After almost a week of using Lion I confess I'm not enjoying it as much as I thought I would. I'm wishing I had stuck with Snow Leopard in many ways and am in fact turning many options back to act more like they did on Snow Leopard. These are just some random (actually very random) notes from things I discovered.

• I would strongly advise you to create a bootable DVD of the install. Do this once you download the installer, but before you apply it. Learn how to do it here
• Have your serial numbers for software handy. Some software will treat it you like it's the first day of install and prompt you for serial numbers (Snapz Pro for example)
• Try to be as up-to-date with everything before installing Lion. I had to update a number of apps (like my M$ intelligent mouse) because the version installed didn't seem to work once Lion was installed
• Safari - They seem to have killed off the download window. I truly hate that!
• "All my files" as the top item in the side menu. Why can't I access the HD from there? Learn how to get rid of it here
• Where is the little icon to get the left side menu to appear in a window that has just a title bar? I understand it is called the Lozenge and the fix (though it's not really a fix) is here...and is also mentioned here
• The last link also provided a fix for my mouse issues. I have an M$ mouse and the scrolling was reversed. I couldn't find the setting mentioned, so I had to plug in my Apple mouse to then untick the setting.
• The link also provides a fix for disappearing sidebars.
• I really don't like the way that 1Password now looks and behaves. The company say they might fix it in the future, but the changes don't seem welcome (check out the comments)
• I was really impressed that when I logged into my Google Apps For Your Domain account, Safari asked me if I wanted to use that Gmail account with Mail, iCal and iChat. Very clever, but sadly it didn't work properly. It's probably because I don't have a Gmail account, but Google Apps Gmail account
• Apple Mail can't import from Microsoft Outlook for the Mac...grrrr!!
• iCal and the Address book - yuck! They look awful on a large iMac screen
• Don't like the fact that the bottom of the Window doesn't have any real estate or the ability to tell you how much space you have left? This page has the fix
• Ars Technica (yet again) do a superb review of Lion
• Versions is very cool !!
• A couple of glitches

Most recently, I worked as the Knowledge and Information Management Team Leader in the New Zealand Defence Force's Training and Education Directorate based in Palmerston North, with responsibilities related to various systems including the Defence Force's Learning Management System. Previously I was the Flexible Learning and Teaching Manager for the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Massey University, New Zealand.

My expertise and enthusiasm for Apple products lead me to establish the NZMac.com website in 2003, as well as its sister site NZiPhone.com in 2008. At the time I was writing for New Zealand Macguide Magazine, which now sadly is no longer published. It was a great opportunity to review a lot of fantastic Mac software, and the establishment of NZMac.com allowed that to continue, as well as provide a focal point for the vibrant Mac community within New Zealand. The focus of NZMac.com was community, and I ran the sites in such a way as to involve as many of the users of the site in reviews and other events as possible. I am exceptionally proud of the work that I did establishing and running the site, and of the community that the site built.

The NZiPhone.com and NZMac.com News iPhone app launched in the iTunes App Store on 12 February 2010. This free app was built using the TapLynx iPhone development framework, and not only kept you up to date with all that was happening on NZiPhone.com and NZMac.com, but had the inbuilt ability to let you share what you were reading with friends via email and Twitter. I have now sold the two sites and the iPhone app is currently not available from the new site owners.

New Zealand Macguide was a bi-monthly magazine that launched at the beginning of 2002 and published through until its demise in August of 2007. I wrote the multimedia section of the magazine from beginning to end, as well as an occasional review of other products.

It was a fantastic experience and I got to review a lot of great software. At the same time, Macguide sponsored my NZMac.com website soon after it launched (ironically NZMac.com came about partly because I saw the need for a Mac website and the makers of Macguide disagreed) and it was great to have that sponsorship early on in the life of the website.

I was very very impressed with the Covent Garden Apple Store in London (so much so that I forgot to take any photos of my visit to the Regent Street store) but one of the reasons was because it was so quiet. Contrast this with the Regent Street store which is now almost so busy it feels uncomfortable, and I was amazed. Covent Garden at 11am on a Thursday was reasonably busy, but the Apple Store felt like it was just getting set up for the day.

In 2009, I got the opportunity to spend a week at Adobe HQ as part of the summer school event for Adobe Education Leaders from around the world. Just before the event, I took the bus to the Cupertino area and wandered outside 'Mecca' for the second time.

In 2009, I got the opportunity to spend a week at Adobe HQ as part of the summer school event for Adobe Education Leaders from around the world. After the week I spent a day looking around including a large Mall nearby. There I saw my first 'normal' Apple Store...one in a shopping mall, as opposed to a larger shop that includes a tutorial area. Despite its small size, it was still very well set up and felt spacious.

In 2009, I got the opportunity to spend a week at Adobe HQ as part of the summer school event for Adobe Education Leaders from around the world. Because I was flying out from San Francisco, I got a chance to pop into town for the day and check out the Apple Store for the second time. It amazed me how nothing had really changed in the store, but I guess why ruin a perfectly great store by altering the layout. What did amaze me more was that I intended to visit the Virgin MegaStore opposite to buy some CDs and DVDs...only to find it completely closed. I couldn't find a CD or DVD store anywhere!!

In 2009 I was staying with friends in Sydney at the same time that my favourite band, The Hoodoo Gurus, were set to play in the Apple Store as part of the iTunes Live series of performances. Apple PR kindly arranged for there to be a couple of tickets waiting for me at the door on the night, but I visited the store for the first time ever (and saw the band gear already set up) during the day.

In 2009 I was staying with friends in Sydney at the same time that my favourite band, The Hoodoo Gurus, were set to play in the Apple Store as part of the iTunes Live series of performances (the recording of the performance can be bought here). Apple PR kindly arranged for there to be a couple of tickets waiting for me at the door on the night.

I was visiting the States to attend a video stream conference after being appointed as a Flexible Learning Leader in New Zealand and at exactly the same time as the conference, a group of educationalists from New Zealand had a briefing at (just inside in a briefing room) Apple HQ in Cupertino. I of course couldn't attend, as the funding was paying for me to go and report on the conference. So instead, I visited HQ the next day (So close, but yet so far!)....and you aren't allowed inside without a reason. Being an obsessive Apple fan boy apparently isn't a good enough reason.

I was visiting the States to attend an video stream conference after being appointed as a Flexible Learning Leader in New Zealand. This was my first visit to an Apple Store and what a great place to start...their flagship store in central San Francisco.