There are people out there living in denial. They will deny just about anything that they don't like, and a lot of people out there don't like Apple or anything about it, especially the computer division. Well, they can deny Apple's award-winning computers and software all they want, but the fact remains that some 9,000 per day, seven days per week are switching to the Mac whether they admit it or not. They can also deny the reasons too, but the reasons are still true, its a stable, slick, well oiled machine and the simple fact is... the Mac just works!
Now, the really interesting thing is that its not just the so called 'regular' computer users that are switching from Windows to the Mac but, amazingly, an ever increasing number of switchers just happen to be harden senior Window experts like Scott Finnie and others. And, now, even Chris Pirillo is considering switching. So, in light of the increasing market share and popularity of the Mac offerings, it was very interesting to read of the experiences of an actual Microsoft employee, Scott Barnes, who recently purchased his first iMac.
As Scott says in his blog, mossyblogg (nice and catchy name, by the way):
"Today I did something bold, irresponsible and costly - I, a Microsoft Employee bought an iMac. The reason I did this was mostly due to two things:
1. All my creative friends kept saying "Man I can't live without my mac, don't know how you survive dude, especially working for Microsoft" (it's their way of putting a dig at me).
2. We bought 2 laptops for the team, and Shanemo & Michael are hard to pry the MacBook Pro's from, so it was either get one of them fired or buy it.
So here I am, owning an iMac while drawing a pay check at Microsoft. I can't but help the feeling I am hurting my stock options somehow, but the rationale in my head is that "We don't make PC Hardware, we make Operating systems - and other things".
Well, there you have it. Even a Microsoft employee can see the light, and come to enjoy the benefits of his company's main competitor, so, it's not too hard to imagine why so many of us 'regular' folks are also switching to the world of Apple and the Mac.
But how did he like it; what where his feelings and experiences? Well, in his own words, he reports:
"We've all mostly seen the ads. The smug Apple guy makes a point of just unpacking the box, plugging it and walking off to do other things, meanwhile the PC guy has to do allot of work.
I agree, the Apple experience did shine here, I not only was surprised to see just a monitor (somehow I had it in my head that I'll have some kind of small little desktop console of some kind) but it was a case of slotting in the power cable, hooking the mouse and keyboard up (heh, I thought I had to plug the mouse into the back of the monitor when I released there was a USB input on the keyboard.. such a dumbo).
That was it really for the hardware. I found the overall install experience for OSX Tiger to be pretty damn smooth and effortless.
I did laugh though to see once the Wizards were all done and dusted, "Software Updates" that required patching. Ahhh sweet justice, yes Windows Vista does it but so does OSX! so neh!."
Its nice to see that even a Microsoft employee can enjoy the same installation experience that I and millions of others have already discovered: Scott's experience's are typical of the average Window switcher, but with a difference... he's employed by Microsoft, and Apple just happens to be its biggest competitor!
All-in-all, its a very interesting piece, coming from the perspective of an Microsoft employee. So, for more on Scott's brave entry into the world of the Mac, click on his blog's link below and enjoy the rest for yourself.
And thats my 2 cents 4 this sunny Friday, October 5, 2007.
http://blogs.msdn.com/msmossyblog/archive/2007/10/05/imac-ownership-day-0-where-is-my-applications.aspx
http://www.scotsnewsletter.com/
http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/09/28/vista-rants/
4 comments:
I am a PC user. I have spent a lot of time on Mac though doing design work. And while I think the OSX is a beautiful thing, it does still fail at times (I've had it do it in front of my eyes.) So it is not necessarily a better product. My Windows XP system crashes about as often as and OSX Mac (almost never.)
The issue I have with Apple is that they make their systems so much more expensive than PC's (in Australia at least.) And as long as Windows software and Intel hardware continue to work for me, I won't bother buying a Mac.
I agree with you. As great as OS X is, its not the only solution out there. I like XP and I even like Vista, but less than XP. Also, many flavors of Linux are also nice. Sabayon and Ubuntu I especially enjoy.
I also agree with you that Apple's hardware offerings do seem a little more expensive, but they have been getting much better with every release.
As for your not buying a Mac, that is perfectly fine. I hope you enjoy your PC as much as I enjoy using my Macs, and no doubt you will.
To each their own, be it Linux, Windows or OS X. Apple hardware and software is winning combination, but not the only one.
And thanks for replying to my post; I always enjoy intelligent people, like yourself, sharing their views on my little blog. :o)
Mac marketshare worldwide is still insignificant. Ooh, we sold 70% more last qtr...translation - that's 200 more boxes we were able to ship.
And get your facts straight Macnut...Chris Pirillo (Windows expert??) isn't switching.
Dear Anonymous, I never said he was switching, but that he was considering switching when Leopard comes out, so, please: Heed your own advice and get your facts straight.
Please listen to Chris's own words on the link below, or did you not notice or watch it?
http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/09/28/vista-rants/
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