The transition is over
“With over 50% of our install base using OS X, we here at Apple feel that the transition is over. And this is huge.” - Steve Jobs CEO, Apple Computer, Inc.
The above statement has been made by Mr. Jobs a few times over the last few months during his keynote speeches at various Apple related events. I’m proud to announce that the same statement now applies to me, and my business. This transition was not easy, to say the least, and took me far too long. This is of no fault of Apple or Microsoft’s ability to allow it’s customers to transition between the two Operating Systems, but rather my fault due to the inability to make a commitment to a new OS.
The comfort struggle
Switching Operating Systems after 9+ years of using Windows is very similar to moving out of the family home. Although the new home provides the same necessities; shelter, security (perhaps even more so), and a place to play - it’s hard to let go of something your so comfortable with. This is something I’d like to call the comfort struggle. When switching OSes, it’s easy to say something like: “Well, I can do that easier on Windows.”. But what your forgetting is that your just not used to that task on the new Operating System, and in effect your giving up. I battled this struggle for far too long, and finally figured out that I didn’t need to stick my feet into the water, but rather I needed to jump in naked.
I did this the only way I knew how, take my PC and put it in the corner. My PC, as we speak, is plugged-in in the corner of my Den only being available via SMB shares from my OS X desktop - just incase I left a file or two on it. In effect, I’ve removed myself from my comfortable environment, to allow myself to adjust to my new surroundings.
Identifying Priorities and Common Tasks
What I had to do next was identify my priorities and my common tasks. This was a painstaking process, which I am glad is over. First, my priorities were all business driven. Including: E-mail, Programming and Graphic Design. The first and last on a Macintosh is not that hard to solve, but choosing the correct transition method is another beast altogether. I’ll explain how I handled E-mail later, but Graphic Design was a no brainer. Photoshop 7 and Illustrator 10 come pre-installed with Mac OS X don’t they? Perhaps not, but I managed to get my hands on a copy of each. Moving from a Windows Environment, being a programmer, and going to Mac OS X has proved to be the biggest challenge. I had to tidy up my existing software, built with Visual Studio.NET utilizing various languages, to make sure they I finished up on a stable release, which took almost 2 years. I now have to learn Xcode as my programming environment, and start building applications for the Macintosh platform. Abandoning Windows was not only a decision of use, but loyalty. I’m now a 100% Mac advocate, in work and deed. I also had a few websites that are programmed in ASP, which I thoroughly enjoy coding in if the syntax is colored properly. This task proved to be one of the most difficult tasks, which I solved by purchasing a copy of skEdit, which will color ASP syntax by default. skEdit has been the straw on the proverbial camel’s back which has tilted the scales to allow me to make the switch permanently.
Ok, now that I have the ability to program and design my applications and websites, I have to figure out the best way to handle my E-mail correspondence. The most obvious, pre-installed, solution would be Apple’s Mail. No good, believe me I’ve tried. And, while I love the threading view of my inbox, Mail proved to be a little light on features for me. Mail lovers everywhere, I’m sorry - perhaps I’ll move to Mail someday. I went with a well-known Open Source project as my E-mail client of choice; Thunderbird. Here’s another hurdle; moving my E-mail (about 1Gb) from Outlook 2003 Pro on Windows XP to Thunderbird 0.7.1 on OS X.
My first move in this E-mail transition process was to turn off Send/Receiving automation on Outlook, and then turn it on in Thunderbird aftering setting up all of my E-mail addresses. Once that was completed, all new E-mail messages would be in Thunderbird, and I was only left with my E-mail archives in Outlook. Since you can only import Outlook email via Thunderbird if Outlook is installed on the same computer as Thunderbird (since it uses the Outlook API), I had no choice but to figure out the best solution to transfer the raw-data files. Installing Thunderbird on Windows and running the Import to create importable mBox files proved to be fruitless. Thunderbird literally took forever to import the E-mail and Address Book from Outlook. In fact, it never finished. clee from the #wordpress IRC channel, which I frequent, was kind enough to steer me towards an Open Source project called Outport. Outport will export your Outlook E-mail messages into many different file types, and is considerably faster at it then Thunderbird. E-mail = solved.
With my major priorities out of the way, I had to now identify my common tasks. This task was simple, pay attention to my actions during the course of the day. It’s no secret, I read alot of weblogs. So being able to easily access my daily reads, as well as having a better solution for RSS was a must. Blo.gs solved the daily reads problem, and NetNewsWire Lite solves my RSS woes. Next up was Instant Messenging, IRC and Music. iChatAV, although not as robust as other multi-IM clients available for Mac OS X, is really a stable solution with no pop-nags. For IRC, I’ve played with a few different clients, and have found Conversation to be the most enjoyable to use. Other IRC clients might have more scripting and coloring options, as well as more options for DCC and the like - but I only use IRC for actual chatting. Listening to music is an important part of my common daily tasks, and iTunes for Mac OS X has always been my solution and will remain to be.
What about Games? I used to be a hardcore gamer, as some of you know. Playing Quake until my eyes and fingers bled was a common thing for me. Playing Urban Terror and Total Annihilation with friends and family used to be an important part of my gaming-lifestyle. Again, sometimes priorities have to change, and my gaming wasn’t making me rich. I’ve chosen to do most of my gaming on my Xbox - a Microsoft gaming console. Looking forward to the release of The Matrix Online a Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) made this decision alot harder than it should have been. Who knows, perhaps MxO will be released on the Macintosh at some point.
My PC is indispensible
At this point, but not forever, my PC is definitely indispensable. Mostly because I use, on occasion, a few pieces of software that will never be available on the Mac. I also have a few Windows-only apps, that I’ve built, that I still need to support. And, as far as I know, there is no easy way to do this on the Mac. If anyone out there has a solution for me, don’t be afraid to let me know.
A warm welcome
So far I’ve received a very warm welcome from the Mac community, at least from the users that I’ve told about my move into the neighborhood. I’m open to ideas, and at this point am accepting gifts. When I moved into my first house, many neighbors came over to greet my wife and I. None of them, as you see in movies, brought over any Apple pie sadly, but in this new neighborhood everything is Apple pie. I’d be more than happy to accept a pre-cooked meal in the form of tips, tricks, software or just a hello.
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