What’s New? More Changes, New Voices At Mac360.

Just when you thought everything was going along well, or was getting worse, something changes.

Mac360 has a few changes, and a few more to come.

We started the site in early 2004. Back in those days, ancient history by web site standards, the Mac360 voice was mostly Tera Patricks.

The need for diversity of opinion was important to Tera back then, and it’s important now.

We added Alexis Kayhill in the early days because she has a knack for finding Mac software value (meaning, “cheap”).

Carol Mary Miller and her husband Jack also helped out from time to time. Carol has extensive Mac experience and Jack was a switcher from the Windows world.

While Tera was ill this year we published a few articles from faithful Mac360 readers; our thanks to Tom Coppinger, Michael Kenney, Jeffrey Mincey, and others who helped out in a time of need.

The Mac360 staff honestly believe, as did Tera, that Apple is on the verge of a new era. Microsoft is having major troubles. Mac OS X has come of age.

Macs are now well respected, very powerful, and priced competitively. Never has there been more bang for the buck from Apple.

The iPod culture has opened Apple’s wares to millions of non-Apple users and they like what they see. The future is full of change and opportunity, and so it is with Mac360.

Alexis Kayhill will take a more active role tracking down Mac applications that prove to be dependable, valuable, and worthy of your consideration.

My friend Kate MacKenzie of New York has also agreed to assist with her perspective on Apple’s new world and new opportunities. Her first two articles tell you what to expect from Kate Mac.

Mac360 Forums has over 500 members, and though we’d like to see more participation (hint, hint...), we appreciate those who’ve provided so much to the dialog over the past year.

Natalia Nowak has been a Forums moderator since not long after the forums were launched. She joins Mac360 as a contributing writer and will assist the Mac360 Forums.

A frequent email and telephone chum this past year, Natalia hails originally from Poland and settled with family in the Chicago area (da Bears!).

Natalia loves Macs, OS X, and Apple. She’s the ”noodle mac” on the forums and will bring more spice to Mac360. Do we have enough?

2006 has been a year of changes for us. We thank you for your patience and ask for your continued participation.

The montage of images in the graphic above has Kate MacKenzie on the left, Alexis in the middle, and Natalia Nowak on the right.

Elsewhere, and for now, Mac360 is served on a Mac. Again. As Ron will point out from time to time, Mac OS X Server is not the fastest web server on the planet.

However, we’ve had much better success with dependability, stability, and uptime using OS X and a Mac, when compared to hosted services. Go figure.

We also plan site graphic and layout changes later this year to streamline access, and add more news and commentary.

Finally, we need to mention that we pay tribute to Tera with a permanent graphic and link on the Mac360 home page. You’ll find it in the right hand column.

The graphic links to Tera’s personal site, TeraTalks, and to my announcement of her passing.

Additionally, Tera gave a copy of her personal journal to me and to Alexis, with her permission to continue to publish her work. There are hundreds of journal entries.

Alexis has offered to edit and place select and appropriate entries on the TeraTalks site.

Tera’s most recent entries include: ”What’s Wrong With This Picture?“ and ”Kittens, Puppies, And Macaulay Culkin.“ Typical Tera.

Interestingly, Tera posted two additional journal entries the week prior to her death. Perhaps she knew what was coming. She didn’t quite reach the 101 Days she wanted.

You can read the final two entries of Tera’s journal at, ”A Thousand Little Sins“ and ”Dead Like Me.”

We’ve received hundreds of messages from all over the world mourning Tera’s passing. Thank you so much for your thoughts, concerns, prayers, and best wishes.

Mac360 was Tera’s idea and inspiration. She had a desire to see a web site cater to the average Mac user, the new switcher, and provide users with reviews of quality Mac software you may not know of, but can put to use each day. Tera was a friend to many of us and was not afraid to view the world as it is yet work toward what it should be.

We plan to keep TeraTalks available to all as a loving reminder and memorial to our friend, Tera Jean Patricks, 1959-2006.

We miss you, Tera. All of us-- Bambi, Alexis, Carol and Jack, Kate, Natalia-- we miss you.

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