ARTS & FARCES internet

I started using a Macintosh computer when it first came out. I drank the Kool-Aid; I sipped but didn’t gulp. The cult book I wrote with Bob LeVitus—or any of the other 20-some-odd Mac-specific titles—notwithstanding.

I left the fold just as quickly on February 17, 2000. That was the day that Microsoft released Windows 2000—still the best desktop operating system Microsoft’s done. The only thing it was missing was ClearType. The Mac OS had become so unstable as to be unusable.

But now I’m back. Earlier this month I started using a MacBook Pro—the 15-inch 2.4GHz model—full-time. The whole experience has been nothing short of amazing. The original packaging still sits in my office at the University because I’m afraid I’ll get mugged on the bus if I bring the box home.

Most everything has met the hype surrounding Apple and its cargo-cult products. Most everything just works. I’m surprised how little I couldn’t figure out how to do something simply by wandering around and intuiting things.

I’m not gulping the Kool-Aid just yet, though. I desperately miss my IBM ThinkPad T42p keyboard and docking station. Apple can make world-class keyboards; it did just that with the old monster they called the aircraft carrier. Apple just can’t make laptop keyboards worth beans. And what’s with the aversion to the docking station? On the other hand, the MacBook Pro’s backlit keyboard—something I thought was a gimmick—is truly wonderful.

Mac Quicken flat sucks compared to the Windows version and there’s no corporate TurboTax for the Mac. This is just plain inexcusable; Bill Campbell sits on nifty little utility called O2M took care of it seamlessly and quick enough.

And that brings up my biggest dissatisfaction with the Mac. What happened to the community? Little utilities that should be free now cost US$30.

Parts of Apple’s bundled application set that suck rocks. The to-do list in iCal, for example, is laughable. Thankfully I found iGTD, a free program. No built-in backup program? What’s the story there? Mail needs some work. Thankfully, we only have to wait until October until these shortcomings are addressed in the next operating system release, Leopard. I’ll probably pre-order mine from Amazon. Is that a gulp?