My Complaints About Apple

Okay, fine. Apple isn't perfect. Inspired by this article (via Slashdot) about what Apple should borrow from Windows, I would like to offer this list of things that have annoyed me about Apple. I'm not bothered by the OS being locked to Apple hardware (keeps the OS rock solid). I'm not bothered by iTunes Music Store DRM (it's better than most, and if you don't like it, buy the CD). However, I'm not without complaints.

• My Powerbook has been in the shop three times this years. Maybe I just got a bad machine, but it has been annoying. Granted, it has proven to me the value of the Genius Bar and Applecare, and I've been told twice that, if there is a fourth visit, I will get a new computer. My question, however, is why I've had two logic board replacements now? What's the problem?
• .Mac is a big freaking waste of money for powerusers. $99 a year for an email address and a miniscule amount of web space (a fourth of Gmail's free storage space)? It's silly. Syncing between machines and a backup utility should be built-in features of OS X, not a special pay service. And now they're limiting bandwidth? .Mac is a great idea for some people, but for powerusers who would still like to easily upload movies and photos, give us a break and let us use our own WebDAV servers. My webspace is a third of the yearly price of .Mac, and I still have to jump through hoops to make a decent photo gallery out of iPhoto. C'mon, Apple, either give us $99 worth of features or include access to a free ".Mac express" with OS X. (And it seems strange that Apple hasn't added a blog feature to .Mac yet, despite adding blog features to OS X Server, promoting podcasting, and RSS.)
• iDisk-like syncing with WebDAV servers. This is related to the above .Mac complaint, but it's significant enough to warrant a separate bullet point. iDisk can sync automatically between your locally stored version and the online version. I'd like to do that with any WebDAV storage. Or Hell, any network storage.
• No Apple-designed multibutton mouse. I completely understand why Apple has a one-button mouse, and I agree with it. What I'm saying is that Apple should build an optional multi-button mouse, perhaps with an iPod-like scroll wheel, considering Apple supports multi-button mice and actually has some features in some applications that require a multi-button mouse.
• More functionality in open/save dialogs. The linked article above makes two points I agree with: "Only show relevant file types in open and save dialogs" and "Sort folders to top of directory listings." I wish OS X would at least give me the option to set these options as the default. I'd also like to see more Finder features in save/open dialogs. I like how I can rename a file when I'm saving another file in Windows.
• I can't download iTMS songs again. When my apartment was burglarized, they stole the hard drive on which I kept my music. Some of that music was purchased from iTunes either with gift certificates or as impulse buys. Now that music is gone, and despite keeping a record of who I am and which computers are authorized to play the songs, iTunes won't let me download the songs again. It's silly.
• OS X needs lots of RAM, and Apple skimps on RAM and overcharges for it. OS X chokes on anything less than 512MB, and still, the Mac mini, the iBook, and the eMac still come standard with only 256MB. They're starting to raise the bar to 512MB in the other machines, but while I understand there's a premium on Apple hardware, there shouldn't be on the RAM, especially when Dell sells an $800 machine with a full 1GB.
• No built-in optimization utilities. OS X defragments files on the fly, which is pretty sweet. However, there are all sorts of things a user can do when their machine starts to slow down or behave strangely. UNIX-based OSs deposit their cruft in specific places, unlike Windows which leaves it littered everywhere. All Apple needs is an "Optimize my system" button that deletes caches, prebinds the applications, and various other nerdy crap, instead of making optimization still the domain of geeks like me.

I'm still an OS X adherent, and most of the complaints I continue to hear against it are typically based on old information, xenophobic bias, or just plain FUD. However, I hope this dispels the notion that I drink the Apple Kool-Aid.