Well, no one is twisting your arm, but if you want to buy a new computer, there are some good reasons to get Mac. Everyone I know who has gotten a Mac has been happy with it.
Macs are generally virus and malware free. Right now, there is a little bad stuff out there for Mac, and that may change in the future, but for now, they’re just not as effected as Windows. So you don’t need to buy antivirus and update it all the time. You still need to be reasonably careful with what you download, but you should be careful anyway with any PC on any web site and via email.
Windows does still have the majority of the PC market share, but Apple is growing fast: some analysts are predicting Apple’s computer sales to grow 25% this year, after they shipped 17% more computers in 2009 than in 2008. So Apple must be doing something right.
One of the reasons for Apple’s OS X’s growth is the very easy setup for the average (and new) computer user, as well as tight integration with iTunes, iPods and programs to make movies and music. Apple products tend to work better together because Apple can exercise more control over their products; they make both their own hardware and the software, while Microsoft has to make Windows work on many different brands of computers.
Ask around the people you know if they use Macs. Go to one of the local big box stores and check out their Macs. If you have kids who already use a Mac at home or school, get them to help. And there is lots of help on Apple’s Web site, too, for users who want to switch to a Mac: Apple – Support – Mac 101. That site will tell you how to move files from Windows to a Mac, and more. And read last month’s InBusiness article More Compatibility makes Moving from PC to Mac Painless.