At the same time, my Nokia E71 is now slowly dying (charger pin getting loose so that it does not charge properly anymore). I have been thinking maybe I should go with one of those giant-screened Android phones like the HTC Desire or the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10. Buying one of these phones will be around the same as buying a 3G Ipad. Hmmm!

Naturally when I went back to using my MacBook running Leopard 10.5.8 I felt that I was missing something. Even though browsing the net with Firefox on the MacBook was generally pretty snappy, I felt a longing for something similar to the Chrome experience on Windows XP. Since I heard that the Chromium team was releasing experimental builds for Chrome on Mac OS X, I thought I would download it and check it out.

I went to the Chromium website and downloaded a zip file containing the latest build of Chromium (version 4.0.223.4 (29381)). I unzipped the file and run it from the folder on the desktop and it asked to be the default browser, so I let it be the default browser. After that, I decided to move it from the desktop to the Application folder and just put a link in the Dock so I can run it without having to search through the folder.

Keeping in mind that this was an experimental build, I was prepared to encounter some bugs and crashes, but so far I have not found any serious ones. The only thing I have noticed is that it makes my MacBook spin the fan hard whenever Flash content was encountered. While this could be a bug in Chromium for Mac OS X, having worked with the Flash player for a while and having witnessed its voracious appetite for system resources on OS X, I am not at all surprised if the bug is in the Flash player itself rather than in the Chromium browser.

All I can say is that this build of Chromium is almost ready for prime time and I have been using it daily for the last four weeks without any major issues. It kind of makes me forget to use Firefox and Stainless for a while. It would be really nice, though, to be able to import all your settings (cookies, bookmarks and all) from Firefox into Chromium.

After trawling through some forums and blog discussions, I found a Dashboard widget called Deep Sleep which is easy to use (one click) and seems to reliably put the notebook to sleep without wake up crashes (that’s what happens to me when waking up early morning). So if your macbook is a little insomniac like mine, then do give it a try.

Annoying? Well what do you think? The waking up process, which is supposed to be quicker than starting it cold, takes a lot longer and then you have to force the notebook to reboot. This is unacceptably inefficient and not to mention scary. I keep thinking that there is something wrong with the hardware, but it does not get worse, it just seems to happen with any resource-intensive application.

The solution is apparently very simple: just open terminal and type sudo rm /var/vm/sleepimage, then enter your password and then if there is no error, you have just deleted the sleepimage file, which is where the content of your RAM gets dumped when the computer goes to sleep. When done, just reboot the machine and all should be fine. I even tried running Photoshop and then putting the Macbook to sleep and it wakes up fine.

So if your MacBook has a crash on wake up (that’s what happens to me in the mornings), then just delete that sleepimage file in /var/rm and it should be recreated afterwards and everything should be fine. It is particularly wise to do this after upgrading your RAM. I upgraded mine from 1GB to 3GB and did not know that I had to do this.

My experiences with store level service by staff members of the local Apple resellers vary wildly depending on which store I happen to walk into. I have dealt with staff members from Frequency (now Next Byte) at Rushcutters Bay in Sydney both over the phone and in-store and they have been generally friendly and helpful. On the other end of the spectrum, the Academy store in Bondi Junction has not consistently been friendly or helpful.

While I was looking around to purchase my Macbook, I met with a couple of very friendly staff members at the said store who took the time to show me around the products and accessories as well as the features. I was so impressed with them and I returned a couple of weeks later and purchased two Macbooks (the black ones) and a couple of accessories.

A few months later, I returned to the store to find that not only the mood had changed in the store, they also had a security guard at the front who opens the door for customers. While it might be necessary for the store to have a security guard, I feel the store had lost its openness andbecome like a jewellery store that locked its doors and only let a select few inside.

Once inside, I went around to look at a few things and then I decided to get what I came for, which was a mini DVI to VGA adaptor cable. When I went to the shelf that had the cables I found that it was locked (it had glass doors) so I walked over to the counter to ask a staff member for some assistance. Immediately when I got to the counter one of the two staff members just walked away while the other one was on the phone. The man on the phone signalled to me to wait a minute while the other one did not even acknowledge that I was there.

After waiting for a few minutes, the other man returned and asked me if I needed help. I told him what I needed and after getting it for me, he asked me if I knew what I was going to use it for. Having been ignored, I was a little offended so I asked him why he was asking me the question. He simply told me that they would not accept a return of the item for a wrong purchase and that it had to be returned within seven days. While it might be store policy, I found that the way this was being handled to be unnecessarily rude.

I had come to the store for a particular item, which I knew the name of and the specific connection on either end of the cable. I was then ignored for a few minutes (a simple:”I will be with you in a minute” would have been great) and then I was treated like an idiot by being asked if I had an idea what I was buying. This particular experience really changed my attitude toward the store as a whole. Later, when I mentioned this to a few of my friends (all Apple users) they relayed their negative experiences with the store as well.

When the Macbook Air came out, I visited the same store a month later and there I found the Macbook Air inside a glass case that was locked. Now, I know that the Macbook Air was not cheap (AU$2,499), but they were displaying Macbook Pros on the display desks that you could touch and operate even though they were worth almost a whole thousand dollars more. The reason why I came there in the first place was because I thought I could look at one on display to see if it could be my next purchase.

Luckily, afterwards I went to the shopping mall nextdoor and found that at the JB HiFi store they had a Macbook Air on display. In there I got to touch it with my hands and I got to feel the overall shape of the notebook. I even got to look at the lone USB port.

Well, next time I need to look at an Apple notebook or desktop I know where I can look at them and it won’t be at the Academy store. If I don’t go to the Academy store then obviously I will be buying my Apple fix from other places. Bye, bye!

Bring on the official Apple Store!