Teenage years, interfaces, and classic technology

When I was a teenager, I spent hours trying to improve my computer’s interface. I can’t tell you how many times I changed my Windows XP interface to try to look like a Mac. 

When Windows Longhorn was out in beta, I spent many afternoons trying to get it to work too—even partitioning my hard drive to figure it out. My cousin was very savvy with computers, but he never understood why the interface mattered so much to me. I started dabbling with trying to install Mac OS X on my PC—known as a hackintosh—but I gave up when I realized that I didn’t want my computer breaking every time I got an update. It wasn’t worth it. I liked the simplicity of the Mac.

I couldn’t explain this very well (and, clearly, I still struggle to). I enjoyed finding high-resolution album art for my favorite songs. Well-designed software just feels good to use.

I recently came across an mp3 file I wanted to listen to, so I started searching for a music player on iOS. I came across Doppler and gave it a try. I really, really, like how simple it is. It’s the complete antithesis to Spotify, Apple Music, and the era of streaming.

When a song ends, I don’t have to worry about another random song coming up. There’s just silence.

All of a sudden, I have started listening to a lot more MP3 files. I had a reason to listen to that audiobook I’d bought a few months ago, as well as my old Prologue interviews. I’m not sure this habit will stick, but I’m noticing how my behavior has changed very quickly as a result of this software.

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