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First Impressions of OS X

So after a few days of using OS X, I'm finally reaching a point where I can offer an opinion, and the opinion is, I'm sold.  It's not that the OS is perfect, but it's the best happy medium I've found.

There are some hurdles.  For one thing, it's just weird for a user who's used to Windows and/or Linux.  Once you start using it, though, you very quickly see all the little UI elements that the other two borrow, but don't quite get just right.  Mac does.

I installed Nuclear Mouse very early on; I like the way Linux allows you to move and resize windows without having to grab a corner, and the lac of window frames in OS X makes that all the more needed; Nuclear Mouse lets you do that.  The default key is Alt-Right click, and resize is Alt-Clover-Right click.  (Yes, I know it's more germane to call it Option, but I used Mac back in System 7, so you kids get off my lawn.)  You can do this with Windows using Autohotkey and this script, although I'm sure there's other ways.

I also latched on very quickly to :

 

  • Quicksilver : Launchy/Gnome-Do's big brother
  • JollyFastVNC : Suggested by B over Chick-of-the-VNC
  • TextWrangler : Still not happy w/ it, but I don't have the 60$ fer Textmate.
  • Adium : IM Goodness
  • VirtueDesktops : Cause virtual desktops make for less clutter
  • Inkscape : It's weird under the X11 on the Mac, but useable.
Of course, I can't stand behind a platform I can't do at least a little gaming on, and for me, the Mac is just fine:
Keyboard behavior is taking quite a bit of getting used to.  Word highlighting behavior, menu selection, are all just a wee different.  

Being back on a commercial OS means going back to the tendency towards commercial software; I'd been spoiled by Linux and the cheap software of it.  You can run most of the same packages under the Mac platform, but you lose Cocoa, and you lose the integrated nature of the Mac.

I'm starting to dig more into the innards, now.  I'd say that laptop I'm saving for will be a Mac.

 

This entry was posted on Sat, 07/05/2008 - 21:49 and is filed under .

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