Hi Gord,
My view of the Mac is decidedly biased as a Windows developer.
I actually enjoy programming and have since my Commodore 64. But due to having to go backwards in development methodology when working on Mac software, I actually started to really dislike my work, so I had to drop it. It just wasn't worth it.
This says nothing about the end products available on a Mac or those who use a Mac. OS X is a fine operating system. I just grew to really dislike developing for it.
And, I may be the only one in the world, but I think Windows Vista is an excellent operating system.
I'm glad SwordSearcher works well for you!