Mac Update

It has been nearly three months since I made the switch from a Windows based laptop to a MacBook. From the moment I first laid eyes on the thing, I was in love. Now that I’ve been married to it for three months, am I happy with the relationship? I get asked that regularly. The answer is “Yes.”

Someone asked me if I regretted making the transition. I said, “Absolutely not.” I cannot see turning back. I’ve debated whether Mac owners are members of a fraternity or a cult. I’ve decided it is definitely a cult, and I am now a full initiate.

But is a Mac really ‘all that’? That is a good question. My transition from Windows 98 does not give quite a fair place of judgment. Compared to the instability of Windows 98, my Mac shines. It has crashed but once in the three months, and that was a freak thing after loading a plug-in to help me read a Windows movie file. [Mac cult rule number 38: if you can blame something on Microsoft, do so.] Word for Mac has crashed several times, and Firefox a time or two. However, when they crash, they do not take the entire operating system with it. After the crash, I click a single button and the applications are up and running in a matter of seconds.

The style and the creativity of the Mac is legendary, and mine lives up to the legend. It is probably true that what one can do on a Mac he can also do on a Windows machine, at least the ordinary type things that I am accustomed to doing. But there is a greater element of fun and enjoyment in doing it on the Mac. That Mac programmers have personality is evidenced by the way the OS tells you that you have entered the wrong password. Windows says something like this: “Have you forgotten your password AGAIN? How many times do I have to tell you to store that somewhere where you will not forget it. What kind of an idiot are you anyway?” (At least it FEELS like that.) The Mac requester simply shakes back and forth, as if to shake it’s head, “No.” I laugh instead of get mad.

Earlier this week I was reading James Fallows’ preview of Microsoft’s upcoming release of its new OS ‘Vista’ and it’s latest version MS Office from the latest issue of The Atlantic Monthly. Fallows is a well known journalist who at one time was a part of the team involved in the development of Office 2000. What is telling in the review is his comparisons of the new Vista OS with the existing Mac OS. Consider what these quotes reveal:

“Ninety percent of the sex appeal of Vista is its new ‘Aero’ desktop theme. This offers convenient icon-size gadgets on the desktop—a clock, a calendar—like those of a Mac.”

“It’s overall look is far sleeker than any previous Windows incarnation and, gasp, seems even more modern than the Mac.”

“Many of the changes in Word, Outlook, Excel, and the rest are strictly visual—but if you think that’s a minor factor, you haven’t paid attention to the Mac.”

“OneNote, Microsoft’s new, Mac-like data-management system…”

It doesn’t take long to see who is playing catch-up in this game. I think I’ll stay with the safe, stable, visually appealing, creative Mac.

As a footnote, to those who have asked: I have recently under the urging of a friend, installed onto my Mac Parallels Desktop. This creates on my desktop a window in which I can run Windows XP, and in that environment run my Bible software package that will not run on the Mac. I have, thereby, a Windows computer and a Mac on my lap. I find that I’ve had to give up NOTHING. Pretty cool.