While your dad is right that Windows is the operating system you’ll use most in International Business and Technology, you have an excellent point. Buying a Mac gives you both Windows and OS X, plus access to UNIX, which is an even more common operating system in larger business environments. Getting one machine that can run all three simultaneously seems the best way to maximize your potential.

Sean’s note: The new Intel-based Macs do definitely provide you with the best of both worlds, giving you the ability to run both Windows and Mac OS X as needed. The downside, of course, is that you have to spend more money when you go with the Mac — the Mac hardware already comes with a bit of a price premium (less than it used to be, but it’s still there last time I checked) but then there’s the cost of paying for a Windows license on top of that, and the cost of Parallels too, if you choose to run Windows in virutalization mode instead of running it natively using BootCamp. Plus, you have to top up your RAM to at least 1 GB—preferably 2 GB—in order to make Parallels run smoothly, as well as bumping up to a larger hard drive in order to have enough space to comfortably install the virtual hard drive file that stores your Windows install (5 to 9 gigabytes for a basic install of Windows!).

Ultimately, if all the work you need to do is going to be on Windows, the extra money you have to spend to get your Mac running Windows legally can be a bit much if you’re on a student’s budget (or have to convince your parents), especially as entry-level Windows machines are so inexpensive.

One way to pitch it, especially if you’re interested in web design, is that the Macbook would allow you to preview how your design will look on all browsers on the three major platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux), without having to buy three separate machines!