Warning: Mindless Apple fanboy rant.
I started using Macs in 1991, briefly used a Windoze box in 1992, and then picked up a Quadra 605 in 1993 (still have it). Since 1993, I've continuously owned a Mac without pause. A couple Windoze machines have come and gone, but never by choice and never for long. I threw my Dell off a parking garage... trash.
We toughed it out through the terrible misadventure that was the late 90s, jumping onto the clone bandwagon before Stevie J nixed that open platform, replacing the mess with iMac in 1997 (2MB VRAM, 2GB HD, USfuckingB); I boo'd along with the faithful as Bill got up on stage at Steve's keynote and introduced IE for Mac, the default browser... straight into the lion's den. We were different. Nothing was compatible with our ecosystem unless we made it. People left in droves; we stuck it out.
We stood fast as Mac OSX10 (.0.0) beta rearranged our world, tearing the floor out from the rats nest that was OS9 (a PowerBook G4 in the corner of my room lets me relive the wonderful simplicity). We chewed our nails off suffering through the pains of dual booting between OS9 and OS10 for the apps yet to get rewritten in 10 or failed to get written in 9... and the DVD playback issues (not initially supported until Mac OS 10.1, then through a class action lawsuit when promised features didn't materialize). I had hope that OSX10 was the wave of the future and created Apple ID 'osx10', which to this day is still my user name.
I remember DJing parties in 2001 with an original iPod - with a rotating, mechanical wheel - people asking "what is that?" 5000 songs... everything, right here in your hand. Stuck through with the PPC architecture, even though x86 was the way to go, changing computers every 6 months to keep up with the cutting edge. I dropped my jaw when Steve announced the x86 Mac OS X ninja coders... for the better in the long run, but 'too PC'.
I remember yearning for years and years for a smart phone that didn't totally suck on the Mac... suffered through so many feeble attempts, and then: iPhone, amazing. I've watched every keynote since 1997 within 24 hours of its release, and more recently, live when possible. It's a pilgrimage.
Apple creates wonderful products, but over the last few years, I've felt a growing divide between Steve's direction and what I want in a personal computer. I guess this is similar to the fact that my dad still uses a 30 year old calculator; I never understood why until I adopted my own calculator that I know I'll use until I die; I've got it rigged up with a USB cord so I don't have to replace the batteries. People get comfortable with what they're used to and I guess I'm comfortable with Apple circa 2008. Since then, I've grown more and more disenfranchised with each new product, with one notable exception: iP4.
Post-2008 design decisions I disagree with:
-removal of true UNIX file permissions. Pain in the ass.
-major Expose GUI changes numerous times since 10.4.11 (my favorite version of OSX to date). I was able to hack the 10.4.11 core into every subsequent release until 10.6.8... guess what, I reverted to 10.6.7.
-10.7 Lion. I will never use this OS if it stays in its current form. I held off on 10.5 for a couple years, and 10.6 for a year... but I didn't feel anything as strong as the hatred I have for the 'iOS' operating system. Don't get me wrong, on the iPhone I love iOS, but it's odd to neuter a sophisticated operating system such that it behaves like a phone.
-glossy screens. Matte is far superior, easier on the eyes, and doesn't have any glare. I will use my matte cinema display until it breaks. And then I'll buy another one and use it until there aren't any left.
-0 button trackpads. Why? It might be ok if the click force was uniform across the trackpad, but it's not: too easy at the bottom and too hard at the top. Not to mention accidental interpretation from all the multitouch gestures Apple has added. I sincerely appreciate two finger scrolling, but nothing else. No 3, 4, pinch, right click (that's what control is for). At the end of the day, I want my mouse to move when I move my fingers... I don't want the OS to guess what I'm trying to do.
-translucent menu bar. Why? No reason whatsoever for this. At least 10.5.2 added the ability to revert.
-Magic mouse. If I wanted a mouse with a terrible trackpad that misinterprets everything I touched, I'd be in heaven. The USB Mighty mouse with 2D scroll ball (2005) is optimal; the wireless variant is too heavy.
-getting rid of Expresscard on MacBook Pros... for an SD card. Is there a part of "Pro" that doesn't include the need to connect to external PCIe devices? When Apple finally neglects the Mac Pro into obscurity, this will leave few established external low level buses.
-Thunderbolt... It's just PCIe wrapped into Displayport... you already had that before you nixed Expresscard... nothing new here, move along.
-Increased pixel density on desktop displays. The 27" display has the same resolution as the 30"... only it's impossible to realize this because the pixels are so small you end up resizing the window larger.
-Removal of Firewire 400... come on, y'all introduced this ecosystem and then summarily destroyed it. FW800 will never get the share 400 had.
-Can't take the battery out. While there are few reasons to do this, I don't like the ninny 'we'll do everything' approach.
-retreat towards completely unserviceable. The PB G3 Pismo is the pinnacle of a serviceable machine.
-Real DVI connectors... small saves space, but damn it sucks buying an adapter.
-use of 4 different video out schemes in 5 years; it really sucks buying an adapter for each new Mac. Apple is particularly horrible at this.
So what do all these gripes work out to: I can't fathom using an Apple laptop made after 2008. Until recently, I had a wonderful MacBook that met an untimely death... so I picked up a 27" iMac. The screen had none of the appeal of the 23" Cinema display from 2007. It was boring to use. After just a couple months, I decided this week I wanted a laptop again. I wanted all of the features I griped about above, so after a few days on craigslist, I picked up a mint condition 2008 2.5GHz Core 2 Duo MacBook Pro with 6GB of RAM, an expresscard slot (for PXI chassis), firewire 400, a real mouse button, a real graphics card, a matte screen. It's sitting on my desk right now, driving my 23" matte cinema display. Total price for the Laptop and display: $730. I added an Intel X25-M SSD and am now sipping heaven. New, expensive iMac with 3 years AppleCare... time to go.
Once an outsider, I'm now part of the 'grumpy old man' class, reveling in yesteryear. Each new computer revision kills a little more of my different soul. I don't see the situation getting any better, so I'll hang onto this MacBook until it dies. I've deemed this 2008 relic worthy of an original, 6 color Apple logo to cover the boring white.
No real content, just bitching.
