A lot of the times, if you solve a problem, that solution can create a new problem else where.

This is something I've known for a long time now, but as a perpetual problem-solver, I always have to watch out for. Computers and health issues are prime examples of this. You implement a new software and it give you a tool to do something, but it may make your system unstable. Or take a medicine to treat one problem, and its side effects can cause problems else where.

I am planning to buy a new computer this year, and I've been contemplating switching to Macs after using Windows exclusively for the last 10 years. I've been really excited about switching to a more stable platform.

Recently I've had a chance to extensively test a new Mac, to make sure that it's suitable for my needs. Well, I know it can suit my needs -- but can it do it cost-effectively and comfortably? I had this one video editing project at my work and I tried to do it on the Mac, since it comes with an entry-level video editing software (which is all I have on my Windows machine).

After spending hours trying to figure out how to make the new tool do what I used to do with the old one, I actually gave up and went back to the old one. The free software on Mac is not as suitable for my needs as a $50 video editing software for Windows.

And this really made me think about the reality of switching the platform. My main music software is not available on Macs, so I have to switch to a new tool -- and the switch is going to have some initial period where I get used to the new environment and figure out how to do what I used to do with the old one. I'm sure there will be new things I like about the new tool, while there will be things I just can't dupliate from the old one.

In the other words, switching to Mac solves my OS instability problem, but it will create problems else where -- and I don't know where they will be or how big/costly they are. In my video editing's case, my next candidate for the software tool costs close to $300 -- not a cost-effective choice, when my cheap Windows tool can meet my needs in spades.

So, I am actually leaning toward getting another Windows XP machine. I'm a bit disappointed that I'm going to continue to live with the problems that plague that platform, but at this point I know those problems well and how to deal with them. I'd rather stick with the problems I know than the ones I don't know. I may change my mind, but that's where I'm feeling comfortable for now.

You can't have everything in life, though you can live with most anything. So the choice is -- what would you rather live with?