Gaming People calling windows computers PC's

[lukecop80]

I have a problem with people calling windows computers pc's. As you'd know PC stands for Personal Computer. Even though windows computers are infact Personal Computers, Mac's are aswell, if anything, more personal.

So I was wondering what you thought?
Does it annoy you or am I just an idiot?

 

[Hachibei]

It's only annoying if it's a Mac fanboy.

 

[evandixon]

I have a problem with people calling windows computers pc's. As you'd know PC stands for Personal Computer. Even though windows computers are infact Personal Computers, Mac's are aswell, if anything, more personal.

So I was wondering what you thought?
Does it annoy you or am I just an idiot?

Technacally, you're right, but "PC" is a general term, and since Windows is the most common OS, people assume that you mean Windows.
Same if you just use plain "Computer". People "Mac" or something similer because they feel like clarifying specifically what kind of computer they mean.

 

[nasune]

If everyone knows what you mean (which is pretty much always the case with PC=windows) then it's fine by me, besides it takes less effort to say PC than windows (curiously though, I hate contractions like lil' etc. but stuff like this is fine)

 

[Deleted User]

Stems back to the company IBM and "IBM Compatible PC's" that phraseology back when IBM open-source'd their tech & you had third parties able to manufacture IBM compatible PC's. IBM / kinda pre-dates the Mac if I remember correctly (not by much), but the reality now is that they're usually just used to refer to computers that have windows-OS capability.

 

[nutella]

You started thinking this from the Mac vs PC thread, didn't you? I explained that the only reason why Windows computers are still called "PCs" and Macs aren't is for marketing purposes. Apple popularized the terminology, so it only makes sense to use it in conversations.

 

[Hakoda]

Its just your technological perspective. I know myself that PC stands for Personal Computer but modern society may not. I don't really think society knows all the details that comes with computing so they will make a label for it so its easy to identify from its competitor.

Usually when someone calls a computer a PC, 99% of the time they're referring to a Windows or LInux machine. Mac refers to a Macintosh computer developed by Apple. You can argue that their made of similar components so they should all be PC's but then society would be confused. And that's bad.

Overall, I don't mind because I know what they mean. I'm not the kind of person that's really technical to the diction that people use to describe something, as long as I get the overall idea

 

[Diablo1123]

I think its the same as calling mp3 players iPods and all that. I just avoid those terms. Computer works fine for me. Then I point out that they're wrong if they call my mp3 player an ipod.

 

[Westside]

Windows? PC refers to computers that supports everything BUT Mac. Apple owns Mac, whereas Windows have nothing to do with PCs except that they can run on them, and so can many other Linux based OS. Windows Computer is much worse than calling it PC, however there is a proper way of calling them without confusion and it is called x86 computers.

 

[lukecop80]

You started thinking this from the Mac vs PC thread, didn't you? I explained that the only reason why Windows computers are still called "PCs" and Macs aren't is for marketing purposes. Apple popularized the terminology, so it only makes sense to use it in conversations.

Yes, Yes i did

 

[ThePeon]

I only say Computer and for OS I say Win or Mac easy enough.

but I would also ask why say PSX instead of PS ? cuz PSX is a completely different system.
"PSX was a Sony digital video recorder with fully integrated PlayStation and PlayStation 2 video game consoles."

PS makes more sense if they mean Playstation.

 

[nando]

mac is a computer brand. like compaq pressario. some people refer to their pcs by brand name like "my vaio"

since windows runs on many different brands, there is no particular one to call it by, so it's a windows pc.

i don't see what the big issue is. if you are talking about a mac, you know exactly what it is. if you are talking about a windows pc, it could be anything.

 

[Ikki]

I don't find annoying the fact of people calling Windows computers PCs.
I find annoying people not calling Macs the same way.

 

[lukecop80]

I don't find annoying the fact of people calling Windows computers PCs.
I find annoying people not calling Macs the same way.

OMG now that i think about it that's more of the problem i have too

 

[Splych]

quote quote . other thread .
xD .

Mac's grown to be such a trend that it blinds others about everything .
iPods can only play music while others aren't nothing . if you don't have an iPod , it would be considered a bootleg iPod or a clone . while there are great devices used to play media , most people prefer iPods for just having an iPod or the simplicity of the GUI .
same goes for Macs . the only difference is that PCs aren't called bootleg Macs . they're still acknowledged , but the low rate of getting a virus makes both Macs and Linux great O/Ses . though with proper security , you won't have to worry about Windows having any problems though .

 

[ferdi-t]

When I was growing up a pc was a personal computer, and there were two brands: IBM and Mac. Later on there was Windows 95, and somehow people started think a mac is not a pc, though I still believe it is.

Nowadays I use the words pc as synonymous to Windows. Whenever I call a Mac a pc, it inspires some flamewar from Apple-fans, which detracts from the original subject.

 

[Law]

If I paid $1500 for a computer I'd probably want people to have to specify the brand name if they didn't want me to throw a shit fit too.

 

[trumpet-205]

I treat PC as "personal" computer. Meaning Windows, Mac, Solaris, Linux, BSD, etc fall under this category as long as they are personal. Server computer, workstation, super computer don't fall under this category.

 

[Originality]

Is there a point to this thread?

When people talk about PCs, they refer to the computers built from a series of individual parts which are easy to set up and upgrade. That's why they say a PC is "the sum of its parts". Usually with Windows, sometimes with Linux, sometimes both, and sometimes "hackintosh".

When people talk about Macs, whilst they are technically "Personal Computers" too, they refer to the overpriced premium package that is Mac hardware and OSX. The hardware is very difficult to upgrade and by the time some part goes wrong (take, for example, the PSU of my Mac) and you take it to the Apple store, they tell you that the price to fix it is so high that you might aswell buy the newer model (which in my case was 6 years newer). That puts the Mac at the same level as laptops for upgrades and repairs.

The above may not be necessarily correct, but that's what the general market thinks. Going any further is unproductive.

 

[TheDarkSeed]

Mac has an OS AND they manufacture their computers, Windows has an OS but doesn't really manufacture computers(to my knowledge.)


If I built my own Computer and installed a Mac OS onto it, I'd call it a PC. I guess most people refer to mac as a brand myself included. I don't really call a Windows run computer a PC. When someone asks me what OS do I run or what type of computer do you have I say Windows.

Tiny things like this might lead to a slight mix-up in conversations from time to time, but not much can be done. Just bear it.