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[K3ZD]

Its about time for a new computer.  I have always been a pc user.  I run DXLab for logging and digital modes.  I have a Yaesu FTDX10 which has a driver download for virtual comports.  The manual mentions using this file with a pc, no mention of mac.
 Is this comport driver going to run on a Mac?  I know you can run windows on a mac with parallels.  So two operating systems have to be kept updated?  Don't know what to do.  Seems logical to stay with pc but I have an iPhone now and going all Apple sounds appealing.  The higher cost of a mac is not an issue.  I'd spend as much on a new pc system. 

[K1KIM]

I'm sure my thoughts are antiquated, but.....

I bought a MacBook Pro several years ago after my PC got a virus that got past my virus protection system and was a huge problem.

I needed to run my business software on a PC so I installed Parallels (instead of Bootcamp) and was very disappointed in how much it slowed down the processing. I do hear that Parallels is now a different animal, so to speak, and runs much smoother in the processing dept.

I to have a bunch of IOS devices, but still am most comfortable with using my PC MS based programs. Additionally my business software will not run on IOS.

In contrast to my feelings, I have many friends that ONLY use MAC and other integrated IOS devices with tremendous success.

I have enough with my Apple watch, iPad and iPhone all talking to each other. 

[K7LZR]

I wouldn't replace a Windows system with IOS for several reasons. Despite all of the perceived shortcomings, Windows is still the dominate desktop operating system.

So there are far fewer radio programs available for IOS than Windows, and fewer programs in general.

Radio software for the Mac is generally not as polished nor supported as their Win counterparts. Many SDR programs are not available in IOS versions.

On Windows, many older 32-bit apps are still fully supported and will run without issue. I have and still use 20+ year old software on Windows 10 and it works great.

Not so on IOS. Apple decided to drop 32-bit support entirely and thus many existing apps were no longer useful. Pissed of a lot of users, and many software developers as well. Windows has never done that.

Lastly, most Macs are far more expensive than need be.

Given the choice, I'd stick with Windows.   

[KG6PHS]

There is another option with Mac called Bootcamp. This works with Intel-based Macs and gives full-speed performance under Windows. The Boot Camp program easily partitions your drive so you can install your copy of windows on it, and boot up into it.

I don't know how many issues with drivers and peripherals you might have, but there are lots of people that have the best of both worlds this way. Mac hardware is VERY reliable, that's why I buy a used Mac to save money, and expect many years of use. For games, Windows is king, but I'm still getting great performance from my 2014 Mac mini and 2015 MacBook Pro.

[G8FXC]

There is another option with Mac called Bootcamp. This works with Intel-based Macs and gives full-speed performance under Windows. The Boot Camp program easily partitions your drive so you can install your copy of windows on it, and boot up into it.

I don't know how many issues with drivers and peripherals you might have, but there are lots of people that have the best of both worlds this way. Mac hardware is VERY reliable, that's why I buy a used Mac to save money, and expect many years of use. For games, Windows is king, but I'm still getting great performance from my 2014 Mac mini and 2015 MacBook Pro.

Does Bootcamp work with the new generation of Macs? They are not Intel based any more, so any version of Windows running on one would have to be running on an Intel emulation...

Martin G8FXC

[W9SA]

I tried to make a Mac Book work in the shack but gave up and bought a PC laptop and am so glad I did. The Ham Radio world is still not very Mac friendly. I am fairly computer literate but when I operate I want to play radio and not play computer.

[W4HRL]

For years while I was at work, I used a PC at home for the compatibility between work and home.  My wife was a teacher and her school system used Macs. When I retired, I swapped over to the Mac platform and enjoyed the Apple world.

Then I became a ham, and while I used the Mac for logging and other ham-related tasks, it was sometimes a hassle to keep the COM port info straight. The Mac would want to never assign a COM port and keep it assigned. Every time I used the radio I would have to go into Terminal and fix the COM port assignment.

When it become time for a new computer, I went back to the PC world and have never looked back. My wife is still a Mac user so I have to "play" in that world from time to time to assist her in figuring out some problem.

There are lots of happy ham + Mac users out there - but I am not one of them.  All my favorite ham logging programs (Scott's from N3FJP) run on PC's and I am happier working thru any connection problems that pop up on my PC than I ever was on the Mac.

An additional plus is that there is MUCH more ham radio content available for PC's than there is for Mac's.

W4HRL

[K1KIM]

I think you have your answer!

[N1IG]

The "easiest" thing is to stick with what you are mostly familiar with. 

Personally I detest Windows OS, and started moving towards Linux around 2010.  But in fairness, all I was doing was email and web browsing.

In 2017 I picked up a MacBook Pro, setup bootcamp to dual boot, and installed Windows on one partition so I could start running ham radio programs again.  BUT I have hardly ever used the Windows side.

On the MacOS side I run SparkSDR, Wfview, SDR-Control, WSJTX, JS8Call, FLDigi, Gpredict via MacPorts, and LOTW.  I can remote in to my IC705 via wifi, and other than some operator-error induced hiccups when first starting, it has been trouble free from the start.  And best of all, I haven't noticed any sort of system slowdown since I bought it 5 years ago.  Have never been able to say that about any Windows machine I have ever used.

YMMV, and it's going to depend on how comfortable you are with different technology and whether you are open to other software options for what you are doing.

[K3ZD]

Thanks for all the great replies.  There is no bootcamp for the M1 Apple chip.  Parallels is about the only way to run Windows on the new Macs from what I read.   

[KX4OM]

The Mac is more similar to Linux than Windows. Mac OSX is derived from the BSD operating system. BSD (Berkeley Software Distribution) is based on UNIX. BSD-based OS such as FreeBSD are still being developed, and are often used as an alternative to Linux in servers and specifically NAS.

There are a few Linux distributions that have window managers that are designed to mimic Mac. Elementary OS is probably the most polished.

https://elementary.io/

Underneath the graphics and the look and feel, the Linux kernel and the structure that supports it is much more like BSD (and Mac) than Windows.

BSD and Linux will run on any x86 hardware up through 64-bit, and many distributions still support 32-bit.

Ted, KX4OM

[WA6III]

The Mac is more similar to Linux than Windows.
Ted, KX4OM

yeah, maybe.....(the MAC CLI is nearly identical to the CLI on Linux) Except for the lousy MAC desktop interface!!

I have read that Apple may move away from their own version of (BSD-like)  Unix to a still different one..... lord knows what that will look like (especially if they keep that awful interface)

I have 2 computers I use regularly and one I only use occasionally.

(The occasional one is the WIN10 laptop with Turbotax on it....I also have a program to control my ICOM IC-M802, SDRuno for the SDR Play, and a simple program for my REA Amplitude Modulation Monitor ) and because I only use it once in a while, I usually have to wait for it to update and reboot a few times because it's only on once or twice a month.

My main computer is a desktop running OpenSuSE Leap 15.3 (x64 Linux)  I use it for EVERYTHING I do on the internet (email, banking, browsing,  EHAM Posting etc)

I also have a Mid 2012 MACBook Pro that I bought for my daughter to use in college that she gave me back when she graduated.
Every time I used that MAC, I ended up wanting to DRIVE A MAC (truck) over it, back and forth, multiple times!!!

I used the Macbook Pro a little running whatever the version of MAC OS was just prior to "Catalina" .......Then after installing an SSD and trying install Catalina,  I had a few problems. 


So I wiped it and installed KDE NEON.   

KDE NEON  ( https://neon.kde.org/ )  is an outstanding Ubuntu based KDE Linux distro

Don't need to drive over it anymore!!  And I don't have to "fight" with that terrible MAC desktop interface!!!
My suggestion to you (the original poster)   Keep the Winblows computer or get a newer Surface Pro etc. 

If you ever decide to try any version of Linux, you'll find that it's a pretty easy transition (My Linux computers look and feel just like Windows)

Cheers,

Rick

[N1IG]

saw this same question on eham back in January.

did you make a decision yet?

[K3ZD]

Yes I'm staying with PC.  Thanks.