I can't resist chiming in on this topic - I've had some decent success
w/ using macs for ecological modeling & analysis. While trying not to
be a mac "evangelist", perhaps my input can give you some guidance.
For my needs (which may be somewhat specialized), the mac seems to be
the best/cheapest way to go, as my work is mostly unix based - and I use
desktop apps like SAS JMP, MS Excel, Canvas (graphics) - and I interface
a lot w/ WinXP folks.
I've been using macs for my science since the early 90's, and
DOS/Windows PCs at home and at work (continuously) for much longer (as a
grad student, I bought a Compaq "sewing maching box" "portable", ca.
1985). I still administer a little network of winxp boxes at home - but
recently bought a Mac Mini for home (and home theater).
There are some good reasons to think about going w/ a mac, but there
will always be some little issues involved w/ cross-platform stuff.
Bottom line - depending on the GIS that you need to work with every day
(that you specifically indicate is important), and the extent to which
your work could benefit from Open Source unix apps, the mac could be a
very viable consideration for you.
x-platform: Currently, the two "biggest" annoyances I encounter in
sharing files between WinXP and Mac OS X are in the Microsoft Excel date
issue (mentioned in a post - but you can just ask your Mac MS Excel to
use the same date system as Windows), and the MS PowerPoint graphics
issues (alluded to in an earlier post - for this, you must never
cut&paste on your mac into PowerPoint - you must always "Insert -
Picture from file" from the PowerPoint menu). Regarding x-platform GIS,
see the below notes...
Mac-unix: My work is in ecological landscape modeling, and all of my (C
language) code development and modeling uses some flavor of unix (linux
etc). In my lab, I have a suse linux box, a macbookpro laptop, and a
macpro (8 proc) desktop - along with a great little $350 Asus eee-pc
running another linux. The mac OS X is built on top of (BSD) unix, and,
for my needs, it has the great marriage of command-line unix (and unix
apps) and desktop apps (like MS Excel etc) - in one hardware box. I
also purchased WinXP, and can boot natively (read - fast) into WinXP
if/when the need arises for, say, ArcGIS (using "BootCamp" that comes w/
the mac OS - it's a great WinXP box, but I can't say I've run any
quantitative comps w/ other manufacturers' hardware). I also purchased
"Parallels" software that will let me emulate WinXP if I just want to
quickly use some program that is only compiled in Windows (e.g., the
CorpsCon datum conversion program)- without rebooting from OS X into WinXP.
GIS: All of my work is Open Source (http://ecolandmod.ifas.ufl.edu).
I've been using the Open Source GRASS GIS since the mid-90's, and the
current versions of GRASS are perfect for my modeling needs - which are
strongly raster-based, but have a very significant vector component to
them. GRASS will import .e00 files, shapefiles, and some other ogr type
data. I have encountered some issues with some very large, complex
imports - if everyone you work with uses ArcGIS, you may (?) encounter
some stumbles w/ imports into GRASS - though I'm no expert, it seems to
be dependent on metadata and other mysteries... You can always boot
into WinXP and ArcGIS...
Stats etc: I have yet to install R (stats), but that (supposedly)
interfaces well w/ GRASS (talking the unix versions here). I use SAS
JMP for most stats: Note - even though JMP started out as a mac desktop
app, the company comes out w/ windows versions of updates faster than
for macs.
For me and my particular science needs, the mac is ideal. One computer
gives me unix and desktop "standard office" apps (I also use
OpenOffice). And my MacPro desktop was a couple hundred dollars cheaper
than the same high-end hardware from Dell. Nevertheless, for lower-end
machines, you can still get cheaper WinXP-based hardware compared to the
lower-end macs. Good luck on your decision.
regards,
-carl fitz
Scott D Lapoint wrote:
Hello Ecologers,
It's time for me to invest in a new computer. I've long been a fan of
Dell computers and PCs in general, but because of the issues I've seen
with Vista, I've been considering a switch to Mac.
The problems are one, Macs seem much more expensive than a
comparatively equipped PC (which is a factor for a graduate student like
me), and two, I can't seem to find any one in the ecology field that
uses a Mac for work.
I was hoping there was someone on this list that uses a Mac to perform
GIS analyses, runs statistical packages like Systat or Program R, and
maybe how they've found Mac's OS to work with in a field where
apparently most of our colleagues are using Windows.
Any input would be extremely useful at this stage. Thanks in advance.
Scott
Scott D. LaPoint
Graduate Student
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
243 Illick Hall
Syracuse, NY 13210
