On Steve Jobs Stepping Down

Well, it finally happened. After months and years of speculation on everything including health issues, it came to pass. 

Steve Jobs stepped down from his CEO slot at Apple. He remains Chairman of the Board. I don’t blame him for wanting to step down-after a liver transplant and pancreatic cancer, and making more money than some small third-world countries I think I’d want to slow down, too. Hey, we all get to that point sometime where we look at life-and what we’ve made of it, and what we’ve done-and say, “Enough already.”

I’m not going to say much-too much has already been said in the last twenty-four hours-but there are a few thoughts. 

His career included work on the Apple II (on which I learned to program AppleSoft), then taking over work on the Macintosh (now better known as the Mac) after the failure of Lisa, its predecessor. The iPad, iPod, iPhone-all have his fingerprints all over it, as does OS X. Add to that what he did with Pixar and music (iTunes)-and his work will live on for quite a long time. Plus he loved what he did. How many of us can say the same thing?

There have been many quotes that he’s given. This one is from a commencement speech he gave at Stanford in 2005: “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.”

Another one was sent as a text message to an app developer who had infringed a bit on the iPod name: “Change your apps name. Not that big of a deal.” (They did, by the way.) What I like about that quote is that it is to the point. No wasted words, no formality per se. 

And from that same speech at Stanford, there is “One Last Thing...” 

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

I’d say in some ways the man has done more with his life than any five of us combined has. I wish him peace and long life.

Enough for now. 

Thoughts on MacWorld 2011

I recently attended the MacWorld 2011 Expo and Conference in San Francisco, and found it quite interesting. There were exhibits, classes, and all kinds of interesting things to see. There were all kinds of things for your iPhones, iPads, iPods...and yes, there were even a few vendors there for Macs.

No, Apple was not here officially. There were some Apple people wandering around; one spotted my hat on day 2 as I spotted his credentials after seeing his hat first. (His was a black ballcap with Apple’s logo; mine is a gray Mao-military style cap with Apple’s logo.) Apple pulled out of MacWorld a year or so back. So did a number of vendors. But that didn’t stop the people from coming, myself included.

Walking into the Expo, my initial reaction was “These are my people.” Most of the attendees were courteous, and while there was a boatload of us crammed into Moscone West, it didn’t feel crowded. (A good thing, as I have alluded to in the past I am not really into being in large crowds for long.) I could tell some funny stories but I’ll keep most of them to myself. One I will share was from a couple walking past me, and provided me with my favorite line of the week: “That’s not true. I’m twice the geek your first husband was.”

As usual, all the sales people were doing whatever it took to get your attention. One booth had a woman in a some strange clothing. I thought at first she was supposed to be an space alien; turns out she was a Lady GaGa impersonator. (Which shows you how much attention I pay to today’s music.) 

I didn’t go to this solely for my own amusement. While I am a user of Apple products, and am learning about how things work inside my MacBook, I really went to this to see what kinds of software would be available for some of my students. We have roughly 300-500 students using Macs at Master’s, as near as I can estimate. In that respect, I admit to being a bit disappointed as really there wasn’t much there for them. (Maybe they should have called it iPadWorld.) I got to talk with some other distance educators doing the same thing I was, and having the same issue. (I rather enjoyed the networking aspect of this.) 

That notwithstanding, I was thinking of bagging it early, until I sat in on a session called “The Mac in Education” and came to the realization that while the Mac is in no danger of being phased out anytime soon in favor of iPads (or your favorite brand of PC in favor of a tablet), I can see a time coming--sooner than later, I suspect--when the how of education and some businesses will change.

With that realization, I went back through the Expo with new, fresh eyes. There’s a lot to be excited about, if you will allow yourself to look past the immediate, to look past the ways we have done things for many years and see some possibilities. 

One of the things that really, really hit me is the outdated concept of the computer lab. When I was learning AppleSoft in my “Intro to the PC” class at LMC, there was a computer lab with a number of Bell+Howell Apple II+ desktops in it. Even moving those up to today, you have to maintain 24-36 computers, power them,  upgrade them every so often, replace parts that break, etc. That gets to be expensive when nobody's using them. At the Energy Lab on Hawai’i, when students come in, they are issued (loaned) iPads. They can then work in any of the classrooms, and not just the computer lab. (In point of fact, the Energy Lab does not have a computer lab.) If the batteries run down, they can either be charged or plugged in. 

I can see that classrooms and schools will have wifi or whatever number G available, and the parents outfit the kids (remember, schools get educator discounts) with an appropriate iPad or tablet. They then get the books downloaded, they’ll have the programs and apps they’ll need to compete assignments, they’ll have access to teacher’s notes (with hotlinks to further reading), pictures, and...

...the new teaching paradigm will be much more interactive. It won’t just be facts and figures (save for math, I suspect), but interacting with those facts. For the example used, it’s not enough to know that Columbus landed in America in 1492. What were the ramifications of the “discovery” of the New World? How did that impact the Native Americans? The Europeans? Columbus himself? This will become the new way of teaching: facts, mixed with a certain amount of logic and analysis/synthesis. In short: Young people will actually learn to think, and not just regurgitate.

As one working in Christian Education, this is exciting stuff. There’s also that part of me that wishes we had this kind of tech when I was at CVHS and LMC; I would have gotten more out of this kind of interaction with the material. (Not to mention my back would have been grateful to not lug large amounts of weight on the bike ride home--or back to the parking lot at days’s end--when school let out. An iPad weighs far less than 5-6 400 page books, several pens and pencils, and other required school paraphernalia.)

As a whole, we--as adults--have to embrace the tech. (We don’t necessarily have to understand it...but we cannot be afraid of it.) And really, that’s the message I want to share. I went in looking for software...and came out with a changed perspective.

I’m looking forward to coming back next year, and taking in a few more sessions.

By the way...if you are interested, my pictures of MacWorld are here. (No, I didn't have one taken with the Lady GaGa impersonator.)

Enough for now.

On Google, Chrome, and Being Paranoid

Basic info: everyone, in order to access the internet, has to have a browser. There are five real contenders: Safari (Apple), Internet Explorer (Microsoft), Firefox (Mozilla), Opera (Opera), and Chrome (Google). Most of you, I would guess, are using Internet Explorer, as that’s pretty much the default browser on most Windows-based computers. (Which is too bad, really.) I use Safari; it’s faster, less buggier, and was designed to run on a Mac, because Apple designed it. Firefox and Opera are pretty good; I had Firefox as a backup browser but finally deleted it because I rarely used it.

Google wants to change your mind. Their browser-called Chrome-is fairly new, and I spent a few days some time back playing with it. It’s okay, I guess. Since I haven’t seen any major speed improvements, nor have I seen anything that makes it any better than Safari to me, I finally removed it from the Mac. It’s different, but really not any better than Safari to and/or for me.

Now, I am not really an Apple snob. I like to joke with family and friends, but as I have said before you need to have a computer that works well for you. Just because I think a Mac is a better deal, has less bugs, far less security issues, works better, looks cleaner, weighs a bit less and is a better machine than any Windows-based PC--ever--doesn’t mean you should run right out and get one right now. After dinner or even tomorrow will be soon enough. (Hmmm...maybe I am a bit of an Apple snob.)

But Chrome didn’t really impress me. You there--you with the Windows PC-- you might like it, however. It’s an improvement over IE 8. (So is IE 6, however.)

Google hasn’t taken over the Earth...yet. They’re getting close, but I will continue to not go there. I will keep using Safari, iWork and iLife, and not allow Google to totally take over my so-called online life. 

Should the fact that Google has a large amount of information on you bother you? Maybe. It sort of bothered me for a bit. 

I’ve spent a lot of time not creating a big digital footprint. This is partially because I work online, and partially by choice: there was a time in my life where I figured out the less people knew about me, the less they could tease, torment, and make my life miserable with. That has kind of stayed with me, and while I’ve gotten much better about this kind of thing, I like to keep a somewhat low profile. 

Now...Blogspot is owned by Google; therefore, they host this blog. I have a gmail account I am using for dissertation purposes and a few other things. Picasa (owned by Google) is where I have pictures for the blog stored. (I generally as a rule do not put my personal pics online; I do not want them harvested by a picture bot and used somewhere else without my knowledge.) Since I have all the above, I also have an iGoogle page, with widgets for everything from comics to the CBC newsreader. (I deleted the Google Latitude widget however, as I decided I don’t want the world to know where I am at all times. It’s none of the world’s business to know where I am 24/7.) I have a YouTube account, which is also owned by Google. And, of course, I use Google to find things; it’s the usually the default search engine for Safari but you can also use Yahoo search or Bing. I do not have Google Earth on the Mac, though it is on the iPod for now. (It’s one of those apps that “seemed like a good idea at the time.”) 

So, Google now knows what I like to watch, what kind of news I like, some of my hobbies, that I have boring email, etc. All of which can be targeted to advertisers, to sell me on a trip to Honolulu, Billund, Toronto, Cupertino, San Francisco, Nashville, or Vancouver. Or to sell me more stuff for the Mac. Or to let me know that there’s a new animated series that’s just been uploaded. Or to try and convince me that I really need whatever it is that is being touted. I also get ads trying to convince me of other things I allegedly need as well. (I can’t think of a reason I need--or want--bust enhancement creams, for example.)

It smells like Big Brother to me, in a sense. I could get really paranoid about this constant monitoring of my online stuff. 

But it doesn’t smell like Big Brother at the same time, because it is not all centrally located, and no single person could possibly keep track of one person by attempting to sift through all that data. And in my case, there just isn’t anything to hide, really. (So maybe it’s more like kid sister than Big Brother.)  

Now, I could move this blog to another blog site, move the pictures to flickr, close the gmail account, and reduce Google’s hold to simply YouTube for now. I won’t; it all works pretty well together. Why reinvent the wheel? Besides, I can change some things to Yahoo!...and I find I’d still have the same issue. So, I allow Google access to all this information knowingly, knowing that any info I use will be stored somewhere. There has to be a certain level of trust. 

Still...it never hurts to be careful, because you never know who’s minding the store. 

Enough for now. 

On Facebook, Revisited

If you look down at the lower right hand corner of the blog, you’ll notice something new. No, somebody hasn’t hacked into my blog account...that’s really my mug in that box that says “Facebook.” 

You read that correctly. I have joined the 21st century and now have a Facebook page.  

The story behind this, however, is not too surprising. 

At the outset, let me state that while I am not anti-social, I am a bit of a recluse. I like my music, my books and lead a somewhat quiet and contemplative life. (I’ve said before that I am my father’s child.) I dislike being in huge crowds for long periods of time. (Attending Barbershop Internationals and most LEGO conventions are the exceptions, however.) By and large, working online has been fairly healthy for me. In fact, working online as I do is one of the reasons I didn’t want a Facebook page. I spend enough time behind the keyboard of my trusty Mac, between work and school. (Just ask Deena.) In fact, I get more information and entertainment off the web and my trusty Mac and iPod than I do off the radio and TV. 

As a result, I like to keep my private life...well, private. I know who my friends are, and generally where and how they are. If I want or need to talk to them (or they to me), there’s a thing called a phone. We can call and talk to each other.

However, because I have moved a lot over the last 30 odd years or so, I have friends all over creation, some of whom have vanished, others have moved and just not caught up to me yet.

It was two of those friends-one, a friend from high school, and the other a gent who figures rather prominently in my spiritual growth as a Christian-that finally pushed me over the brink. They have Facebook pages, and the only way to reach them was to get one myself and let them know where I am. 

So now I had a choice. Either keep hiding, or get my buns on Facebook. Since I really wanted to reconnect with these people, I broke down and signed up. (Deena never thought I’d have a Mac and an iPod either, so I guess that’s a fair trade.) 

I do want my friends to remain my friends, so I do have the thing locked down pretty tight. And yes, you’ll discover just how reclusive and geeky I can be. I’m okay with that.

And I can see why people spend a lot of time on their pages, and why people get fired for writing bad things about their employers. Fortunately, I like my employer, I love what I do, and have books to read.

Which I think I’m going to go do after posting this. 

Enough for now.

On Visiting the Mothership

On a recent trip home to Concord, I had the opportunity to go to Cupertino, where the Apple campus is located.

Well, okay. In all fairness, I had to talk my beautiful and charming bride into stopping as we went to visit her aunt in Half Moon Bay. But as I was going with her to work on a few items on her aunt’s Mac, I figured this was as good a chance as any. And after being left on my own for better than five hours there with what seemed like little to do at the time, she bought me dinner as well as my lunch expense. Not bad for a day’s semi-work.

Now it’s no secret that I am working on becoming Apple Certified in a number of things. I have already been certified in iLife, and am working on both iWork and Mac OS X support. While I will never write a lot of code or build new hardware, it will be a good backup in case the economy tanks again or further. But it isn’t something I can pursue in earnest; quite frankly it isn’t cheap and it takes time and I am short of both of those kinds of resources. On the other hand, I can earn much of it back in a few repair and update jobs, if and when that time comes.

Now you need to understand that from Concord, Cupertino is a good hour plus away and wasn’t exactly on our way. But we had plenty of time, and Deena really was a good sport about this. When we got there, we drove around a bit the campus, which is huge. We walked in the front entry, looked around, and walked out as we would need an ID badge to go any further. (You can see some pictures here. I can't say I took them, however.) The only thing that we could determine that was open to the public was the Company Store. There, along with all the usual suspects of Macdom that I could just as easily get at my local Mac Store, were the t-shirts, hats, water bottles, pens, keyrings, etc. all with the Apple logo on them that one simply can’t get anywhere else. Of course I bought stuff; don’t be silly. (I even got the t-shirt that says “I visited the Mothership,” from which I took the name for this post.) But that isn’t really the point.

The point is, I guess, that I actually got to see some of the place where things like Macs, iPods, Safari, and most of the stuff I use day to day got brainstormed. And while it really won’t change my life all that much (if any), it was neat to simply go and look. I can say “I’ve been there. I’ve seen the Apple campus.” (To which many of you will yawn and say “who cares.”)

But beyond that, there actually was a deeper meaning. It’s called a working vacation. Another poorly kept secret is that we both are in real need of a true vacation (which won’t happen until August), and that we both needed to do things. I work online and really couldn’t take much time off right now. Stuff is backed up rather nastily. Deena had school stuff that had to be done. We both were ragged, dog-tired, and in need of a break from the same-old. Mom needed some help with a few things down south, and so off we went to help her out.

This qualified as a day off from a busy schedule of helping mom out. My regular work sat mostly undoable (no wi-fi connection, which in hindsight was a blessing). This allowed a logjam of pent-up mental stuff to drain-along with some fatigue, some frustration, and a few other buggered emotions. While I was waiting for Deena and her aunt to return, I took a few phone calls, logged some long overdue paperwork, and caught up on some reading. (I also did the few things to her aunt’s Mac that needed doing.) This downtime-which started off by visiting 1 Infinite Loop-was what this doctor needed to do a little brainstorming of his own to help rectify a nasty set of issues. Realistic, workable plans got made and have already been implemented. This has lowered my stress level, and thus will make me more productive.

The only thing that really got changed was perspective. Issues and problems I faced when I left are still there, but now I have some personal resources to deal with them. I’m not totally drained, and if I take care of myself and follow my planning, things should lighten up in roughly two to three weeks.

That change started by taking some down time and visiting “the Mothership.”

Enough for now.

MacBook and iPod Update: One Year Out

Well, okay. Not quite a year out; The iPod won’t hit a year until November 13, and the MacBook won’t be a year until November 26.

Background refresher: As has been mentioned before, I’m no stranger to Apple products. My “Intro to the PC” course at LMC was based on the Apple II+ Bell and Howell model, based on the pic in my LMC catalog from the time. I used a Mac while at (what was then called) First Collateral Services from mid 1991 until the end of April 1993, which was thick with them. I survived the transfer from System Six to System Seven. This was a Big Thing. I took two Mac Academy courses on Word and Excel while there. One of my temp jobs for the U of O had me using a Mac for a day.

In real life, however, I had bought into Microsoft bigtime. They had all the programs that I needed to be productive. I used MS Office, MS Money, Windows, MSN Music (the store), MS Picture it!, the whole enchilada. I even had a Hotmail account. I used these for many years (except for the Hotmail account).

But as time went by, I got tired of the constant security issues. MSN Music became Zune.net. MS Money is no longer. I wanted Frontpage...well, it’s gone, too. Vista came out, and everyone I talked to hated the thing. Memory hog, buggy, etc. I had started using Safari about this time last year, as I found it far better (and more stable) than Internet Explorer.

Then came the need for a PDA-like gadget. I was directing one chorus, assistant directing another, juggling two part-time jobs, plus Deena was in a big chorus. There’s a lot of dates I needed to keep track of for various meetings, rehearsals, extra office hours, etc. Plus I needed a calculator that worked. And I wanted another device that had music playing capabilities. Thus, the iPod touch.

The one person I could have used some computer advice from--Dad--sadly was no longer available to ask questions. So I did my homework, and checked everything out. And bought the MacBook. And then discovered that the nice folks from Microsoft had, shall we say nicely, led me astray. My next comment will undoubtedly frost the true Mac believers: Apple isn’t perfect...far from it. There have been a few glitches. But compared to Microsoft...those have been negligible. For example, security is tighter. I don’t have to upload a patch every seven to ten days.

Today: I can do as much on my Mac as I could on my Dell, and I have far less trouble doing it. Pages is actually better than Word, Numbers is slightly better than Excel, and I haven’t played enough with Keynote to compare it adequately to Powerpoint. I still think Safari is a better browser than Internet Explorer, and you can download a Windows version. (I have made it the default browser on my father-in-law’s new HP.) iPhoto is at least equal to Picture It!, and in some cases, better. And since I leave my e-mail on the web, I don’t really know if Mail is any better than Outlook Express (or whatever has replaced it).

The one downside is that I finally did have to get a new wireless printer router. I am now the happy owner of an AirPort Express, acquired May 1. It reads both the PC and the Mac and thus we can both use the printer wirelessly again. (Well, we will when I can figure out the Bonjour/Windows 7 issue.)

So...should everyone go the route I did? Again, I undoubtedly will frost the true Mac believers...but the answer is no. For example, Deena didn’t; she spends too much time in Windows at her job and needs it for her schooling. And since she really likes her mp3 player and it works well for her, why replace it? My mom and my in-laws probably shouldn’t go Mac either; they like what they have, they like what they understand, and who am I to argue? Andy, my very best friend since dirt was young, wants to build his own PC. He has the smarts to do it, too. (I’m actually a bit jealous of that.) I’m guessing that’ll be a Windows job, unless he goes Unix.

**grins**

Everyone else, however, is fair game.

Enough for now.

On Windows 7

So my beautiful and charming bride took advantage of a Best Buy promo: HP Netbook, Laptop, PC, Netgear G-Band router, and Geek Squad install, for $1199. She now has a new laptop AND the new netbook (her dad got the new PC part of it, as well as the new router). All this sounded like a good idea at the time.

My opinion of the netbook is simple: it’s a cute little doorstop. I have textbooks bigger than this. For what it’ll be used for, it’s just fine. And if I’m playing softball and need something to be the first base, we can always use the netbook.

The other units themselves are okay enough, but after having spent the better part of my free time this last two weeks trying to fix the goofs with Windows 7 and Internet Explorer 8 I am, shall we say, less than impressed. I can see that Windows 7 is better than Vista.

That’s not saying much!

And IE8 is worse than worthless. Of course, since IE8 is built into Windows 7, I don’t really want to try and remove it. Which means I finally had to install Safari on her dad’s computer, as his IE8 crashed more than it ran. Installed Safari, made it the default browser, loaded Adobe Reader, Java, Shockwave, Quicktime, and Flash on it, then took away the IE8 icons from his desktop.

The other major issue is that Deena’s laptop is refusing to print. I have had to delete, then reinstall Bonjour for Windows far too many times (I have an AirPort Express connected to the Printer) so she can print. And even at that, so far I’ve only been successful enough to get two thirds of a page to print before the printer gets fouled up.

This is easy? This is the great Windows upgrade, with “none of the problems that Vista had.” Yeah, right.

Give me a break!

There’s an ad with a four and a half year old child playing with Windows 7. Maybe that’s what I need: a four and a half year old child, because if this is all great and wonderful, I’m just not getting it. The cute child had some “pretty words” for Windows 7. I’m not as cute, and have a few choice words of my own right now--none of which are reprintable, much less fit to say in front of that small child.

Now I admit I like my Mac--that’s a blog that’ll be out soon. Stuff just works with it, and I like that. However, I went into this Windows 7 thing with an open mind. I wanted to believe that this was going to be a better experience. But as I said before, I’m less than impressed. If this was the Windows that was supposed to make me want to come “back to the fold”, it has failed wildly.

So if you’re reading this, and you decide to “upgrade”, save yourself before it’s too late.

Enough for now.

On The Big Windows 7 Party

I’ve spent the last few days flat on my back. Acute impacted sinusitis does that to you--you get dizzy and can’t sit up for too long at a clip, until your eustation tubes drain and the pressure equalizes in your head. As I write this, I can sit upright for about an hour. Yesterday, it was 35-45 minutes. The day before that, 30 minutes tops--and walking unassisted was a real experience. To top it off, my vocal folds have been hamburger for four days now. If all goes well, I should be okay by the start of the workweek.

While I’ve been recovering, I’ve noticed that Windows 7 has finally been released for those of you who have PC’s. This is indeed a grand milestone for those of you who went with Vista, and is light years ahead of same, if all the reports I’ve read are even half true. However, If you still have XP, seriously consider buying a Mac or a new PC. You’ll have a lot less headaches as far as I can tell, and trust me, I’ve had a few real winning headaches of my own this week.

Now, I love a good party. I like certain celebrations; that’s why I attend things like Barbershop and Sweet Adeline Internationals, BrickCons, and so forth. I like getting together with friends and having a good time. But since I have a Mac, I’ve felt a little left out of this party. I mean, I kind of wanted in on the fun that PC users seemed to be having. I’ve read about the launch parties, and all the other attendant hoopla. And I really felt like I should join in on all the fun and games.

So I decided to celebrate this fantastic milestone by removing Win XP from my Mac.

Here’s the fun and games part: I’m not replacing it with Windows anything.

That’s right--I have finally cut the Windows cord. See, I only installed XP because I thought I’d need it for a few things, like for work. Turns out there’s a Mac version, and our IT person was kind enough to send me the link for it. The other two programs I had it for...I don’t need the one anymore, and the other refused to transfer to the Mac. (When they said one copy to one computer, they weren’t kidding around.)

Gone is the Open Office I installed. If I really want it back, I can get it as it runs on Mac. Also gone is the last Norton product I’m paying for. I didn’t really need it for the Mac side, but did for the Win XP side. When Deena’s Norton subscription runs out, I think I’m going to download Avast or AVG for her, unless she wants to pay for Norton herself. (I have been suspicious that part of her HP’s issues stem from her Norton, however.)

I don’t mind cutting Win XP; it’s been good but is now two versions back and the support for it will dry up soon enough. I also don’t mind losing Norton, mostly because I didn’t mind gaining 100 GB of memory back for the whole Win partition.

Have fun with Windows 7. Me...I’m saving some of what I would have spent on upgrades for Windows, MS Office and Norton and be getting Snow Leopard, iWork and iLife 2010 (if there will be such a thing). I’ll also be doubling my RAM from 2GHz to 4GHz. It’ll be like having a whole new computer, for about the cost of a PC netbook.

And I’ll have enough left over to throw my own party, if I want.

Enough for now.

In which an Apple takes a byte from my wallet....

This is the last article written on my Dell. It’s also the first written from my new computer. Read on....

Pause for a moment of silence. My Dell laptop is dying a slow, painful, heat-related death. Before you ask, it is resting comfortably on a cool-pad. It helps, but only so much, and yes, I have backed up almost all my files. The disc drive itself seems okay. The problem is the motherboard...and I’m afraid its terminal.

In the last month, I’ve had two blue screens of death that I have cheated. The cursor has developed a mind of its own, wandering from one corner to another and requiring me to use both the mouse and the pointer to wrestle control back. Mostly, I reboot it after letting it sit for a few minutes, and it seems okay. The screen pixilates and requires flexing it back and forth (as if I were opening or closing it) to get it to come back. I find it is using 100% of the CPU more often these days.

Two weeks ago, it managed to lose the wireless card. I thought it had shut down for good, having decided to go to wherever good wireless cards go to die.

It is not looking good for the poor thing.

It also means, as of this writing, I am in the market for a new laptop. I’m deciding between another Dell, an HP, or a Mac. You have read that correctly. For the first time ever, I am seriously considering a Macintosh.

Most of you who know me also know I haven’t been a huge fan of Apple. It’s nothing personal, mind you, it’s just that Bill Gates was bright enough to capture some 90% of the market rather easily. Macs (and by default, most Apple products) just were not keeping up. The last time I used a Mac for any length of time was in the early 1990’s, when the company I worked for was thick with them. Survived the transfer from System Six to System Seven. It was big stuff back then. Took two Mac U courses on Word and Excel. Heck—my “Intro to the PC” course at Los Medanos College was based on the Apple IIe. (It might have been an Apple IIc...I’ve slept since then.) One of my temp jobs had me using a Mac for a day. So it’s not like I’ve never worked with Apple products before, or recently.

Even after buying my iPod Touch, I’ve still been a bit leery about the Mac thing. My photographic and musician side has wanted one for years, but the practical side of me—you know, the one the works for a living—has deemed it more prudent to get a Windows-based unit, since that’s what everyone else uses.

The problem is, as leery as I am about a Mac, I’m more wary of Vista, and the soon to replace it Windows 7. Vista is buggy, even after SP1, and Win7 is based off Vista, according to my computer folks who actually do the computer thing for a living. Doesn’t fill me with warm fuzzies, kids.

And since Black Friday is coming, as I write this, now is the time to put the Dell to rest. Mourn not, gentle reader. It’s had a good life, for a Pentium 3 based system.

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Update: After some soul searching, a lot of asking around, and more research than I’ve done for a computer in ten years, I bought...a MacBook. The 13.5” model, aluminum frame, OS X, etc. It’s nice.

It’s not perfect--far from it!--but it is stable, will do what I need it to do (Mostly--I did have to load Windows XP on it), and should still be running four or five years from now.

There’s a learning curve. I’m using Pages from iWork to write this, and it’s a bit different from MS Word, and I may end up replacing the wireless printer router as it doesn’t play at all with Macs. (Since the printer sits right next to me, though, I can load the driver on the Windows side, use it there, and plug in the printer for the Mac side for now.)

My goal, however, is to use the Windows side for work only.

Oddly enough, last night my wireless card on the Dell came back to life, for who knows how long.

Enough for now.

(posted 12/03/08)