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Sorry, Windows users, we just have it better than you do

Tuesday, May 4th, 2004  by Bill Palmer

I don't know how to say this politely, so I'll just go ahead and say it: we Mac users just have it better than you Windows users do. The vast majority of aspects of personal computing are better on our platform, and a lot of those aspects are severely better. In fact, there are some aspects of personal computing that you, as a Windows user, won't even get a whiff of until we Mac users have had it for years. That is, if it ever makes it to Windows at all. As a Windows user, you are the definition of a second-class computing citizen. There, I said it. So just what kind of a prick does that make me for saying so?

Actually, I don't think it makes me a prick at all. After all, I'm not flaunting something in your face that you can't have. You see, most of you could Switch to the Mac tomorrow, and almost all of you who did would find yourself blessed with a massively improved computing experience, with no loss of...well, no loss of anything. Because despite what you might have in your head about what you have to give up in order to make the switch to the Mac, there really isn't much of anything to give up at all. The bottom line on why more people haven't yet made the switch, is that your heads are chock full of a massive amount of misinformation when it comes to the Mac.

Not that I can blame you for not having the facts straight. Especially when all you have to do is browse through a mainstream publication such as Time Magazine to find absolute crap like this:

"Macintosh users have long been given second-class status in the software world."

...the hell? What Mac platform is she using? Really, I want to know, because apparently there's some alternate universe in which Mac users actually are at a disadvantage when it comes to software. As someone who spends up to twelve hours a day on a Mac, and uses a Mac to his own business that includes four websites, I can tell you that it sure ain't this universe she's talking about. And yet, the article doesn't appear to be purposely attempting to spread lies, because after a paragraph of completely inaccurately describing the current state of the Mac platform, she then goes on to explain that the Macintosh version of Microsoft Office is superior to the Windows version. But because she's in an alternate universe, she describes this as "a notable exception" to the Mac's typical "second-class status."

I'm not going to waste any time trying to educate the author directly, because right now she's likely staring down an inbox stacked a mile high, with letters of disapproval from Mac users everywhere, who despite being offended are still making a good-faith attempt to correct her misinformation. And yet, whenever Mac users try to set the record straight, they're slapped with all kinds of derogatory terms: fanatic, zealot, cultist. take your pick. It's what we have to deal with, each and every time we attempt to correct the misinformation and lies that are being spread about our platform on a daily basis.

So why not just let it be? Why not just revel in the fact that the ever-improving and (despite yet more misinformation in the article) quickly-growing Macintosh platform is our little secret? Why not just let the rest of you rot on the Windows platform, while we have all the advantages, all the good stuff, all the fun? Well, because that's just not fair. If you're going to settle for a second-rate experience such as Windows, you should at least be allowed to know that it's a second-rate experience. Making a bad choice is one thing, as everyone on the planet has been guilty of that in one way or another. But making a bad choice based on bad information, well that's just not fair to you. You shouldn't have to come to place like this site just to find out that a place tike Time Magazine is full of crap.

I mean, it's up to you, as a Windows user, to decide when and if and under what circumstances you finally go ahead and exert the minimal effort required to enter the computing paradise that is the Mac platform. And if your personal decision is to stick with Windows, then we're not really going to miss you. These days, there are so many Windows users switching to the Mac that it's tough to keep track of them all. But if you're not going to switch, then at least be aware that we Mac users are not living a computing life that's anything like the work of fiction being presented in the Time article. Despite so many claims to the contrary, we Mac users just aren't lacking for much of anything. We really do have it better than you do.

So what is it we have that you don't? Well, the easiest way to sum it up is that we have all your best stuff, plus we have our own stuff that you'll never have. And what exactly does that mean? Well, the Time article is correct in stating that Microsoft makes a better version of Office for the Mac than it does for its own Windows platform. It's not open to debate, as even Microsoft has said this time and time again. But it's not a random occurrence or a publicity stunt, there's a legitimate reason for it: it's just a whole lot easier to make great software for the Mac platform. You see, the fact that Microsoft Office is better on the Mac than on Windows only begins to tell the story of just how much better we have it than you do:

We Mac users have better web browsing options than you do on Windows. We've got the old standby's like Internet Explorer and Netscape, but almost none of us use them, because we've got a Mac-only web browser called Safari that beats the pants off of them. But if you're into the third-party browsers such as Mozilla or FireFox, don't worry, we've got those on the Mac as well. Like I said, we have everything you have, plus stuff you don't have.

Take a look at multimedia, and the gap is even wider. Mac-only tools like iMovie, iPhoto, and Keynote just don't exist on the Windows side, and there's nothing that even comes close. If you're a Windows user, you simply do not get to experience things like digital photography and digital video to the extent that we Mac users do. If you're not into those kinds of things because you think the Windows-based tools suck, then move over to the Mac and you'll suddenly find that multimedia can be worthwhile after all. And if you find the Windows-based tools acceptable, then come on over to the Mac and you'll find that the Mac-based tools will totally blow you away.

I could go on and on and on about all the advantages that we Mac users have that you Windows users don't. And trust me, it's a long list. But what you really want to hear about is the equally long list of disadvantages of being a Mac user. I mean, there has to be a list, right? There has to be a big, long list of reasons why only 25 million people use the Mac, while everyone else still uses Windows, doesn't there? Well, I hate to break it to you, but there really is no such laundry list. At least not one that contains much of anything truthful, anyway.

Sure, there are a few groups of people who wouldn't benefit by switching to the Mac. For instance, those who spend the majority of time playing 3D video games would be better off sticking with Windows for their gaming endeavors. For whatever reason, video game makers just don't pay attention to the Mac. It's just one of those things. But video games are literally the only area of software in which this is true; when you get into software that's used for just about anything else on earth, we Mac users have just about everything that you Windows users have. And, I'll keep repeating this until it sinks in, we've got truckloads of stuff that you don't. We're not second-class citizens in any way, shape, or form. It's high time the rest of the world became aware of that.

Unless you happen to fall into one of a handful of niches in which using Windows is actually advantageous, you're likely screwing yourself pretty badly by sticking with Windows. And what's worse for you, the gap just keeps getting wider. In the three years that MacOS X has been around, it's transformed from a platform with huge promise, to a platform that has more than fulfilled that promise...and yet somehow, the Mac keeps getting even better with each new release. Even more new features, even better refinements of existing ones, even more stuff that we get to do, and you don't. As a Windows user, you're falling further and further behind every day that you don't step up and make the switch to the Macintosh.

But it's your choice. You want to languish on a rotting computing platform like Windows, go for it. You're gonna kick yourself when you finally make the switch far too late, and then realize that you should have done so years earlier, but after all it's up to you. All I ask is that, whether you decide to upgrade to the Mac or not, just be aware that moving to the Mac is in fact an upgrade. When you read blatant lies in mainstream publications making claims to the contrary, just know enough to dismiss it for the nonsense that it is. Be aware that we have it a whole lot better than you do. And that's not being elitist, because I'd be thrilled if you'd come and join us on the Mac platform. That way, you could enjoy a superior computing experience just like the rest of us, and together we could all get a kick out of reading about the imaginary alternate universe of suffering Mac users in Time Magazine.

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