Mac Life has a really great article about the history of the iMac.  I have had 3 iMacs myself.  The first was the original bondi blue model.  I remember being a little concerned that I no longer had a floppy drive, and that the only expansion ports that I had available were 2 USB ports.  Later, I realized that I didn’t need a floppy drive after all, and that was long before I started to worry about backups.  A year and a half later, I purchased an iMac DV.  Just after I started working for Apple in 2003, I bought my last iMac, a 17 inch iMac G4.  I loved the flat panel display.  After that iMac, I never went back to a CRT.  When I bought my PowerBook in 2005, I stopped buying desktop Macs until this past August when I bought a Mac mini to use as a test machine for Snow Leopard Server.  The Mac mini doubles as a test platform, and a personal computer when I need to work with a larger display than is provided by my MacBook Pro.  Every time I go into an Apple store and see one of the new iMacs, I can’t help but want one.  I find myself mentally trying to figure out how to fit the purchase into my budget, and justify it at the same time.

Oh well…  Maybe Someday.

The Complete iMac History — Bondi to Aluminum | Mac|Life.

TUAW reports Psystar’s sells numbers from their attempt to sell Mac clones.  Like a lot of Apple fans, I have watched this legal battle with a lot of interest.  What really confuses me is why a lot of people seem to be hell bent on finding ways to get Apple to license their OS to other manufacturers.  They tried this before in the late 90′s, and it was a total failure.  Apple makes the bulk of their profits through the sale of hardware, not software.  Why else is there only one version of Mac OS X for consumers, and one server version?  Every time someone buys a new Mac, or buys a new version of Mac OS X, they’re getting the “ultimate” version.  Apple does not see the need to nickel and dime their customers for features that should be in the OS anyway.

I don’t have a problem with people wanting to hack Mac OS X to run on unapproved, and unsupported computers.  However, those people do not have the right to re-sale their hacked versions of Mac OS X, and they don’t have a right to expect Apple to support their modifications.  Apple is free to kill off compatibility with unapproved hardware any time they see fit to do so.  Those of us who buy Apple computers enjoy having computers that run well, and are free of the annoying bugs associated with driver issues that plague Windows PC users.  For that, I don’t mind paying more for a Mac.

Psystar’s predictions… they’re a bit off.

This morning… like every morning since I got canned, I received no less than 3 emails from companies claiming to have read my resume. Normally, I would be very happy about this, but these emails are coming from insurance companies. Why in the hell would these companies think that someone who has spent their entire career in I.T., and wishes to continue working in I.T. want to start selling insurance? These emails are not coming from REAL people. They’re automatically spammed out to everyone who is searching for a job on Monster.com, Career Builder, etc. I wonder if the people who run these spam offers know just how disappointing it is to open your email thinking that maybe a new job opportunity is there only to find out that it’s from some damned insurance company who hasn’t even read your resume! I would setup a filter to block these stupid emails, but that could cause legitimate messages to be blocked. So, I’m stuck with receiving spam every day. I know these people aren’t really reading my resume because I inserted a header into my resume that explicitly states that I AM NOT interested in selling insurance.

The internet gives job seekers access to resources far beyond what we had available 20 years ago. I remember how hard it was to find a part time job while I was in high school. The search consisted of searching through the newspaper want ads, filling out applications over and over again, and driving all over town.  The only drawback to this wonderful resource that we have today is that it gives job spammers the ability to annoy the the living hell out of us with dumb ass emails claiming that they have read our resume, and that they’re very impressed. If I weren’t actually looking for a job, I would post a resume full of nothing but gibberish just to see what responses that I get.

Luckily, I have two opportunities that I will be exploring this week, so hopefully, this ordeal will end quickly.

Earlier this past Summer, I had the opportunity to upgrade to the iPhone 3GS.  I decided to wait because I felt that there was no compelling reason to upgrade.  It’s nice to know that Apple is testing the next generation iPhone.  I can’t wait to see what new capabilities that it brings.

The iPhone has some pretty good competition out there now.  The Palm Pre, new Blackberrys, and Android based phones have caught up with the iPhone in many ways, but they still lag behind in others.  The good thing for Apple is that the rest of the industry always lags behind.  It’s yet another reason why I’m an Apple customer.

Apple Starts Field Testing Next Generation iPhone 3,1 – Mac Rumors.

As I consider new career possibilities, I have begun a website redesign to help me launch a freelance consulting business.  Currently, I am not taking on customers since my phone service is still being paid for by the company that I just left.  Also, they have expressed concern over continuing to host my email service.  On Monday, I will move my email hosting to a great company called Get Sync’d.  They provide email hosting using Kerio Mail Server.  The email transition should be fairly easy.  I have already backed up all of my email.

This upcoming week, I have a meeting scheduled with another company specializing in Apple consulting.  If I start working with them, it means that this website will go back to being just a personal website.  I have also talked to a startup company that is interested in working with me as well.  Both of these possibilities would be good for me.  Now, it’s just a matter of deciding which is best.  I know I’ll do well no matter what, so the choice of which company to work with doesn’t worry me too much.  Right now, I just need to lay low, and not make my previous employer believe that I’m going to “raid the pantry” so to speak.  There are several customers that I have worked with over the past couple of years that want to continue working with me.  Out of respect to my previous employer, I am waiting on their approval to work with these customers.

This whole situation has me under considerable stress since I have my mom to care for.  I can’t let anything happen to her as a result of all of this.  That really is my biggest fear.  When I was laid off 8 years ago, I had only myself to worry about.  Things are different now.  I just have to work very hard, be creative, and hope for the best.