Whatever

Mac Guy

January 23, 2007

Since 1988, I’ve been a Mac guy. I’m Mr. Brand Loyalty, Mr. Buy-It-Now-‘Cause-It’s-Cool, Mr. Gotta-Have-It when it comes to many Apple products. Like many in the “Cult of Mac,” I’ve been singing the company’s praises for years. And why not! Apple has been selling consumers on a number of things that the Windows platform hasn’t quite mastered:

1. Ease of use.

2. Stable operating system.

3. A “Wow” factor in design.

For a long time, Macs had such ease of use, that many die-hard computer users were convinced that Mac users were essentially retarded. Why? Because back in early 80s, when you booted up a Windows operating system, you saw something like this on your screen:

In 1984, Apple launched the Macintosh. And when you booted the computer, it looked something like this:

Computers, like any fetish, has its aficionados who want to know and master all the arcana associated with these things. Doing so makes them feel like they have the knowledge-power that mere mortals don’t. So when Apple demystified the process of computer usage by implementing an operating system that was graphics based, those who held the secrets of the temple were annoyed; miffed that they wouldn’t hold the monopoly on making their way around an operating system that, quite frankly, was a pain in the ass. Not that it was really that difficult, but that you had to do so much to do so little.

Well, after spending too much time at the computer lab at SF State waiting for computer time to write papers, I begged my father for a new computer. He finally relented, handed me his credit card, and said, “Okay.” I came home with a new Mac Plus, extra disk drive, and an Imagewriter II printer — all purchased at the SF State bookstore.

I had paper to write that night and I was able to get the computer up and running in about an hour and start writing. In the morning, I did a manual spell check (i.e., proofing line by line, looking up words in a dictionary and then making the changes), and off to school I went. I was amazed how simple it was to used the Mac. I was also impressed by some of the other programs like MacDraw and MacPaint — which I used to create a newsletter for a band I briefly managed back then. The programs came with templates that were so easy to use, that the band members were amazed that I was able to create such a cool looking document at home.

Ah, those were the days…

Fast forward to the present, and all is not right with the world of Macs. Now that they have made an alliance with The Borg…

I have been hearing more and more stories of Macs failing. My niece has a Macbook with the Borg implants that will randomly quit applications. A co-worker of mine has Macbook Pro that has been having a number of problems. He’s a Mac devotee as well, but he’s starting to reconsider now that he’s having more problem days than productive ones.

I feel somewhat lucky in that I have an iMac that doesn’t have the Borg technology, so it works just fine. Sure, there are times when Safari will unexpectedly quit, but those are the exceptions rather than the rule. For the most part, the things I’ve come to expect from Mac have remained. However, if I decide to upgrade, I have this sickening feeling that I’m in for a world of hurt.

What to do? I suppose I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. But for now, I’m having to temper my Mac enthusiasm for a more pragmatic approach to computer stuff. Blech!

–PK

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  1. Ml

    January 23, 2007 at 6:52 am

    You’re smart to wait. Hopefully, that’ll give give them time to work their bugs out. I’m always afraid to be the guinea pig in new technology.

  2. Py Korry

    January 23, 2007 at 6:55 am

    I’m generally an early adopter, but some of these problems are making me worried. But you’re right, they should have them fixed in the next generation.

  3. J

    January 23, 2007 at 7:12 am

    Early adopting is for when they get it right the first time. 😉 Glad we got the iMac when we did, so we can wait a bit…

  4. Lalapunci

    January 23, 2007 at 9:13 am

    So, Mac went to the dark side of the force for their chip. Too bad. Maybe they will do an Anikin Skywalker and come back to the good side of the force.

    Personally, I am on the dark side of the force with my PCs and laptop. My kids tried Macs and liked the PC better, go figure. I “grew up” programming on punch cards and paper strips in languages like BASIC and Fortran. I like it now when the computer programs for you. 🙂

  5. Gina

    January 23, 2007 at 9:26 am

    It has always been amusing to me the passion with which people will defend their choice of operating system. My father has always used Microsoft, and because my BIL is a computer whiz with Microsoft stuff, I too am a Microsoft user. I’m afraid it’s just a matter of time before Mac users will be indoctrinated like the rest of us! Resistance is futile and all that! 😉

  6. Andrew Cory

    January 23, 2007 at 9:42 am

    I am not sure why you’re complaining about Intel chips and showing the Windows logo. Intel has a very solid reputation as a chip-maker, much better than the one Motorola had…

    On the other wrist, Macs crash. I’ve had to use them (off and on) for years. I’ve never had a pleasant experience with them. Earlier version had memory leaks. Modern versions have no way of rebooting a frozen machine short of pulling the plug…

    Hell! Even my iPod (I love that little bugger) has frozen and crashed. Perhaps what’s going on is that more people are experiencing the same percent of crashes– and aren’t keeping quiet about them…

  7. Dot

    January 23, 2007 at 10:12 am

    I used a little Mac like in your picture when I got my first job. I liked it alright. I get very frustrated with PC’s, but I honestly think if I switch I’d just be trading my currently problems for different ones. Because nothing is perfect. Those iMac’s are darn cute though. As for the iPod…very dissappointed when I had to return it after only a MONTH. Maybe because I bought a model that is now extinct? maybe.

    Gotta love those Mac commercials though. Good advertising.

  8. Py Korry

    January 23, 2007 at 11:00 am

    Andrew: I know which Macs you were using, and I’m pretty sure the crashes were related to an old OS — or so I seem to remember.

    And rebooting Macs (now and in the past) involves holding the power button down until the screen goes dark.

    I’m not saying Macs are perfect, but they are much more reliable than PCs — or at least they were until a short time ago.

  9. lalunas

    January 23, 2007 at 12:18 pm

    I Love my Mac. I work all day on a PC which makes me respect my Mac more.

  10. C-Lo

    January 24, 2007 at 7:35 am

    Aw heck. I was hoping you were talking about “Big Mac’s” as in the burger. C-Lo out.

  11. Cherry

    January 24, 2007 at 8:30 am

    The majority of my office run MacBooks and MacBook Pros for their laptops, and at least once a week I am told I should switch. I’m just glad that I have a choice.

    We are in the process of researching a new computer and laptop for home, and I keep considering it may be time to go MacBook Pro at home.

  12. Andrew Cory

    January 25, 2007 at 10:54 am

    Is that what it takes? The IT guys didn’t know. It’s not obvious. Hell! There have been Macs I couldn’t find the power button on…

    And, for the record: at Davis I was using the “desk-lamp” style iMac running OSX.2; still had crashes…

  13. Py Korry

    January 25, 2007 at 9:53 pm

    I had a “gum drop” G3 with 1gig of RAM and the thing was very stable. My mom uses it now and she doesn’t have any problems.

    I sometimes think that colleges and universities don’t max out the RAM or have large enough hard drives to handle some of the apps. That’s just a guess based on the amount of money colleges and universities allocate for computer stuff.

  14. Andrew Cory

    January 28, 2007 at 12:12 pm

    I think you’re right about the lack of RAM, I was just on a friend-of-a-friend’s Mac the other day; it was unable have iTunes and 2 safari windows open at the same time without some major slowdown…

  15. Taylor

    January 31, 2007 at 4:29 pm

    I’ve been hearing the same thing… I made the switch to mac right before they brought out the macbooks. I have a 14″ iBook that I am so in love with. But my friend bought hers a few months later, after the macbooks had already come out, and she says she’s having a lot of compatibility issues with things. Bummer!

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