I switched. Twice. This is my story...

APPLE LAUNCHED THE switch campaign one year ago. People loved or criticized it, but I believe the guys at Cupertino get the right point. People switch. Everyone. I did. The first computer I used (and I used it for a long time) was a home computer, a Commodore 64 I bought (well, my parents, of course, but this is not the point) in 1984. Mac was brand new, something very attractive, I've seen it for a long time on advertising and magazines. But it was an "adult box" (painless and cosy, but adult, not for kids).

I like to write, and I wrote for a long time. But part of the pleasure was the act of writing, using paper and pen. So, for a long time, I had no need for a computer. In two years, 1991-92, I met my first couple of Macs. The first was a Classic I. It was at University, studying Political Science. We started up a student newspaper, and the Classic was our machine thanks to the administration that gave the boxes to the students . Andrea Aiazzi, the editor-in-chief, was so intrigued that bought a Classic II, but when he was tired about this little beauty, I unfortunately lost the chance to buy it. Sometimes I think about that and I'm still sorry.

My mother is an architect. She bought a PowerBook 100 in 1992. I used it intensively, especially during two summer seasons. Then, I finally decided to buy a Mac for me. In 1993 it was time switch for the first time and to buy a Macintosh LcIII. I still have and sometimes use that beautiful old machine, full optional: math coprocessor, maximum Ram and VRam, 80 Mb HD.

Then, a long time (I bought a Sega Saturn, then Internet appeared but I chose a Sega Dreamcast) until it was the right moment for a G3. The first one: a desktop 233 Mhz G3 in early 1998. Great machine, but the only one that gave me not one but two major problems: the logic board fall one night and the HD another night. Sad story. But I was moving from Florence to Milan, and I decided to leave the two computers (the first still running Os 7.6.1, the other one Os 8.1) in my room. They are yet there, on my desktop.

So I was in Milan. Moving from one house to another, using only a Palm V (2Mb of ram, still good). I started to work at Catholic University in Milan and there I found a couple of Macintosh Lc 5 series and two terrific G4 Pci. And a friend of mine, Grazia Solazzi, who had a clamshell iBook. Great. I was addict again, Mac was a good word again and I was in desperate need of a computer. Time for video games was definitely out (ok, still using a Game Boy, but this is another story). Anyway there was still a problem.

The second time I switched it was from a Sega Dreamcast. Or maybe from a Palm V, as you prefer. My need was portability, because I had no chance to move a computer in a fast way from house to house. I remembered PowerBook 100 age (and my childhood, BTW) and I saw Grazia's example with that strange and colored clamshell iBook. Ok, maybe it was time for a Mac again. I decided: a laptop.

Which one? There was still some Pismo around, but the new 'books were a true revolution. In January 2001 there was the first Titanium, with a 400 or 500 Mhz G4. And then, in May 2001, it was time for the first dual usb 500 Mhz G3 iBook. Half the price of a Titanium, double speed of my not-so-old desktop G3, a huge custom 20 Gb HD and a maximum of ram: 640 Mb. Ok, it was my machine. The only problem was the Os. I did not understood that Mac Os X was in the pipeline, so I did not understood the lack of power of a cpu without Altivec and the fact that only 8 Mb of Vram would be a major issue.

I got the iceBook, the one white little brother I'm using now to write this words. I get it in August 2001, from AppleStore. No more old retail shop with a friend and a long time relationship. No discount, but probably this is a sign of time: I'm in a big city, alone (not really, but you get the idea), in a small flat. Perfect time for a laptop.

And now? After two years and an half, I'm a serious journalist, specialized in technology. I had the chance to attend two MacWorld (in SF) and one Apple Expo (in Paris). Internet is a daily part of my life, I travel a lot overseas. My office is in a backpack: iBook and a Nokia triband mobile phone. From few months, also a 15 Gb iPod with a Belkin Voice Recorder. That's it.

I was in Atlanta when local Apple retail Store open. I bought one AirPort base station and an AirPort card. The second, real revolution using a Mac. Maybe today is time to change laptop. I tested two Titanium, 800 Mhz and 1 Ghz, a 12 inch 867 Mhz Alluminium PowerBook and a 17 inch Alluminium PowerBook. Great machine, but I'm still in love with my iBook. It is a reliable and though machine, today with a G4 Cpu. What do you think, may be the next one 12 inch iBook will be 1 Ghz G4... Maybe it is time to get it. Maybe... I'm open to suggestions.