Longtime Windows user? Here's how switching to macOS can look like

I’m one of those oldtimers who installed Windows 3.1 and MS-DOS on an IBM PS2 computer back in the old days by using floppy disks. Since then, I never thought of switching to macOS even though, like every one of you long-time Windows users, I’ve had my share of anguish and despair with the Microsoft OS.

However, some users are talking about switching from Windows 11 to macOS on Reddit and other forums so I gave it a shot and here are my 10 cents.

What would switching from to macOS would look like?

First, the whole ecosystem is blended like every app belongs there; everything is compatible, and there is no error in sight.

My first thought when I start Windows 11 is to see what updates have been rolled out during the night and if any of them messed up my Search bar, my Start menu, or if the settings are the same as I left them the day before.

On macOS, nothing, an eerie silence that makes me suspicious and uneasy. And after a few days of usage, I get bored. Everything is working, and no antivirus is there to slow down my work and let me know about some impending patches.

Where is my right click? Where are my shortcuts?

The first problems occurs when you start using the right click, and the shortcuts you’re used to.

A lifetime of using Windows got me a lot of automatic, almost robotic-like gestures, clicks, and key combinations that I don’t even think of doing; they happen. With macOS, it is like I am on an alien planet, and everything my brain executes turns into a mess on this machine.

Finally, after a few hours of mingling through every app (and hitting the wrong button to close the window) I start to figure things out.

macOS Finder vs. Windows File Explorer

The last bit of my comfort was shattered when I find out that macOS’s Finder is nothing like File Explorer from Windows. Here, Windows 11’s tool definitely wins all the way. It provides all the information I need about all the files, exactly as I want.

On this aspect,macOS’s Finder feels like an Italian on a break; it doesn’t care about much except looking pretty while doing it. Here are your files! And that’s it. You can still sort them, display them as a list, and see previews, but it’s totally different from the analytic view from File Explorer.

MacOS has less app options but they work

Other than that, Safari is a decent browser; Maps, Calendar, and Facetime are all okay, but I need a lot more. I want to customize and get other apps to learn that many are unavailable.

Apple has opened its doors to many publishers and the macOS environment is a lot more permissive than it used to, but it’s still a closed one.

This is sometimes good. The apps you can install blend into the environment and work. However, after a few days, I drifted away and returned to Windows 11. It’s great with graphics and music, becomes more straightforward, and less cluttered than Windows.

However, somef users are fed up with failed updates, constant system and app update notifications:

During my migration, I was installing the latest patch on Windows 11 (via update), and it failed three times until I gave up. Meanwhile, the MacBook ran its update quickly and without drama.

And thanks for asking Microsoft, but no, for the 1000th time, I don’t want to upgrade to Office 365! I caved on the Windows 11 harassment but that’s it!!!

Writes a Windows 11 user on Reddit

They say that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks and for many, just like myself, macOS is probably a too complicated trick to learn after a lifetime of Windows. However, you can always try and see what happens.

But we know one thing: numbers don’t lie! And the latest OS market share report from January 2024 shows that Windows is a lot more popular than macOS.

Did you think about switching to macOS? Tell us all about your reasons and your experience in the comments section below.