My 6 year old Vista desktop machine is slow and getting flakey, and I think it's time to replace it with a new desktop. I'm looking for a general purpose computer in this case.

Should I go Windows or Mac mini? I've never owned an Apple but always kind of like the sound of one based on people's endorsement, etc.. I don't run intensive computer games; I do use a couple of Windows only programs but perhaps they could run in an Window emulator on Mac.

At one time I would have automatically gone for a PC because they were cheaper but nowadays it seems the price differential in case of desktop machines is pretty small. Intel Core i7-based Mac is within a hundred bucks or so of a Windows machine with the same CPU and RAM.