Over at the Emacs subreddit, ll777 wants to know what computer and OS you’re using. He’s a macOS user but is getting into Emacs and realizing that Emacs can do a lot of the things that he uses individual apps for in macOS. He wondering if he should change computers and operating system and asks others what they think.
About a quarter of the Emacs user base is using macOS. As one of those users, I can testify that Emacs and macOS are a great match. The only important thing I miss is support for EXWM, and that’s because macOS doesn’t use X-Windows natively (although it does support it).
I like macOS because it integrates with all my other devices like my iPhone, iWatch, iPad, and home automation system. You can have that in the Linux world too but then you have to use an Android phone and tablet with all the privacy concerns that that brings. And, although it’s a matter of opinion, I think the Apple devices are simply better.
Lot of folks disagree, of course, and for them a Linux system is undoubtedly the right choice. I don’t think it makes a lot of difference. If you like the Apple ecosystem and want to use Emacs, there’s no reason to go elsewhere. Likewise if you like Linux or have strong feelings about free software, you can likewise use Emacs without any problems.
Although there was support for both macOS and Linux in the comments, there was not a single suggestion that ll777 move to Windows. Although Emacs does run under Windows and support for it has gotten better recently, no one I know would choose Windows as a platform just to run Emacs.
What do you say? Would you tell ll777 to do?