Letters to the Editor
Wonhyo
Published Letters: 47 Editor's Choice: 8
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@Farhad - Thinkpad pointing stick is excellent, Mac consistency is pervasive
[Read the article: Let's fight: Popular Mechanics says Macs beat PCs in style and speed]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Farhad - You're right, the few times I've used the Thinkpad pointing stick, I really liked it. It took a little practice to learn to modulate the deflection, but once I did, it was quick and precise. It also let's me keep my fingers near the home keys, which I really appreciate as a touch typist. It is also much more compact than a trackpad.
Unfortunately, different PC notebooks have different button styles and arrangements. Every time I use a different PC notebook, I have to first figure out the button arrangement and functions. In case you're wondering, I used to provide a lot of incidental computer help to colleagues in my early years at my job.
Compare this situation to Apple's products: I can pick up any Mac notebook manufactured from 1998 (and probably even earlier) to the present, and feel instantly at home with the trackpad/button layout and function. Absolutely zero time is wasted figuring out how the buttons are configured.
Actually, this consistency pervades the Mac experience. The switch from MacOS 9 to MacOS X was a significant change, but every update to MacOS X since its introduction in 2000 has preserved the value of time spent learning MacOS X. The MacOS X usage skills learned in 2000 are just as productive on MacOS X 10.5.2 today, as they were on 10.0 back in 2000.
Compare this to Windows, where the interface changes look minor in a superficial sense, but the numerous small changes make you relearn how to perform basic operations, including changing settings, network sharing, etc.
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@h_lance - Other solutions ineffective
[Read the article: Let's fight: Popular Mechanics says Macs beat PCs in style and speed]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]h_lance, I actually prefer a trackpad (or pointing stick) over a mouse because the trackpad is close to the keys and doesn't require a separate surface - remember, I'm a touch typist so I avoid unnecessarily moving my hands off the keyboard.
I realize this is not so important to most people, but when my mind is racing at 10 lines of code per minute, pausing to reposition my hand after coming back from the mouse can be a costly interruption to my train of thought. This was not an issue when I had the mental agility of my youth, but as I age these interruptions start to matter.
Physically removing the extra button does not create a single, large, ambidextrous button, as all Mac notebooks have. I suppose I can change the mouse settings so all buttons perform the left-button function, but this is still lacking in the ergonomics department.
It's not that I can't live with a PC keyboard/mouse/trackpad. Besides, the software is the larger issue. If I had to choose between a Mac keyboard/mouse running Windows or a PC keyboard/mouse running MacOS, I'd gladly accept the PC keyboard/mouse.
And no, the raised ridges on the index finger keys do not really bother me. I raise that issue only to demonstrate the depth of thought that has gone into the design of the Mac user interface.
If I seem fanatical about the ease-of-use issues, its because I used to work at a computer help desk, supporting Windows, Mac, and UNIX users. This, along with tutoring an 80 year old couple on their first computer starkly highlights the ease-of-use of the Mac hardware and software design.
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Consider resale value: Macs cost less in the long run
[Read the article: Let's fight: Popular Mechanics says Macs beat PCs in style and speed]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]For the sake of this discussion, I'll accept the claim that PCs can be bought for a lower price than Macs. If you consider resale value, the Mac wins hands down.
I bought an Apple iBook in 2003 for $1400. Four years later it broke (my fault). When I realized the current (2007) Apple notebooks were first-generation Intel-based MacBooks, I decided I'd rather buy a used Apple iBook, identical to the one I just broke, for a lot less money.
When I looked up the prices of used 2003 iBooks (in 2007), I found they were selling for $700, 50% of their retail value when new. Other Apple computers (iMac, PowerMac, etc.) had similarly high resale values.
I'm not aware of any PC computer, desktop or notebook, that retains anywhere close to 50% of its value after 4 years. Not to mention it would be practically unusable with modern software, anyway. Try running Vista on a 4 year old PC!
My 4 year old iBook, on the other hand, was humming right along with the latest MacOS X operating system. In fact, MacOS X got FASTER with new versions, even on the same, old hardware. When was the last time a Windows upgrade made your PC go faster?
I digress.
My point is, Apple computers have a longer useful lifetime and resale value. You have to replace it less often than a Windows PC, and when you do sell it, you can recover a larger fraction of your purchase price. This makes the total price of owning a Mac significantly less than owning a Windows PC.
And this line of reasoning does not even include the cost of lost productivity dealing with all the problems of Windows PC (although this may be countered somewhat by the lost productivity while advocating Mac usage :)