The Big Experiment Part 4: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (Conclusion)

I suppose itâs time to take a definitive stand, and this is as good a tim e as any. I am a Mac user. The outcome of this experiment was never in any doubt, was it? But at least it comes with experience and authority now, rather than just unsu bstantiated, uninformed tech bigotry and xenophobia. Truly, Windows sucks. Without a doubt. Surprisingly though, not as much as I wa s expecting. But why does it suck at all? Through no fault of the user, that's for sure. If anything, the Windows user is complicit only because he tolerates the crap. No one should be made to go thro ugh the hoops that Microsoft requires its users. As Peter Finch screamed into t he TV camera in Network: Iâm mad as hell, and Iâm not goin g to take it anymore! Fight back. Just say no. I think if enough people expressed that opinion Bill a nd Co. would comply. It's horrible that even the most basic things in Windows will screw up. Just bo oting up is an interesting experience. The simple task of opening or closing a window might bring grief, or installing a simple shareware app might cripple th e system. To get the ball to just roll might require additional expenditure in terms of memory and storage, or of video ram; let us not even get into the comp licated and arcane field of processor speeds or multiple processor cores. Think Vista, and experience despair. Why does this have to be? I've mentioned this before in the previous post in th is series. Windows is screwed up because it's a step forward and five steps bac k; trying to live in (and for) their storied and profitable past is taking a ma jor toll. Maintaining a relationship with that which should be obsolete might k eep the revenue up and running, but at what cost? The Gordian Knot analogy is apt. This knotted ball of problems is best cut in h alf, and starting over is the perhaps the only solution. This requires a penalt y that Microsoft and its millions of acolytes mired in the glorious mess might not be ready to pay. The ugly part is that Windows Vista users are doomed to work on a bright, prett y new system built partly on rotting foundations, akin to dollying up a cadaver with a wig, make-up and a nice dress. Windows users worldwide are forced to live within limitations dictat ed by compatibility commitments sealed with blood years before. This continuing conspiracy and deception just prolongs the agony. Vista is supposed to be a sw eep-the-table-clean, from-the-ground-up all-new animal (it sure took them long enough to make), but it still has leaden feet, since Microsoft refused to take brave, bold, paradigm-changing steps in fear of alienating their base. So this jury-rigged structure of compromises that works only through drivers, d ynamic link libraries, antiviral utilities, stop-gap hardware and software solu tions and by the grace of God will always be at the mercy of the BSOD that will strike at any time, anywhere, when you least expect it. Contrast that with the Mac system, where the hardware and software are built by one company, thus ski rting the entire problem. Truth be told, working on a Windows system - Vista or no - with an adequate se tup, legal software and proper configuration isnât the agony Mac users would li ke to believe. Viruses donât really bite you on the ass every five minutes; in the two months I've been using my Thinkpad T43, I've had virus trouble only twi ce, and nothing significant at that. BSODs only happen every three or four days . The system sometimes goes into a coma, but given enough time can revive itsel f. One shareware installation hosed the system, but I figured it out and uninst alled it, and things were fine after that. In fact, Windows does some stuff way better than Apple does - gaming among them . And the crazy-quilt abundance of accessories, gadgets and software for Window s is a universe Mac users have yet to see and experience. Not to mention areas of the net where Macs are not yet welcome, or have difficulty existing in becau se of compatibility issues or unintentional OS discrimination. In this country the ugly stereotype is cast in stone because of the Vox Populi: only, the bulk of the complaining Windows users are the ones that have no business complaining in the first place: they run pirated versions on budge t clones with cheap components and cRAM (crappy RAM) and still think they have the right to gripe that their computers crash all the damned time. The good par t is what with the right setup and certified, updated software with updated uti lities you wouldnât really have much to complain about, and I daresay Macs and Windows machines wouldnât be all that different. The bad part is the stuff that Windows needs to work on, and should have years ago. Windows often fails on the most basic things. Anyone whoâs used a Mac for any reasonable amount of time can tell you this. Not to dwell on the details (a nd not to repeat Apple jingoism â which is unavoidable because itâs simply the plain and unvarnished truth), on Macs things just plain â¦work. And work reason ably well, and reliably. You donât need a geek membership card â things are log ically and intuitively designed, and done with a bit of style and class. And wh ether or not itâs because malware writers just donât give it any importance, it âs undeniably more secure. To use a clear example of the differences between Mi crosoft and Apple outside of computers and operating systems, just put a Window s Mobile phone beside an Apple iPhone, and there you go. That said, I continue my double-life. I work with my Powerbook for personal thi ngs, and the Thinkpad for office work. Or at least I try to. When there are rea lly serious, work-intensive things to do, like video, photo or audio editing fo r example, I cannot help but turn to the Mac. It's easier, faster and better. N o fanboy-ism there. Itâs just the reality. The reality is also that Windows can now live on Macs, and Windows is steadily, if slowly, improving itself. And it's also a reality that while Macs are a few leagues ahead, Leopard will pull it even farther ahead. Microsoft has its work cut out for itself. Meantime, I feel I'm getting the better deal on the Mac si de of things for now. Which is why this blog exists. So there. The end. Other posts in the series: Introduction: Here sy The Big Experiment, Part 1: Reboot Ad Nauseam The Big Experiment, Part 2: The Little Things The Big Experiment. Part 3: Sleeping with the Enemy