Contributed by Staff September 1, 2004 11:34 PM

As if there aren't enough things that frustrate me about being a Mac user. Well not exactly about being a Mac user so much as being a Mac user among users of other systems. This arrangement creates opportunity after another for annoyances and pet peeves. And that is what this piece is about. A pet peeve, but I promise to keep it short.

There are plenty of gripes. Things like, having to put up with ISP constraints due to the insecurity of my fellow Windows using Net surfers, and the incessant criticism of pricey Apple hardware. This one however--while nothing all that important really, needs to be said.

The operating system Apple makes is Mac OS X. Please note the three (3) separate pieces to this name. It's not MacOSX, Mac OSX, or even Mac OS. And while I see any of these forms frequently, the one I despise is referring to the Mac as MAC. The name Mac is not an acronym but refers to the computer. Mac OS X is the name of the operating system that runs on the Mac.

To the more casual user the distinction between Mac OS and Mac OS X may not be important. If this describes you, the piece "Mac OS X is Mac OS X" from February 2002 might help. But no matter how serious a Mac user you are, or if you are even a Mac user at all, there really is no need to spell it MAC.

On second thought, perhaps this isn't even a computer-related issue. Let me see if I can post this to some English grammar board.


© 2004 Kaomso