I have been interested in computers for as long as I can remember. The major part of my life was invested in using some version of Windows. As my interest grew I tried several operating systems during the years. Somehow I never got around trying the operating systems Apple computers used.
The systems I used was working fine for me because I knew how to make things work. If my computer had a problem I would almost always know how to solve it. Living happily until i discovered Mac OS X.
It was a friend of mine with his 12-inch PowerBook that made me open up my eyes. Nerd as I am I was a little bit impressed by the Mac OS X Aqua interface. Deep down inside though I thought: It looks nice on the outside but what about the inside? My friend didn't know so much about the insides of Mac OS X so I had to find out for myself.
After a little bit of research I found out that Mac OS X runs a BSD like system under the hood, which in turn is similar to some of the Linux distributions. Getting this knowledge was the spark that made me make the first Mac purchase and after this the snowball kept on rolling.
My first Mac was the iBook, a nice little notebook that made me open up my eyes on how easy a computer could be used. I did not believe all hype about "it just works." but when I tried it for myself I had to change my beliefs. Using a Mac is all about making you productive without having to take shortcuts. While the Mac is generally more expensive than the PC counterpart you get your moneys worth in all included software. Hardware and software is tailored to work seamlessly with each other and it really does work.
If you have used Windows all your life making the switch to Mac OS X will probably take you a few weeks until you are fully productive. You will learn how to do things the Apple way and be amazed when you realize how easy it was to do a certain task. The time it would take to adjust is different from person to person.
However I was not ready to make the switch entirely just yet. My old PC was still the most used computer. One reason was games, the Mac did not have the processing horsepower to run my games smoothly. After a while though I noticed I was only using the PC for games and nothing else. All my productive work was made on my Mac.
It would still take a year or so before I completely made the switch, but now I will never look back anymore.
Author: B. Kibsgaard
