Today The Brides are making a quick run to Austin to deliver Lindsey’s, Jennifer’s, and my paintings to the Creative Fidelity exhibit. They’ll be back this evening, but Margot, Guinness, and I get Sugar’s company in the meantime. This is always a treat. Yesterday, Tim and I shared custody of Minute, Sparky, and Paco. Paco was my best friend until Lynne got here for dinner, then he was through with me. Faithless beast.
On their way out of town, The Brides were kind enough to drop me at the post office so I could ship review copies of novels to Italy. Since I’d taken allergy medicine before I left the house, it was actually pleasant (the weather is GORGEOUS) to treat myself to lunch out. Then I did the thing that any writer with a new computer and an entirely different operating system might perceive as ecstasy: I purchased a brand new and current edition of Microsoft Office. My word processing software since 1987, I stuck with Microsoft through the Word Perfect craze–until Microsoft Word emerged victorious. Installing it this afternoon has made me almost giddy.
Or maybe that’s the allergy medication.
Melting a Mac
How could you do such a thing!? Microsoft, on a Mac??
(PS- I am horribly biased against MicroShaft WinBlows, mostly because it crashes more than a Sinclare ZX and people for some reason just accept that. Vista was a failure and the home edition of Windows 7 my Mom has is worse than pathetic. I’m more of a Linux/Unix/Mac/OS/2 guy. Did you try OpenOffice.org? It’s the Free M$ equivalent, though I think the older version of OpenOffice.org was less point and click. M$ shouldn’t do both, make an OS and expect everyone to buy their software.)
Re: Melting a Mac
BUT: I remember the days when Mac PCs were new (1980s), and I was fortunate enough to get to do my work on them. Software developers couldn’t be bothered to create software for Mac, sticking with their DOS-based users. Microsoft Word took the risk and created a brilliant word processing product when no one else did. Out of all similar products I’ve used over the years, I still say nothing else can touch it.
Microsoft software is a separate entity from Microsoft Windows. Even so, I’m not a Windows or Bill Gates hater. Personal computers are still in their infancy, and it’s amazing how quickly their prices have been driven down, their accessibility has become so widespread, and industry leaders such as Gates and Jobs have been visible in trying to marry progressive thinking on such issues as fairness in the workplace and becoming green to good business practices. Both companies have made missteps along the way and have come under scrutiny with reason. But, again, how could that not happen with technological trailblazers?