TheNitai

Since MacOS X Lion (10.7.x) we are “blessed” by the general option that documents we have worked on the last time are automatically opened the next time we start up an application.

While we can argue if that is a boon or not, I personally don’t like this “feature”. Especially, when the last opened document has had errors or crashed the application.

Today, I was not able to open a document in BBedit and it crashed completely. But sure enough, the next time I opened BBedit again it tried to open the same file again, resulting in crashing again.

After some trial and error I figured that holding down the shift key during the startup of BBedit it will disable loading of previous documents. I hope this helps someone else out there.

Yes, I know there are ways to disable this globally. But in case one does not want to disable this feature globally.

The recent eMail von Jason Calacanis and his blog post entitled “The Case against Apple in five Parts” brought a little up stir in the Apple world. The recent reply came from Marco.  You can read their back and forth on Jason’s take on Apple and make up your own mind. I have read all the blog posts so far, but I have been missing one simple thing!

The one single thing that makes me use Apple products is that they simply work!

I have used Windows, Linux and MacOS X over the last couple of years. Hell, this blog post is even being typed on a Thinkpad with Windows XP, but nothing has ever been an hassle free experience then with using Apple products, be it hardware or software.

When has there ever been a more relaxed operating system update then with MacOS X? All you have to do is to pop in your DVD, run the update and know for sure that it will reboot safely with the new update. Moreover, with the applications itself you don’t need to run trough a “painful” installations with minimum five “OK” clicks (I know you Windows guys don’t see this as a problem because you are used to!), on MacOS X you simply drag and drop an application to the place you want. Nothing else!

iPhone is another topic that people like to argue about. Sure, the hardware is behind the current standard. Bluetooth does not work with cars and you might have to reboot your iPhone sometimes. But, have you ever used a Windows Mobile and did you every try to sync it with your Windows OS? I hate to repeat myself, but with the iPhone all I have to do is to hook it up to my Mac, sync it with iTunes (including Music, Photos, Videos, etc.) it even takes over my eMail settings and my eMail and Calendar just works. Symbian based phones and Windows Mobile ones require you to spend at least an hour fiddling with setting and try and error attempts. I don’t think I have to start arguing about the usability of the iPhone. Apple has done something, that for many years no one could. It brought a phone that simply works and is easy to use.

Remember the “plug und play” wording? Well, what is a “myth” in the Windows and Linux world is a fact with MacOS X. You got a new digital camera? All you do is connect it and the system recognizes it, iPhoto opens and there you got your photos. No hunting for a updated driver , no installation, no reboot needed, nothing else, just plug it in and start working. Isn’t that worth the little more money you got to pay?

Regarding the price, I do have to say that a Dell Lattitude E6500 with the same configuration as an Apple MacBook Pro 15″ will cost you about the same (at least in Switzerland). Price is not everything. And when it comes down to usability you save a lot more then with the initial cost when you use something that simply just works.

For me, and I’m sure for many other people, it is the Apple eco system that saves us money in the long run because it just works!

I am a huge fan of making my life “simple” and not complicated. After all, life around us is already complicated with all that is going on, so why bother taking it home, right?

That is also one of the reasons, why I use Apple Hardware and, to some extend, Apple Software. Not that I don’t know how to work with Linux or Windows, but Apple has one thing going for them, that is “It simply works”. That is true when it comes down to their Hardware, Operating System and Phone. You could argue, that this and that feature is not there and Apple is mediocre in their feature set (thought, this is mainly true), but I think because their not overloaded with features they have less to worry about and again it boils down that “it simply works”.

In that regard, I set out the other day to get my sound and TV setup right in my house. Something which I thought will take a long time, took merely minutes to get everything up and running. I took a new Mac Mini as the center of my “Hub”, meaning I have iTunes running on it, got it connected to my Apple Airport Extreme (with 2 Airport Express devices on other levels in the house) and have my Stereo connected to another Airport Express device. Then I also hooked up the Mac Mini to my TV Set.

Now, the best part of this setup is that I can control iTunes and the Mac Mini from everywhere in my house with my MacBook Pro, or from my wife’s MacBook or from my iPhone. Yes, iPhone!

Did you know that Apple has a great little iPhone app that allows you to control iTunes directly from your iPhone? I didn’t and so I as totally blown away when I found this little gem of software, called “Remote“. Once installed, again it took a minute to install and setup, you can control iTunes and Apple TV right there from your iPhone.

I remember when I was invited by Apple to come over to a MacWorld keynote and I saw Steve Jobs talking on the Apple Hub idea. His vision was that Apple devices become the Hub, the center of your life. Well, I have to say that they achieved it. Well done and thank you.