When I was contemplating joining a cult purchasing a Mac, my major hesitation concerned the availability of programs comparable to those I was familiar with as a Windows user. Not that I’m a hacker-code-cracker, but I’m pretty comfortable using – and utilizing – computers and I have specifics that I look for in software. The Partner’s response to my concerns was along the lines of, “Are you fucking kidding me? You’ll be in open source heaven on a Mac.” After five weeks of using my iBook I know that if there was a god, it would use a Mac.
I’ve found an FTP program I like, Cyberduck, and tonight I installed two of the most kickass open source software I’ve yet to download: Fink and the GIMP. The Partner is to thank for Fink, as he told me to download it because I would need it and “it’s cool, just trust me.” It’s been sitting on the desktop for a couple weeks and I got around to installing it tonight. With Fink, I can easily install tons of Unix open source software, all through the command line. I’m still freaky about using a command line (not to mention the geek factor involved), even though my very first “laptop” was a (http://cgi.ebay.com/1992-Vtech-Precomputer-2000-laptop-4-Educ-carts-MINT_W0QQitemZ6058329339QQcategoryZ2518QQcmdZViewItem)* Pre-Computer 2000 that allowed me to learn some BASIC. I’ll take my time with Fink, but the GIMP wins second place in my download hall of fame.
For me, the GIMP was like discovering OpenOffice, in a “you mean this shit is for free?” sort of manner. Whereas the OpenOffice suite is comparable to MS Office, so is GIMP to Photoshop. But OpenOffice and GIMP are infinitely better because they are free, open source, just as (if not more) powerful, more user-friendly, and did I mention free? They’re also available for Windows.
I warned you my inner geek would show.
* EDITED 07-24-08: PreComputer2000 link expired.
I’m a recent Mac convert myself. I spent last years tax return on a Powerbook and I’ve never been more happy with a computer. OS X Tiger is just plain rad. And it is true…after a while, you’ll start hating Windows
(if you don’t already)
I get depressed when I have to use a Windows box.
The NeoOffice 2.0 beta for PPC is out. It’s a Cocoa-fied port of OpenOffice 2.0 so it fits better with the Mac look & feel. I haven’t used it much but it should be working reasonably well by now.
And if you want a GUI frontend to Fink, check out Fink Commander, which seems nice enough. I just wish it was more like Synaptic, which I use on my Ubuntu box.