Hi!
I'm a long term windows user, but the "ground" on which it's still defendible to use windows systems over mac has been shrinking beneath my feet. Always more bloated OS, various system/program crashes, etc.
I'm working as a SWE, in a variety of stacks (.net (main driver!), python, typescript, k8s, linux/devops, etc.). This would also be the main usage for my potential macbook (pro), coding + some docker (compose)/VM/local DB instances are something that should be possible. I don't require llm capabilities (i have separate hardware for that in my homelab).
I've doubted going full linux, but that mostly would still require me to use non-apple hardware, which I've grown more and more curious about over the years.
So the questions I have for this community:
Is a mbp/mba feasible, seeing as my work is quite .net heavy? (Not centered around .net framework tough)
How close is macOS in concepts/experience to a linux distro? Is it somewhat poweruser friendly, or does the OS fight you?
How to correctly spec RAM on Apple silicon. I'm hearing contradictive stories. Some people say for some basic docker usage, you will need sizable RAM (32/64gb), others say they are cruising on a 8gb m1 with sizeable workloads (and attribute it to excellent RAM compression+offloading). As in most things, I suspect the truth to be somewhere in the middle, but where's the sweet spot in my usecase?
Does a mbp or a mba make most sense for my case? Is there a big diff in durability?
Is switching from Windows easy, or a big mental step?
Thanks in advance for taking the time!