Committing Treason

Mac and Dell - I Love my bastard child.

Since my childhood, I've been an Apple user. Starting with the Apple II+, then the MacSE, PowerBook 180, PTP225, G4/500MP, iBook and numerous assorted minis - in all, that's over 25 years of using Apple computers.

Recently, I made the decision to buy a Dell Mini 9 and hack it with Mac OSX and it's been an interesting experience. Some people, like the United Flight attendant, think it's pretty cool, but there seems to be a darker force at work here.

For generations, Mac Users have been the pariah of the computing world. We've been the minority and like minority populations, we've been berated and made fun of. As such, we can be an insular group that eschews the world of PCs and pooh-poohs on those who choose Windoze.

Suddenly, I'm the pariah.

The general camaraderie I experienced with Mac people has turned harsh. Those other users who saw me as a kindred spirit only see the "Dell" logo emblazoned on the netbook lid and immediately turn vicious. "What's that you're using?" they say with no hint of comfort. As though I've betrayed the clan by journeying to the Dark Side.

That suspicion isn't quelled when I show them and speak enthusiastically about how OSX ports to the Dell. I can see it in their eyes, sure it's a Mac Operating System but it's still a bastard child. It's an abomination and not the Pure Blood Apple that it should be. It's genes are tainted and, therefore, can never be fully trusted or accepted.

As I venture to South America today, I will be taking my mongrel machine with me. It's tiny form and long battery life accompanying me on the long journey with episodes of Hell's Kitchen and copies of Inglourious Basterds, District 9 and Star Trek (I would have brought 500 Days of Summer, but it's not on BitTorrent).