egonspengler3

If I may. I am quite a newbie here, although my background is quite technical.

But first, the caveats: I've never used modern macs for any prolonged period. But I always assumed that because it's so mainstream that what tools there are in Windows, also exist in the Mac, but since you've submitted this post, I'm questioning my own thoughts.

The next catch is my systems at home are Linux systems, including the desktops.

That said, I proffer my own philosophy, "I'm too poor to buy anything cheap."

I'm going to get a shellacking for what I'm about to say, but please I assure you I'm not trying to start a theological war. So without further ado:

I HATE, nay, DESPISE DELLs! Michael Dell should be tried in the Hague for heinous crimes against humanity. He sugarcoats shit and lures you in with attractive price points. But the unwitting buyer doesn't realize until the warranty is up that the piece of shit Dell they paid with their hard-earned money was genetically engineered to decompose the day after the warranty expires. My friend, I speak from experience and the experiences of many other unlucky consumers. I have been working in the IT industry for more than a decade and have managed mission-critical systems. But enough about my resume and how utterly awesome I am.

So onto my recommendation. You have a business. This business requires you to be productive. By that I mean, able to deal with what truly matters, business. Have you ever noticed that your system works fine when you're just messing around, and it takes a shit on your head and when you're doing something important? You don't want to be fighting with your gear to get the simplest things done, in this case, your PC. Have you ever needed to print something important at the 11th hour and found that something is wrong and you can't print? I have. Have you ever needed to use an application at the last minute, and when you did you only got an obscure meaningless error? I have. Have you ever needed to send an email so you don't get yelled at by your boss, but when you did, you can't even open the mail client? I have.

How much is your time worth? Is it worth the money you save buying a crappy Dell? Is it worth the frustration, sleepless nights, and hopeless confusion? I know I'm new to this business, but my answer is a resounding HELL FUCKING NO!

You want a system that does what you want when you want correctly and precisely every time. You want a system you can rely on not to self-destruct when the warranty expires. You have several choices:
1. DO NOT BUY DELL EVER!
2. Buy Watson.
3. Look at a Thinkpad T500

I think I explained #1 quite well. With #2 it's a little impractical. With #3, well, it's affordable. Sure you'll pay a little bit more, but you're buying a laptop engineered for business. It's not as pretty and shiny as the Dell ones, but also it is not as fragile and that's what counts. Research the Thinkpads and you will be surprised; your business and more importantly your sanity is worth it.

Did you know that Thinkpads are the only laptops certified to be able to handle the rigors of outer space? That's right, the ISS brings only Thinkpads on board. It's a laptop that anticipates the abuses business owners who are, with all due respect, less than tech savvy 99% of the time.

Good luck.

Egon

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