Apple Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger

Pros: 64-bit architecture, very powerful search, efficient and easy to use automation features, much more

Cons: User interface is inconsistent, don't see much use for Dashboard

Summary: As far as raw power and professional features go, this is the new gold standard of computing. As a user in the legal profession, I've searched forever for the best way to organize the tens of thousands of Microsoft Word documents on my computer. Spotlight, Apple's new global search feature, has completely solved that problem. I've set up smart folders based on all sorts of criteria and the system automatically updates to find anything.

The same praise should be extended to Automator. Every day, I think of more and more repetitive tasks that can be turned over to the Mac. It's one of those features that you easily could forget you had. But if you think creatively about how it could help your work, you won't know how you lived without it.

The 64-bit architecture makes this an essential upgrade for G5 users.

I have two complaints:

1. Dashboard, though more useful than Sherlock, doesn't seem particularly compelling to me. Others may find it useful, but it doesn't fit into my workflow. That's not a big deal, of course, since there are plenty of other features that do catch my interest.

2. A more significant concern, from my perspective, is that the user interface continues to become less consistent. Safari/iTunes/Finder look one way; Mail looks another; most of the rest of the applications look yet another way. Why Apple's interface designers can't pick up on the consistency of Apple's hardware is beyond me. Still, it's much better than Windows even in this respect (and vastly better in terms the power of its features), so there's really no competition at present.

With those qualifiers, I think this is an outstanding system that is helping me to work more efficiently. Highly recommended.