Month: October 2006

On not buying a Mac

This WAS going to be quite a lengthy post. I was going to list my requirements, the things I can do now and the things I know are better on a Mac. I was going to compare my Mac experiences in the past (from the Classic II to the Powerbook of a friend) to my Windows experiences of now.

I was even going to explore the whole “fan” side of things, and maybe discuss how, sometimes, zealots are NOT a good selling tool.

But, ultimately, the main reason I won’t be buying a Mac, at this point, is simple. It’s not a complicated reason, and you can argue against it all you want.

They are too expensive.

Now, let me just quantify that a little.

I’m not talking purely about the initial layout, although that is the major factor — for the same money I can get ‘more’ PC — but the cost of switching, of learning new things, new applications, new hardware. I know my way around a PC and around Windows which, on my home PC, is highly configured and rarely gives me any problems.

I KNOW Macs are quick to pick up, I KNOW OSX is an excellent operating system, and I know, long term, I’ll learn everything I need to learn.

But right now I just can’t be bothered, I don’t have the time, nor money and much less the inclination.

So unless someone wants to chip in a few hundred quid so I can get a top of the TOP of the line, maxxed out iMac, then I’m sticking with PC land. For now.

Ohh and if you are wondering, I WAS looking at the £999 iMac, for the same money I can get a PC with a bigger hard drive, double the RAM, double the video RAM, faster processor and it’s much easier to upgrade.

October 2, 2006

Ice cream and exercise

What a wonderful weekend.

Friday night saw us out to dinner with my family, dining in the hotel in which Louise and I were married. We even managed to sneak in a wee birthday cake for my Dad, such are the benefits of knowing the owners, although that can backfire too… the pudding my Mum and I ordered was, I’m pretty sure, double helpings! Completely stuffed, a feeling that has been missing the past few weeks as our house is currently in the midst of a diet embargo.

Saturday morning, Dad and I head to the local gym for a wee run, my first on a treadmill for sometime. How boring it is, I much prefer the wind and rain, although we’ll see how that goes come the winter! The afternoon was part two of Dad’s birthday celebration with friends and family descending on my parents house, unfortunately the buffet lunch was rudely interrupted when an ice cream van parked itself right in front of the house.

Funnily enough it was playing Happy Birthday as it pulled up. The look on my Dad’s face was priceless!

I should explain that, and this is a family trait, my Dad is a bit of an ice cream fanatic and this was all part of his birthday. It didn’t take long for everyone to form an (un)orderly queue, with double nougats, 99s and oysters being consumed with some glee!

Out for another run this morning, and then home for a fairly lazy afternoon, and to sort out a location for next week’s blogmeet. Yes, it was a good weekend.

October 1, 2006