Do you prefer to store your library on Mac or PC

[Solan]

I keep my collection on an external hard drive. The hard drive is made by Seagate. I access that HD mostly through my MacBook Pro, so I checked "Mac". For though that's really the wrong answer, it's the least wrong one.

[progo]

Originally Posted by jonathanjong

Observation #342: Not only are "Macs" neck to neck with "PCs", quite a few "PC" voters have admittedly never used Macs, and some are already or thinking of converting.

So, is this a race between archs? :tripodsad:

Originally Posted by krmathis

There you have it...
Some are prepared to buy more expensive quality stuff, while others go for the cheapest option.

Actually I'd figure that Macs could be compared to Ultrasone Edition 9s. Some people like it, some hate it. Some think it's vastly overpriced, others love their investment to death. And PCs? Well, since they can be built yourself, they can be any headphone in the world, including E9s.

[nvkid909]

if you understand itunes (& i am still discovering tricks), use a mac & ipod, then what's not to like? this sounds like fanboy speak but i just switched from pc to mac. i hated itunes on pc though not entirely sure why, it shouldn't make much difference if you're using it properly. had NO problems with mac itunes. it's what it's designed for.

[DrBenway]

Originally Posted by QQQ

It's acceptable to call non-mac computers a "PC". It's understandable.

I agree. I think objecting to that is picky. In the late '80s, people referrred to PCs as "IBM compatibles." Aside from how funny that sounds now, it points out that these terms are fluid, and often inexact. But when a term is ubiquitous, the vast majority of people won't be confused by it.

No offense to the Ubuntu user whose objection is quite technically correct.

[dvessel]

Originally Posted by progo

So, is this a race between archs? :tripodsad:


Actually I'd figure that Macs could be compared to Ultrasone Edition 9s. Some people like it, some hate it. Some think it's vastly overpriced, others love their investment to death. And PCs? Well, since they can be built yourself, they can be any headphone in the world, including E9s.

Bad analogy. When working with computers, the most important thing is software so the choice is always limited. What does it matter that you can build a PC from a million combinations when your ultimately working on Windows or any PC compatible OS.

PC geeks that DIY for the sake of doing so may disagree.

[DavidMahler]

Originally Posted by progo

So, is this a race between archs? :tripodsad:


Actually I'd figure that Macs could be compared to Ultrasone Edition 9s. Some people like it, some hate it. Some think it's vastly overpriced, others love their investment to death. And PCs? Well, since they can be built yourself, they can be any headphone in the world, including E9s.

That doesn't make any sense to me. I won't go into detail as to why it doesn't make any sense to me.......but with assuming you run windows on your PC, there are still limitations. Then you can run linux....there are still limitations.....and etc. With Mac there are also limitations. By inferring that a PC can be basically anything or any quality, you are essentially saying that theres nothing better about a Mac that a PC cannot do. And thats absolutely not true even if you are Microsoft fanatic.

I use both PC and Mac on a daily basis. I use a PC at work and a Mac at home. In my opinion, there are very few benefits to a PC, but I see many benefits to a Mac. First off, I dislike Windows. I find the interface of Windows to be non-user friendly, particularly Vista. With Windows, the bootup time of my computer is tremendous....while my mac takes 20 seconds to boot up. Meanwhile I have far more files stored in my Mac than in my PC. Next.....theres all this virus protection and spyware you need for PC. What's that about?

Every time I use my mac I find it to be a pleasure, and the new OS (Leopard) has some drastic improvements and features which I don't think Windows has yet.

Another benefit to Mac which maybe not everyone can relate to...is that in NYC where I live theres a 24/7 store on 5th avenue. If I have a problem at 4 in the morning, I have the option of meeting with a technician immediately. I've never had a problem on a mac though.

Anyway.....the analogy didn't make sense to me.

I think Mac's get a bad rep from PC geeks because Mac's tend to be more cosmetically involved.....not everyone thinks theyre better looking computers, but Apple definitely puts more time and effort into creating a cosmetically appealing piece of machinery......something may look trendy to someone who takes the computer extremely serious.

For gamers, I'm aware of many benefits that a PC offers. Who Cares......hahaha....video games are not my interest.

For Protools and many graphics programs Mac has a vast amount of benefits. That's what I care about. Besides everything else.......I like supporting Apple. I think theyre an amazing company and they are great at making fastworking and reliable products and software.

[MoodySteve]

Considering that most music collections are lost due to mechanical hard drive failure, and mechanical hard drive failure is rather independent of system platform...system platform shouldn't really affect the security of one's collection.

I'm a PC guy myself, but the secret to having a secure collection is backup, backup, backup.

My main collection is stored on two hard drives totaling 1.7TB. I periodically do a file-by-file (i.e. NOT compressed) backup to two external hard drives. In addition, I also burn my music onto DVDs that are kept in a binder. Ideally, I'd like to keep my hard drive backups off-site, in case of a freak accident like a fire.

It may seem paranoid, but if you've ever felt the sickening feeling of knowing you just lost years' worth of digital data in under a second, you'll surely understand.

[ScottieB]

Originally Posted by MoodySteve

Considering that most music collections are lost due to mechanical hard drive failure, and mechanical hard drive failure is rather independent of system platform...system platform shouldn't really affect the security of one's collection.

I'm a PC guy myself, but the secret to having a secure collection is backup, backup, backup.

My main collection is stored on two hard drives totaling 1.7TB. I periodically do a file-by-file (i.e. NOT compressed) backup to two external hard drives. In addition, I also burn my music onto DVDs that are kept in a binder. Ideally, I'd like to keep my hard drive backups off-site, in case of a freak accident like a fire.

It may seem paranoid, but if you've ever felt the sickening feeling of knowing you just lost years' worth of digital data in under a second, you'll surely understand.

Amen to that. I learned this the hard way about 8 years ago - I'd just transferred a TON of irreplaceable performances and recordings (of myself and groups I was in) and then tossed the cassettes (thinking GOODBYE 90s!) just to have the whole drive fail a week later. Lost it ALL - still stings. I now do a similar thing to MoodySteeve - dual backups - one on DVDs (the book is filling up QUICK!) and one on hard drive. Also make sure to back up your library files and/or preferences if you don't want to lose things like play counts and playlists.

[dvessel]

Originally Posted by MoodySteve

Considering that most music collections are lost due to mechanical hard drive failure, and mechanical hard drive failure is rather independent of system platform...system platform shouldn't really affect the security of one's collection.

Maybe in another thread. The poll is asking which Mac vs. PC and Apple doesn't make their own hard drives. And I doubt most music collections lost are due to hardware failure. Bad software, doing updates, viruses and general user error due to bad UI are more likely to be encountered within the lifespan of a drive.

I'm a PC guy myself, but the secret to having a secure collection is backup, backup, backup.

Agreed! But we all knew that, right?

[DrBenway]

Originally Posted by dvessel

And I doubt most music collections lost are due to hardware failure. Bad software, doing updates, viruses and general user error due to bad UI are more likely to be encountered within the lifespan of a drive.

I've probably owned 20 PCs over the years, and I have never lost a single file do to a catastrophic hard drive failure. Windows screwups? Oh yeah. Viruses? (winces) Oh yeah. Idiotic mistakes on my part that I shouldn't have made (punches self in head)? Oh yeah.

Based on my experience (and I am, of course, just an unfrozen cave man) file loss is far more likely to be the result of user error/bad software than hardware failure.

[ScottieB]

Originally Posted by DrBenway

I've probably owned 20 PCs over the years, and I have never lost a single file do to a catastrophic hard drive failure. Windows screwups? Oh yeah. Viruses? (winces) Oh yeah. Idiotic mistakes on my part that I shouldn't have made (punches self in head)? Oh yeah.

Based on my experience (and I am, of course, just an unfrozen cave man) file loss is far more likely to be the result of user error/bad software than hardware failure.

Personally my experience is the exact opposite. I've lost no less than five hard drives to hardware failure. It hasn't happened recently (in the last 3 years or so), and only once was it my music collection, but it has completely sucked every time. Remember this FACT - it is not a question of IF a hard drive will fail, but WHEN - mechanical, moving parts eventually do fail. It probably has to do with the fact that I am a video editor and as such work my drives pretty hard, but I have learned the hard way that if it is important, have at least one backup. I even learned that if it is REALLY important, have 2, of different types. I once lost my backup while it was in the process of restoring (talk about bad luck!) and have lost enough full days of work to be very diligent in my backup process. Like anything else, YMMV

[DrBenway]

Originally Posted by ScottieB

Personally my experience is the exact opposite. I've lost no less than five hard drives to hardware failure. It hasn't happened recently (in the last 3 years or so), and only once was it my music collection, but it has completely sucked every time. Remember this FACT - it is not a question of IF a hard drive will fail, but WHEN - mechanical, moving parts eventually do fail. It probably has to do with the fact that I am a video editor and as such work my drives pretty hard, but I have learned the hard way that if it is important, have at least one backup. I even learned that if it is REALLY important, have 2, of different types. I once lost my backup while it was in the process of restoring (talk about bad luck!) and have lost enough full days of work to be very diligent in my backup process. Like anything else, YMMV

Heavy-duty multimedia work will certainly stress a drive more than the usual email/word processing/playing mp3 uses. And you are quite correct about the need for backups. Funny thing is, I have very little of my stuff backed up. Some of my music, some of my photos, my email, and very little else.

On the other hand, my father is a photographer, and I have his work backed up to an external on his system, and also to a completely separate (as in no physical or network connection) system. I keep telling myself that I should do the same for myself, and your experiences should serve as a cautionary tale for me...

[Gurck]

I've always been a Windows type, path of least resistance, etc. And due to not using multiple backup options at my fingertips (/kick self), I now own data recovery software for NTFS only, so it makes sense to do what I did anyway and store my data on this file system. Though I did recently set up dual booting with gentoo linux, I use ntfs-3g to allow it to read & write my ntfs partitions / drives.

[vcoheda]

i prefer to store my music on these.



and to play it in this.

[DavidMahler]

Originally Posted by vcoheda

i prefer to store my music on these.



and to play it in this.

nice system you got there..........I've been told by quite a few sources that making an exact audio copy of your cd is actually more bit perfect than playing from the actual cd though