The Mac OS 10.5 Experience
So I finally got my MacBook Pro after much delay and hesitation. The reason I picked it was to find an alternative to Windows, and mostly because I wanted a firm reliable hardware. Most new laptops are noisy, heat up, and crash easily. Having seen how MacBook is fast and quite, and after the recent price drop, it made sense to go for and try what everyone else seems to be talking about. Luckily, I got it from Amazon and without having to go through the hassle of Customs. The MacBook came equipped with a CD for Mac OS 10.5, which I heard quite a lot good reviews about.
Soon after installing the OS 10.5 Apple is so happy about, I realized how much marketing and fanboyism plays a big part in Apple sales. Don’t get me wrong from what I will list down below, I am not saying it’s a piece of crap and I regret buying it, I hope I don’t. But from all the media, humor ads Apple made of the PC, and all the fuss they make about their products and brand, I expect a lot more from the first time experience. So here is what I find:
- Max OS 10.5 Requires Fresh Installation: Despite their mocking ads about PC upgrade disasters, Apple managed to released a new OS that by all reviewers would work best if you do fresh installation, which I did.
- Keyboard Lock!: Doing fresh installation on quite new MacBook Pro, the keyboard started randomly locking for 15-20 seconds. You cannot do anything through the keyboard for that amount of time. I had to download like 100 MB of updates to fix it. Touche on you. How comparable to Windows, which at least runs on different hardware. MacBook is a bundled hardware/software sold by Apple. They should know better than to face such ridiculous issues.
- Can’t unhide applications: Some applications like iWork just hide when I switch to another application, and I simply can’t unhide it. I have to Force Quite and restart the application again. There goes the joke of Ctrl+Alt+Del hah!
- Apple Button: For some reason, Apple takes it personally against the Ctrl button. I don’t mind to learn new ways that would make more sense on the long run. But simply introducing a new Apple button, squeezing it between Space and Alt button, and making it do all Ctrl is supposed to do just does not make any sense. Ctrl button is almost freezed on the side, and the Apple button is placed different than Ctrl button usually is, thus adding complexity to adaptation to new layout, and giving zero benefit to the end user. Just follow the trend and don’t get so fancy about your buttons if you have nothing to add.
- Enter Button: dumpiest move by Apple I always say. When you are moving over a file and click Enter, Apple assumes it’s more obvious that you want to rename the file rather than edit it. The least of actions a person does is rename a file. Why would you wanna do that so often? It is just much more obvious to open a file with Enter click. But with Apple no. It’s more high class to Apple+Down click a file to open it!
- Heating up: For heavy installations, the MacBook really heats up on your lap.
Still, MacBook gives superior performance and is very quite. It has some nice features that needs getting used to. I don’t say Windows is more reliable, but all the fuss and mocking of Windows simply didn’t make sense facing all these problems on the first 2 days, especially that Apple ships the hardware and software together, unlike Windows that is installed on different hardwares and shipped by different companies. If I was Steve Jobs I would take down all PC Vs Mac ads right now. Not that they are not fun to watch, but it all fires back at Apple at the end.
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3baid: I have offended you with my post brother haven’t I :). I will agree to the first point only, Max :P. Dinner was served and I wanted to finish the post then! But many reviewers have said upgrade gave them problems and sometimes blue screen of death or something like it. One of oldest Mac users I know eventually told me, Yeah. You’re right, it is better if you do fresh installation.
The Mac OS DVD with the Leopard does have fresh installation. I did it.
Keyboard: I know it’s a known issue and shame on Apple really. I read posts from 2006 about it.
Apple Button, Command Button: My question is, what’s the point of extra button doing the same thing?
Enter Button: I am already used to it, but my point is, opening file should be more trivial than renaming it.
Heating up: I haven’t seen one that doesn’t. but I have heard that MacBook doesn’t. Trying it then, and reading further, I see it sometimes reaches points where you can’t put it on your lap.
I believe if you read my post again you will come to know I don’t regret buying it. I love the fast performance and quite processor it has. Yes I do and am getting more used to it. I hope to read the benefit once I am used to it more and have all tools I need setup properly (and don’t hide from me!). My post was not about Mac being crappy OS again, but it was about the over-marketing they do them selves, and mainly mocking Windows upgrades and bugs when I faced killer ones with Mac in first 2 days.
Thanks for some of the tips you gave, and don’t feel offended :). Listen to the Cnet Buzz Out Loud they mentioned in last episode how large number of Apple fanboys even reported problems recently.
I am glad that you your worst experienced problems are the minor issues above. As you mentioned, they were immediately fixed by updates. The other issues are just normal as a switch can take sometime to get used to the new keyboard layout, function keys and small helpful shortcuts that you are used on PC.
Maytham: The first time you decide to honor my blog with a comment is the time I attack your beloved Mac. I should’ve done that a long time ago :).
The issue of hidden apps is still there however. I am trying to resolve it so any comments from Apple fans is welcome :>
I’m not offended by this post, but since you are more knowledgeable about Google and technology, I was expecting a more technical approach rather than a complaint about how the “Enter” button behaves, if you know what I mean :/
The Upgrade DVD requires Tiger. If you did it then you have the complete version. Either way, you could have just done an upgrade install.
The keyboard issues started only on 21st November 2007. I have no idea where you got “2006″ from.
“what’s the point of extra button doing the same thing”
How is it “extra”? On PCs you have Ctrl, Alt, Windows. On Macs its Command, Option, Ctrl. Like I said, you’re still expecting things to work like Windows. :/
“opening file should be more trivial”
If opening files should be done by hitting Enter, deleting files should be done by hitting delete, no? Well, OS X takes measures that you don’t accidentally open files or delete files. It’s more consistent that commands are done using command combinations. To do things trivially, you use the mouse :P
“I have heard that MacBook don’t”
If they use the exact Intel processors as PCs, why wouldn’t they run as hot?
There are a ton of features starting with hardware (, Sudden Motion Sensing etc..) and tailoring off with software (Quicklook, Time Machine, etc..) that you are taking for granted. It’s enough that you don’t get the “Your system may be at risk” balloon, or have to bother with updating your drivers, because it’s all done for you.
3baid: About the Upgrade DVD, I got the option of Fresh Install or upgrade, and I am sure I checked the Fresh Install. Let it be what ever they have to offer, truth is many complains have came from upgrading from Tiger to Leopard.
Keyboard Issue: I am not sure why would you think I came up with it. I am known for being Anti-Microsoft, so I am not making anything up in my post but rather giving an end user experience of first use. I could not find the exact post I read earlier about freezing, but these are two others from 2005 and 99 (latter one is so old!) but first one is close enough. And regardless if it’s old issue or not,it’s still a big mistake from Apple to ship non-properly tested units.
Command Button: On Windows, the Windows button does extra stuff, like Win+R to run, Win+M to minimize, but it does not take over the Copy/Paste and other normal trivial commands that exist in Linux as well. I am not comparing to Windows here but to overall user experience with Ctrl button.
Delete button can bring an alert if you just click it, or delete immediately if you Command+Delete it. This is a better way of doing it. But anyways, I do not hate the Delete command, but for opening a file, it’s not really that critical thing that they want to avoid. And how often do you click the Enter button by mistake? I don’t remember a single time I did. And when I am using the keyboard to browse files, it’s more obvious that I want to open the file using the keyboard.
Well it was their choice to use Intel, so they get the blame of heating up. And obviously not all laptops heat up to the same level where you can’t put it on your lap at some points (I personally refused to take it off, but it’s only me :)
Tons of other features: Here you are comparing it to Windows. I said I am happy with the performance and how quite it is. It never crashed on me also, that’s a very good thing. I don’t know about sudden motion sensing, but Wikipedia states known hardware failure issues from Mac I was shocked to find out. This is possible with all laptops, I don’t have stats about Apple compared to others, but reliability was not a point I am criticizing in my post. My post was not mostly about the good things in MacBook, we already have enough blogs talking about how perfect MacBook is. I as an end user had some bad takes on the usability and some critical bugs that were really annoying from day one, and I wanted to highlight them. If MacBook is better than Windows, it doesn’t make it perfect. I love Google, but I have some very bad takes on them. Also, if Apple claim to be so easy to upgrade for example, then they better live to the expectation or otherwise quit false marketing.
This was the purpose of the post. People hear a lot about Apple and think it’s the perfect world, but it’s not. I knew about some of the things like the Command button before I bought it, and was shocked with the bugs I faced after buying it. It’s becoming better now after the updates, but there is something we call first impression that you have to work hard on, and my first impression with Apple was freezing. Now if that thing happened to Windows PC you can expect all kind of bad reviews and support for it, but when it comes to Mac. It was just a small issue fixed with an update people will say!
Macs aren’t perfect. And yes, when it comes to marketing, they do tend to be arrogant about their products. They used to make fun of Intel when Apple was using the PowerPC processors! But thats what makes it different; Apple is aggressive and always taunts the competition because they see them as businesses that aren’t passionate about technology –or at least not as much as they should be. They’re the only company that can say, “Windows could be better, it could be like OS X” :P
3baid: :). Did Jobs really say that?
But you know what, listen to this and just have some laugh :)
3baid: Well… here we argue again :)
Actually not argue, I still believe Mac is better than Windows, but my first experience was not that good that’s all.
“Max OS 10.5 Requires Fresh Installation”
Where did you read that? The Leopard DVD that came with your Macbook is an upgrade disk. You can’t install a fresh copy with it!
“Keyboard Lock!”
It’s a known issue, and it’s already fixed from my understanding.
“Can’t unhide applications”
That one’s strange. Never had or seen anything like it before :/
“Apple Button”
It’s called the “command” key. You can swap Ctrl with Command in the keyboard preference panel if you wanted. ⌘
“Enter Button”
Actually command-down (or up) is supposed to go into (or out of) folders; the correct command to open files is command-O. You’ll get used to it. At least it’s not a ridiculous key like F2 to rename files as in Windows! You can see all the keyboard shortcuts in the menus and if you hold option (Alt) you get a different set of functions as well. By the way, do not underestimate the mouse. Almost anything on the mac is literally just “drag and drop”.
“Heating up”
This goes for all laptops unfortunately, and its most noticeable if you have your macbook plugged-in and recharging. It depends on what kind of tasks you’re running obviously.
Overall, you still haven’t realized the convenience of your machine yet; you need to stop thinking about doing things “the windows way”. For example, uninstalling a program on mac us usually done by deleting the application.