It has been two weeks since I bought an iMac. I have mainly spent those two weeks catching up on 10+ years of not using a Mac and unlearning all of those old Windows habits. Like closing a window doesn’t quit an application.

Here are the applications I have installed and an explanation as to why:

• Web Browser – Firefox, due to compatibility with the most web sites and the fact that Safari just had too many quirks that even pimpmysafari.com can’t solve. Plus I have run into some web sites that just make Safari die like there is no tomorrow.
• E-Mail – This one was a struggle, but I think I am going to stick with Thunderbird, which surprisingly looks decent on OS X. I have Mail an honest try for about a week, but it is very buggy and quirky when it comes to IMAP. It just didn’t feel right. Maybe I am too stubborn when it comes to using Thunderbird. I hope Mozilla adds address book and spotlight support soon though, those are the two things I miss most that Mail gets right.
• Instant Messenger – Adium, no contest. My brother swears by iChat, but I love the ability to connect to AIM, MSN, Yahoo, GTalk, etc. It has its quirks, but it seems to be having rapid development. Plus unlike its cousin, gaim, it actually looks good. I also have Skype installed and I like the mac version a lot.
• Music – iTunes of course. No contest (but no choice either).
• Photos – iPhoto, although I can see why people don’t like some of its quirks. This is the one application outside of Safari that needs the most work Apple. If Google ever decided to release Picasa for the Mac, it would wreck iPhoto.
• Office suite – Office 2004 actually is pretty good on the mac. Takes some getting used to, but Microsoft got this one right. I also have NeoOffice installed and man does it need some love in the speed department, but it is on its way.

Those are the major applications that I have gotten going right now. I have a bunch of small ones I downloaded and need to try out before I write up a bigger list.

I haven’t nearly played with my Mac this first week as much as I wanted to. That doesn’t mean that I am not enjoying it when I can use it!

What strikes me about it is how simple using a computer is. I am struck (especially how I still use a Windows laptop for work) how much I don’t need to do with a Mac. Not as many workarounds, no antivirus software to worry about, no constantly being careful when I open IE…the list goes on.

Want to install a program? Download it, drag it to the Applications folder. Want to delete a program do the opposite, except dragging it to the trash.

I started playing with Dashboard last night. Pretty cool, although I haven’t found any widgets that I really would use yet.

Time for some more mac adventures. Plus some screenshots to show it off. I promise.

The Mac just works. It feels the way a computer should feel.