Apple Thoughts - News & Reviews on all things Apple

"I bought an iPad. Big deal, you say... So did 3.3 million other people so far this year."

As you can see from the image above, Mary-Jo Foley writes for a column called "All About Microsoft" for ZDNet so yea, I think it's a big deal too Mary-Jo! And not only because she is a PC, but also because it is the first Apple product she has ever purchased. I'm a little disappointed in the reception she received from the Apple Store employee though, you would think that once she told them she was a Windows user they would have bent over backwards to help her navigate through what she needed. Even with that, she pressed on and is still enjoying the iPad. She hits the nail on the head when she writes that she is using it as a "consumption" device rather than a "creation" device, because I think that is really what the iPad is about. How about you? If you have an iPad, are you a consumer or a creator?

I'm not an impluse buyer very often. In mid-June I walked into a local electronics store and browsed through the laptop section. As I walked by the Apple section I noticed they had a number of the new iPads set out for people to play with. I had, of course, seen many ads and videos about it online, but this was my first hands-on encounter. I walked over and picked one up and was immediately taken by the clarity of the screen. My first thought was "Wow, that is sharp". I turned the iPad over in my hands and looked at it from all sides. Again, "Wow, it was really well made". I turned it face-forward again and then started tapping on the icons. I opened up the calendar application and thought, "Wow, this is really nicely done". I opened the browser and browsed a few sites. Wow, this really works well. Scrolling, gestures, speed. What a neat experience. Read more...

"You've caught the buzz. You've been watching the weather, seeing how the wind blows. You've moved or you're moving to the Mac, because Windows blows. Where can you get the advice you need to help you with this transition?"

Several good choices, the best one being "Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual" by David Pogue in my opinion, mainly because it has the most up-to-date information and covers pretty much all you need to know when switching. Well, if you are switching to Snow Leopard. If you are switching to an older version of OS X, then try one of the other books listed.

"If there's one software company and product line that can raise the ire of even the most mellow Mac user, it's Intuit and the Quicken line of accounting software."

Quicken for the Mac does annoy me. I keep waiting for the iPhone app to come out and yet there is never any news of its impending release. You would think that a company that has been around doing financial programs for Mac and Windows as long as Quicken has, would have had an iPhone out at least a year ago. I have been hesitant to switch but I may just do that since IGG Software is offering an interesting rebate program aimed at switchers called "Why Wait Another Day?" My bank (along with many others) is listed as being compatible with their download system, and with the iPhone app I can make sure it is always accurate. I'm not saying I am switching for sure, but I'm leaning that way. How about you? What financial software do you use? Is this enough to get you to switch to iBank?

"SmileOnMyMac, Agile Web Solutions, ManyTricks and ScreenCastsOnline have extended their Mac Switcher Bundle offer to March 31st. The Bundle packages three apps aimed at those Switching from Windows to the Mac, along with ten video tutorials for setting up and using your Mac, all for US $49.95."

It looks like a pretty good bundle. I have used 1Password for a long time, and have found it worth every penny of the $39.95 USD that it cost me. I have also heard good things about TextExpander, so if you don't have any of these it might be worth checking out.