Pogue: There's a ways to go yet, I think. Apple needs to add some sound recording software -- at the moment, there's absolutely nothing built into Mac OS X for recording sounds. They also need to restore the ability to have your Mac shut off each night at a specified time, and to turn back on in the morning.

A Mac OS X machine still can't serve as a software base station for an AirPort network, and I sometimes miss the Location Manager (beyond just remembering network settings for each location).

In the big picture, we need speed, still more speed, and still more apps. That's an Apple evangelist job, not an Apple engineering job, of course, but this business of rebooting into Mac OS 9 just to scan something is for the birds.

From Weberik: While Apple is gathering momentum with people who have generally been outside the Mac developer community, how are developers at traditional Mac shops like Adobe, Aladdin, Symantec and Macromedia reacting to OS X? Are they truly embracing it, or only going along with the conversion because they have to? Do you see any sort of shift in the overall developer base for the Mac OS?

Pogue: I'm sure it varies by software company, but I think you've hit the nail on the head -- at this early juncture, I think the really big guns are just doing straight-ahead adaptations of the existing software because they have to. Office, the Adobe suite, and so on -- these are just Carbonized versions of the traditional programs.

Even so, I do see an exciting shift in the overall developer base. UNIX developers getting fired up about the Macintosh could be Apple's ace in the hole. Some of the most amazing and interesting new Mac OS X programs have come from the UNIX crowd. It's a huge, talented group --a true wildcard in Apple's future. Some really surprising stuff could come from them in the next couple of years.

From RoboMac: David, it must have been a dream of yours to become a Macintosh icon. What did it feel like when that dream was finally fulfilled?

Pogue: I have to tell you, I laughed so hard I almost had to change pants.

And then when I actually appeared as a character in one of the Geek Culture cartoons -- well, then I knew I had arrived.

The only tragedy is that nobody outside the Mac family has any clue what the cartoon's about, or why it's funny. They just kind of stare at the printout and blankly say, "Oh, you sleep with a teddy bear?"

From kickaha: I would like to know your thoughts on the future of Macintosh computing. Ten years (okay, eleven) ago, System 7 had just come out, the first Powerbooks were released, and the 68040 processor was being introduced. In 2001 we saw the release of a revolutionary new operating system, improved laptops, and the iPod. Where do you see Apple, and more specifically, Macintosh hardware and the MacOS going in the next 10 years?

Pogue: Unfortunately, I believe that anybody who tries to predict the future of technology is a moron. I just never do it -- you can never, ever guess right. Look at the long list of analysts and journalists who have predicted, every single year, that Apple would be dead by now.

There's a lot of logic to the critiques that nobody with 5 percent of the market can survive. On the other hand, again, they've been saying that for decades, and Apple just doesn't seem to go away.

In the end, even if Apple has only 5 percent, it's 5 percent of a pretty gigantic market. The proof that a company can survive on that share is that Apple is, of course, profitable in a time when other computer companies can't make a dime. If some really exciting stuff -- that is, new programs -- comes out for Mac OS X (see above), the winds of change could really start blowing.

From vmarks: The time, you have an H.G. Wells machine, yes? You authored a 600 page book, you wrote a column twice a week, for the NYT no less, still managed to be a good father, and in the summer, are still involved in the theatre. So either there's a clone of you, or you have a time machine- how do you it?

Pogue: Thanks for the kind words! Part of it is that I am freakishly organized and automation-oriented. I have software (EZNote--shareware) that grabs ideas and information from every source I come across -- Web, e-mail, newsgroups -- and stashes it away in categories for whatever book I'm planning to do, so that when I start writing, my research is mostly already done.

Then I use this phenomenal speech recognition software for Windows (sorry -- it's a necessity) called Naturally Speaking, which turns my spoken words into typed text at about 120 words a minute. I dictate every single one of my books, including "Mac OS X: The Missing Manual."

But really, the truth is, I have to slow down. I spend about two or three hours a day with my kids (2 and 4 years old), but I ache for more. Furthermore, in my zeal to make the Missing Manual series successful, I've wound up sacrificing every shred of personal time. I love working, and I love the time I spend with my family, but I haven't read for pleasure, or seen more than about 1 movie per quarter, in a long, long time.

From AstroMac: As somebody that has obviously delved deep into OS X, in your opinion, is it truly the Mac OS taken to the next level (no pun intended), NexTstep rehashed and refined, or the next level Mac OS but at an early, unfinished stage?

Pogue: The joke is, of course, that what Apple calls an "ultramodern" operating system is, in fact, a 30-year-old operating system -- UNIX -- which has been polished by generations of geeks. So really, all Apple has left to do is the easy part: building the front end to it.

As noted above, there's a lot of work left to be done. But there's also a fantastic engine in this car. As soon as we can forget about Classic and rebooting, you won't be able to find a simpler and easier to use operating system (for novices, I'm thinking) on earth. And yet the UNIX is there, with dramatically improved networking and security, for the power users. I think it's a great start, and I no longer think that there's any doubt that it will ultimately be a success.

From ErikPrice: In both of the Missing Manuals (OS 9 and OS X) that I have, you mention that you use Dragon NaturallySpeaking to write your books. Cryptically, you credit this to "a wrist ailment". I was curious if this came as a result of typing or some other activity -- I'm aware that you are also both a musician and magician, and these all seem to be pretty hand-intensive activities.

Pogue: The wrist ailment is called tenosynovitis -- inflammation of the tendon sheaths in the wrist, for what it's worth. Basically it means screaming pain if I type more than a couple of pages.

I used to think that it came from typing, bad posture, getting older, and so on. But the amazing thing is that since I started writing the column for the New York Times, I haven't had a single flare-up.

Which make me wonder if maybe there wasn't a major stress component to the onset of the problem in 1996 -- my entire career (magazines, consulting, books) was pinned to the fate of Apple Computer, which was on the brink of extermination at just about that time. If I were my brain, I wouldn't blame myself for doing a little subconscious freaking out.

Anyway, the punchline is that here I am, mostly pain-free, but now I'm so completely hooked on my acceleration software (Naturally Speaking for Windows, TypeIt4Me on the Macintosh), I don't want to give them up even though now I could.

From Costique: Do you agree that Apple is going in the right direction with OS X? I mean the file system, first of all. These days many progressive minds say that the traditional UNIX file system lacks such vital features like metadata. I understand that there are two ways: either establish a new standard or follow an old one. Do you believe that Apple's engineers are able to, and Apple's chiefs want to be in the avangarde of the OS market?

Pogue: Oh yeah, this could become a real mess -- this business of typing creators, file extensions, metadata, and so on. I hope Apple realizes that the current system leaves something to be desired (quick example: a folder containing 5 files can all appear to have the same name, because they have invisible file extensions).

And yet I don't know how they would dare introduce anything new at this late date in Mac OS X's life. Sooner or later, something is going to have to budge.

From rjung: In almost everything you write about technology, you seem to always find something good or positive to say, regardless of platform or company or situation. So I'm curious -- what high-tech products, trends, and/or events have you seriously disliked, and why? Or are you just too mellow to get angry? ;-)

Pogue: That's about one of the most insightful and interesting things anybody has observed about my writing in a long, long time!

At least in my Times column, my editor told me the very first day: All the reader really wants to know is, "Should I buy it?"

If I make the answer to that absolutely clear one way or another, then there's room along the way to point out the negatives in a great product, or the positives in a turkey product. These observations tell the reader: "I'm not just some Prozac gadget freak that loves everything -- and not some vindictive curmudgeon that hates everything. I really did consider all angles of this thing." I think it helps my objectivity. Or at least the illusion of it. :)

Even so, I've certainly dished out some juicy bad reviews. AOL TV and the Motorola v200 Communicator were among the most scathing. I had quite a few words to say about the privacy and commercial aspects of Windows XP, too.

From an Anonymous Coward: What do you think The UNIX layer of OS X has done to expand and change the mac userbase? Do you see a difference between users who have been with the mac, and users that have switched to the mac because of UNIX?

Pogue: Another great question. The funny thing is, Apple is suddenly the No. 1 largest manufacturer of UNIX-based computers in the world! I know so many UNIX fans that are buying Macs, especially PowerBooks, if only to eliminate the clutter of boxes on their desks.

All of this is just a drop in the bucket in terms of market share. The potential for real magic, as I wrote above, is not so much the UNIX users as the UNIX programmers and cool new software they might bring to the world's best computer.