Concluding the truthful tale of a father (he, his and him) and son’s (I, me and mine) potential computing reconciliation after a dozen years’ difference of opinion including a decade-long back-story featuring epic arguments, heated disagreements, occasional truce, rare admissions, and 11th hour, last-minute cold-feet – where any and all personal detail shall remain permanently private. A mix of fact and indeed personal opinion (mine). An informal (hard-)case study – in (two) pieces.

“Herein a life-long Windows user changes his (computing) position.”
The title and intro may be described as overly optimistic by some esteemed readers. As a hybrid outcome is able to be seen as the prevailing situation, for now. Do appreciate the intention remains Apple clear and while the current update is mixed, the imagined, eventual and final, outcome is an Apple only computing future. And so shall we see . . .

And so it came to pass. But was it good?

In the beginning the word came from above, and it was good: Going Mac ~ Goodbye Windows? for those among you who would like to refresh themselves, or start afresh.

Finally, Apple refreshed their iMac ☛ offerings. His patience was sorely tested awaiting eventual availability (about one and a half years since the previous iMac hardware update) and then, at last (about another two months) for local delivery.

More about Apple ☛ iMac computers.

Yes, this concluding update is, long, overdue (about two years since the original story ~ Going Mac ~ Goodbye Windows?). And about one year since he accepted delivery of his brand new Apple iMac.Thank you for your patience. And so we begin . . to get happy 🙂

AND SO IT BEGAN . . 

The Apple ☛ iMac arrived and he moved into action. He had a plan. Yup, a plan is good. Allow him to outline the plan :-]

Buy a powerful iMac with enough grunt to run both Mac OS X and Windows 7, perhaps even use Parallels [read on for the rundown on Parallels and virtualisation ~ Stuart :-] to make the switch from one OS to the other a cinch. Add a trackpad rather than a mouse [spoiler alert: He also uses a generic unbranded USB corded mouse for some applications. Updating with a new Apple ☛ Magic Mouse for his upcoming birthday is the caper, methinks :-] and a superdrive for CD/DVD which is no longer regarded as essential, but which I do use quite a bit. It should be said that I already use 3 external hard-drives ranging from 250 Gb through 750 GB and 1TB.

What was the big deciding (retrospective) final summation after the waiting, after the purchasing, after the commissioning, after the migration and after the necessary self-induction and then in to everyday use? Apple make the best Windows hardware! Yikes! That’s hardcore, old-timer :-]. And here’s a few links in support of that assertion ~ Want To Run Windows 7? Buy A Mac, How the Mac finally won me away from Windows, MacBook Pro is the best performing Windows laptop.

Is he happy?

Not to start with because the Parallels program didn’t work quite as seamlessly as hoped for and in the end it was discarded. Back to rebooting. [i.e Apple Boot Camp. Fuller explanation immediately below ~ Stuart :-]

Apple Mac OS X: Using Windows on an Apple Mac ( Video) http://support.apple.com/kb/VI54?viewlocale=en_US (regret unable to embed video) Learn more about using Windows on your Mac.

Does he have any regrets? Nope 🙂

Why? Because he has expanded his desktop computing multiverse with two operating systems (Microsoft ☛ Windows and Apple ☛ Mac OS) on the one Apple iMac machine.

Isn’t that a compromise? Yup, and fluid it is. Quick story: He purchased and installed Parallels ☛ Desktop software for Mac to run the Windows 7 ☛ OS on a virtual ☛ machine right inside Mac OS X on the iMac. Nice, right? Yup, until it began underperforming and broke down. Support for the collateral challenges was unsatisfactory and any resolutions offered were unable to put Humpty ☛ Dumpty back together again 😦 Longer story shorter: Entirely removed Parallels and returned to trusty Boot ☛ Camp to run Windows 7 (Pro) on the iMac. And everything was good again. Is there any message offered in this re-telling? Yes. Do not over complicate your computing environment, not even one nano-mite more that you absolutely must. [Afterword: Parallels Desktop software was smartly resold to another adventurous computer trader ~ Good Luck :-]

Still, he uses Windows too often and even asks for the, as yet, technically impossible from time to time ~ like email synchronisation among different email software clients and Operating Systems (i.e. Windows and Mac OS). Bwahahahahahahaha! Take no offense.

But why compromise? Well, your guess is as good as mine. And no, software availability is a lame excuse and existing familiarity (on Windows) is, by now, a passing excuse. Well, would you settle for his participation in a voluntary organization that supports Microsoft and Apple (and Google) users? For now, maybe :-]

How hard was it for him? Let’s ask him :-] . .

It was quite exciting to have the opportunity to find out what and why Sonny [LoL ~ Stuart :-] had been banging on about for years in respect of Apple style computing, I now know that he was somewhat overenthusiastic about the competency of Apple software [agree to disagree ~ Stuart :-], but at the same time I find it reliable and once getting used to the differences from Windows – and there are many – I find it excellent to work with and faster generally than W7 (i.e Windows 7). On the downside I have on my W7 side a large number of applications used for my day to day work and have not had time yet to properly find out if I can find Mac OS X replacements to match the requirements. The result is that the Windows applications are being used with Windows OS more than 50% of the time. I believe that as the need for these abate more time will be spent on the Apple side.  I was, however, a bit peeved to have to give up my smaller external hard-disk to backup under Apple. [sigh ~ Them’s the breaks, Pops :-]

Would he choose to do the same (i.e. go Apple) in the here and now, today? Why yes, yes he would. Windows iterates progressively and we look forward to any eventual satisfactory evening (i.e. balancing) between platforms, but for now, Apple is foreseeably favoured by the wise one 🙂

And what would he do differently, this time?

One of the big things we are both waiting for is Apple to come up with an OS that will bridge the gap between my iMac and an iPad or an iPhone, that will make a compelling case for going all out on Apple, but presently Microsoft are ahead in this game with their Surface Pro ☛ tablet and its ability to run all the Windows (desktop) apps.

So how do we, materially, gauge his acceptance of, and satisfaction with, things Apple, in the now, and his enthusiasm and confidence into the future? Another quick story: Apple Mac OS X 10.9 (Mavericks) was offered free for life October 22, 2013. Available to all with Apple compatible hardware and within short of opening and establishing his brand new iMac he had downloaded and installed, on the quiet, the free Mavericks, upgrading his iMac from Mac OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion), without a single issue :-). Confident indeed, first timer. Yup, he’s feeling satisfactorily optimistic about his Apple supported future. Oh, and yeah, he’s been using an (earlier generation) iPod shuffle [a gift from Sonny :-], for a few years now, for his portable sounds. [Suggesting any experience with Apple-tech seduces ~ over time :-]

Maybe you or your immediate others are just as challenging to satisfy ~ Take heart, the leap is more a positive stride forward nowadays. Yes, you can have your cake and to eat it too :-]

Questions, queries, concerns, contributions, and comments, are invited and welcome!

I’m an opinionated soul, from age and experience, and I try to write only about what I personally know and offer opinion from hands-on experience, bludgeoned by age, of course :-] And, yup, still and only using my trusty iMac 2006 Snow Leopard desktop machine. Never missed a beat and some say the one of the best Mac OS X releases ever, before the gradual bleeding of Apple iOS into Mac OS X became a hemorrhaging of integrations . And, yeah, I’m (still) running Mac OS X Tiger too 🙂

By the way, sold my brand spanking new space gray iPad Air within 60 days, sigh. Truly a Mac OS man. But that’s another story for another time. So what do I want? Touch screen Mac OS on a tablet, please. What would I settle for, right now? Touch screen Chromebook (and not the Pixel) ~ so make that an affordable touchscreen Chromebook :-] And that too is another story for another time . Oh and yeah, I gave up my iPhone 4s as well ~ too small (the screen), too heavy (in the pocket), too distracting (addicting), too expensive (to run), too delicate (to drop), too limiting (iOS compared to Mac OS), too meh. Sigh. Oh, so what am I using at the mo’? A feature phone, of course. Still looking for the (personal) value among the smart phone offerings. And an old-school (earlier generation) iPod shuffle for my portable sounds. Hey, works for me 🙂

And now for a true confession from a former info tech junkie. My fascination with computer info tech has waned, significantly . So much so, that my consumption of online website tech news and info updates is down to a single web-site (@ theverge.com) which interestingly is easing into pop culture offerings among the mostly tech heavy content. Specific problems may demand deeper engagement via Google Search, usually, and visitation to any particular websites that may offer the detailed answers sought after. And to be frank my RSS incoming does include several or more Google blogs [more right-sizing to do methinks :-] and several other global online web-sources too. The reading-time is minutes after grazing the headlines and focusing on the few articles that appeal and which are almost always able to be read inside my RSS web-reader (i.e. feedly nowadays, and ever since Google shuttered Reader) . My interest in the world of info tech is for the foreseeable future focussed on more personally relevant news in the main. A rapid reassessment within about one year from my previously, all-consuming and fully engaged, global perspective. And that makes me curious ~ about you . .

And. It’s. Done. Perhaps I shouldn’t apologise for any detectable enthusiasm lacking. Any apparent apathy is no cause for concern. As we shed one interest, we attract another 🙂

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