Hey Doug, often the same key patterns that work with Windows/DOS machines work with Macs. Just replace the control key with the Apple/Command/cloverleaf thingy key. Example command + x = cut, Cmmd + c = copy, Cmmnd + v = paste. Cmmnd + tab will do the same thing that Alt + tab will do on windows. There are tons more. Also, whenever you look at anything in a dropdown menu, the key patterns are right there just to the right of the menu item it's a shortcut for. I use the key commands all the time, rather than my mouse or trackpad. They let me do things a lot faster. Seems pretty efficient to me...
Also, it's not necessary to hold the command key while dragging. You can select a series of items with the shift key and a group of individual item not in a sequence with the command key. Then, without holding the command key, you can drag the whole lot to wherever you want it.
Well whereas I cannot imagine going back unless I had to for some reason (it is the best d@mn computer I've ever had and Leopard the best d@mn OS I've ever used; my Dell sits next to my Mac unused except when I need to access something over the network), I do concede that the Finder needs work. And yes I do have a problem with the missing Copy/Paste of files. No, it is not there. It is not available from the contextual menu, and it is greyed out from the Edit menu. I have never been able to select a file, go Cmd-C/X, go to a folder, and go Cmd-V. Doesn't work. Also, you cannot choose a range of files by selecting one file, then shift-clicking a file further down to select a range. Nor any other key combination it seems. Only dragging a marquee works, which may require 3 shift- or Cmd-drags to get the required files.
Also, there are inconsistencies in behaviour between the different views, like when creating a new folder; in 2 views, when you go Cmd-Shift-N for a new folder, the folder name is selected ready for renaming, in the 2 others, it isn't and when you start typing, you are selecting other files.
I like the drop-down crumb-trail in Vista, and the afterthought in OSX you can enable along the bottom of a window is not as good. And yes, I use the Cmd-click of the folder name all the time; it is very convenient, but you can't switch into adjacent folders as easily.
Little things like that, all of which I can live with. Most of my software needs are met; in fact, I find OpenOffice 3 is perfect for my Office needs, and Adium almost meets my IM needs; occasionally I would like to use Video, and it is a hindrance to some I know who have considered a Mac, to which iChat which doesn't support MSN is not sufficient. I've tried to sell them on Skype, which is good for video, but I would prefer proper Video integration in my IM negating the need for 2 programs and 2 logins on both ends. Here's hoping the Pidgin developers get their @ss in gear and implement it soon, it is the most sought-after feature by far. File transfers are also slow, and is being worked on I believe, but probably only for other networks.
Vista's Me-Too iLife wannabes are not bad, and I find Vista's integration of XMP metatags is better than the situation on Leopard; Microsoft Image Gallery embeds XMP tags, like keywords and comments, and when I imported the pictures into iPhoto, it recognised those tags and properly labelled everything. iPhoto doesn't embed tags however unless you export the pictures, and then only in the old IPTC format designed for photojournalists which is not entirely suited for the purpose. Ironically, I notice that Spotlight indexes the XMP tags, so I can easily find images tagged with it, but not IPTC-tagged files, nor iPhoto tags. So Leopard is XMP-aware, it can read them, but doesn't embed them or show them in the finder, like how Vista shows them in Windows Explorer. Again, the Finder's List view doesn't provide the view options that Explorer does, least of all showing metadata, which is ironic since Apple has always made good use of metadata where Microsoft hasn't.
Whether this situation with XMP tagging is deliberate, as it is a proposed Adobe standard (they deliberately don't support various competing media formats like XviD, Ogg, or Microsoft formats), or simply a sign of incomplete implementation, I don't know, but I'm eager to see if any of the above issues are addressed in Snow Leopard. The touted performance improvements alone are enough to make me consider upgrading, especially as the upgrade price is said to be small.
For now, I use the opensource Exiftool in conjunction with an Applescript I've devised to embed metadata like keywords, headings and comments in images in iPhoto.
