I got asked by Wee Kee a very simple question - What has my mac solved for me?
The quick answer is - I no longer smash my keyboard against the monitor in frustration... =) and i figure it saves me a few years of my life in the long run! haha..
But seriously, it's just the way it all just works. My life is so synchronized and organized, from the way iPhoto takes care of my photos, auto-tagging faces it recognizes, to iTunes syncing my music and movies into my iPod and iPhone, to my contacts being synced 5-ways at all times - laptop, desktop, web, iPhone, iPod. Ditto for my calendar.
And you need to see Quicksilver in action to see how much more productive it can make you... every 5 minutes here and there cuts away a few hours a week (or month). Someone asks me to send them an attachment. It takes me a total of about 5 seconds from the moment my fingers touch the keyboard to having a composed email with the file attached sent off to the receipent. It's efficiency redefined.
Not to mention that it doesn't hanggggggggggggg the way Windows does (and takes away an hour of my lifespan and a small piece chipped off my monitor and keyboard everytime it happens).
Also, not something everyone uses, but I love the fact that it's based on Unix. I can do whois, nslookup, etc etc all in 2 seconds, unlike going to the web and doing all the regular clicking around and taking 20-30 seconds just to do some stuff. And you get all the regular cronjobs, etc etc too - my mac polls all my regular anime sites for bittorrent downloads so it's all ready to watch when I'm back from work.
The possibilities are quite endless. :)
For the regular user, a mac can really help through the ease-of-use, but it really SHINES when a power-user makes full use of (1) it's superior user interface and scriptable features, (2) it's unix-based core, and (3) superior applications!
Ok, I think I have to justify (3). I think it's common knowledge enough that the Mac community in general as a demographic are more willing to spend on software and are more insistent on quality that is not just about a piece of software not hanging, but also user-interface, usability and innovation. This has led to much, much better quality software in the Mac arena as compared to Windows. Just look at all the crappy shareware and freeware around in Windows! On the contrary, Mac software tend to be more well-rounded, and not just focused on features, features, features (ending up in bloatware), but also on the holistic user experience. I just love that.
Well, I've ranted enough. But that said, I am, for the first time, looking forward to the release of Windows 7. There's enough hype that Microsoft has finally copied enough of Apple's stuff (hehe) to make a decent-performing OS. It might just be my first Windows box in a long time :D
