[unboggling]

I agree that OS shouldn't be the main consideration in the what-computer-to-buy decision. Yes, what applications she needs should be the main determination in general. But as a starting college student, at a college where both PCs and Macs are commonly used, application availability probably won't be as important as hardware affordability.

So I agree in general and in the long run, she'd probably be happy with a new PC laptop. Starting when I opened this thread, she'd been saying she wanted a Mac so I went with that, without really considering cost and all associated implications much. So I'm glad Harry raised and re-raised this issue and that we're discussing it now.

She is reading this thread, thinking about computers, tablets, and software, and asking questions on phone and in email. I want her to make her own decisions about hardware, OS, and applications, rather than buy a Mac merely because Uncle Unboggling likes his Mac and she's frustrated with her Mom's old desktop PC.