i converted!

to Apple. and I'm glad i did.

so here's a blog. it's not too deep in Theological thought, but it's a blog nonetheless.

So I actually started learning to type on an Apple in 4th grade and then started using Apples from 5-8th grade. I then got to high school and used a PC from then until now.

Why'd I convert? Mainly because of my best friend, Noah. he converted a few years ago and has the older PowerBook 17" (i believe, right noah?). I visited him a while back with my PC laptop and we were both sitting there with our computers. We both had the same size screens but I noticed that he had to plug his in a lot less than I did. I also noticed how well the hardware of his computer worked together with the OS and the software (duh, they're both made by the same company...they're built from the ground up to work together). He would close his computer to put it to sleep and then open it right up again and it would be on! Mine...I put it to sleep and then opened it...and pressed a button....and waited...and it started breathing and came on after a bit.

So, #1 -- PC hardware is not of as high quality as Apple.

Another thing I noticed right away is that stuff just works when you plug it in. Now, I had heard this from Apple owners before, but I didn't get it. I mean, stuff worked with my PC when I plugged it in. I would get a new mouse, plug it in to the USB port...my PC would make that "duh-dump!" beep noise to let me know that it knew something was going on. Then it would say "New Hardware Found" ....tap a few fingers..."Pointing Device"....tap a few fingers...."USB Mouse"....tap a few fingers...."Your new hardware is installed and ready to use." See? I plugged it in to my PC and it worked. I didn't know what those Apple people were bragging about. Until I experienced it for myself. So...I bought this new Apple (side note: I ordered it over the phone on April 30th (a Sunday) and it arrived on Wednesday (or maybe it was Tuesday)!) So, as I was saying, I bought this new Apple, brought it home and turned it on. It was doing the whole "welcome, this is your new computer thing" and I thought "gee, I wish I could use this mouse and not my trackpad...I wonder if what people say about Apples is really true...will it just work if I plug it in?" So...I plug in my Logitech laser mouse...move my mouse and it moves on the screen! Not more than 3 seconds later. I'm telling you, you just plug stuff in and it works!

so, #2 -- Apple's new hardware integration works better than PC's

Then I start looking around when I get it turned on and I don't have to uninstall any dumb AOL programs or "Free Internet for 90 days" ad programs, or 30 day Micro$oft Office trials, etc etc etc. Those Apple commercials...they're right.

that's #3 -- Apple's initially installed files are far superior to the junk and worthless programs you need to uninstall when you first get a PC.

I could go on and on, but I'll just list some cool stuff I've experienced:

#4: Went to System Preferences > Print&Fax > New Printer and the Printer Browser actually FOUND the IP printer we have on our church network! I've NEVER been able to do that with a PC (shared printers, yes, but not IP (networked) printers).

#5: My battery is currently at 48% and I have 1hr 45mins left on it. And I have iChat open, iTunes playing music, and Firefox open.

#6: Drag and Drop. I thought PC was drag and drop. Earlier today I was chatting with Noah on iChat and he sent me a file...I just clicked on the file's icon in iChat and dragged it into the folder where I wanted it and it downloaded it to that folder. I can drag any file onto the "Mail" icon in my dock and it'll open up "Mail", open up a new message and attach that file to the message. You can basically drag and drop native Apple programs from wherever to wherever. It works.

#7: iTunes doesn't stutter. So often I would be listening to music on my PC and then open another program or save a file or do something that would use up a bit of processor power and memory and my music would stutter and stop for a bit while my PC was thinking. Hasn't happened with my Apple. It runs very smoothly.

#8: Viruses - what are those, again? Mac OSX is built on Unix and therefore it's susceptibility to viruses is almost nil.

#9: Graphics and Video: You don't notice it so much when you're used to a PC, but when you watch an animation or video on an Apple vs. a PC, you notice a difference. When I first booted up my new Mac it played the "welcome to your new computer" run through, video presentation thing. I was amazed at how smooth the animations were. On a PC they look nice, but look closely, it's a little jittery. Get a Mac.

Sure, there's a few things that I don't like. Like when you navigate through folders you can't open the folder by hitting "enter". "Enter" allows you to rename the file. You use "command + O" to open a folder (or any file). That'll take a bit of getting used to. Although that's not really something 'bad' it's just a different keystroke that I'll have to get used to. It's worth it.

#10: I can't help it. I wasn't going to include this one, but you have to: Beauty. Face it. A Mac is just good-lookin'. Sure, looks don't make a good computer...but they sure help :)

Well, that's about it for now. Like I said, not too deep in thought. Maybe a little long-winded though. Getting used to my MacBook (oh, which Mac did I get, you may be wondering. I got the Black MacBook. It's 1GB memory, 2GHz Intel Core Duo, 120GB Hard Drive, 13", glossy screen.) ...anyway, Getting used to my MacBook and getting all my files from my old computer and putting all my songs on here etc contributed to not posting for a while. Plus my already busy schedule. I'm almost all "moved in" to this computer now. Hopefully I'll be able to post more regularly now.