It was really hard for me to do any writing this past weekend due to fighting with a computer.  For Christmas, my wife will be getting a new laptop and it hasn’t been easy to get it to do what I want it to – what my wife will need it to do.  First it was the wireless, then the VPN (virtual private network so she can connect to her job) client that wouldn’t work correctly.  Boy am I glad I don’t have this problem with my laptop.

I don’t have the same problems with my laptop because I have a MacBook.  Yes, regardless of what you may be thinking, Apple computers are less of a headache than a PC running Windows.  I’m not saying a Mac is the answer to easy computing, but it does have advantages.  Now you know I’m going to break it down – all the way down – so here we go.

Flavors

Microsoft has had many different operating systems over the years: Windows 3.0, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Vista.  While each seem to offer more functionality than the previous edition, they are often bloated (the code takes up more space and more hard drive space is necessary) and half-baked – can you say service patch?  Vista is so bad that many people have “downgraded” to XP; I have had relative success with Vista.

I’m not an operating system historian when it comes to Mac computers, but I do know each new edition builds on the previous to the point where some of them are only different under the hood at first glance.  If the user experience is good, why fiddle too much with it?  An example of this is what both companies plan to offer in the future.  Microsoft is coming out with Windows 7 which uses a platform similar to Vista.  We know they want to ditch anything to do with the name Vista.  Apple is coming out with Snow Leopard – Leopard is the current operating system.  The main goal with Snow Leopard is simple: trim down the code and make it run faster.  Wouldn’t we be in a dream land if Windows 7 took up less space and ran faster?

When it comes to operating systems, the two companies have different philosophies.  Microsoft is mainstream so it can afford to (seemingly) re-invent the wheel every time.  Apple, on the other hand, relies upon customer loyalty and the best way to get this is to provide a consistently good user experience.  Apple’s user experience is also helped by the fact that Apple controls all the hardware too – Microsoft is all about software with a few exceptions like the Xbox 360.

User Experience

My recent frustrations come from the fact that Vista has so many hardware/software possibilities that it is easy for something not to work.  The VPN client I was trying to install was for 32-bit operating systems only and of course my wife’s new computer is running a 64-bit operating system.

I was also having problems with the wireless network card dropping the connection often.  This is a problem I didn’t have with two Apple computers, one computer running XP and another one running Vista.  But wait, the other computer running Vista isn’t 64-bit and doesn’t have the same network card so there was no easy solution or way for me to figure it out.

To be fair, my wife was having the hardest time fixing a word document on my MacBook.  The version of Microsoft Office – yes, there is Office for the Mac – is different than she is used to.  Hey, nothing is perfect.

The main drawbacks concerning Apple computers are price and the fact that the person to the right and left of you probably isn’t using one.  Familiarity makes people comfortable and Microsoft has a clear advantage in this department.  Also, where price is concerned Apple isn’t as over-priced as it seems.  There are many people out there using Macs that have been running fine for 5+ years.  Good luck doing that with a PC.  Another thing about Macs is resale value.  If you want to upgrade, you can actually sell your Mac and get a large portion of your money back.  Again, good luck trying that with a PC.

Both have their advantages.  Things just wouldn’t be as interesting if something was perfect now would it?

By us I mean the consumers who have to endure countless ads that often have no direct connection with the product being advertised.  Sure, during the Super Bowl companies come out with some pretty entertaining commercials, but other than that we just seem to be going through the same thing over and over again.

The latest commercials I wish would go away are presented to us by dear old Microsoft.  Now I have to admit to being slightly amused when Bill Gates does that little shimmy during the first commercial with Jerry Seinfeld, but since then I think the commercials are just too boring.  When you think about it, do those commercials provide any information whatsoever that would prompt someone or keep someone from buying the next operating system from Microsoft?  Computers and computer software isn’t really even mentioned so what’s the use anyway?

I started this mini-rant so I will tell you what the use is.  Microsoft had to come out with something that popped to compete with Apple’s ads.  I don’t know how Jerry Seinfeld does that and I don’t know what their latest commercials, where people claim to be a PC, actually do to further their cause either.  Speaking of furthering their cause.

Microsoft, in my humble opinion, has the most powerful marketing ever known to man.  They shouldn’t care that another company has whole 10% or whatever share of the market.  They are the giants of the computer industry and Apple has only made a small dent in their share of the market.  What other company can churn out so many flawed products and still have such a large share of the market.  What if Nike had the marketing of Microsoft?  Could you imagine a more powerful Nike with more of the athletic apparel market?  Well as popular as Nike is, having the marketing success of Microsoft would make them even more popular – that is pretty hard to imagine.

Commercials, on TV, are just played out to me.  God bless whomever has to feed their families by coming up with some of this stuff.  I guess they don’t realize how smart many consumers are today.  We have the Internet and we have so much product information at our fingertips, we would be crazy to just go out and buy something based on a dumb commercial.  Or would we?

Here is something to think about.  I would be willing to bet that many people in the TV business and advertising have a Tivo/DVR at home.  Think about that for a second.  Does that really make sense?  Hmmm.

Don’t you think it is about time you get control of your computer? If you are fully aware of what is going on with your computer then this isn’t for you, but it would be nice if you gave any nuggets of advice you have to share. Also, and I just have to say this, if you are using a Mac you probably don’t have this problem.

The problem I speak of, the control you should have, is the software that is running on your computer right now. It is your computer and it is only right for you to know what is running – background applications too. We are living in a time where we have an application for so many things that computer companies and those with malicious intent will slip something extra in without you knowing. I’m talking about crapware.

Crapware is software that you don’t want on your computer. There is some debate concerning what is and isn’t crapware because a piece of software that one person wants might be something that another person doesn’t. Some software will fall in the grey area where people need – or they think they need – certain features of the software but it causes them grief by causing system slowdown or instability. Yes, there it is right there! What I’m talking about could be causing your computer to slow down right now. If that doesn’t get your attention this is either old hat to you or you are using a Mac. Otherwise, you need to know about crapware and what you can do about it.

For the most part crapware makes its way to your system courtesy of the manufacturer (Dell, HP, Sony, etc.) or is included as a bonus (yeah right) when you install other software. Think about it, you may enjoy playing all those demo games and like the fact that you have a 60-day trial of Norton Security Suite, but what happens later? One thing that will happen is you will keep getting bugged when those trials run out. Do you think those programs just start to ask you to upgrade or they are running in the background all the time? Yep, there is a good change those programs are quietly and almost transparently robbing your computer of precious resources. Don’t worry, there is hope.

CCleaner is a freeware system optimization, privacy and cleaning tool. It removes unused files from your system – allowing Windows to run faster and freeing up valuable hard disk space. It also cleans traces of your online activities such as your Internet history. Additionally it contains a fully featured registry cleaner. But the best part is that it’s fast and contains NO Spyware or Adware! I have used this one personally and it seems to work.

AutoRuns is a utlility I haven’t used personally, but I would hope it is safe and works since it is from Microsoft.  AutoRuns shows what programs are configured to run during system bootup or login and shows the entries in the order Windows processes them.  Good information to know if you think a dubious program could be bogging your system down.

One of the downfalls of Microsoft’s operating systems (Windows XP and Vista) is the need to routinely clean things up to keep the system running optimally.  This is something we should know, but it isn’t really verbalized as much as it should be.  Honestly, there are people who make money performing routine maintenance on computers.  This is what they love to hear: “Yes, my name is John Doe and my system is running slower than when I first got it.  Is there anything you can do to speed it up?”  Can you say cha-ching?