Yes, this is going to be a discussion of why I moved to the Apple Mac hardware/software years ago, from my decades of Windows experience, and why Apple should be ashamed for not fixing a known common bug, before releasing frustration upon it's own customers!

Toward the end of my Windows ownership, experience, usage, and as informal support person for countless other users over the years, I was increasingly upset that Microsoft added features without fixing all their known bugs. They added complexity, and then didn't support the customer by following through and making the meld of software and hardware work reliably. It seemed a constant battle to get everything to work together, and STAY working together!

Upon my retirement several years ago, this utter frustration with Windows-based machines led to me buying a MacBook Pro and giving the remnants of all Windows hardware and software away. Done! I learned the ins and outs of the Mac, and had a lot of fun, with a minimum of problems.

So, recently, in need of a new computer with a bigger screen, I bought a 27" iMac. During installation, the first time it's turned on and hooked up, the machine upgrades itself to the newest Operating System, Yosemite 10.10.1 and it all works seamlessly, I can learn the differences from what I'm used to easily, and I love the new system. For a couple weeks, there are no problems. I successfully had the MAIL application echoing all email to and fromgMail, Google's email interface on the web.

I am serious. I used it with no problems for weeks. Then, one day, a week ago, I noticed that my outgoing mail was being stuck into a mailbox called OUTBOX that wasn't even there the night before!

So I search to see if anyone else has the bug, and sure enough, there's lots of articles about how you have to find a certain folder or file and move it and then reboot and then cross your fingers, etc. I think there was some praying to the luck of the software gods, but OK, I tried it.

The fix did not work for me, so, I decided to just accomplish all my email activity in the flawless gMail web interface. It works, it always works, it works as advertised, independent of hardware and operating system bugs. Long live reliable software!

I forgot about Mail for near a week, but thought, perhaps it was possible that I had caused the problems, so I completely started over.

I got MAIL to work for about a day and half, (without the outbox problem), then. before my very eyes, this morning, as I attempted to REPLY to a message, instead of sending it, the application decides to build a new mailbox called OUTBOX, then refuses to actually send any mail to gMail, simply choosing to keep it in OUTBOX. ARGH!

Does this remind you of anything? Is this vaguely reminiscent of Windows, always having to jiggle the handle, look up the symptom and attempt the fix, and wonder why you aren't getting your work done?

I will now give up on MAIL.app on my desktop forever. It's wasted my time trying to get it to work. It's now been proven unreliable, I'm going to use the gMail interface online forevermore. Thanks, Apple!

Now, having fought these issues, and the issues won, I am fearful of the next bug that bites. So, now I am going to read sites like The Worst Bugs in OS X Yosemite and How to Fix Them and try to keep ahead of the creepy crawly critters, but ...

Excuse me, but um, HEY APPLE, THAT'S WHY I BOUGHT AN APPLE SO I DIDN'T HAVE ISSUES TO CONSTANTLY MONITOR AND CONFIGURE AND FIX!

Now, I am of the opinion that a major application, created by (or for) Apple, should not create a new mailbox by itself. Right?Normally, the human gets to create that, either the user, and I assure you I did not create a new mailbox called OUTBOX, or else it was a programmer who intended that feature to do something other than to stop the usefulness of an otherwise perfectly fine application.

Seriously, this bug REAPPEARED IN FROM OF MY VERY EYES! I WATCHED IT DO THIS!

If it were simply my one machine, then I could invoke the warranty or something and try again with different hardware. But apparently fixing the known bugs are less important to you than your naming system for your next iteration of an Operating System.

Suggestions for Apple's next Operating System: "RATS!" or maybe "(La) Cucaracha". Maybe "GOTCHA!"? How about, "ALMOST AS BUGGY AS WINDOWS"? Now there's an advertising campaign for you!

C'mon, Apple, please! Slow up the new releases and put out a stable product that doesn't cause the customer to have to configure and troubleshoot like a pedestrian Windows owner!

Have you forgotten why some of us left Windows for the Apple platform?

Really, Apple, get it together!