Workers Without Cubicles

The Vancouver Apple store in the Pacific Centre Mall opened for business this past weekend. I was in Toronto, attending the MESH conference (thanks to commandN) and couldn’t make the opening day, but I was there Sunday morning.

Interesting thing about Vancouver: it’s a very sleepy town. They get started pretty late in the morning here, at least compared to Toronto and Ottawa. So when I showed up at 11 AM on Sunday morning I was a little disappointed to see how few people were in the store. All the better for me though, because I got to browse without having to push my way through a crowd.

Drooled over a MacBook Air, even though it’s completely impractical for my needs. Besides, I already have a completely serviceable MacBook Pro. I also eyed the new version of X-Plane for the Mac, but decided I was probably better off with one less thing on the credit card this month.

We went for lunch, and when we returned at 1 PM the store was packed full of people. I’m sure the other retailers on the upper level of the Pacific Centre love the new store - there normally isn’t a lot of foot traffic up there, but the Apple store (and the nearby H & M) really draws a crowd.

It’s nice to see so many people interested in Apple today. I say that not because I’m an Apple fan, but because Windows has been synonymous with computers for so long, that it’s great to see people realizing that there are alternatives out there. Whether it’s Mac, Linux or something else, the greater the diversity of the computer world, the more innovation, interoperability and open standards we’ll see, and that’s a good thing.

Personally, I’m happy that the store is there because it’s about 3 blocks from where I live, and I need to get a battery replaced under warranty soon. The downside is that there are all kinds of shiny new toys to purchase, all within walking distance!

Gadgetry, General apple, macintosh, vancouver

One of the things that struck Natasha and I after moving to Vancouver is how little we actually drive these days. Living downtown, we can walk or take public transportation to most of our destinations. We only drive on weekends, and even then, only occasionally. Our car insurance payments have actually decreased from what we used to pay in Kamloops, and we only fill up the car once a month or so. Even better, walking is healthy and good for the environment.

If those aren’t good reasons to think about public transportation and walking, then consider what Simon at the Green Blog posted today regarding the space required to transport a group of people by car, bus and bicycle. Apparently these are old photos, but I somehow missed them. Photo credit: Press Office, City of Münster, Germany.

General transportation, vancouver