Well, I’m sitting here tapping this out on the new PowerBook. It’s pretty nice. The screen is just huge, which is what I was looking for in a desktop replacement.
My choices for a new work computer were pretty much wide open, but I really wanted to try out the mac. Part of it is just the legend (read: marketing), but also I was intrigued by the so called “intuitive” interface and the general lack of viri and other malicious jive. So far, the interface has been just ok. I’m so used to PC’s that it’s taking me a while to really settle in. Also, my favorite FireFox extension (Tabbrowser extensions) doesn’t quite work in OSX, so I’m having to relearn some stuff with that.
I still have access to Windows 2000 on this machine, too, thanks to Citrix MetaFrame. Pretty nice application and I don’t really notice any slowdown by using it.
I do miss ActiveWords. Especially the on-the-fly misspelling corrections. That’s nice. I also miss the ‘append to text’ trick that I just learned on the PC. Supposedly Quicksilver will do the same trick, but so far I haven’t been able to get it working, despite all the good tutorials that abound on the web.
Speaking of Quicksilver, it’s a real nice app, though it’s beta and has crashed a few times for me. Fortunately it’s smart enough to restart itself after crashing. As far as I’m using it right now, it’s just a simple application launcher. It allows you to keep your hands on the keyboard all the time. It’s invoked, for me, with shift shift, just like ActiveWords. Then it’s just typing in the name of the place you want to go and using the arrow keys to navigate if needed. The thing has some pretty suck documentation, though, so there’s a lot of trial and error in addition to a steep learning curve, all on top of a still unfamiliar interface and keyboard. It’s a little frustrating at times because I really want to get it all tuned up–I can feel that it’s going to be as nice a productivity booster as ActiveWords was, but right now it’s a total time sink.
I’ve also got Microsoft Office installed on the machine. There’s no version of Outlook for macs, but they’ve got a replacement called Entourage, which seems to do enough for me. I can connect via vpn and it’s just like being on the network. At least it will be once the vpn gets working. Should have that resolved tomorrow.
So far my first impression is a little less enthusiastic than I’d anticipated. I totally love the big screen–no regrets there. But the learning curve is a drag to suffer through.
You need to bring that precious computer to me so I can play with it some. That and I’ll need to set you up with some apps for work (yeah, that’s the ticket) 🙂
I’ll be interested in how your machine holds up physically. Although my wife’s Powerbook is a thing of beauty, it has been an endless disappointment in terms of physical performance. First, the hard drive crashed within the first year. Then the case started to come apart. Then the rubber fee disappeared. And the screen rests on top of the keyboard when closes so the screen has oily squares all over it. The screen now takes some work to close so the magnetic do-hicky will engage. The battery life has been disappointing.
Oh yeah, and the interface . . . intuitive? Yeah right. Apple in my opinion is all Marketing . . .
Good luck with it.
I don’t know if Apple is *all* marketing… I know the iPod is definitely intuitive. I picked up a friends for the first time and understood it immediately. Very nice. OSX on the other hand…
Just out of curiosity, what are you finding to be unintuitive in OSX? I feel like I spend much more time hunting around on my PC trying to adjust settings, etc. than I do on my Mac.
An Ipod does one thing so it is automatically intuitive. Actually, that’s the “problem” with the Ipod in my opinion – it only does one thing. If they add more functionality I can see dropping a couple hundred bucks on it. But $300 for a music player? There are far cheaper options out there.
One example of problems I had with OSX – setting up a home network. On my PC I easily was able to “see” the MAC. The MAC on the otherhand, I tried on my own, and then even got a friend who is a MAC lover on the phone and he could not figure it out either. Thus, whenever I want to trade files, I have to rely on my PC to view the MAC since I can’t see the PC from the MAC.
Matt, the thing with iPod is that it does what it does really, really well. Seamless integration with iTunes is killer. Of course, you can also load Linux on older versions for various tricks and, like all mp3 players, you can use it as a portable harddrive. In my experience, other mp3 players just don’t have the same ease of use, both with respect to the physical controls, and with respect to the “workflow” issues related to buying, downloading and synchronizing music on the player.
Jared, the stuff I find unintuitive are mostly holdovers from my Windows experience. Close buttons on the left instead of the right. No right clicking options (though I figured it out with ctrl-click). File management is different. How do you delete programs you’ve tried but no longer want? Stuff like that.
Delete and app = drag it to the trash, the OS knows that you’re removing it and will adjust the system files accordingly. I am a littel skeptical of this. I’m just returning to Macs after a few years on Windows – although I’m Windows at home for gaming – You can get a two-button mouse and configure a right-click. That’s the one thing I REALLY miss about the PC. Hey though – have you tried scrolling a window by stroking with two-fingers vertically on your trackpad? Sounds obscene, but it’s addictive – when I discovered that one, I was caressing my machine for like 15 minutes.
Sorry, the Ipod pails in comparison to a Mini-Disc player in terms of flexibility . . . and a mini-disc costs 1/3 the price.
I have a radio (AM and FM) can change my battery anytime I want, whenever I want, and I record over a disc one million times without compromising the disc, and if I want to listen to music, one double A will last over 40 hours. New mini-disc players have a one gig capacity on a disc and can store files just like an Ipod.
Sorry, I will not fall prey to Apple’s Jedi mind tricks. Too much money for a fancy looking music player . . . with no radio, poor battery life, a battery that can’t be changed, and white headphones . . . how yuppi can you get?