In general, price wise: windows desktop < windows laptop < mac anything sure, macs typically run smoother, have fewer bugs... but cost. a. lot. most people who get laptops are those that use theirs for work. every paid graphic artist i know in real life owns a mac, for the simple fact that if you're looking for something that you NEED to run perfectly (and you have to be willing to spend a lot more money for it) then get a mac. I am a windows user, and probably will be for some time. the hardware in my $550 windows compares with that of a $1199 mac. Mine doesnt run as smooth, but its nothing i'd pay $600 to rid myself of. For you - the things you've listed would all be childs play for any windows computer. Take my advice and don't spend the money unless you really can afford to spend that money out of pocket. I can play runescape on my laptop perfectly on high detail at my friends house, but i lag [wagon] at mine. its really more about your internet than your computer (although both do influence it) PS - if you don't care whether its a laptop or a desktop, you can get a KILLER windows desktop for a lot less money. But if you're like me, its gotta be a lappy.