I've been a computer user for quite sometime, notice I said computer, not PC, Mac, Commodore, Texas Instruments or Amiga... All of which I owned at some point or another in my computing lifetime. I've really never been married to one platform or another, I used the one that allowed me to do the things I needed to do.
I listen to a very good podcast called the MacCast, located at http://maccast.blogspot.com/ be sure and check it out. One of the recent shows was about why users have switched from Windows based PC's to the Max OS, the title of the show is Switcher Special #1. The show really got me thinking about my chosen platform and why I use it.
I've always wanted a Mac based computer, but two factors have always held me back, price and lack of software. I will give it to the Mac, it is rock-solid, the thing is a pleasure to use and the experience is wonderful, but all that coolness comes at a price. I waltzed into CompUSA today and browsed the Mac section to get a feel for what I would be getting into to "Switch". I figure a comparable setup to what I have now:
Athlon XP 1700, 512mb
200gb HD GeForce 4 Ti4200 64mb
16x DVD +RW
FireWire Card
A comparable Mac would be the iMac G5, which weighs in at about $1900. Now that is a beautiful computer, and my iPod would definitely love to dock with it. But once I get past the ooohh, ahhhh factor what am I left with?
Besides my iPod, I also us a Dell Axim X30, yes there's software that I can buy to sync with the Mac, but it's free on WinXP. I play PC games thank you very much, and I ain't switching until I can get Chronicles of Riddick, Warhammer 40k Dawn of War or Half Life 2 on it.
For me a computer is a tool, not a lifestyle. I use the tool that's right for the job. Sure I can use a Black & Decker or Craftsman wrench to do a job, but wouldn't a generic wrench do the job just as well? Until the games and utilities exist for MacOS I won't be switching anytime soon, I'll be content to admire Macs from afar.
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