Mac os x on my (non-apple) laptop.

Mac os x is a beautiful OS, usually shipped on equally appealing hardware. Problem: I'm not willing to fork out $1500 for a computer, so I decided, after some research, to get a laptop with compatible hardware and install Mac os x on that. I chose to use the iAtkos S3 disc which is a modified version of 10.6.3, since it comes with lots of drivers and save me having to mess around with memory sticks etc.

I burned it to a DVD stuck it in and booted up. After reading the instructions I formatted my disk into three partitions (Mac, Windows, Debian) and proceeded to the driver selection screen. This was the toughest part, selecting drivers for my hardware, but I managed it without to much hassle and after ~30 minutes my computer booted up to the beautiful sound of mac os x playing to my ears.

Using it, I can't tell the difference in performance between this and a "real" Macbook pro. It was a fair bit of effort but now that I have a fully working macbook pro 12" for under $750, it seems worth it.

C++ vs Java

C++ is one of the most hardcore, awesome languages to have graced the computer world. It's raw power and speed combined with excellent OOP support, which makes it one of the best. But recently I've turned my eye to java. Java is alot of the things C++ isn't; it's slow, with automatic memory management, forced OOP and alot of other things that make it very different. I have, however been finding it to be very productive since I started programming in it.

I started out by making a (not so) simple program to check my mail and tell me if it's found anything. I was blown away at speed and ease in which I completed it. All the restrictions sucked, but my code looked plain awesome, which, coupled with it's short length in comparison to doing it in C++, had me hooked.

After completing a few more projects, I have come to the conclusion that Java certainly has it's place in my toolbox. I still enjoy coding in C++, and I prefer to do my work in that if it's not going to drag it out, but my old view (perhaps caused by ignorance) that Java was plain retared has definetly changed.