Episode 2 of "Can a PC Guy Become a Mac Guy?" got snowed out. If you remember the end of Episode 1, I was going to use the coupon I got at the Apple Store to set up a one-on-one meeting to resolve the rest of my questions. The appointment was for the morning of February 14. (Is there any better way to spend Valentine's Day than computer shopping?)

But that was the morning after 18 inches of snow got dumped on the Cleveland area. Strong winds and that much snow combined for nasty conditions. Most schools and businesses closed, and they were asking people to curtail non-essential travel. I didn't get a chance to try to explain "But officer, this is essential - I have an appointment at the Apple Store!" because it took four hours of shoveling just to get my driveway cleared. So while there's no direct Mac experience this week, there's still a few things to talk about.

Reader Response

Last week's story caused a big response. It went online at two places, at my own website and here at Blogcritics.com. At my own site, there was almost a 50 percent spike in page views for two days, mostly reading the story but also stopping by to read the blog. At Blogcritics, it generated a large number of user comments; it will probably be the second-most commented story I ever posted there. (The most comments ever came after the "Leg Lamp Wars" broke out during an article about the "A Christmas Story" house.)  I don't allow commenting at my own site, but a number of people took the time to email advice and recommendations on what to do.

In a sense, that kind of response wasn't surprising. Many people treat their choice of operating system, or their web browser, almost like a choice of religions. The first article was almost like me walking into an evangelical church service and announcing "I'm looking for Jesus." In both cases, you expect you'll find lots of people willing to help. I believe I thanked everyone individually, but if I missed someone, then Thank you!

Comparison Shopping

The other thing I was able to do before the storm was some Vista comparison shopping, at a Microcenter and at a Best Buy. (Please save the Best Buy comments - I'm perfectly aware of the Best Buy shopping experience. But once you've reached a certain level of technical expertise, it's kind of fun to go in and play mind games with their salespeople.) This gave me a chance to play with Vista, and it also confirmed that it is nothing to really get excited about. If I bought a new Windows laptop, I'd just be buying another computer, something I do about every other year. However, if I bought a Mac, I'd be doing something "Different."