I’m sure you’ve seen Apple’s new hyper-thin laptop the MacBook Air – touted the world’s thinnest notebook. It’s so thin it can fit in a manilla envelope. If you haven’t seen the 30 second TV spot yet, check this out…

Now that you have the background of the original, watch this great parody.

Yes, I’m a Mac user and a huge fan (though I don’t consider myself one of the cult). And yes, I’m planning to get a MacBook Air very soon.

What browser do you use?

Being a Mac user I hardly ever think about Internet Explorer except when I’m coding and testing websites. Primarily I use Camino (love it) and Safari (now available for Windows). Sometimes I open Firefox, though most for StumbleUpon. And I really love OmniWeb’s thumbnail tabs. And, of course, I didn’t mention probably the best browser I don’t use much – Opera. Okay, maybe I have a bit of an obsession, but each of these have some great features that the others don’t.

But most people, however, don’t use multiple browsers. They choose one browser and stay with it. And it appears more and more people are choosing Firefox.

And that’s exactly what my stats in Google Analytics showed me this morning. Two-thirds of all my site visitors this year are using Firefox. And less than one-third are using Internet Explorer.

Now I do have a bit higher rate of Mac users – around 12%, but that certainly doesn’t account for the huge percentage of Firefox users.

What I’m thinking is that a large number of bloggers use Firefox. Why? And why are so few using Internet Explorer? And what does this say about browser trends?

An article from Popular Science that I saw predicts that by 2009Â Firefox’s market share could be as high as 50%. When I read it I thought, “no way.” But looking at my stats makes me think otherwise.

Then I found a post from PC World reporting that Firefox’s market share in Europe is nearing 30% – almost double the U.S. market share.

Does it matter?

I’m not sure. But maybe you know. I’d love to hear your thoughts.

What browser is most used in visiting your site?Â

Ever lose your client calendar? Well, neither had I…until Friday.

By some odd combination of keystrokes, I deleted my client calendar within Apple’s iCal.

iCal is neat in that I can have multiple calendars that can service different puposes. I have different calendars for family, home, personal appointments, holidays, birthdays, etc…and, of course, my work calendar where I keep detailed track of all my client work.

But not any more. The client calendar is gone. Yeah, I know what you’re thinking…just select ‘undo.’ Tried it, it was grayed out. Next I spent two hours on the phone with Apple trying to get the calendar back – only to be told that once it’s deleted it’s deleted. Not in Trash. Not in cache. Gone. This I found odd that the file wouldn’t end up in Trash or that it couldn’t be rebuilt.

Funny thing, I wasn’t asked to confirm if I wanted it deleted. It just got wiped away. And I still have no idea what keys I hit that made it happen. Could this be rare? Do I feel safe using iCal for business anymore? Not sure yet.

Yes, there is a backup feature. But it’s manual and I’ve never bothered with it. That will change.

In the meantime, I’m looking for a new calendar program for the Mac. I do like iCal, but am thinking maybe it’s time for a change.

I’ve been running all my client work through iCal, Address Book and Merlin (project management software) because they all easily integrate. I do have Filemaker Pro and use it to store client passwords, etc. I’ve been thinking of moving my address book and calendar to it, but I’m not fond of the learning curve nor the time it’ll take to create the database layout I’ll want.

Any suggestions on other calendar systems for the Mac? And remember, back up your calendar.

I’ve always loved the feeling that a good string of words can incite. Whether a quote from a speech, a line in a book or a poem, I can easily be moved into a deeply contemplative space.

So it’s no surprise that I love song lyrics. Don’t get my wrong, I love the music behind the lyrics. But if I want music I’ll listen to classical or jazz – gotta love Monk on the ivories; Bird, Trane, Hawk or Sonny blowin’ sax or Charlie Mingus workin’ the bass. Then there’s Miles. But we’re not talkin’ jazz right now, we’re talking lyrics (okay, I know Bessie, Ella and Billie were amazing).

So Phil, there’s a taste of some of the music that makes my heart sing. But not always. I love jazz, but only when it feels right. For me to listen to Monk or Miles, I’ve gotta be with it. I’ve gotta feel it inside as though each note is waking up parts of my soul. That’s just the way jazz is for me.

But I’m not always in that place. Sometimes it’s the words in a song I want to inspire me. And that’s where it all gets tricky for me to express.

As my dear friend Adam Kayce knows, I’ve got tons of song lyrics packed away in my brain. And sometimes they just come flying out when he least expects them.

It’s actually difficult for me to pick one, or even five, songs that make my heart sing. Hilda asked for only one song to make thing easy on Joanna, Phil, Judith, Terry, Kirsten, Karen, Claire and the others she tagged. But I’m with Judith, I’m not finding this easy at all.

Why? Well, like Becca and Animaitaliana, there’s just so many options it’s hard to narrow it down. And because the music that makes my heart sing changes greatly with the mood I’m in. Truthfully, I love everything from the Blues to John Denver; Motown to Toad the Wet Sprocket; early 80’s rap to Prince, R&B and funk to Elton John and James Taylor. What I mostly don’t enjoy is Country, modern pop, and hip-hop.

In tagging me Adam mentioned he’s got 1800 plus songs in his iTunes. Well my iPod is carrying around over 5000 songs right now and iTunes tells me that’s about 30 days worth of music. The newest music I’m carrying is from Christine Kane – who I met, and heard, for the first time live at SOBCon07. She’s truly lovely – as a person, a songwriter and a performer. And I really enjoy her storytelling.

Okay, okay…maybe I am stalling. So I’ll share with you what I was listening to yesterday as I worked.

There’s no secret that I deeply love my wife and that I’m constantly striving to be a better husband, a better man, for her. One artist that inspires me from time to time is Brian McKnight. His lyrics, his voice, his expression all speak to my heart. Since I rarely listen to the radio anymore, I don’t know which of is songs are popular. But one of my many favorites is Never Felt This Way:

There will never come a day
you’ll ever hear me say
that I want and need to be without you.
I want to give my all.

Baby, just hold me.
Simply control me.
‘Cuz your arms, they keep away the lonelies.

(chorus)
When I look into your eyes
then I relize
that all I need is you in my life.
All I need is you in my life.
‘Cuz I’ve never felt this way about lovin’.
Never felt so good.
Never felt this way about lovin’
It feels so good.

How it takes my breath,
starts a pounding in my chest,
makes me weak, when I think about you.
Makes me wanna give my all,
Life wouldn’t mean a thing.
Not a happy song to sing,
just emptiness if I had to live without you.

(repeat chorus)

‘Cuz I’ve never felt this way about lovin’, darlin’
Never felt so good.
Never felt this way about lovin’
It feels so good. woo!

But it’s not just the lyrics. Listen to the delivery, the timing, the way he expresses the lyrics…

[audio:http://dmiracle.com/wp-content/audio/Never-Felt-This-Way.mp3]

Then there’s Discovery:

So now that I have seen
An angel spread it’s wings
Go on, lay me down
I can die now
Every since you came around
There’s a new love found

[audio:http://dmiracle.com/wp-content/audio/Discovery.mp3]

And since I’m certainly not perfect, I love So Sorry:

For all the wasted time that we cannot replace.
For everytime that a discussion turned into an argument, we’d fight.
Hey, how I wish that I could have it back tonight.

I’m so sorry for anything I might have done.
And I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt the only one,
And I’m sorry, the best laid plans sometimes fall through,
For anything that I might’ve done, I apologize to you.

[audio:http://dmiracle.com/wp-content/audio/So-Sorry.mp3]

So there you get a taste of my sentimental, openly emotional and soft side. Thanks for the space to share.

Now, I have to tag a few people I’d love to hear from – David Airey, Liz Strauss, Christine Kane (what one song truly inspires you?), Chris Cree (and Gorgeous too), Wendy, David, Char, Gayla, Carma, Randa, Lauren, Edward, Ben, Mark, Lorelle, and Scoble (Robert, this seems right up your alley).

And you…what song(s) inspire you? Lift your spirits? Express how you feel? Or just get the blood flowing? I’d really love to know…

Last week the D5 Conference wrapped up with a rare sit-down interview with both Steve Jobs and Bill Gates (full transcript).

There’s been a lot of posts written about the interview. Many folks have covered their relationship or the relationship between Apple and Microsoft.

I watched the entire interview (below is a highlight reel) as well. It was great to hear them answer questions and tell stories from each of their perspectives. And it’s certainly interesting to hear the humorous moments where one took a jab at the other – like with PC Man or Zune.

But I came away with a different perspective on each man. And ultimately a richer understanding of what makes Apple and Microsoft different.For the record, I’m a Mac user. Also for the record, I don’t hate Microsoft or think of Bill Gates as a bad man (though I think Steve Ballmer is a bit scary). With Microsoft I’m simply frustrated…frustrated that as a whole they can’t design products that work as effectively and efficiently as Apple does. And the design appeal goes without mention.

And that gets to the core of what I learned watching Steve Jobs and Bill Gates discuss how they see the computer industry.

Bill Gates sees the world as a software engineer. And his focus seems to be on what software can do in interacting with the computer. He admits in the interview that “…if you look inside my brain, it’s filled with software and, you know, the magic of software and the belief in software.”

Steve Jobs, however sees the world from the perspective of the user. For Jobs software is important. But what’s most important is how the user (you and I) will actually interact with the software.

That’s easy to see in the Mac, the iPod and the coming iPhone. It’s certainly about software for Jobs, but software to enhance and make easier the user experience.

I had never seen that so clearly before until I watched the interview. But Gates seems to know that about himself and Jobs. At one point he said, “I’d give a lot to have Steve’s taste. [laughter] He has natural–it’s not a joke at all. I think in terms of intuitive taste, both for people and products… We sat in Mac product reviews where there were questions about software choices, how things would be done that I viewed as an engineering question, you know, and that’s just how my mind works. And I’d see Steve make the decision based on a sense of people and product that, you know, is even hard for me to explain. The way he does things is just different and, you know, I think it’s magical. And in that case, wow.”

And there you have the difference between Microsoft and Apple.

Turning it back to conversational blogging…is it about the software we use or the experience our users have? Where does the conversation happen?

If you’re interested in the full interview, here it is in 8 parts…

• Steve Jobs and Bill Gates Prologue
• Steve Jobs and Bill Gates Part 1
• Steve Jobs and Bill Gates Part 2
• Steve Jobs and Bill Gates Part 3
• Steve Jobs and Bill Gates Part 4
• Steve Jobs and Bill Gates Part 5
• Steve Jobs and Bill Gates Part 6
• Steve Jobs and Bill Gates Part 7

UPDATE: If you use iTunes Music Store, here are direct links to the podcast and video podcast. Thanks to Mike Rohde for letting me know they’re available. And, this is the only way I know to see the video in its entirety.

• podcast (about 84MB)
• video podcast (about 1GB)