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With my e-mail client chosen and my web browsers chosen, the next item on my list was to find a good office suite. The three main applications I needed in the suite were a word processor, spreadsheet and presentation tool. Those are the core apps that I use every month in some capacity, so regardless of what I chose had to have those pieces included in the suite.

The de facto standard for office applications is Microsoft Office and Microsoft has a mac version called mac: Office. Having already spent a great deal of money on a new laptop, accessories, etc., I wanted to make sure I was making the right choice and not just responding to a knee jerk reaction to buy mac: Office, so I decided to try a few other alternatives out there.

Just what options are out there for the Mac? There may be more, but the ones I looked at were OpenOffice, NeoOffice, iWork and mac: Office. I also took a short peek at what Google had to offer as well.

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In my previous article, I wrote about my hunt for the perfect e-mail client. That journey was kind of hard and it’s not over with yet, because I’m still on the hunt. However, my next search was much easier — finding a web browser. Why was it easier? Because having multiple browsers installed on your computer and then switching between them is a piece of cake. Although I settled on one primary browser, I didn’t have to saddle my cart to just one horse.

Since I work in web design by trade, I can never have enough browsers in which to test my work. Now that I’m on a Mac as my primary machine, I was REALLY eager to get my hands on the major browsers and kick the tires a bit. Here’s a run down of what I installed and my thoughts on each one.

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After having a lot of fun installing software and getting familiar with all the new toys included in the Mac OS over the past few weeks, it’s time to begin getting down to the nitty gritty of what my new laptop is primarily for — work. So I have begun focusing on what core applications I need in my average day. The cornerstone of business day is e-mail, so I figured I better try a few applications to see which e-mail client would work best for how I work.

Since I use IMAP as my mail protocol, trying out different programs isn’t a big deal. Techinically speaking, I could have multiple e-mail clients configured on the same machine and use them interchangeably, but I was looking for “one to rule them all.” There are a ton of e-mail applications for the Mac, but I narrowed the choices down to three: Apple Mail, Entourage and Thunderbird.

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For the past few weeks, I’ve been waxing poetic about how wonderful my new MacBook is and how fond I am of it. Since I began using a laptops 12 years ago, I can say without a doubt that my new laptop is by far the best laptop I’ve ever owned. I know, I know, I sound like a lovelorn sap who can’t stop talking about his new girlfriend. We’ve all had friends that just won’t shut up about their latest infatuation and I know that, at least here in my weblog, I’m modeling that same behavior. So in an effort to redeem myself, my dear friends, I’ll now share with you the things that I don’t like about the MacBook.

Wi-Fi Drops The Network When On Battery
As long as the laptop is powered by an outlet, the Wi-Fi connection is solid as a rock. Unfortunately, the same thing can’t be said when running on the battery. From time-to-time, the wireless network connection drops without warning. After working for awhile, I’ll find that an instant message, a web page, or an e-mail that I’m trying to send won’t work. Looking up in the menu bar, the network icon is greyed out, showing that there is no connection.

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One of the things that I’ve played with over the years has been Bluetooth. In fact, I jumped on the ill fated Sony Ericsson T608 back in 2004 because it was the first Bluetooth (BT) phone on the Sprint network. I’ve had a collection of headsets, adapters and devices that all worked with BT, but I haven’t had that great of an experience using the technology itself.

It’s really been a comedy of errors on all fronts. The T608 was a totally crap phone and the BT headset was more pain than gain. BT HotSyncing with my Palm didn’t make much sense given the fact that if I’m THAT close to the computer, I might as well sync it with the cradle and charge it at the same time. I even tried surfing via BT, but it was just too slow. About the only thing I haven’t tried was using a BT headset with my computer, since my BT adapters on my Windows machines didn’t support the feature. That changed recently though when I purchased my MacBook and began playing with iChat and Skype.

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This morning, as I was reading my RSS feeds, I came across an article about a Microsoft venerability and how the patch was released on Tuesday. As my mind was mulling over this article and few errant thoughts floated around. “That’s right Windows Updates are always on Tuesday. Oh yeah, and Apple’s updates are on Wednesday aren’t they?” It’s at that point that I realised that today is Friday and I didn’t receive any updates. Something must be wrong.

Regardless of the operating system, computers aren’t perfect and problems arise from time-to-time. So I wasn’t alarmed by the fact that my new MacBook hadn’t alerted me to the fact that there were updates this past Wednesday. Microsoft Update gives me trouble all the time. I have several machines that I manage that still require manual updates, even though I have them set to auto-update. It frustrates me to know end, but that’s just how it works, or doesn’t as the case may be.

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Yesterday I became “one of the gang” in the Apple scheme of things. I’ve always been interested with Apple’s products, but now that I’m a Mac user, my interest in all things Apple has just gone to “11”. It became crystal clear to me today just how passionate I am now for the Mac, when I eagerly refreshed two web pages every thirty seconds to see just what Steve Jobs was saying in his Keynote for the World Wide Developers Conference 2006 (WWDC2006).

It’s my understanding that Apple used to do a streaming version for those not in attendance, but they don’t do that anymore. So my only other alternative was to monitor two web sites that were updating live from the conference floor. I had Engadget’s page updating every 30 seconds (a cool feature in Opera), and I had MacRumorsLive had a built-in refresh to the page every 60 seconds. MacRumors had faster coverage, but Engadget had better a transcription as well as pictures.

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After a crazy week filled with stress and deadlines, the Ashby gang was ready to enjoy a dinner out on the town. Everyone’s jaw seemed to be set for steak, so last Friday, we all drove out to Cherokee Steak House & Marina to enjoy some big fat rib eyes and t-bones. As great as the food is, I had another reason for wanting to dine out, because it would give me an opportunity to take my new MacBook out on the town as well. 8)

One of the features I have been most eager to try is almost not even a feature to most Mac users. It’s the fact that you can simply shut the lid and put the laptop to sleep. If you’re a Mac user, this may seem old hat, but for Windows users, this is a very big deal.

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Wow, what a day! After knocking out a few small fires, I was finally able to hit the power button and dive in to setting up my new MacBook and what a swim it was. I had hoped to post smaller posts throughout the day, but things were just too hectic — between work, the huge storm that blew through town and my intermittent Comcast connection, there just wasn’t enough time. This is the first Mac that I’ve ever set up for myself as a primary machine, so I’m really going deep into the whole experience and go through it step-by-step.

The Packaging
I have to say, when you’re sitting there about to un-box your new pride and joy, there is just a little bit of doubt and buyer’s remorse that begins to surface. “Was this really the best laptop for me?” “Can I really afford this purchase?” Well, all doubt fell to the back of my mind lifting the lid on the box.

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I just got back from CompUSA and although I’m very excited about setting up my new MacBook, I was a little disappointed in the trip to CompUSA itself. I think this was a case of where I had over hyped what to expect, so it’s simply a matter of building something up in my head to something more than it was.

First off, let me just say that, Justin and Arnold at CompUSA were great. Arnold always takes good care of me and Justin was right there with my MacBook. My buying experience could not have been better. It’s just that the crowd wasn’t there that I was expecting. Let me back up.

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