Digital BW, The Print

I run both PC and MAC - I find it hard to choose. OSX is an impressive
operating system with features that have been lacking in the previous MAC
OS's, the combination of the MAC with UNIX is a fabulous solution. Before
you read my defense of XP -- for printing and scanning only I would buy a G4
with OSX because an OS that is built on UNIX gets my vote. Linux and other
flavors of real UNIX are too hard to use and have limited "desktop"
software.

On the XP side, I was also reluctant for the reasons you mentioned but in
reality using XP is no where near as intrusive as the hype. Here's why...
During the install I said no to .NET as an integrated feature of the OS so
that kept all the "chatty" stuff turned off. After the install I turned off
the features that go to MS regularly to see if there are patches to the OS
for upgrade (I don't really think this is bad I just want more control over
when and how updates are applied, simple un-check of one box and I now have
that control.) Finally, after careful consideration I honestly doubt that I
will make 6 hardware changes (the number that triggers the need to
re-register) to the inside of my PC before it's time to move on to the next
upgrade. I used to practically re-build my computers as new hardware came
out - today it's not worth it. The personal computer (MAC or PC) is very
powerful and the need to dig into the box to make constant hardware tweaks
in search of more power is a thing of the past - so in reality I doubt that
I will ever run into the limits of XP.

The graphics in XP are the best of any Windows OS and it truly merges the
stability of NT with Plug-n-Play. From Win98 you will be amazed at how
crash-free XP is (although only about the same as Win2K)

XP's registration requires name and address and nothing more. I find it
difficult to argue against the efforts of any business to prevent illegal
use of software - even when those efforts are a minor inconvenience.

Wendel