Ode on a Mac
Janet at The Art of Getting By asks the ultimate tech question: Mac or PC?
I am a Mac devotee. I have actually owned nine Macs since 1988. I remember when System 7 was a big deal. Two of them were given to me by Apple for free, including the MacBook I'm using now, as I wrote about here. Let's take a walk down my personal computer collection. All of these are computers I have actually owned. Special geek props will be given to anyone who can corectly name all of these machines specifically.
Why do I love them? Because, except for one incident, customer service has been excellent, and that incident got me an personal apology from Cupertino itself and a free laptop. This company stands behind its products. This summer, they did not have to GIVE me a new computer-- but they did. When was the last time you heard of any company over on the Dark Side doing that?
I like the interface. I like that I have never had to type in any stupid code-- until I became a blogger, of course. I like the trackpad. I like the fact that I don't have to run two operating systems at once. I like the ability to play music, and I love the iPods and iTunes, although I do lack access to Beatles and Radiohead tunes there. I love iPhoto, GarageBand, iDVD, and Quicktime. I like ONE DAMN BUTTON on the mouse. Back in THIS day, I could find a conflict in the extensions faster than you could say "Bill Gates is the antichrist."
I'll be honest-- I mourn the loss of Sherlock. Nothing has ever been like it. I also am not as comfortable with the hierarchies for finding files under OS X, but it's still much better than trying to find a file on my mom's computer. It would be easier to find a budget surplus inside the Beltway.
And then there's the virus issue. I don't want to be smug, but nyah-nyah-nyah-nyah-nyah- nyaaaaaahhh! Melissa, Blackbeard, "I Love You," Anna Kournikova, Code Red, Nimba, Klez, MyDoom, and the hits just keep on comin'.
I also think Steve Jobs is an incredibly fascinating person. The iPod? Genius! The clamshell iBook? What an innovative design!So those are some of the reasons why I love Macs.
posted by "Ms. Cornelius" @ 9:22 PM
7 Comments:
Amen sister. It's nice not having to think about being kept from all your data because you didn't download a patch fast enough and your machine now needs to be "cleaned" before you can get back to work.
So on a related topic, what word processor do you use? Have you used iWorks much in class? It looks interesting.
I have not used iWorks-- we have Office. But I must say I was not much of a fan of Clarisworks or Appleworks. I use Office because I'm used to all its weird quirks and can curse them with some understanding.
I think you said it all! I've also discovered that Mac users are usually just "good people" - the best 4-8% of the market, right?
I've been lucky to have my school laptop replaced every 2-3 years, so I've been able to keep pretty current.
As far as word processing, you can always ditch Office and go with NeoOffice - an open source (free!) branch of OpenOffice. I've started transitioning and it is pretty similar (a little rough around the edges, but it keeps getting better).
AMEN! I, too, am a devoted Mac girl. This causes some problems because my word processing program doesn't always play nicely with Microsoft Word (or, rather, MS Word doesn't play nicely with my word processor), but I love, love, LOVE my Macs.
My husband is a Mac GENIUS (no, not a literal one from the store, but a REAL one who can actually FIX a problem if you have one). Funny story: One of my best friends is Kizz (117hudson.blogspot.com). She lives in NYC, I live about 300 miles away. We iChat every day, but rarely call each other. A few months ago, she calls! Out of the blue! It was great! We talked for about 15 minutes before she says "Um....I'm sorry to tell you this, but I didn't actually call to talk to YOU.... Can I speak to your husband, please? I need to know how to install a back up hard drive."
Too funny!
Not only did you answer, you answered with pictures too. Cool! Of course from a Mac lover I wouldn't expect much less.:)
Yes, we are all about being artsy-fartsy, we Mac lovers. No spreadsheets or prosaic databases for us! We want color! and style! and music!
And we'll spend loads of money just to have that cachet. We're the COOL geeks! Yay, us!
I have my own little Mac lab in my English classroom, five computers not including my own Mac. I use my school PC only for attendance and grading and only because I have no choice.
Our district is, like so many, utterly Mac-phobic. Our IT people, in discussing Macs truly "doth protest too much." I am far from one of those folks who think that all PCs are utter garbage, but there is no question that Macs are, in virtually every way, superior.
What most PC users don't realize is that virtually everything they do on PCs is easier and faster on Macs, and that Microsoft operating systems, including their newest, are merely pale imitations of the Mac OS, Microsoft's attempt to try to make their OS somewhat as easy to use as Mac.
Hardly a day goes by that teachers or students don't come to my little self-owned and serviced Mac lab so that they can quickly accomplish some task that MS Word won't allow, or to open or format discs or documents that won't work on PCs. As I always say, Mac programs allow you to do what you want to do, when you want to do it. Microsoft allows you to do only what it feels like allowing at any given moment, and seldom twice in a row.
Thank goodness for Macs.
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