Too Old for Peer Pressure? Never!

by Diane Chamberlain

 

Do I look like I'm having fun? You're right. I'm not!

Remember when you were a kid and all your friends started drinking, so you started drinking? Or when they sneaked out of their houses in the middle of the night to meet at the park and you joined them? Or they dove from the cliff above the quarry and you didn’t want to look like a chicken, so you did it too? I guess that’s why I now have a Mac. Almost every one of my writing friends uses a Mac. My grown stepdaughters and numerous other family members use Macs, too, and Mac users are zealots, oh yes they are. How they look down their noses at PCs! I figured I must be missing something. I’d been enjoying my new iPad immensely, so when my laptop recently died and my desktop started sputtering, I joined the lemmings and jumped into the Mac abyss. Never one to do things halfway, I now have an iPad, a Macbook Air and an iMac. And a week into this adventure, I also have a boatload of regret, matched only by my determination to conquer this bloody thing on my desk.

I plan to stick with it. I plan to take all the workshops and the one-on-one classes. I plan to learn everything I can and become a Mac Whiz, but no one will ever be able to convince me that a Mac is more intuitive (give me a break) or simpler or more elegant to use than a PC. If it’s so intuitive, why am I stuck staring at a frozen screen five times a day, with a mouse doing unpredictable things and a message that pops up saying something like:

 Simply click &*$@%F1-#$&*F12

Oh please. One click of the mouse on a PC and whatever I need it to do would be done. (I tried several ways to get the actual command in this post, but Typepad wouldn't allow me to put the command/option/control symbols, so I had to make do. Trust me, it looked nearly as silly as the above. So silly I laughed out loud.)

Where oh where is my right click?? I know where it is, but I resent having to press a keyboard button and the mouse at the same time when a right click on the mouse would be so much simpler.

My few friends who haven’t yet been suckered into a Mac ask me “Why are you doing this to yourself??” Yes, there’s the lemming factor, but there’s something deeper going on. There’s the challenge element--a desire to keep my mind supple and learning. Angry Birds and Sudoku just aren't enough. If you want to stretch your brain, try learning a new operating system. I can think of no better way. Just be sure you take your blood pressure medication before you start.  

There’s also hope. The hope that Mac lovers are right and I will someday come to appreciate all that a Mac can do. One of those things is running Scrivener, a program many of my novelist friends use for organizing their books. I’m an obsessive organizer when it comes to writing a novel, so I’m excited about that possibility. Though right now, I have to admit the thought of learning a whole new program is not appealing. Scrivener will be on the back burner for a bit.

(side note: I just heard a yelp of surprise from my bedroom. I'm trying to train my dogs not to jump on the bed.)

Back to the Mac. A significant problem I’m having is the keyboard. I’ve used an ergonomic keyboard for many years. It’s raised in the middle and the keyboard is divided. It’s perfect for fingers and wrists with rheumatoid arthritis. But finding a truly ergonomic keyboard that works with the Mac has proven to be a challenge. There are a few, but the keyboards are not split. Instead, they have a faux ergonomic wave shape. I finally found a truly ergonomic keyboard by Microsoft (the 7000 model). Although it doesn’t have the same functionality as the Mac keyboard, I can set it up so that it’s close, as long as I remember the Alt key is the command key and the Windows key is the option key, etcetera. The mouse that came with the keyboard has a nice feel beneath my palm, but it’s so heavy and clunky that I quickly reached the top of my cuss-ometer while using it and I’m now trying to use the Mac mouse instead. It’s too thin, so I must prop it up to avoid hurting my wrist. (propping here with Bland Simpson’s wonderful book on The Inner Islands of North Carolina, which I bought while doing research for The Lies We Told.)

I don’t understand Mac’s organization for pictures either. What’s the difference between the pictures folder and iPhoto? Is iPhoto a way to organize them? I had all my pictures copied over from my PC and some of them came over in duplicate and triplicate and quadruplicate—enough so that I now have over 13,000 images on my hard drive. I have a little clean up to do there! In the middle of trying to clean up last night, the mouse suddenly developed a mind of its own and began selecting hundreds of pictures at a time. I couldn’t get it to stop. Kind of frightening! Around that time is when a facsimile of the above message popped up on my screen (Simply click &*$@%F1-#$&*F12), but my non-Mac keyboard left me stymied. Since I couldn’t stop the madness occurring on my screen, I reached for my iPad, thinking I’d Google for help. As I reached forward, the crazy selecting process instantly stopped and the mouse returned to normal. I have no idea what I did to start it or stop it, but the next time something goes kaflooey, I plan to reach for my iPad again and see what happens.

Oh, and those "notes" on the right of my screen above were another thing that "got stuck". Clearly I'm doing something wrong.

One of my biggest bugaboos right now are these boring “aliases”. When I wanted to put a shortcut on my PC desktop—say I wanted to go instantly to my Facebook Readers Page—I’d just right click and create a shortcut—a simple Facebook icon, for example. But every icon on the Mac is the same and butt ugly. I know there must be a way to make them prettier and more useful, but it’s certainly not, ahem, intuitive.

I know what you Mac users are saying: "If she hates the Mac so much, let her go back to her virus-ridden PC!" But please reread my reasons for the switch. I really want to do this. I just desperately need to wail and moan for a while, okay?

My dogs and I are about the same age, if I think in terms of dog years. They've spent all their lives jumping up on the bed. If they can learn to stay off the bed, I can master this machine. Then again, they don't seem to be catching on to the whole tinfoil thing too quickly.

I’m done being a curmudgeon for today. Thanks for letting me get all that out of my system! I’ll spend the rest of the day ‘learning by doing’. Putting this post together on the Mac is the first step. It’s now 12:06 pm. We’ll see how long it takes. Then I’d love to hear what new things you’re learning these days. 

P.S. I think I'm finished. It's 5:26 pm. Sigh.

 

Comments

[Josh]

Xanax also helps with computer troubleshooting, or just about anything else that ails you. Marijuana also would work awesomely.

[Reine]

Aw gee, Diane. It takes time to get used to any new system, and while I hate to be thought of as a lemming, I do understand the pain of switching so will try not to think of being thought of that way.

I won't even blame Microsoft for this . . . um . . . okay I won't. I'll just say that once you get it, you will be very happy. And do take those classes, as they will speed up the process of adjustment.

You don't need right-click at all. That's a PC thing that as you mentioned, you can emulate with a cumbersome keyboard command. Totally unnecessary.

So sorry about the keyboard. I use the smallest I can find so if I have to use my fingers I barely have to make them go anywhere at all. I can use a mouthstick easily on a small uncomplicated keyboard, too. I love the new track pads that can be set anywhere. Most of all, though, I love the onscreen keyboard that I can use easily with the track pad.

That picture is so sad! Please cheer up. xxxxxR

[William]

Diane, I had the same reaction, and refused to even consider a Mac, ANY Mac, a 'real' computer for many years. Got talked into a Macbook Pro three years ago, and after getting through the first week of 'different', I fear I've become one of those "You'll take my Mac when you pry it from my cold, dead fingers" kind of people.

Scrivener was the first Mac program I bought, a sheer impulse purchase, and now I'll bare my teeth and actually growl like Lon Chaney, Jr. under a full moon if someone says "You should try XXXXXX-XXX, or maybe ZZZZ-ZZZZ for Writers."

There's a learning curve to anything new. You're doing just fine...:) Give yourself a little patience, some time to adjust, and you'll wonder how you did without the Mac. In those three years, I now have an iMac, Macbook Pro, Mac Mini, Macbook Air, and an iPad; I'm holding out against the iPhone because I use a cell phone that's a cell phone and that's it. Windows (in various versions) and Linux are in the computer lab room, but for all personal stuff, the conversion is complete.

The only time I ever had a problem was way back when I, Geek that I am, was messing around in System Files on the Macbook Pro and crashed it. Thanks to Time Machine, I was back in action in less than two hours, as opposed to the All Day Project when Windows crashed.

I suppose I've 'been assimilated', but I'm happy to have been absorbed into the Cult of Mac....:)

P.S. The Logitech S-530 keyboard and mouse for Mac works perfectly. You can find them very reasonably on eBay...:)

[Kathy Reschini Sweeney]

Hang in there. I am a Mac person but there are things about the technology that drive me nuts. The keyboard and the mouse top the list.

If you have a wireless mouse, try switching to a wired one. No kidding. The wireless ones move on their own and it drives me batshit.

I switch keyboards about twice a year (by that time, several keys are too dented to use anyway. (I just checked and you can no longer see the letters E, N and S. T, O, L, C, and D are right behind, and the top of the letters A and F have been invisible for a month. Hmmm. I get different styles to keep my brain sharp, but Mac is way behind on good choices, especially for those of us who actually type without looking at the keys.

Change sucks but in some cases it's worth it. In your case, you need a dose of funny, stat!

[Nancy Martin]

Diane, I remember getting my first computer (back in 1982! Anybody else remember KayPro?) And I hated it. But suddenly I had a book due in a month, and I had to write it FAST. So I learned to use that machine very quickly and haven't looked back. It's all there---just in new places. Keep looking. And good luck training the dogs!

[Karen in Ohio]

But why should you have to search for a used keyboard, I ask? Mac tends to be more about design, I think. My opinion; please do not hurl things.

We just had this conversation the other night: I'm a writer (erstwhile, but still); my husband is a writer/photographer/filmmaker; George is a biology prof; Vanessa is a poet/artist/commercial artist who also does websites. None of us use a Mac. None of us is interested in using one.

Steve does a lot of work with Frank, a composer who also produces and sells jazz CDs internationally. Frank also composes music for Steve, in exchange for help with videotaping and producing promos. He is a Macaholic, too, and has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years on all things Mac, and masses of electronic toys. Steve uses an animation program called 3DMax, which does not run on a Mac, so Frank bought a Mac-friendly counterpart. It's a multi-thousand dollar fiasco. Doesn't work right, and takes hours to do the simplest thing. He was all excited about getting the new version this year, but the reviews were terrible, so he didn't.

Yes, Steve feels very smug.

And I feel equally smug about spending less than $300 on my Nook Color, which does as much as I want it to do, compared to the $800 iPad.

That said, it's good to make your brain stretch. Keep with it, Diane! Scrivener might be worth it. And let me know if that tinfoil thing works. The last time we tried it with my daughter's dogs, the older one, who was terrified of it, had the most amazing look on his mug when the little one jumped up on the couch, moved the foil aside, and settled down. You could just read Otis's tiny mind: "You can do THAT?"

[Cathy]

There's a Scrivener for Windows. Here: http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivenerforwindows/

[stuckinmypedals]

I'm a Mac and the teacher computers at my school were recently switched over to PC. So my brain is being stretched in equal but opposite ways. The student computers are still Macs. The teacher next to me is well versed in PC, but not Mac and so we trade lessons and tricks-thank goodness for her! I'm also learning a brand new reading curriculum. I know it will be great once I can figure it all out, but right now it's very confusing. If you can learn Mac and your dogs can learn to stay off of the bed, then surely I can master this curriculum. This post was just the push I needed to dive in and get my hands dirty. Thanks!

[Margaret Maron]

The only reason I bought a Mac instead of another PC last time was for its rep of being more virus resistant. Nevertheless, I still would have bought a PC if WordPerfect were still around. Talk about an intuitive software program. I will never stop wishing Word had a "reveal codes" command. Why the big boys had to kill the best program, I'll never understand.

[judy merrill larsen]

Oh, Diane, I'm sorry, but, like the others, I think you'll come to love it (I'm a Mac girl from way back). One suggestion that might help you--the MISSING MANUAL books--I bought one for my iPhone and iPad (didn't need one for the MacBook since I've always used Macs). I'm old fashioned enough that I need a manual I can read--not just the HELP icon.

Good luck!

[xena]

I'm a bi-puter. The results of doing all the office stuff on PC and all the catalogue stuff on a MAC.
Yeah the two are different! Really really different.
And you're right about the keyboard command vs the mouse click.
My supervisor, who set up the pages for me to write the copy, was a hand job person. Me? Well why take my hand off the mouse to hand job if I could just zoom up and click on the task? You highlight copy and paste all with the mouse don't you?
I play the piano but that as Spock said is just illogical on a computer.
Don't get me started on the CAD system to draft patterns either. That goes in the "If they can put a man on the moon" list.

[Carol R]

Oh my goodness, you look so miserable in that picture. The computer genius around here is a Mac fanatic but I've never made the jump because he is so seldom around. Even though I've had computers since 1984 I am and will remain a technophobe. Whenever I have real problems I call my nephew and he talks me through the remote control process so he can take over and fix my mess. There is a lot of lecturing I have to swallow in that process, but it's worth it. Nothing he tells me sticks in my mind anyway.

I've signed up for NaNo this year. I need more gray hair. Wish I could use Scrivener. What were you using before this mind expanding experience?

If you ever miss your dogs crowding you out of bed you can try my solution of covering your lovely quilt with an old sheet. It's ugly, but we live with it.

[Lorraine Bartlett]

I have a PC and an iMac and I would actually love my Mac if it wasn't for that bloody keyboard. I tried hooking a PC keyboard to it, but it doesn't have the same functionality. I can't use the keyboard on my laptop, either, so I have a real PC keyboard plugged into it (and it's pain to haul it along when I travel).

You'd think the people at Apple would offer more than just one keyboard to those of us who don't bite our nails down to the meat. I'd sure buy one in a heartbeat.

[Holly Gault]

You have my sympathy, Diane. I am a Mac person, but as a contract illustrator, I use what ever system the company who has contracted me seats me at. There is always an adjustment period.

And iPhoto didn't used to be like this -- I hate it!!!!! I used to be able to get my photos much more easily, so I do understand your funk.

[Holly Gault]

You can get a right click mouse to use with the Mac. I've used both a Logitech and, now, a Microsoft mouse.

[Mo]

I switched a year ago and I love it. However, you apparently didn't get the most helpful bit of advice I did.

Namely, remember that the Mac was first and the PC was made to look like the Mac, but not work like a Mac. So there are lots of things on the screen that LOOK the same, but do not DO the same thing.

The secret to a successful switch - do not just go clicking and trying to work the Mac as if it were a broken PC. When you want to do something - look up how to do it. And then do it the Mac way. Pretend you've never used a computer before. You'll be pleasantly surprised at how elegantly a Mac can do things and relieved at how much carryover there is between the two. Translating commands instead of focusing on building a successful workflow on the new computer seems like it is faster and easier, but it just prolongs the frustration.

[Kathy Reschini Sweeney]

In the interest of laughter, and NOT in starting an argument, this is for you, Diane, and I hope it at least makes you smile.

Also - count me in as another one who misses the "Reveal Codes" command all the time. Loved WordPerfect.

http://www.borowitzreport.com/2011/09/16/in-rare-public-statement-god-tells-pat-robertson-to-shut-the-fuck-up/

[Diane Chamblain]

thanks for all the support, you guys! i was hoping for that. It's encouraging. It's especially good to hear from those of you who've made the switch and survived. Margaret, I'm with you about Word Perfect. Miss it like crazy. This morning, my thumb joint is hurting, so that new keyboard is going back. Since the Mac keyboard takes such a light touch, I'm going to give it a try for a while. Meanwhile, I took the tinfoil off the bed last night and Jet hopped right up. I wouldn't care, but I'm not the only one sleeping in that bed and HE cares, so I'm giving this a try. A week of tinfoil, like a week of using a Mac, is clearly not enough.

[Nancy Pickard]

Diane, fwiw, I'm an original Mac-y who had a couple of PC's in between, and I would never go back to them. I once loved Word Perfect, but now I can't even remember why.

I second, strongly, the suggestion that you get an instruction manual. When I got my iPad I found a good little instruction book among the iBooks for sale there, downloaded it, and voila, big help. If I were doing a similar thing for my MacBook, I'd download something from my (free) Kindle app so I could refer to the instruction book right there on my computer. I hope that made sense.

p.s. I believe you can adjust the sensitivity of the typing keys.

[Storyteller Mary]

Having used an Apple since the '80's, I was horrified when my school changed to a grades/attendance program that required us to use a PC. Our principal knew what she was doing, meeting with the hold-outs face-to-face to apologize for the situation and promise 1) you may keep your Mac; we won't take it away and 2) we will help with training (actually my students did most of that; I'd just ask "does anyone know how to make it do . . ." whatever and they would show me).
I got the Apple One-to-One sessions, actually for over two years, so they could teach me recording for CDs, making attendance sheets for the Y classes, and finally managing my own web site when my "webmistress" disappeared. I love the way they teach -- no condescension or impatience -- and show me things I didn't even know could be done.
Good luck on the learning curve. OTOH, if you don't like it, no shame in changing your mind . . .

[Storyteller Mary]

Oh, and while Laraine is better qualified to advise on ergonomics, do take breaks to stretch and move . . .

[Bev]

I have a PC, a MacBook Pro, and an iPad. Because I'm a designer I use my Mac alot and I love it but I will admit that the learning curve was steep. As an IT specialist who is certified in Microsoft, it was quite a change. If they could just make a copy of Microsoft Access for the Mac I would dump my PC altogether. We had to buy a new Windows laptop a few weeks ago and while my husband was checking them out, I was on the other side of the room ogling the new iMacs. I really want one of the 27 inch screens. It will be interesting to see what people will buy for PCs when HP gets out of the business next year.

[DIane Chamberlain]

Bev, I have to admit, this 27" screen is dynamite. I can have a zillion windows open at once.
Re mt thumb joint--I think it was the keyboard, but might be the Mac mouse, so today, I'm using the Mac keyboard, propped up in a few different ways (very attractive!) and my tiny portable logitech mouse, which so far is working great. We'll see. . .

[gaylin in Vancouver]

Diane, I can be of no help to you. I have been on a Mac since 1988 or so and so much of using the Mac is automatic I wouldn't be any help to anyone! Put me in front of a PC and I freeze!

[Cyranetta]

WordPerfect is still available -- it was acquired by Corel some years ago. Of course it's part of a "suite", but it still has the inestimably useful "Reveal Codes."

http://www.corel.com/servlet/Satellite/us/en/Product/1207676528492#tabview=tab0

I would probably be more eager to explore the worlds of Mac (because the iPad is the first computer-thing of which I'm actually fond), but acquiring Mac versions of the software I have loaded on my PC would be prohibitively expensive.

[Mario]

The Mac you describe sure isn't the Mac I know and love. You'll get used to it and grow to love it, I'm sure. Here's why I do:

My PC at work blue-screens on me regularly now, yet is only a few years old. My Mac at home, which gets a much more robust work-out, is ten years old. So far, it's dumped core only once.

The default for the PC desktop look and feel is building blocks, as though it thinks its users are on a Kindergarten level. The Mac desktop looks elegant, for adults.

But what really, really convinced me I'd made the right move was when I bought a digital camera some years back. It came with a 50-odd page installation manual for the PC and an instruction card for the Mac. The instruction card said, essentially: plug camera into USB port. :)

[Lora in Florida]

I switched to Mac a few years ago when my computer died, and we either had to buy a Mac or a PC with VISTA. Mac won out and now I am a die-hard member of the "Once you go MAC you never go back" fan club.

I am blessed with a son who thinks he is the God of all hard drives and helps me out when I get confused. I can rent him out if you like. He comes cheap as he is only 15. :)

Good luck and stick with it, girlfriend. You will eventually be so glad you did.

[Reine]

OK . . . just one more thing and then a cute Mac/PC story: It's not just design difference or preference. Macs do everything that PCs do - and more. The reason PCs are so much cheaper is the user must do more in the way of commands and sorting and setting. In Macs those commands are brilliantly absorbed into the functional design. There are Mac commands for those with macFEAR, but you do NOT need them. And you absolutely never need to right-click or do any equivalent command. That function is not necessary. There are easier ways to do that task on the Mac.

OK. Here's the honest-to-god true Mac/PC story. While I was at Harvard Macs were all over the place, but the best place to find one to use while on the run between classes and labs was at the Science Center. There were a bunch of them set up for use in the hallways for easy and quick access. Back then not everyone owned a computer and fewer had a lap top. One day I ran in to check my email before a class and found all the macs in the hallway and atrium were covered. Why? Bill Gates was inside the huge Science Center lecture hall giving a speech. I was there, and that's the truth. Once he'd left the Science Center the sheets were taken off the offensive Macs, and we were allowed to use them.

[Evalyn]

The problem you describe with your mouse is possibly wireless-related. Wireless connections are fickle and unpredictable. Move all other electronic equipment (IPad, cell phone, etc.) away from your work area. Three to six feet should be enough, just to free up the "zone" around your keyboard from electronic interference.

[Evalyn]

Also, if you are not using a mouse pad, you should. Cuts down on static which an interfere w/mouse and or keyboard.

[DIane Chamberlain]

Thank you all for you help and support! For those of you who say a right click is never necessary, I'd sure like to know what you do as a substitute.

[Reine]

Diane, you got the newest iMac I assume - OS X Lion?

With Lion the "right-click" function is the same as your iPad, tap and hold right there on your track pad.

However, if you prefer to do it the old-fashioned way you can enable right-click for your Mac Mouse by:

1. In order to turn the second mouse click on simply go to System Preferences and then click on the Mouse icon.
2. There you will see the second option down in the "point and click" tab. It says "Secondary Click." Click in the little box beside "Secondary Click."
3. In this same area you can also choose which side of the mouse will be used for the secondary click. By default it is the right side, but if you want to change that to the left, just select the left side by simply clicking the drop down option.

Or you can use the track pad just like your easy iPad.

[Note to Karen. My iPad did not cost $800. It cost $400, and I use it more than my regular Mac.]

[KD Easley]

I had some issues when I first switch from a pc, but now that I've figured out what I'm doing, I'm really glad. My son is as well, I don't have to call him with as many questions as I used to.

Oh, and Diane, you can set up a right click on your magic mouse in settings. I'd be lost without it. My son had to do it for me. :)

[Diane Chamberlain]

Thank you, Reine and KD! Off to find my settings.

[Reine]

Yay!!!! Go Diane!!!

[skyinwv]

HI Diane. I'm reading along with admiration. I tried the PC to MAC switch a few months ago and could not bridge the gap. I admire your fortitude. Then, in the middle of reading all the comments, my PC freezes. A sign?
You give me hope! I may be trying again sooner than I had thought!

[Laraine]

Nancy, I had a Kaypro Robie, and then the first TWO MEGABYTE (!!) PC on my block, so to speak, also a Kaypro, which they basically gave me when the poor Robie went belly up. Brilliant machine, great idea, but, the public didn't love it.

I remember going through intense grief for the loss of the Robie, and such frustration with the PC learning curve that I nearly threw the dang thing out the second-story window (a la "Julia"). I had to use a MAC at work for a while in the '80s as well as a PC and I found the MAC confoundingly difficult but sorta fun . . . .

My observation, for what it is worth, is that the learning curve for a new machine is somewhat akin to bonding with a new infant: once you've accomplished the task, there's no way you're going back. Memory is fickle and prefers what you have now over what you think you remember you had before, whether MAC or PC or tablet or what. Not to say that there aren't delightful new features and more attractive visuals, etc. along the way.

I don't want a MAC because I'm not willing to spend the time and more particularly the money, but I have no doubt it would be lovely to have one. I've been amused at iPhone-fanatic friends who begin to look longingly and jealously over my shoulder at my Droid, which has undeniably wonderful and versatile features and a better camera by far than the first iPhone did; but we all have the 'grass is greener' virus, I think.

Cathy, WONDERFUL news of the Scrivener for Windows!

WordPerfect. Sigh. I knew ye well.