WCollins, you would be in exactly the same trouble if you were an auto mechanic, a doctor, a house painter or a plumber......
Thank god we are pilots and not in charge of the ticketing!
"Er, ITCZ, could you just come over and take a look at my basic IF scan....."
As for VALUE, aka $250 pc vs. $1000 mac....... I had a Win98 box that owed me maybe US$50 as my only machine for 5 years. But if I costed my time spent fixing it and getting it to work at a mere US$20/hr, it would still be worse value than my mac.
Like saying a 1966 mini for your 'airport and back' car that has a 'special start routine' that frequently requires opening the bonnet/hood, breaks down when it rains, wakes your wife when you leave to sign on at 0400, needs a new something every couple of months, and requires an average of 2hrs of your mechanical input each week --- is that better value than a 1997 nissan coupe?