Lack of an Apple Option [is] Key in buying a computer

I use a Mac for 8 hours everyday at work and they have definitely grown on me. Except for the simplicity of Finder (all 3 viewing modes are awful because they are not easily navigated by the keyboard) and lack of 10 million free programs that you can get off the net to run on Windows--I'd say I like it more (that's a big step, btw).

So I'm in the market for a new PC and I actually thought about an Apple, but once I realized the options (or lack of), I didn't look back and bought parts for a PC.

There are only 3 models of Mac: Mini ($500+), iMac ($1500+), MacPro($2500+). I am a media designer, and I will need 1GB+ to run Photoshop, Flash, and Illustrator at the same time. The only one that can do that (that also doesn't require buying a monitor) is the MacPro which costs five times as much as I'm making my new PC for. I'm only buying a motherboard, 2GB of memory, a mATX case/power supply, and an AM2 processor for $500 from Newegg.com, since I already have hard disks and 2 DVD drives and an LCD monitor.

I know that building a PC from scratch is nothing compared to listening to the OS-X installation background music :-), but I'm sure I could get a Dell with enough processing power and upgrade the memory for $150. And anyway why would I need 4 Xeon processors (Mac Pro) if I'm not editing video? My work's dual G5's are fine. I think Apple just wants a pretty profit margin for their top of line system--one that I'm not willing to fill with my money.

Sorry, Steve, you need more options.

--Stephen M. James
www.smjdesign.com