[Hidden-tech] So maybe I'll buy a PC and not a Mac—advice, please

[Sam McClellan]

Hi Shel,

I'll take a first shot -

> Good, reliable, fast machines to buy, preferably from 
> socially/environmentally responsible companies and under $1000
Lenovo Thinkpad laptops score up with Mac here:
http://www.ethicalconsumer.org/buyersguides/computing/laptopsandnetbooks.aspx
Lenovo's my favorite PC maker to recommend right now, with ASUS second 
(just below Lenovo). To get fast, get fast hardware. Here's a nice one 
that's on sale with NewEgg (one of the best PC sellers IMHO) for 9 more 
hours.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834860846&cm_sp=Homepage_FDD-_-P1_34-860-846-_-02262018
Very good specs for the price. Not a lot of laptops have a DVD these 
days so this is a plus.
> Anything I should be wary of in switching operating systems
In Mac, there's one or two ways of doing something. On PC, there's 15 
ways of doing something - it can get confusing. Also Windows I would say 
is slightly less stable than Mac. Plus since Win 10 Microsoft likes to 
arbitrarily install updates when you're not looking which means losing 
your work if it's not saved/backed up/on the cloud. SO annoying! There 
are ways of preventing that but I haven't kept up with them.
> A cheat-sheet on keyboard commands for things like taking screenshots 
> and making PDFs (both VERY easy to do on Mac)
https://www.cio.com/article/3125513/windows/killer-keyboard-shortcuts-to-help-you-master-windows.html
> What does that right button actually do?
Brings up a menu of commands that are different in different places - 
similar to clicking the mouse with CTRL.
> With PCs known for far greater virus issues than Mac, what precautions 
> will I need to take?
I strongly recommend ditching Macafee or Norton and install Avast, it's 
free for the basic version but has a paid version that does a bunch 
more. I've had to salvage a bunch of PC's with either McAfee or Norton 
installed but never had a problem with Avast and it's at least as good.
> Is there easy built-in software or freeware for making videos? Making 
> text or menu macros?
https://www.pcmag.com/feature/356750/how-to-edit-remix-video-in-windows-10-fall-creators-update
I'll let someone else say something about macro creation as I don't use 
that.

Sam