I had a few reasons for getting a Windows XP laptop [not really a switch as I have no plans to stop being an Apple user].
I'm a Java coder and [according to my wife] an OS junkie, so there are aspects of this that are truly geekish. Java on OS X has been impressive and unimpressive at the same time, companies are still writing Java applications for OS X as an afterthought, JDK 1.4 is still not out, and yet GUI's on OS X perform well and they've finally sorted out the JDK install to feel right. However, I cannot play games on my Apple laptop [Championship Manager 3, an old favourite is PC only, as are many others], I can't do MS development on the powerbook [.Net/C#/VB] and I can't learn about XP on OS X. I also can't do documentation for work, because much as I like OmniGraffle it is not a format anyone at work will be able to work with. These are all pretty minor qualms, except for the games. The bit that pushed me to go for it was OS 10.2. I came to OS X looking for a brave new world that intermixed commercial artistry with open source stoicism. OS 10.1 was that. I have an iPod I adore and have marvelled at the ease with which my camera links to the machine. Having to pay for a 10.2 upgrade that was essentially just a few tweaks and thrown in tiny apps was not enjoyable. If more had been in there I would have been less unhappy, but it felt as though Apple took a tight corner in the market and sunk their teeth into the monopoly they pretty much have. Since then they've not had a good PR time and I'm not prepared to be limited to their monpoly. So I'm doubling my bets. I'll choose both Apple and MS, and I'll put Linux on the MS machine as well. [I would do this on the Apple, but the powerbook I have doesn't seem to suit Linux well. Ethernet and Sound card weirdnesses]. I'll accept the Apple monopoly that I admire, but find overbearing, and the MS monopoly attempts that I sympathise with, but find inadequate and the Linux world I find comfortable, but empty, and I'll try to make them all meld. Rant over. I'll send another email with a different tack... What I miss about the powerbook on the XP machine. Hen On Mon, 23 Dec 2002, Ward Oldham wrote: > Henri, > > You're brave to admit it. > > Take a stab at educating us Mac folk and tell us what application(s) > forced you to go that direction. It obviously wasn't a choice between > operating systems. > > The next meeting of the Louisville Computer Society will be January 28. For more information about the LCS, go to <http://www.kymac.org>.
