1. Beau Bennett
English 1010
Mac vs. PC
If you were to buy a computer would it be a Mac or PC? That is the question everyone is
asking themselves. No one used to ask this question 10 years ago, it was always PC. But when
apple Macintosh came out with all the apple appliances things changed for the world of PC
users. They were left to decide whether to stay with their current computer provider or switch to
a new one. With all the technology we have nowadays it narrows down to two companies, Mac
and PC. Many writers have tried to persuade us which is better or which is worse. In this essay
I'm going to depict two of those articles. Although both articles use a variety of rhetorical
techniques in attempt to persuade their readers, Nicholas is ultimately more successful than
Glenn Derene because he stated specific reasons why each are better and only told enough
information to get his view across.
Mac vs. PC: the ultimate lab test for new desktops & laptops was written on December
18 2009 by Glenn Derene. Glenn Derene is the senior technology editor for Hearst magazines.
Glenn Derene also graduated from Colgate University. The likely purpose for this article was to
enlighten everyone who is looking for a computer to consider both types of software.
Derene begins the article with "there are two types of people, Mac people and PC
people". Derene has a good way of doing experiments to find out which type of software people
like more. He states "Usability surveys are like taste tests-- a useful look at the subjective appeal

2. of a device. (Is it fun? Is it easy? Would I be happy to live with this thing?)". Then he concludes
the article by saying "turns out, both platforms are capable and easy to use, but only one was the
victor.
In each article you read in the newspaper, in a magazine or on the internet the author uses
a different rhetoric to attract the attention of his/her readers. Glenn Derene used many different
techniques in this article such as; statistics compare and contrast and he tested his theories out by
doing experiments. Which using statistics Derene states “With a 7.5 percent market share, Macs
are no longer just the computer choice of artists and unemployed writers”. He used this technique
because he wanted the readers to realize that it wasn’t just artists and unemployed writers who
buy Mac computers it’s everyone.
The second rhetorical techniques that Derene uses are actual surveys that are done by
him. He states talking about his second test that he did, “…numbers feel somewhat meaningless
to ordinary users. Which is why we created out own suite of tests to measure the speed of
everyday tasks. We put all four computers through a stress test. We ran three video sources (a
You Tube clip, a DVD and an .avi file), DivX encoding, instant messaging, Word, Adobe
Acrobat and a spyware scan simultaneously- then retimed out launch of Photoshop.” Derene
used this type of technique so that everyone would understand and relate to what he was talking
about. He wanted his intended readers to give him a sense of credibility of actually having
personal experience with experimenting with Mac and PC computers.
The third rhetorical technique in which I wish to discuss is that Derene uses compare and
contrast to make his point across. At the beginning of this article he says, “The former is a hip,
sport-coat-and-sneakers-wearing type of guy who uses his computer for video chatting, music

3. mash-ups and other cool, creative pursuits that starchy, business-suited PC users could never
really appreciate unless they tried them on the slick Apple interface. Then again, Windows PC
enthusiasts probably think that Mac guy is a smug slacker with an overpriced toy that can't do
any serious computing anyway.” Later in the article he compares which programs each Mac and
PC has which are similar to each other just different names. He states, “Internet Explorer versus
Safari, Windows Media Center versus Front Row, Photo Gallery versus iPhoto, Backup and
Restore Center versus Time Machine—these system components from Microsoft and Apple are
designed to accomplish essentially the same goals”.
Which is Better- Mac or PC? It was written by Nicholas on Jan. 15, 2010. Nicholas has
written for many notable websites like CNET, AOL, eHow, dig, and Technorati. He currently
has his MBA. The likely purpose of this article was to inform the readers of the positive things
from each a Mac computer and a PC computer. The people that would be reading this article is
people that would want to know the positive effects of both types of software.
Nicholas states “To compare Mac and PC is not that difficult. So, if you had to pick one,
which would you choose? A Mac or a PC?” Nicholas tells the positive things of each Mac and
PC in a list format. He has formatted his paper into four sections, the intro, why Macs are better,
why PCs are better, and the conclusion. In the conclusion he states his opinion on which he
would choose and why. I like how he formatted that because it shows that he wanted to express
all the facts first before he got his opinion into the article. He concludes his paper by saying,
“some people like Macs better, some people like PCs better. Thus, some people absolutely hate
Macs, and some people absolutely hate PCs. It’s all an opinion, a preference”.

4. Nicholas used a different technique then you would see on most articles on the topic of
computers but he did have similar rhetorical techniques that you might see every now and again.
He used a list to specify his points, he used nice short sentences that everyone could understand,
and he only had a positive list of things about both pieces of software. Having a list format is
really nice when you want to make specific points and not have your essay have too many words.
Nicholas was clever to find out that having a list was simple and easy to understand.
The second thing that Nicholas uses is that he uses the short sentences to his advantages.
Such as, “Macs are very simple to use.” Or “The majority of businesses have Pecs”. Having
short sentences instead of long sentences brings in the reader, because it’s nice and smooth and
slowly but surely you’ll get through the piece. He also states, “The million dollar question. Macs
and PCs both have their pros and cons. But, if you had to pick one, what would you choose - a
Mac or a PC?”
The third thing that Nicholas uses as part of the rhetoric during his paper is that he uses
only the positive about each one. This helps his opinion to stay out of his paper because it shows
that both Mac and PC have good things about them that he is stating. Nicholas states, “Below, I
will list as many pros as possible about each one”. That shows that each one has good value and
means the same to him. About Mac computer he says, “- Macs work great with other Apple
components such as the iPhone, iPod Classic, iPod Nano, iPod Touch, iPod Shuffle, etc...” and
speaking about PC computer he says, “- Branded PCs are a wide market. You have many options
when it comes to choosing a PC: Dell, HP, Gateway, etc... There are really only 6 types of Mac
computer: MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, Mac Mini, iMac, and Mac Pro.”

5. In my opinion Nicholas and the paper that was titled, which is better- Mac or PC? was the
better written article. It shows that each have positive sides to it. I really enjoyed the shorter list
form then rather the long paragraphs. It really got me lost when Gerene all the statistics that goes
inside a computer. Since both writers aren’t really trying to persuade the readers one way or
another they are just stating facts into helping people make a decision, then both do a good job of
staying neutral. Unlike Gerene, Nicholas did state his opinion at the very end of the article
instead of letting us hanging with the hope that he was a Mac lover or a PC lover. I myself am I
Mac lover too. I have always loved Mac computers and laptops but I just can’t afford it. Right
now I have a PC, but every time I log onto the computer I think to myself I wish I had a Mac.
In conclusion I would just like to say that this is a controversial topic between Mac and
PC. As of right now Mac electronics are still growing in popularity, but are people going to give
up on what they are used too to change to something complety different? That is the question. If
you were to reread these two articles without me dissecting them and doing a rhetorical analysis
on them you might miss some key information into choosing which one you like best. Make sure
the next time you go and read an article that you think about the different rhetorical techniques.