No, I didn’t go out and buy one of those new iMacs. Not yet anyways. But I’m absolutely in love with the new look and it is inevitable that I’ll be getting one, probably at the end of this year after Leopard comes out. I was thinking about whether I should buy a new iMac since my current 20″ G5 iMac has been really just a back up PC. My desk is fairly deep and it was sitting at the back making it hard to reach the keyboard. I used it mostly for listening to music, downloading files, movies etc. If I bought the 24″ it would probably just be there in the same spot doing the same thing. So I decided to do an experiment and put the iMac downstairs in my living room to see if I would use it more.
When I moved into this house I said to myself that I would keep my computers in one room. The living room was for living, sitting. No electronics in the bedroom, it was for sleeping and, you know, other things. In Japan, it’s a luxury to be able to separate your activities into different rooms. I’m really lucky. Up until now I’ve lived in one room apartments where my PC was next to my head and I would sleep listening to the fan all night. Terrible. But as time went on, I carried my laptop everywhere in the house, thanks to 802.11n, and I ended up putting a 20″ TV and DVD player in the bedroom. I can’t seem to break my old ways.
The other day, I went and got a really cheap table, in case I didn’t like the set up so wouldn’t feel guilty about throwing out the completely good table. I used a cloth to cover the ugly table and positioned the imac on it. And to my surprise it is a very comfortable spot for computering. Just between my living room and my dining room. I feel embarrassed calling it a living room and dining room because my house is so small that it’s just one room really. Maybe I should say living/dining “spot” instead. With the iMac downstairs I can listen to podcasts while eating breakfast and if I need to check some info on my way out I don’t have to run upstairs. I can watch TV from this spot too which is convenient although I hardly ever turn it on. I still haven’t gotten a proper stand for my TV yet either. The downside of this move is that now I cannot escape the Internet. Anywhere I go I’ll be tempted to check my mail or waste time reading something online. The more I make my home comfy the less I’m motivated to go out and do real things.
>>”No, I didn’t go out and buy one of those new iMacs. ”
Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!! You disappoint me, Roy! (^_-)
That table the iMac is on looks pretty decent in the photos (looks like marble). I see you still need a TV cabinet/stand…
Just be sure to turn the WiFi off at night if you are sleeping with the machine next to your head!
I have a problem with the idea that “real” things involve leaving the house or that what you do on the computer is a less valid leisure activity than reading a book or watching T.V. or whatever else burnt out people do to unwind after a day of work.
The way I see it is that you have to consider the mental and/or emotional growth you experience from doing something as the primary factor in how “real” it is. There are people who go out with friends all the time and get drunk who are getting less growth from the experience than you (or I) do from writing blog posts (which is a mental exercise itself).
As for getting a new iMac, they do look cool (most Macs do) but I don’t think they’re worth it unless your old computer is too slow for your needs.
Eddie, how can you even see the table in this dark photo?
Mike, roger that.
Shari, I just meant real vs virtual. Also, I need to run some trading programs on Windows but I would rather spend more money on a nice Mac than on a Dell or something equivalent. In this case, value for money is not as important to me as having the “one” I want.
Roy,
I completely understand your problem. I have totally removed any computers from my bedroom. It is too tempting to browse the internet from bed. But I do something worse, I play my play station 2 from bed. It does make me relax though, at least I am not surfing useless crap. I am driving useless races in Gran Turismo 4.
Cheers.