I have just finished reading and copying your “’Tis the Season” and found it to be exactly what I wanted to know. I found it a valuable source for anyone looking for compare games for the Mac. Thank you for a job well done.

—David F. Tiedt

I’m 62 and half retired (that is, the right foot in an activity of Web site design and translation, the left one resting…). More seriously I receive my copy of ATPM with delight and want just to say that I really appreciate the “spirit” not that caustic or gothic because I find the just info I need to stay in touch with the reality of Mac world.

Your issues curiously bring to me like a fresh breeze from other side of the Atlantic ocean and after reading articles and laughing after cartoons or admiring nice photographs from everywhere on the little planet I feel like “a papillon.”

Well just to say thank you again for the quality of your work and the involvement of your team.

—Jean Pierre Belliard, from coastal Picardy (North France)

I hope to completely avoid going back to Classic soon. As soon as I can find an OS X version of FoxBase Pro, I will use OS 9 for utilities only. Yes, it does take time to get used to OS X, but the rewards outweigh the issues, in my opinion.

Memory handling is much better. I usually have 12 to 14 apps open at once. Memory issues are gone. The system is stable. The only time I restart the computer is after I install a package that requires it. I happen to be a fan of the Dock. Between it and the Favorites Finder window, I don’t need to look any further for all of the things I use daily. Speaking of Finder windows, the 10.2.2 forward and back arrows are a great way to navigate to places you often go. Other customizable menu items in the Finder windows make them far more useful than in OS 9. OS X has a good user interface…it is just different. I would not volunteer to go back.

—Jayk6

I don’t necessarily agree about running back to OS 9 after using OS X. Once you get used to it, what you originally thought of as problematic becomes less problematic. There are numerous small programs that bring the OS 9 interface back to OS X. The biggest benefit? No more crashes. And the screen is so easy to read.

The biggest unsolved problem? Use a USB floppy drive and you get a new definition for slow.

I wouldn’t go back. There is just too much going for OS X when you get used to it.

—Gene

I enjoyed reading this article. However, from my experience, it is just a little negative.

I have not gone back to Classic for several months now, and I use a wide variety of programs from Adobe through Microsoft, and FileMaker Pro to a multitude of others.

The one area where I would appreciate more help is in the area of HP drivers; in particular for the LaserJet 2200D.

—Patrick Long

It does take a while to get used to OS X. It is, in general, a whole new way of doing things. At first, I wanted apps that let me do things the old way. I found that the more I used OS X the less I felt this way. In fact, the only old style helper app I find that I need is WindowShade. When I gave up on doing things the old way, got used to the new way, and started to find and use the many key shortcuts of OS X, I finally no longer wanted to go back. In fact, I no longer use OS 9 nor Classic. I boot into OS 9.1 about once a week to archive my e-mail in Eudora. I use Mail in OS X and love it. It’s the first mail app besides Eudora which I find usable. I set Mail to leave messages on the server and Eudora saves the messages and removes them from the server. One day, even that will no longer be done! OS X has opened a whole new world of wonderful video editing apps that just aren’t available for OS 9 at any price.

—Will S.

If only the OS X UI were “pretty” as deemed by the author. In addition to its mindless difficulties, it is about as aesthetically appealing as a pinball machine—an old pinball machine. (Well, better than a new pinball machine anyway.)

And Steve Jobs once charged Microsoft (quite rightly) with having no culture. Now Apple has joined the barbarians.

—Ed Williams

I couldn’t agree more. It’s obvious the NeXT programmers developed the UI. It’s an interface only a programmer could love. But hey, the geeks are happy. Who cares if it takes twice as long to manage your files with OS X. It’s finally got a terminal window, man!

My OS 9 machines connect to my networked laser printer with a single click on the Chooser. My laptop running Jaguar has options to select AppleTalk, TCP/IP, HTTP, USB printers, and more. Unfortunately none of them can find my printer.

Oh well, it gives me a hobby. Someday I’ll find just the right combination to be able to print. In the mean time, when I need to work I’ll use OS 9.

—RTMac

I do computer support for education. I’ve used OS X from the get-go on the theory that my customers would be using it. After, what—two years now?—I’m finally getting to the point where I miss some parts of OS X when I go back to OS 9, mostly in the smoother multitasking and better memory management.

But still, after “OS X immersion training,” it’s like a refreshing drink of water to go back to OS 9. The speed! The crisp screen display! The infinitely better file management! And, sadly, the superior user interface.

This is not a comment from someone who’s simply having trouble adjusting. I’ve got computers in the house running various Windows and Linux revs, and I use them comfortably. OS X eye candy is designed to be sold, not to be used.

—Scott Schuckert