I’m going to ruffle some feathers I guess but I have to say it. Before the ’switch’ to Apple, I could never understand the ferocious venom Apple zealots reserve for Microsoft and Windows. Since the switch – just over a year ago – I am even more confused by it than ever. So today, I read on the excellent Apple Matters site a post called Windows Hurts which is engagingly humorous and I agree with everything said about Pontiacs. But the real rant is reserved for Windows. I used Windows since version 3 right up until last year. XP Pro is still running on my server. It has no viruses. It has no spyware. It accepts all of my peripherals seamlessly and generally behaves very well.
Like I already said – I love my Mac – a shiny Powerbook G4 running Tiger. It is much more of a pleasure to use than Windows. But is it perfect? Like hell it isn’t.

• Boot time? I can generally make a cup of coffee while it boots up and loads all of those system bits and pieces it needs. Hey – just like Windows. My old PC gets to the desktop faster.
• Crashes? Sure does. I’d say we are running neck and neck here with my PC for application crashes. And I’m talking Apple applications not badly written third party stuff.
• Reboot after a crash? No – not always but just now and then things get totally unstable and a reboot is called for and then it’s time for another coffee of course.
• Hardware reliability? Mines had to go back twice for repair in the first year. Plus the hinges are squeaking badly and the lid doesn’t close half the time on the first attempt. My old Dell PC is now about four years old and is on all the time. No faults so far whatsoever.
• How about peripherals then? My Mac has had a lot of problems recognising my HP printer although it gets it right every now and then. It also failed to see my Canon camera until about the sixth reboot. Oh yes – and closing the lid has often caused the wifi network access point to crash. But it’s not an airport express because my Powerbook couldn’t get a signal from it. In fact, my Powerbook has to be no more than about 10 feet from the antenna to get a signal at all whereas my son can take his Acer tablet PC 30 to 40 yards down the garden with it’s Intel Centrino with no problem.
• Is Steve Jobs a nicer, more honest guy than Bill Gates? I don’t even have to answer that one!

I love my Apple I really do. But Windows is not the demon so many people make out. And OSX is not the panacea so many people make out. They are both good and bad is so many areas. And when it comes down to Apple v Microsoft, then they are not that much different. They both want to be at the top.