Ask the Authors: Tuesday

Ask the Authors:

PC or Mac?

I wrote my first novels on a Macintosh Classic. It was a tiny little thing, but reliable. I liked the Mac and didn’t give it up until the internet came along. Now I work on a PC. --Ann Tatlock


I’m a PC guy. Never owned an Apple. Not that there’s anything wrong with owning an Apple. I have friends who are Mac owners and on more than one occasion I have consented to being seen in public with them. Truth be told—it doesn’t matter. Use what you have and use it well. Some writers still use a No. 2 pencil. All that matters is that the story gets out. --Alton Gansky

PC but tempted. --Patricia Hickman

Mac. I'm a "switcher" from a few years ago. I've kept my Sony Vaio laptop on hand--just in case I need Windows for some reason, and also because every now and then I like to use my WordPerfect again (hate Word--a lot.) But my heart belongs to Mac. -BJ Hoff

We have a computer. We turn it on. We use it. We turn it off. We don't believe in strict computer denominations. --Hannah Alexander

Mac. I was a PC user from February 1984 to February 2006. Then I made the leap to the Mac and have never looked back. -- Robin Lee Hatcher

PC, but I confess I'm growing ever more curious about the "dark side." All those lofty cries of no viruses and ease of use...and the Mac vs. PC commercials definitely make Macs seem more cool. (And hey, who doesn't want to be cool?) I've actually bought Windows Vista and the new Office suite, but haven't installed them yet because of all the problems I'm hearing about when others do so. Since the cost of these two upgrades tops $500, I'm wondering if it would make more sense to go with a new computer. And if I do that, I'll have to decide the Mac/PC issue soon. --Karen Ball

PC --Liz Curtis Higgs

Mac, of course! Always. I got one practically the moment they came out, after the famous Super Bowl ad of 1984. I've had many iterations (the Cube was the greatest) and laptops. - James Scott Bell

I started writing on a little Mac Classic 13 years ago and I’ve been a Mac purist ever since. I now write on a PowerBook G4, which is my only computer. (Well, I do have a smaller iBook tucked away in my office as backup. Except with a Mac, one rarely needs backup!) I love my 15-inch screen, which allows me to put two documents side-by-side on the screen—great for editing and reviewing my critique partner’s comments. –Deborah Raney

Mac. --Lisa Samson

I’ve always used PC’s, although I’m not fanatical about it. People become fanatical about their Macs, which is just plain weird, in my opinion. And Apple has this marketing thing going on right now that smacks of snobbery, where it’s uncool and nerdy to own a PC. Equating “hip” with a brand is about as superficial as you can get, so that whole advertising approach turns me off to Apple products right there. What’s the big deal? Computers and the software on them are just tools. Properly used, a good tool should be invisible to the artist’s imagination, not something that contributes to their sense of self worth. As long as my computer works well enough to get out of my mind’s way and convey my thoughts to paper without resistance, I don’t think it matters much who made it. --Athol Dickson

PC but we bought a MAC for our granddaughter and some of my best friends have Macs and I love the commercials...I may just be slowly being brought over...Jane Kirkpatrick

Actually, AlphaSmart Neo. That’s what I compose on. But it sends its text into a Mac iBook G4, and all of the editing happens on the Mac. I stopped using PCs more than a year ago; I find that blue screens lead to blue language, which doesn’t do much for my brand image. --Tom Morrisey

Mac! I'm a new convert, and I thought I would NEVER leave the PC. I mean, I knew how to cope with the Blue Screen of Death and how to flick dip switches and everything. But one day I had flipped one switch too many, so I snapped . . . and I've been delighted ever since. --Angela Hunt