Microsoft Has a Surface “Switch” Site for Former Mac Users
If you watch any television, you’ve probably been subjected to the awful Surface Pro 3 commercials sung to the tune of “Walking in a Winter Wonderland,” which extolls the virtues of Microsoft’s tablet-PC over the Apple Macbook. As it happens, Microsoft has gone the extra step and created a “Switch” website that goes over the step-by-step process that former Macbook users will want to go through to transfer their data over to their new Surface Pro 3s – as if such people really, truly exist.
The site explains how to use Windows 8.1, the baked-in operating system that comes with all new Surface Pro 3s, as well as how to perform the same kinds of functions on a PC as you would on a Mac. That includes new keyboard shortcuts, searching your computer’s files and folders, and using system settings. Oh, the differences you’ll find! The site even offers some tips on how to use the Surface Pen, an accessory that former Applers will certainly not know how to use.
On the whole, it’s a noble effort on Microsoft’s part. I mean, there must be some people who decided to eschew the Apple ecosystem for a new Surface Pro 3, a truly good tablet-PC. A buddy of mine who’s been an iPhone user for life recently said he wants to switch to Android, so there’s hope for everyone.
However, when it comes down to it, I can’t imagine that too many people will visit the Switch site – aside from those of us who write articles to mock its existence. Recently, my girlfriend got a new computer, and after a bit of deliberation, decided to go with a Macbook Air over a Surface Pro 3, despite having one in the house to try out. In the end, she wasn’t impressed by the Surface, and preferred to stick with Apple. Part of the problem, I imagine, has to do with Microsoft’s abysmal Windows 8, so hopefully when Windows 10 rolls around they’ll be able to lure some users back. But even still, the Switch site seems like a bit of wishful thinking on the part of Microsoft.
[Sources: ZD Net, Microsoft Switch]