Profound Disappointment

Posted by Wes Perdue
Aug 10, 2010 at 12:55 AM

> Daly de Gagne wrote:
> Wes, thanks to you and the others for giving me some push-back on this.
> I do appreciate it - if anything, having cut my computer teeth on the
> Mac in the 90s until 2002, I may have set my expectations too high, or
> in the wrong places.

You’re quite welcome. I hear your frustration, and can sympathize to an extent; I do being frustrated myself during the early part of the transition.

>
> Wes, apart from the programs, what is it that makes the Mac better in
> your view to the PC? I love the way it feels, but I also like the way
> my partner?s daughter?s new Windows laptop feels, and I am told W7 is
> very stable.

Win 7 is quite stable; I just don’t like the way it feels, probably because I’ve been using XP for a very long time now.

My affinity for MacOS is very difficult for me to describe, but I will try. It just feels right - logical, consistent. Keystrokes for various things across the OS are incredibly consistent between apps; menus are consistently laid out. My Mac gets out of my way more and lets me work. It took me a while to get there, but when I go back to my PC, the inconsistency is frustrating.

> What I remember from the Mac is a true elegance in software - and I
> have not found much of it so far, with the possible exception of
> DevonThink.

I see elegance in the simplicity and consistency of design and operation of MacOS and its apps. I think you’re defining elegance differently, and that’s fine; elegance is quite a subjective attribute.

It sounds to me like your needs may in fact lie beyond the ability of a Mac and its apps to deliver, and that’s fine. It’s most important that you be comfortable and productive, so in my view it’s a perfectly valid move for you to go with a new Windows system.

Shoot, I still use a PC at work by choice - many sys admin tasks are still easier for me when running XP directly on PC hardware. However, my Mac sits right here next to the PC. It’s the best of both worlds.

Regards,
Wes