Switch to Mac!

And as my hairline takes another leap towards the nape of my neck, Future Publishing Ltd is delighted to announce another special, MacFormat presents Switch to Mac!, this time aimed at the burgeoning ‘switchers’ market, those krazy kats who are switching from PC to Mac in their tens of thousands. (Over half of all Macs sold are sold to those who’ve never used a Mac before, Apple tells us.)

Like its stablemate The Essential iPhone Handbook, it’s a thing of beauty. I didn’t edit this one, but I wrote about a third of it all told; I’ve been going through it again just now to put the graphics together for this post, and I’m really proud of what we’ve created. There’s loads of information in there, including which Mac is right for you, how to migrate your data from your PC to your new Mac, and how to use all the best-of-breed media applications that all Macs ship with. Plus there’s troubleshooting advice and some ideas on essential kit you can add to your Mac setup; it’s all written specifically for ex-Windows users, too, with liberal use of terms Windows users will be familiar with, and jargon-busters and dictionaries galore.

Go! Buy a copy for the switcher in your life!

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Natales: Buon

And so we threw our Jenny’s-birthday-cum-winterval-cum-we-haven’t-had-a-party-in-far-too-long Party, collectively known as the Buon Natale. Prosecco was chilled, fancy meats were bought from the ridiculously middle-class deli in Bath, the ConGen 8000* was cranked up, and a fine old time was had by all. We hope. The Copes drove through from Historic Cardiff™ – cursing this country’s odd little badly-lit country lanes – and the redoubtable Mr Thomas brought his lovely lady along from, um, a few minutes down the road.

As is now traditional at parties, Mrs Phin and I were loud and boorish, though in an ‘entertaining’ fashion. The food was nom-worthy, the music swingin’, and, most importantly of all, the guests utterly charming.

I did manage to make myself ill at the end of the night – tiredness? my cold? too much alcohol? that one little cheroot? – and I strained my poor sore throat so much that I really can’t talk today and have to communicate with Jenny through sign language and email, but it was still much fun. Thanks, Copes and Thomas-Passmores!

Buon Natale

* The ConGen 8000 was a box wrapped in tin foil, featuring a door and a fake handle, that was filled with facts, ‘would you rathers’ and questions, authored by my mildly psychotic wife.