I bought a new computer yesterday (a MacBook Pro 15") as my ageing PowerBook (1.33GHz PowerPC, yeah!) isn't quite up to the task of handling HD video or anything too fancy like, anyway the point is that I haven't bought a new computer for about 4 years.

I turned it on, great. Downloaded Coda and Firefox. Installed a few Adobe apps. Installed iWork. And that's it, I'm pretty much ready to go.

Suddenly realised how back in the day one spend a lot of their day setting up their new computer, and now one can be up and running within minutes! Keychain synced with MobileMe, so all my username and passwords for websites were remembered, as are my bookmarks and address book.

Not like back in the day...

How to install Windows XP in 5 hours or less
12. Boot screen. Choose between “Windows XP Professional” and “Windows XP Professional”. Brilliant. Pick one. The wrong one. Boot into ****ed Windows XP install. Hard reboot. Pick the right one. Make mental note to hack boot.ini later.
45. “30 days left for activation!” Click. Yes, I would like to activate Windows over an active internet connection, now that I have one. No, I would not like to register with Microsoft. Yes, I have read the privacy statement and agree to give up my computer, my civil rights, and my first-born child. I wasn’t using my civil rights anyway.
Anyway, point is, the web is taking over.