iPad Pro...It's Like Deja Vu All Over Again!

Well, the wait is over and the iPad Pro is available for sale.  The accessories like the keyboard and Pencil (why can't they just call it a pen?) however, are not.  So if you're picking up one of these beasts,  you're only getting the iPad at this point.  But, what better way to enjoy it in it's purest form, no?  Now, while I have NO intentions on getting one of these, I am finding it fascinating reading and listening to people who might get it talk about it.  What's particularly interesting to me is how this new product is causing a rift in the church of Apple.  Of course, there are those who love very Apple product no matter what, but their numbers seem to be shrinking.  Many of the faithful seem to be leaving the fold, openly criticizing the iPad Pro on the interwebs.  It seems the naysayers are becoming increasingly disenfranchised by the lack of innovation coming out of Cupertino, and who can blame them.  In some ways, it seems like Apple is moving backwards.  Case in point, my 2014 Macbook Pro has two USB ports, the 2015 version?  One.  Want to plug in an external drive and a memory stick?  Better have a hub!  With the new iPad,  they give it the PRO moniker, but don't give it the ability to use 3D touch?!?  Backwards thinking.  And really, what about the Pro is new anyway?  A bigger tablet with a keyboard and pen (sorry, pencil)?  Not new.  Remember the Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2?  It has a big screen, comes with a pen, and they sell a Bluetooth keyboard designed specifically for it.  Sound familiar?  And what about the Surface line from Microsoft.  Their first effort, the Surface RT was universally derided for not using a full-blown OS.  Microsoft learned from that mistake and has put the full version of Windows on every Surface since.  Did Apple learn from that?  Not so much.  And maybe that's what's bothering those folks who were once proud to go by the title of fanboy. Not only has Apple stopped leading the pack...they're following. 

Learning to Walk All Over Again...

Well, after staying home ALL day yesterday waiting for the UPS man to bring me my new MacBook Pro, he finally showed up at 6:30 PM.  What a waste of a day.  BUT, on the bright side, I did get my new Mac, my first Mac for that matter.  Here's what I noticed right away...

• REALLY slick looking machine in a nice understated way.  It's not all whored up like a lot of PC laptops I saw while shopping.  Simple, beautiful aluminum case.
• Lightweight.   It really is a laptop.
• Quiet.  You don't even know it's on, because there's no fan noise.
• Fast.  It boots up really quickly and opens programs in seconds.
• Maybe the best keyboard ever.
• Intuitive, if you're not already a slave to Windows.

I was going to do a list of pros & cons, but so far I haven't found anything not to like about this laptop.  Except, maybe the learning curve.  I'm not a programmer by any stretch of the imagination, but with a PC you have to learn your way around the machine's back alleys as a matter of necessity.  With the Mac, I almost get the feeling the machine is telling me, "yeah, don't worry why this happening, it just is", which is both comforting and disconcerting all at once.  I'm not used to trusting my computer to do exactly what I want without some prodding on my part.  So, for now, I just go with it.