Wall Street Journal tech guru Walt Mossberg says that the Mac is a great alternative for common, mainstream consumer tasks, but that it isn’t for everybody. “The Mac is as good as Windows at these core tasks, and in many cases better. Still, you certainly shouldn’t consider switching to the Mac if you are happy with Windows and you aren’t much affected by viruses and spyware. Even if you aren’t happy with Windows, don’t consider switching to the Mac if you are resistant to learning new ways of doing things. The Mac and Windows are close cousins, but there is a learning curve that comes with switching… And don’t consider switching if your budget covers only the cost of the Mac itself. There will usually be extra costs.”