laptop for designers, macs Options

[whomps]

So yea, I'm gonna be a freshman in College soon.. and I was wondering what would be the overall best type of laptop to get for my major.. Graphic Design.
Yea yea yea, I know everyone is going to say MAC HANDS DOWN. Macs excite me too, but they're also intimidating.

Basically I checked out the Macbook Pro on the Apple website and it looks pretty damn sick. But I've been using PCs all my life and I'm kinda scared to switch into Macs and get all jumbled and frustrated..

I was wondering if there would be any MAJOR differences switching into Macs, like.. would there be programs that I wouldn't be able to use on Macs that I've used on Windows before ?

ALSO. If I decide to get a Mac.. which one should I get ? Macbook or Macbook pro ?
If you're a designer but you're not looking for anything bulky, what screen size seems to be the best ?

Furthermore.. is there any possibility that getting a PC would be better than getting a Mac for design ?

Hmm.. My budget will probably be.. something under $3,000. I'm looking for something that will not break down on me in 3 years and will not lag or OWN THE SHIT out of me if I have a 20" by 20" 300 dpi psd opened up on the latest version of Photoshop. How much RAM should I buy ?

If you're a Mac user, what are some problems that you have encountered ?

Any help is appreciated. :}

[RoyalSwagger]

yea you should start using a mac a.s.a.p. all design firms or at least 95% of them use macs. There isn't a whole lot to get used to. For me I was a little afraid to switch from PC. But I can say that I'm pretty damn happy I switched and that I will never buy a PC again in my life. I've used a PC my whole life. With a mac the only problems I ran into where keyboard shortcuts, I always get confused on my software which keys do what. So I had to relearn the keyboard which wasn't so bad. Everything looks nicer, smoother, and cleaner on mac screens. There a lot faster then PC's to. But yea, switch to a mac as soon as possible because in the real world it's what your gonna be using. and when you trying to get a job or internship it will look good if you know both PC and mac. But trust me, you will be happy with you decision (if you get a mac). oh and yea the keyboard does look a little different. and of course the whole operating system itself. BUT its WAY nicer, faster, and yea. Just read user reviews. OH and if your wondering what screen size get the 17" because for you (a graphic designer) everything will be more proportioned and when designing on illustrator it will make it a whole lot easier, you'll be be able to see things allot closer and easier.