The Halo Effect

I'm a PC guy, I have been for years.  I remember working on an Apple IIe and thinking "this will never be like Windows" and "This is the worst operating system ever, why does it always crash?".

Here I sit, holding my iPhone in my hand, wondering why I went so long without hopping on the bandwagon.  I used to swear by Android devices, I had the limited edition Star Wars R2-D2 Droid for a long time, proclaiming that it was the greatest phone ever made.  Now with this tiny sleek/smooth/keyboardless device, I've felt more connected than I ever have with any other cell phone.  When I say connected, I mean that in a social network sense.  On a daily basis I am using Instagram, Oink, Path, Pinterest, along with the cross platform Facebook and Twitter apps.  I am engaged on this device on a whole other level than I ever was with my Android device.  Now don't get me wrong, I still like Android and I think that it has a fantastic OS but I just feel it has too many options for me to want to manage.  As I get older I want things to be simple.  Does that make me a fanboy?

I was against the iPhone/iPad/iPod for years, but now that I have one, and I am using it, I regret I didn't start earlier.  The worst thing of all, is that with so much use of my iPhone, I have now convinced myself that I want a Macbook air.  I tell myself "I'ts okay, you always have your Windows PC to fall back on" but how long until I want that replaced too? (Not likely, considering how many video games I play and Apple lacks the library)  So how did I convince myself I wanted a Macbook air you ask?  Easily, development.  I've been toying around with the idea to develop apps/programs for the past 6 months now.  I've been working in Javascript and self teaching myself C++, but to what end? What did I want to develop?  The end-all answer is an app for the iPhone.  By accepting that fact I had a starting point, a launch pad from where to my creative ideas could pour.  Of course I could download the SDK and get it to work in a Windows environment, but I would prefer to work on it in it's native OS.  Thus birthed the idea to get a new laptop...

All of this because I finally used an iPhone.  Apple has caused this Halo effect and I have fallen completely down their rabbit whole.  Soon I will be on of those users, in the Apple store, swapping stories with the kid over the counter at the Genius bar *Shudder*.  Now I just have to tell my parents...