durakje, You are right. I noticed that on a second reading, but haven't had time to go back and fix it. I will today.

I would note however that Hewlett Packard was a scientific instruments and computer company. Today's HP is more known for printers, and perhaps PCs.

Interestingly, HP acquired Compaq which acquired DEC. So, a lot of those companies were swallowed up by HP.

Sorry, but I work for Google, so no corporate allegiance in this post.

You are right that both products have their plusses and minuses. Just like the Mustang and the Jaguar...choice is good.

Of course I evangelized Microsoft's products...that is what they paid me to do. But, I don't agree that I am bashing Microsoft here. Not at all.

I am simply taking the opportunity to try out new things and share my experiences with others. Saying positive things about a Mac does not translate to bashing Microsoft.

I'm sure other people have had different experiences. Please share them here.

Don

Ryan, Yes, Macs have some non-intuitive conventions just like PCs do. It is just that we have been doing it for so many years on PCs that we forget we also had a frustrating learning curve on PCs.

The basic functions are the same on both PC and Mac. How you do them can be frustratingly different. I wouldn't say one is easier/better than the other. It is all what you get used to.

Julio, There are things to like on both Macs and PCs. I am only a couple months into my transition after more than 20 years on PCs. I wouldn't classify myself as an Apple fanboy just yet.

Matt, I'm not riding any train, and I don't think I am whining. That is not my intent. I am simply sharing my experience trying new hardware and software.

Apparently it is an interesting topic to thousands and thousands of people. This blog post has been picked up by lots of other big tech blogs.

Who knew? It is a surprise to me for sure.

Don

Different strokes for different folks. Clearly there are more PCs than Macs in the world so Microsoft is doing a lot of things right.

Apple has a large and enthusiastic user base too. This post was just about my personal experiences. Your mileage may vary.

Don

You are right, this isn't intended to be about Microsoft. It is about my transition from my job as a Microsoft Evangelist to a being a Mac user.

I am not bashing Microsoft at all. Microsoft doesn't make hardware, except for things like keyboards, which I am still using BTW. I have a lot of respect for Microsoft and enjoyed my time there.

Pointing out things I like about the Mac should not be translated as bashing Microsoft. That is not my intent.

Don

Thanks for reading, and your comment.

Peak Oil is an interesting concept. I understand it in principle, but haven't thought about how it would apply to technology trends. There are probably some interesting paralells...but I don't know what they are.

Software / web trends are already a huge challenge to understand and predict. You can be right on the direction but wrong on the timing. To be effective you need to acurately predict both...and quite honestly that involves a lot of luck.

You are right. I do often draw analogies to past events to better explain how future events may unfold. Some predictions will sound insane, until you consider a past trend and extrapolate how it could apply to this instance. I do agree that past growth will not necessarily match future growth. It just makes it easier to "connect the dots" to where the future could go.

Lucas, The screen size (and keyboard) is handled by the docking station. Rather than dock your laptop to a flat panel display and full size keyboard...you dock your phone. Your phone becomes your computer.

The Google Nexus One phone has a 1Ghz processor and up to 32GB of storage. That is enough power for most computing applications, and it is only going to get more powerful moving forward. This power coupled with the bandwidth explosion will change what is possible.

That said, not everyone will go with Smartphones or cloud computing for all their needs. The evolution has been amazing.

Ten years ago you couldn't do email on your cell phone. Blackberry came along and changed the landscape. A few years ago the iPhone stepped it up another big notch. Google Android will change the competitive dynamics, and the rate of innovation will continue to accelerate.