Why I am getting an Apple MacBook
I feel I need to confess why I am buying a MacBook, have I turned soft to my Open Source/Free Software ways? No, definately 100% NOT. I’ll explain why: I think Apple Computer has an incredible product in Mac OSx. For anyone who has not used it before, pop into a 3G store and ask to have a go. When someone releases a good a product as that, they deserve money, in my opinion. Under “the” free software license (GNU General Public License) it is permissable for anyone to charge for software licensed under it, as long as an offer of source code is given (for 3 years afterwards). Deep down I love Ubuntu, and I will install it as soon as possible when they release a version for the Intel powered Apple computers. In fact I will use my Laptop to showcase Ubuntu you had of told me November last year I’d spend well over €1,000 on an Apple Computer, I would have told you that I hated Apple, and would never consider it! What has changed my mind? I got a iPod Nano for Christmas ‘05 and thought it was great, but the Nano on its own still wouldn’t convince me to get a Mac.
I was always going to buy a laptop this year, but the turning point was me using Mac OSX on a computer in work, that sold it itself. Don’t get me wrong, I still despise Apple for their copy protection (why can’t I play songs I bought on non-Apple mp3 players? Its Anti- competitive!) on songs bought on iTunes, but I feel this was forced by the record companies, it just had a nice side affect for Apple to lock people to iPods. Mac OS X is built on top of Open Source, partly the reason for it being so good! So in reality, instead of me paying for lets say RedHat, Suse or Linspire (all Linux) with proprietary drivers and an open source kernel, I am buying into Mac OS X which also has an open source kernel, but with more proprietary applications. Also I have Ubuntu on my two desktops, my Nokia 770 runs Linux and I do not use Windows whatsoever. So I am still as big of a Free and Open Source FanBoi as I ever was, perhaps even more, hey your talking to a guy who plays Ogg Vorbis on his rockboxed iPod!