Apple Thoughts - News & Reviews on all things Apple

What happens when you set a MacBook down in front of a lifelong Windows developer? Pure chaos.

I have been using and working with DOS and/or Windows-based computers for more than 25 years. I got my first computer during my freshman year of college and it came in the form of a Timex-Sinclair 1000. It was $99, came with 2K of RAM, required a cassette recorder to load programs and you needed a television because it did not come with a monitor. We sure have come a long way since then, haven't we?

I've only been a Mac user for two weeks, but in that short time I have come to realize exactly why most Apple users are considered "fanboys" by people looking in from the outside. It's hard not to boast about the intuitive design of the operating system, or the way applications work together seamlessly. There have been no "blue screens of death" or "fatal exception errors". Are there such things for the Mac? I guess I'll find out eventually, but right now it all works. Brilliantly.

As I opened the MacBook for the first time I had my reservations, but those reservations faded quickly and were replaced with ideas for new software. I'm a developer, and now I have the bug to develop something for the Mac. Although my day job will always require the use of a PC, I can see myself doing everything else on the Mac. I'm sure it won't be long until I am beta testing something.

When Vincent invited me to write here at Apple Thoughts, I thought he was crazy in the head, but hopefully I can bring a different perspective to the table that won't drive too many people crazy. I hope to spotlight Mac software that many of you have used for years while helping others see that not every compliment towards Apple comes from a fanboy.

One thing is for sure, after 25 years in the industry, it's weird being a newbie again.

I'm a developer and web designer. I am also a recent Mac convert. My first computer was a TI 99/4a when I was eleven. The following year, I did odd jobs in order to make enough money to buy the Commodore 64. By the time I was fourteen, I had moved on to the Commodore Amiga 500. The Amiga was ahead of its time in a lot of ways. It's operating system was comparable to earlier editions of Mac OS. I'd like to say that from there I went on to Apple computers, but I didn't. I was taking computer classes in school, and my instructor led me towards a 286. He felt that for programmers there was no reason to have anything other than an Intel based machine. For the next eighteen years, I used Windows and Linux exclusively.

Two things brought me to the world of Apple. First was my frustration with Windows, and my dislike of Windows Vista, which at launch was less than ideal (it has since improved). Second was the purchase of an iPod touch, a device I instantly fell in love with. It was only a matter of a few months before I decided that I needed a new computer for development work, and I bought the MacBook. That was eight months ago, and I've never been happier with a computer in my life. It is definitely a developer's machine, and it has streamlined my development tremendously.

I'm currently living with my partner (who also switched to Mac the same time I did, with a MacBook Pro) in Honesdale, PA, where I am developing new web services.