I love my 2008 Metal Macbook.

I’ve had my October 2008 Macbook for a long time. In that time it has been a great work horse, however it’s lack of power is starting to tread on my productivity. So with the new Macbook Pro 13“ coming out with an i5 core, plus the great student discounts (and rebate offers) Apple had, I was enticed to get a new Macbook Pro.

Here 10 discrete differences that differ between my 2008 Macbook, and my new 2011 Macbook Pro:

• They keyboard keys are no longer smooth, but have a subtle roughness to them – good for preventing the keyboard from looking oily.
• There was a video some time ago where a dude filed the edge of his Macbook Pro off so it wouldn’t cut his wrist (http://cl.ly/5pYL – YT). Now Apple has done that for us; the new Macbook has a filed top edge of the bottom half of the body.
• A new typeface has been used on the 2011 model. The lettering seems somewhat thicker and bolder. Perhaps to let more of that backlighting through.
• The sound quality of the speakers are much better, better defined, more range.
• The Mini Displayport has moved from after the usb ports to after the USB ports.
• Kensington lock has moved to the other side of the Mac (the hole that no one uses).
• The cables used on the innards of the Mac don’t seem to be as durable as the one on the 2008 model. For example, the hard drive ribbon seems to be flimsier and thinner on the latest model.
• The magsafe rubber outer layer seems to feel cheaper. It has a rougher texture and doesn’t have the same flexibility as older magsafe cables. This is the same material they use to make the USB cable that comes with the iPhone 4. Maybe it’s to prevent the wire core from twisting inside the rubber sheath.
• All green lights on the Mac (magsafe, battery indicator, capslock), have a different shade of green. Has a greater shade of yellow.
• Earphone jack appears to be cheaper. No longer has a metal ring around the aluminium to prevent scratching. Inner part of the jack is clearly grey plastic.

I’m not sure if these changes are a result of a cost-cutting measure or a change for the benefit of the user. I did however also get a free red stuck pixel on my screen, but the good people at Apple offered me an exchange, the good folks they are.

Very recently there has been a spike of small planes (flying planes, not planes of glass), making emergency landings nearly injuring people, and one case, killing someone. If you want a numerical figure to quantify, then I’ve read about 2 cases within a month. Now you might be saying that’s not that many, but then that’s two accidents which could have been (better) avoided with the help of my new compulsory by-law for all small planes.

Horns for all small planes.

The first case happened when a plane lost all power and glided onto a beach, killing a jogger who was listening to an iPod. You might say, “ah-ha, the unfortunate jogger must’ve been listening to some pretty loud music/podcast”, however the plane was gliding, so essentially it was a ninja-like attack.

The second case happened just today, where some amateur crash landed on a motorway in Hobart. (Just as a sidenote, who would’ve thunk Hobart had a motorway – I always thought it was just a small island with a small township on it.) No one was killed.

All cars have horns. Not only is it used to convey a friendly “hi there” or a “see you later”, but it’s also used to annoy, to provoke, but most importantly warn others of potential danger.

Let’s re-analyse the first case with a horn pre-installed:

Pilot realises something isn’t wrong with the plane as the propeller has stopped spinning. After a few swears are thrown around, emergency procedures learned in pilot school comes into practice. Realising there is no where to land but a popular beach, the pilot attempts a glide to land on the beach while honking the horn to clear a path. Beach-goers hear a horn and exclaim “wth” (or similar), and run off to a safe place to get out the camcorder to tape all this before going home and uploading it to youtube as “Plane crash on Miami Beach!”. A path is cleared and the plane lands safely. No one dies or gets hurt.

And now the second case:

Pilot realises something isn’t wrong with the plane as the propeller has stopped spinning. After a few swears are thrown around, emergency procedures learned in pilot school comes into practice. Realising there is no where to land but a dense motorway, the pilot attempts a glide to land on the motorway while honking the horn to clear a path. Cars hear a horn and claim “wth” (or similar), and make way for the plane. Plane merges like a zip and the pulls over to the hard-shoulder before turning on his hazards and calling the AA. No one dies or gets hurt.

Both incidents are most certainly avoidable with a massive horn on the plane, as portrayed in the recreation of these events. So the next time you buy a plane, insist on having a horn pre-installed to not only future-proof it, but also to increase it’s market value.