Continually, year over year, Apple has been selling more Macs. This year has been no exception- the Mac market share continues to grow. This years surge might have seen more sales thanks to Vista or, release of Leopard. Either way, there is some kind of ‘iPod Halo’ effect going on.

Be it the iPod, Leopard or iPhone- Apple is getting their name out and, people are moving to the Mac. It is interesting to watch a new generation of switchers come to the platform after using a Mac for the entirety of my computing life. Many new switchers seem to be mesmerized by Photo Booth or iChat video conferencing- which my cousin and I laugh at, we were doing this almost 5 years ago! The new switchers seem to neglect some of the founding principles of the Mac platform because, face it- they’ve been using Windows.

While other PC users rejoice that they no longer have to run Anti-Virus or Spyware programs anymore on their Mac, which is something that I still do not do on my PC or Macs (yes, I own 4 PCs). The change of Mac users from the generally more computer literate to the less literate will be interesting. The iPod is simple, powerful and, successful. Although the Mac is built around the same concept, it is a computer.

I have found, working with other people who aren’t very computer literate that they prefer a static setup- be it Windows or Mac OS. They want everything to look the same, nothing to change- all they want to do is check their email (or whatever it is). So you can (or can’t) imagine how a switch to a Mac from a PC can become traumatic for those accustomed to Windows- they just want to go back.

The same can be said about the switch from VHS to DVD- other than video geeks, it takes a couple years for ‘the masses’ to make the switch. The switch usually comes with a hardware replacement. For example, our VHS player stopped working so we bought a DVD/VHS combo about 6 years ago. When that dies, we will probably just get another DVD player- especially considering the status of the new formats. So, Vista is what is brining PC users to the Mac OS- their XP machine needs replacement, and fearing Vista (or after experiencing it), they get a Mac.

Keep tuned for Part III.

–Matt Dodd