Introduction
Windows. macOS. Linux. These are 3 different operating systems that you can choose to run on your laptop and desktop machines and I use all of them! You may be wondering 1) Why do you use all these systems and why not just pick one? and 2) which one do you prefer over all of them?
I have a really hard time choosing which OS I would prefer. Truth be told, they all have their use cases and things that they do better than the others, but I would just be fine with any of them. The main reason that I use all of them is that I like to be versatile and well-versed in all three because of my day job, but also I love seeing all kinds of technology. Having these systems allows me to constantly see the newest things that they offer as a first-hand experience. This is the same reason why I use Android and iOS devices.
I like to be technologically agnostic as much as I can be. I am a little caught up in some ecosystems, but the main goal is that I'm able to do the majority of what I need to get done from any system. The majority of my programs are accessible to all my systems.
Now, even though I can do anything that I need to do from any system, what are the actual use cases for all systems? I mentioned earlier that each system has its pros and cons, so which ones are they? Well for me, the main things I do are learning development, web browsing, and other forms of content creation.
Use Cases for each Operating Systems
macOS
The mac comes into play in a couple of important spots. I'm currently learning iOS development and as a result, it is just easier to develop those applications on a mac. I'm able to natively use XCode and being able to test it on the system itself. I also have an older MacBook Pro that I use for my DJ side hustle. I've always used a mac because of the integration with iTunes and my DJ applications and the workflow that I've built works great for me. And lastly, my MacBook Air is my portable laptop. I take that with me on any long trip. This device is important because I find it to be the best laptop for quick work on the go. I don't push it much, but it has a long battery and most importantly, wakes up from sleep super easily. These three use cases end up being the reason why I use Apple for these scenarios.
Windows
Now on the Windows side, the main Windows machine I use is my gaming PC. This configuration is used for many purposes. One of the big things that I have it for is that I stream with the machine and I find the configuration with Windows to be more configurable and work better on this device. Now, I'm not saying that it isn't possible to stream on other machines, but I just think the workflow and customization opportunities for your stream or more abundant on windows devices. Another spot that it works is also for gaming. PC gaming is just light years ahead on a Windows PC than on a mac or Linux system. I don't necessarily think it should be that way, but realistically it is. Whenever I'm doing one of these scenarios, I'm on my Windows PC.
Linux
Last, but not least, is Linux. I have a laptop that I run Linux Mint on. I thoroughly enjoy this machine and like to tinker with it, but realistically that is all it is. I do have Linux servers in my home that I have some applications running in, but the Linux machine is mainly a machine to tinker with. I am usually getting random things done on this machine and taking the challenge to get some niche cases and applications running on this laptop. I enjoy some of the challenges that the system brings on a day-to-day basis. I used to have a Linux Desktop configuration, but in my current living situation, a third desktop configuration wasn't necessarily viable haha.
What Would I Use?
So, I guess the final question is: if I had to purchase one, which one would I use? My answer to this is a cop-out answer, but honestly, this is what I would do. I would pick a mac system, but the reason I would is that I can use macOS and virtualize the other two operating systems. At the end of the day with a macOS machine, I have more flexibility to use all the configurations in some form.
How about you? What systems do you use and why? Feel free to let me know!