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This post comes to you from my new laptop. My tiny silver PowerBook (I call her Sweetie) has been a real workhorse for me for the past five years or so, and lately she's begun making nasty growling noises when I move her when she's running. That's a sign I heed. I've lost a few computers in the heat of summer or when the hard drive just went bad, but the last two deaths have been preceded by odd noises. Before Sweetie makes the trip to the happy place in cyberspace, I decided to add yet another Mac to my collection to take some of the burden off her.

Let me introduce you to my MacBook Pro. I haven't named it yet because I haven't had it long enough to feel its personality, but I suspect that'll happen soon as I have time to use it. This is the 15.4" version with a screen large enough to keep me from squinting at the images on it. The keyboard is backlit, a huge improvement for use in low light conditions. The power cord feels sturdier than the one that came with Sweetie who's gone through two of them in her lifetime, so I'm optimistic that this one will last a little longer. I love the way the oversized trackpad works, too: one finger works with the typical taps, two fingers dragged work like the nub or wheel in a mouse. It's also in one piece with no separation between tap and click areas. Two 1x4" speaker grills (with minuscule holes) sit on the outer edges of the keyboard and the speakers provide plenty of clear, loud audio. Can you tell I'm liking this machine?

Of course the downside is the price tag. Because I teach, there's a small Education Discount. Because it's a laptop, I opted for the extended care plan. Because I like the features of Microsoft Office apps, and I want to use the computer to connect to an LCD projector, the software and the adapter were part of the deal. But I'm willing to pay the cost for a fast, reliable, stable machine that always does what it's supposed to do. The hp laptops we're required to use at work don't come close to any Mac I've ever owned. I'm very happy with my purchase.