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Comment by nnain | Hacker News Reader

If you're an iOS/Mac developer, there's no alternative.

If you want an alternative for graphics work (or other development), try Windows.

For other web development, in general, you'll be able to work well with Linux.

Keeping work on different machines quickly starts to become unmanageable, that's why MacOS still leads. It gives the best of most options on the best hardware.

P.S. - I tried ElementaryOS last month, for couple of hours and didn't find it an alternative in any way. It's UI is quite clunky (of course, since they are trying to copy Macs UX, but don't have the finesse). The eye candy can't make it a Mac alternative in any way; it's still Ubuntu under the hood, and less intuitive than Ubuntu.

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The problem I'm finding with graphics work is that I'm more and more relying on scripted tasks to complete things efficiently or get around deficits in Adobe's software. I'd move to Windows, but I can't imagine giving up how easy a Unix-like environment makes things.

You might have heard by now that Windows 10 now comes with a full Ubuntu-based Bash shell that can run Linux software. Guess that covers your use case well!

There are multiple projects that give you a Linux user land on windows. Including bash, csh, perl, python, gcc and full toolchain. Msys2 project provides that. There are also alternative terminals.

A smarter way is to use python for automation. There are lots of graphics libraries and bindings to do what ever you want.

Best hardware, really?

best I've used (which isn't saying much)... but really depends on what you mean by best. Not necessarily the best performing specs on the market, but pretty good from off the shelf.

IMO, the Apple unibody laptop design is still the best out there. And the (non-latest) keyboard and trackpad have no comparison in Windows laptops.

The touchpad is probably as close as possible as being just objectively better on Macs. But the keyboard? I don't even think "Mac keyboards are the best" is a plurality opinion among just Mac users, is it? There's obviously a large heaping of personal taste here, but the MBP I have at work is the worst keyboard I've ever used on a "real computer" (i.e., not some weird hybrid tablet thing or something). And of the Mac people I know or read online, it seems the keyboards of the last couple of years of laptops have been, at best, tolerable.

Not only teraflops and ram size defines "best"; MBP's touchpad is the only touchpad on any laptop that I can work with without pluging in a mouse after a minute. Screen is good. General feeling of quality is just the best.

Yeah at this point I would need a replacement for OSX and for the touchpad to be able to go away from a Mac. I can live with their other issues for the benefits of their trackpads and an operating system backed by Unix

I just use the track-point on my thinkpad. It's preferable to its trackpad (which I actually have disabled in the BIOS).

Curious if you've tried a Surface Book? I find the touchpad feel and gesture quality to be nearly indistinguishable from a Mac.

Thanks, I will check it out. Not sure I will be happy with Windows 10 in comparison to OSX but still worth trying out.

Suggest something else more superior?

The problem I with linux is that there is no good laptop running linux well or anywhere near as good as windows or osx. If I could run osx on alternatives to the macbooks I would be happy best of all worlds.

I see this complaint often here, but I don't get it. Is some Linux driver not working? You can't use the mic, Wi-Fi etc? Linux just works fine on my machine, and also for a large user-base.

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