Mac OS X is a variant of BSD Unix and Macbook becomes popular among Unix/Linux users. Many developers choose Macbook as their development platform as this artile says. This article tells you the pros and cons of Macbook from a Linuxer's perspective.
The the Unix side of Macbook:
- Shells are choosable and configurable, e.g. Bash or Zsh.
- No ttys. Access the shell from a terminal emulator like iTerm 2.
- No package management software like yum or apt. However, Homebrew are available as a third-party solution. The packages of Homebrew are numerous.
- Most commands are available but parameters are different. Alternatively, you can install GNU tools via Homebrew.
- There are some examples in BSD-style mangages, good for learning.
- It's easy installing the packages or modules of various programming languages like Perl, Python, Ruby, and Node.js. Just a command from the end-user's view.
- The system management are totally different between GNU/Linux and OS X. Much less configurable /etc/something in OS X.
The pros:
- More commercial software on OS X than on GNU/Linux. For example, Microsoft Office, Adobe Acrobat, and Adobe Photoshop.
- Long battery life. 6 hours or more.
- Awesome touchpad.
- No driver headache.
- Windows is available through Bootcamp, Parallels Desktop, or Virtualbox.
The cons:
- The choices of hardwares are limiting. For instance, Apple adapts ATI graphic cards in recent models, so good-bye CUDA. Some good alternatives are the laptops of Dell or HP.
- The C/P of Macbook is not good if all you need is the Unix part.