Apple makes cool stuff besides the ipod.


Frankly, apple has always made good stuff. The ipod was just a fluke that caught on. They always made clean sexy stuff with a great UI and a good feel (except the newton.... whatever).

Their newest product (ok sort of new) is the Mighty Mouse. This is an update to the regular uni-button clear mouse, popular for the last couple of years with apple users. Interestingly they combined 2 things not ordinarily juxtaposed (ooooh, big word), a windows concept (a mouse with many many configurable buttons) and the Mac sensibilty (ergonomic, minimalistic).

Another interesting side effect here, is that to use the mouse on a Mac, software must be loaded, and then there is a control panel to map all the functions. HOWEVER when you plug this bad boy into windows it immediately works as follows, without any driver!

Left click
Right click
scrolly wheel
click scrolly wheel
Browser Back button and,
(just like the old Mac mouse) Cursor lock. [when you left click and drag, then squeeze the sides you can pick up the mouse, which would normally unclick, and move it and the cursor will stay left clicked until you release it the second time.]

so what I am saying is this:

1. I dig the no software (for PC)
2. I like the feel of the mouse
3. I like the cool added features
4. it works..... end of story.




I use some very intense custom software like: various custom graphical programming languages, AutoCAD, Video Editing, Audio Editing, Audio Mastering, and the like. This mouse has supported every app, and every crazy one-off function in every proram gracefully and without fail.

I am reasonably certain my next computer purchase was to be a Mac, and that was decided awhile ago, but this goes beyond just reinforcing my thoughts about the superior store-bought OS (non linux in otherwords) and hardware and truly leads me to believe that Apple has real potential to keep chipping away at the PC market. I am not suggesting they will compete with MS on a large scale, and truly I am not entirely sure that a piece of hardware and software sitting at your feet is the future anyway, but if they can master something small and silly like a really good mouse, whose to say they won't find a niche in the future?

BUT, there are 3 things they need to take away from this:

1. they need to be in touch with the user's current modus operandi. Why do I say this? Because the mouse is wired. WIRELESS!

2. they need to find a happier middle ground of marketing. The news today is filled with the millions and millions the ipod campaign has cost, yet they rely on viral marketing only for pretty much everything else they make. I only found this mouse because i happened to stop into an apple store to test a Mac Mini.

3. They need to return to the ipod schema. Stop refining products every 2 weeks (like the ipod which in 4 short years has had around 12-14 updates, my guess) and go back to spending the bucks on R & D to create an entirely new product, or an earth shattering change to an existing one (only 3 updates to the origial mac mouse since the 80's: from beige to clear, from clear to wireless and now the mighty mouse)


I want apple to succeed. I see the free/OSS software revolution coming (duh! like everyone else) and I see that it will take a big market share from MS, but it will take most of the market share that apple has earned. Apple will go back to the ultimate niche machine. Great for graphics, Audio and Video editing, and not much else... and this time Apple might not find the next big thing (whatever that will be) in time to save it.

-c