Dear My Beloved Apple,

After the initial rush of iTunes 5 installation passed, and I had basked in its glow for long enough that it no longer felt like I was having a fling on the side with a younger, hotter (playlist folder having) music player, I have an issue. Actually, lots of us have an issue.

Why does nothing on my Mac match right now? I typically run minimized windows of iTunes, Mail, and iChat side by side and every one of them has its own different theme right now. Brushed metal is out, but not all the way out? You have never been prone to half-hearted efforts.

Now I know what you’re saying, I should upgrade to Tiger and get a look at the new Mail, which matches the new iTunes a little better. But then i’d have to deal with Dashboard too, so that’s a whole other theme. And that’s not even pulling the Pro apps into the picture; they have their own look, too. And then there’s whatever’s going on with Garageband.

You know I love you because you make my life easier, but one of the draws for me has always been that if i’m going to spend anywhere from 6-16 hours a day on a computer (and I inevitably am), I want it to be a beautiful, seamless, aesthetically wonderful experience. For that reason alone, I will never ever own a Windows machine. I am, to put it mildly, completely shallow and won over by beauty in that regard. 

The stories I hear of Steve Jobs obsessing over the most minimal details of product packaging and typography make me smile. It makes me say, “MY PEOPLE! THEY GET IT!” And yet, nothing on my desktop matches right now. Where’s the disconnect? Are you just trying to rush products and innovation to the marketplace without care for the overall package? I don’t want a half-brushed-metal, half-unified visual theme on my computer. I stare at this thing ALL DAY and it bothers me when things don’t match. 

I’m not mad, i’m just disappointed,
Joshua