big
difference.
Post by Martik20. Menu inconstancies (example: start button / menu / thingy) Why?
Poor design? Hard to say. Oh... Why is this a disadvantage? Harder to
predict behavior. Mackido.com used to have a great article on this one.
Post by Martik21. Multiple pull-downs (easily overshot or confused
<http://www.mackido.com/Interface/menu_target.html#Target%20Size> ) Not
significant enough to be a disadvantage
Slows down work, makes it hard to get to the File Menu (perhaps the most
common menu) without hitting the menu above it. Very annoying.
Post by Martik22. OS installation is time consuming Takes me 30 mins to repartition and
install XP on a AMD 2.1GHz
Still takes longer and requires more baby sitting than OS X.
Post by Martik23. Pop up balloon"help" that gets in the way of working with the computer
That's like saying an instruction manual gets in the way configuring your cell
phone.
The damned pop ups have popped up to tell me that they are configured to not
pop something up. Wish I had taken a screen shot. They are absurd. You can
close a manual easily. The balloons get in the way.
Post by Martik24. Registry What's wrong with it How does Mac OS do this?
One set of files that are touched by almost every program; when they go
corrupt you must depend on a backup or essentially start from scratch. Poor
design in too many ways to name. The Mac does not have anything like that.
Post by Martik25. Special folders with inconsistent rules (My Computer, Fonts, etc.) Not
significant enough to be a disadvantage
Disagree. Again, different rules in different places for no reason and/or
poor indication is a bad idea.
Post by Martik26. Taskbar oddities (items are not tasks) Not significant enough to be a
disadvantage
Makes it hard to work with programs. That is significant.
Post by Martik27. Viruses - lots and lots of'm! Agreed, but why make a virus for Macs with
such a small market share
Why use an OS that is so open to attack?
Post by Martik28. Vulnerabilities keep popping up Vague
Look at all the fixes from MS in the last year. Seems to be a new one every
other day.
Post by Martik29. Wildcard inconsistencies Such as?
What does * mean in different commands? How about "?"? It is not
consistent.
Post by Martik30. Window view oddities (no folder sizes) Right click on properties
How do I sort by size, INCLUDING folder sizes. Very useful for finding
wasted space.
Again... Thanks or the input. I do appreciate it.