So long and thanks for all the fish

My work laptop arrived, an HP dragonfly. My home machine has been replaced by an AMD Ryzen beast that rivals a Mac Pro and my only Apple items left is my phone and the kids iPads so my time at AppleTalk has come to an end.

Its been a 12-year journey for me on Apple, going back to the arrival of my Macbook Black, a long period of which was spent on Mactalk, and now AppleTalk.

I leave a little disillusioned by Apple’s current strategy and execs that I think lost touch with the market thanks to their fat paychecks, the stupid XD display and overpriced Mac Pro, the dumbing down of machines to the point of stupidity, the removal of any upgrade capability, the failure to produce a hybrid, the removal of every conceivable port so you have to carry 12 adapters, a decline in the quality of goods. These don’t align with me. Maybe the ARM direction is the right direction, but for me, for now, it isn’t.

Thanks to everyone in the community, been a great group of users. Maybe we’ll see you in a couple of years, but for now, my journey on Apple’s Mac OS has ended. I’ll miss Mac OS, mainly spotlight and iMessage.

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Damn… I know how you feel, but luckily I am not working any longer, and retirement means I don’t have a need for the latest of anything. Its the prospect of no longer being able to use MacOS in any form that keeps me in the system. I’ll keep using my 2010 and 2012 machines until they no longer do what I want, and then, I will likely just use the ipad and iphone and not bother with a computer (as such) at all.

Will miss you too.

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You will be missed MissionMan, you’ll leave a huge hole in the shrinking regular user group.

But I hear and understand what you’re saying and I share many of your views about this issue.

I’m no longer using an Apple Desktop or an Apple Laptop, just an iPad and an iPhone.
But I’m choosing to stay on here (at least for now) because my daughters use Macbook Airs still and my SO has a MacBook (and I’m the first point of call when there is an issue so MacTalk is still useful to me).

But the oldest daughter is no longer studying and won’t be replacing her laptop when it finally dies, she’s content with an iPad and iPhone. The SO and the younger daughter have newer laptops but those probably won’t be replaced either.

So my time here is limited and I suspect I’ll be doing the same as you at some point.

It’s a shame but it’s the way Apple has chosen to move their product line.

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You will be missed MissionMan - you contributed some gold info here and at MT.

I’ve personally doubled down on Macs, just brought a new Mac Mini literally a week ago, and running two MacBook Pros and 4 iPad Pros at home (wife and kids).

MacOS is still my OS of choice, considering the alternatives.

Take care, and who knows, you may be back soon!

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Your reasons are rational missionman, I can’t quite make myself do the same even though I am in the process of getting a dragonfly too at work.

Maybe the Apple silicon macs will entice you back in time,

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As someone who has benefited greatly from the advice of those a lot more Mac-savvy that I am, I, too am sorry when such an experienced member fades away or announces the intention to leave. (Maybe have a parting look at what I am about to post about resurrecting my old G4, please :slightly_smiling_face: before we say ‘Farewell’?)

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All the best to you MissionMan!

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All the best @MissionMan. We’ve had a few interactions (buying and selling stuff) which have always been great. Your contributions will be missed. Enjoy the new PC! (said with no snark!). I can appreciate how hard it is to choose a Mac if you’re not heavily invested the ecosystem these days.

My personal feelings mirror @Erwin’s. When the Apple ecosystem is working (which let’s be honest, isn’t always the case!) I love Photos, iMessage & the general macOS UX. I find I fight with Windows every time I run it, and I just find it so clinical in it’s design that it’s not for me.

I’m actually also more excited about the future of the Mac than I’ve been in 10 years with Big Sur and ARM, but I do still bemoan the lack of a reasonable desktop that doesn’t have a built in display, while allowing decent GPU performance. If I’m going to have to have a PC again now (for games) then I sure as heck don’t want a built in 5K display. So I’m on an old trashcan with an eGPU while I wait for an ARM Mac mini. :crossed_fingers: that when it does arrive it still supports eGPUs!

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