Sunday, my Windows computer decided it would start going crazy, and began rebooting randomly. I decided that before it went any further, I'd better pull all my latest data off that computer and onto my Mac Mini.

By the end of the evening, it was clear I was going to need a new computer. I had already planned on switching over from my Windows computer to a Mac, but the planned switch was originally supposed to be later this year. Well, needless to say, the timetable got pushed up.

There were several things that had been keeping me from switching. First, the cost of the Macs is quite a bit more than PC's. Well, sort of. If you built a PC with the same basic configuration as a Mac, it's about the same price, if not a little more. But Mac goes high end.

Second, there's the learning curve. Let's face it. Macs and Windows PCs do not operate in an identical fashion. Although they have many similarities (ie point and click with the mouse), they are not the same. So it takes time to get used to a Mac after using Windows since 1995 and earlier.

Finally, there's the software. It's a common misconception that you can't get all the programs for Mac that you can for your Windows PC. While the programs are certainly not equivalent, I have yet to find a Mac program that cannot replace a Windows program I had.

Plan A, then, was to slowly make the transition to using my Mac Mini, while simultaneously continuing to use my Windows computer. My PC had other ideas. So Sunday night, I ordered an iMac. It came yesterday, three days after I ordered it. Brent Fuchs, my Mac consultant and photographer helped me set it up, and we pulled the last few files off my Windows PC.

And it was a good thing, too. Brent was also scrapping the PC for parts to sell online. I had an email in my inbox this morning that the remainder of my PC had officially died, actually smoking when Brent was testing some hardware.

I'm looking forward to using the Mac full-time. It is certainly more stable than Windows, and a lot more user-friendly. Granted, it is different, but I think after a couple of weeks using it full-time, I should be used to it.

Now to get all new software.