My Windows journey started with Windows 98 I think, maybe Windows 95. Now it is the end of 2022 and I was in need for a new laptop. I have been searching for weeks for a suitable windows notebook, tested an Asus ROG X13 but sent it back because hardware issues and I wasn't happy with battery life.
Now, few weeks later and 1800€ less on the bank account, I'm happy with my decision buying the Macbook Air M2.

But as usual, not everything turns out to be great or at least expected. That's the reason for this post - draw attention to everything I didn't expect from a software developer's point of view.

Keyboard Layout

Brackets

I was aware of the different modifier keys and something like the @ key combination. But it hit me hard when I opened vs code for the first time and needed square or curved brackets.

Square brackets = Option + 5, 6
Curved Brackets = Option + 8, 9

Delete

Another key that I will miss is the delete key. If you want to delete backwards or delete a selected file, which I think every developer use regular, you will have to use the fn + backspace combination.

Development

I could not find any incompatibility with my tech stack even though they are microsoft technologies.

Technology Stack:

• .NET 7 => compatible
• SQL Server => docker azure-sql-edge
• Angular => compatible
• Capacitorjs => compatible
• git => via xCode or homebrew installation

Thats it for now! If i find any more problems with the switch, I will add it to this post.

If you have further questions about this topic or need help with a problem in general, please write a comment or simply contact me at yesreply@georghoeller.dev :)