Mac Loyalists

There are 25 million people around the world who use Macintosh computers, according to Apple. But unlike ordinary personal computers, people don't simply use Macs, they become fans. They develop a passion for the machines, which can sometimes turn into an obsession.
"Apple is like a strange drug that you just can't quite get enough of," the musician Barry Adamson told the Guardian newspaper. "They shouldn't call it Mac. They should call it crack!"

I was a Mac Loyalist even while using a PC, and until this week the only application that had caused me any difficulty at all was Microsoft's Internet Explorer. I know I should switch to Mozilla, alas it has a problem with OS X and Java applets. I know there is some sort of work around, but it sounds complicated. I know its not, but i've been lazy and so until I overcome that well it's too complicated. (update: the latest version 1.2.1 no longer has the problem, sometimes being lazy pays off.) The most serious problem (still a problem so if anyone wants to offer some insight don't be shy.) is also one that has to do with a Java applet, the one I use to display Chess Games. It uses text files of games for input in format called PGN short for Portable Game Notation. There is nothing fancy about the format it is straight text. Alas when I save text on my Mac it somehow breaks the applet in strange ways. One problem is that it won't properly read a single game. If I enter multiple game's all display properly but the first. Now I have a new problem, the applet begins to load the game and then the display board flashes on and off again. I'll figure it out eventually but have had no success to date. I thought perhaps it was because saving the text in DOS I got carriage return line feeds and on the Mac I think I'm getting just the ascii 10, but then I think the unix line feeds are the preferred for PGN. Just thinking out loud, sometimes that provides inspiration. I'll sleep on it for the third night in a row. Tomorrow....

Yep a Mac Loyalist, why, well using a PC is a little like driving a car that needs a wash job that you never get around too.