Yesterday, as a first step in pruning my long-neglected list of metaverse platforms, I decided to cut off a whole branch. I deleted the entire subsection on those virtual worlds and social VR platforms which incorporated blockchain, cryptocurrencies, or Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). In this editorial blogpost, I will explain why, moving forward, I will no longer write about any blockchain-based metaverse platforms on the RyanSchultz.com blog. (The original blogposts are still there and searchable.)
As a metaverse blogger, my introduction to blockchain came via the first few blockchain-based worlds which caught my attention, notably three early entries which actually launched a world where you could create an avatar and pay a visit: first Decentraland in February 2018, then Somnium Space in May of that same year, then Cryptovoxels (now called just Voxels) in July. In April of 2018, I started writing regularly about NeosVR, a non-blockchain-based social VR platform which had an associated cryptocurrency (although it was not really integrated in any way).
At that time, blockchain was a novelty, and I reported on the news and events happening on these platforms much as I did for Second Life and other metaverse platforms I covered (often from a highly skeptical and sarcastic perspective). Aside from some NCR (Neos Credits, Neos’ cryptocurrency), a monthly “reward” which I had earned as a Patreon supporter of the project, I did not buy or use any crypto.
I do remember being somewhat excited in 2021 when NCR rose to the giddy heights of almost US$9 per coin, buoyed by cryptospeculators who had little to no interest in the metaverse, even briefly indulging in the fantasy that I could sell at the top of the market and buy myself a new desktop PC with that “money” (I just checked right now, and today, 1 NCR coin is worth a whopping seven cents U.S.).
After the inevitable crash, all I lost was perhaps several months’ worth of a Patreon subscription I had upgraded to “earn” more NCR, perhaps about $20 in total, but I do know people who lost $1,000 and more. It was an instructive lesson in just how much of a gamble crypto could be.
In fact, a little over a year ago, I wrote on this blog that I would henceforth restrict my reporting on blockchain-based metaverse platforms to those which supported virtual reality (which, at that time, narrowed it down to just three worlds on my list: NeosVR, Sensorium Galaxy, and Somnium Space).
I have also decided that I will no longer be writing about any blockchain-based metaverse platform unless it incorporates virtual reality…
[T]hose platforms which had the great good fortune to launch well before the current crypto carnage, are possibly still entangled in the web of interconnected crypto companies lending and borrowing from each other, in highly speculative cryptocurrencies whose actual value is based only on what the next greater fool is willing to pay for them. In particular, those who purchased overpriced NFT-based real estate on such platforms as The Sandbox, Somnium Space, and yes, even pioneering Decentraland, are going to find it very difficult, if not impossible, to make any sort of profit off their investments.
And one only has to observe the travails which NeosVR has gone through, after a cyncial pump-and-dump instigated by cryptobros, to see how a social VR project with such technical promise can be hamstrung by attaching a cryptocurrency to it. There has, to my knowledge, been no active development on the platform in over a year, and it is unclear what 2023 holds for NeosVR. It breaks my heart and it angers me.
While I will continue to follow the current crypto winter shenanigans as an interested (and bemused) observer, I have decided that I will no longer be writing about any blockchain metaverse unless it has launched, and it supports virtual reality. In particular, I will no longer waste my time (and your patience) writing about all the blockchain metaverse projects which consist of little more than an .io website, a Telegram or Discord channel, and a white paper long on hand-waving, but short on actual technical details. Enough with the bafflegab and bullshit.
Over time, from 2018 to 2024, my initial bemusement about crypto, NFTs, and blockchain has hardened into something closer to revulsion. I started following cryptoskeptics like Molly Brown and David Gerard, and hanging out in the r/Buttcoin subreddit, which provided a reliable stream of cryptosnark. More recently, I have been reading some well-written books critical of crypto, notably Zeke Faux’s Number Go Up: Inside Crypto’s Wild Rise and Staggering Fall, and Easy Money: Cryptocurrency, Casino Capitalism, and the Golden Age of Fraud, by Ben McKenzie and Jacob Silverman (both of which I can very highly recommend).
And I have finally reached the conclusion that, even though there might still be blockchain-based social VR platforms out there, which are actual, delivered products and NOT scams or rug pulls (for example, Somnium Space), I am so sick and tired of the overall crypto space in general, that I am no longer going to write about any of them anymore. I have finally had enough of this nonsense, after six years, and I am done.
HOUSEKEEPING NOTICE: Today is the first of twelve successive Mondays which I am taking as research days from my full-time paying job as an academic librarian at the University of Manitoba. During this time, I am finally tackling two long-delayed tasks:
Of these two, I have decided to immediately start on the second project, which I have not worked on since 2019 (but I would like to thank Dr. Fran Babcock, who made some updates to this spreadsheet in 2021).
This task is longoverdue, and there are many entries of metaverse platforms which have shut down since the first version of this spreadsheet, among them:
Tivoli Cloud VR (which closed on February 20th, 2022) was a social VR platform based on the original open-source code of High Fidelity, the Philip Rosedale-helmed company which shuttered its doors as a metaverse platform way back in 2019, choosing to refocus the company around its spatial audio technology. However, two other social VR platforms using HiFi’s codebase, Vircadia and Overte are still up and running, at least, the last time I checked!
Helios, an Unreal-based social VR platform which actually came and went before I even had a chance to add it to the spreadsheet!
On February 13, 2024, Mozilla announced an organization-wide restructuring impacting a number of products housed within the Mozilla Corporation. Unfortunately, Hubs is one of the products impacted and it will be shut down later this year. This will be a multi-month process with three members of the Hubs team overseeing the transition.
We look forward to having more time to reflect on the full history of the Hubs project, where we succeeded, where we came up short, our feelings about it ending, and Hubs’ overall legacy. However, right now our only goal is to support you as you have so lovingly supported us after learning this sad news and over the last six years...
While we hope that Hubs can have a vibrant life outside of Mozilla, there are a number of pieces of Hubs that will end as part of the shutdown. These include the Hubs Demo Server (hubs.mozilla.com) and the Managed Subscription, the two services actively maintained by Mozilla that most of our users rely on.
Community Edition is designed to help developers deploy the full Hubs stack on any Linux-based infrastructure, including AWS, Google Cloud, and even your own computer. In the same way that Hubs Cloud mimicked how the Hubs team ran the server managed by Mozilla, Community Edition mimics the infrastructure our team uses for the managed subscription service. Community Edition simplifies and automates most of the complex deployment process using Kubernetes, which is a containerized software orchestration system.
The obvious benefit of a solution like Community Edition is that it gives developers more choices for hosting Hubs. The less obvious benefit is that it offers greater flexibility when dealing with significant updates to a hosting platform. In the past, if there was a major update to the AWS platform, Hubs Cloud developers had to wait for our team to release a new version of AWS launch configuration. Community Edition eliminates this limitation.
Unlike Hubs Cloud, Community Edition is designed for developers who are well-versed with the full Hubs stack and comfortable navigating cloud hosting platforms. While we will be providing examples and guidance on how to host Community Edition, we will not designate a primary hosting platform, as we did with AWS for Hubs Cloud. Community Edition users will be responsible for researching, evaluating, and staying informed about the hosting options available to them.
Setting up Community Edition will require more effort than many of our current Hubs Cloud customers may be accustomed to. However, we believe that this direction best empowers our developer community. Many of you have already chosen to bootstrap and self-host the codebase on your own instead of using Hubs Cloud, and we hope that Community Edition will offer a more straight-forward approach for achieving your goals.
In the Feb. 15th announcement, Mozilla stated that the sunset plan and timeline for Hubs Cloud has not been changed. The company has already ceased support for Hubs Cloud on AWS as of January 1st, 2024, however existing Hubs Cloud instances will not be automatically shut off, as the FAQs section of the October 2023 announcement explains:
We will be ceasing to support Hubs Cloud on AWS starting on January 1, 2024. Existing Hubs Cloud instances will not be automatically shut off on January 1. On that date, we will de-list Hubs Cloud from the AWS marketplace to disable new sign-ups. Existing customers will then have a minimum of 90 days to migrate to another Hubs service before their subscriptions to Hubs Cloud come to an end. The earliest date for these subscriptions to cease will be March 30th…
Developers may continue to use their subscription and manually maintain their instances until we fully remove Hubs Cloud from the AWS marketplace (March 30th, 2024 at the earliest). After January 1, it is difficult to predict which AWS platform updates released will impact current Hubs Cloud customers, given the variability in current Hubs Cloud instances. Many customers, whose instances were created years ago, may not have kept their code current with the updates that have been released. However, if you have experience with AWS development, there’s no reason you cannot manually troubleshoot these issues yourself to continue using your existing instance…
We are currently working on tools to automate the data migration process from existing Hubs Cloud instances to Community Edition and Managed Subscription instances. These tools may vary from platform to platform, however expect to see them released in the lead-up to January 1st. Join our Discord server and check out the #community-edition channel to stay tuned!
March 1st, 2024: The creation of new subscriptions will be disabled. Existing subscriptions will be able to continue using their instances until the full shutdown is complete. The demo server will continue to function as normal.
April 1st, 2024: A tool to download your data will be released. Demo users and subscribers will be able to begin downloading their data.
May 31, 2024: Existing subscription instances and the demo server will be turned off. All Mozilla-run community resources and platforms will also be turned off.
From this timeline, it sounds as though the official Mozilla Hubs Discord server will also be shutting down on May 31st (I have just posted a question in that Discord to confirm that assumption, though, and I will report back). I am also somewhat concerned that all the links to join the Mozilla Hubs Discord server in the Feb. 15th blogpost give me errors, but I have generated a new invite link here (and reported the problem in their Discord):
The invite links in the announcement blogpost all give errors! Here’s a new one.
So, all of this means that Hubs users have some difficult decisions to make over the next few months, as the sunset timeline marches ahead. However, the future looks promising for Hubs to continue as an open-source, community-run initiative. As Mozilla states in their sunset blogpost:
Hubs’ code is open source, which means that it can have a life outside of Mozilla. Since [the February 15th] announcement, many former Hubs team members have returned to the Discord server to remind the community that Hubs was built with life outside of Mozilla in mind. The project’s commitment to open source and focus on self-hosted versions of Hubs mean that no one entity can determine Hubs’ future; only this community can do that.
And (as we have seen with Tivoli Cloud VR, Vircadia, and Overte springing from High Fidelity), there is already precedent in having a metaverse platform move from company-run to community-run (albeit with varying degrees of success!). I wish the team at Mozilla, and the Hubs community, nothing but the best during this transition, and I look forward to participating in Hubs Community Edition.
Mozilla Hubs will be missed!
UPDATE Feb. 27th, 2024: Michael Morran, of the Mozilla Hubs team, has responded to my questions about the Hubs Discord server and the invite link:
Hey Ryan, thanks for the write-up. The broken link is not intentional, so I’ll update that now. As far as what happens to the discord after May 31, we are currently unsure what Mozilla can transfer over to the community, but we hope to get clarity on this soon.
As I mentioned in passing in my last blogpost, I am eager to get my hot little hands on the latest Holy Grail in the world of virtual reality/augmented reality/mixed reality/extended reality (VR/AR/MR/XR): the Apple Vision Pro wireless headset, which began shipping to American consumers on February 2nd, 2024.
Alas, there is no word yet on when we non-Americans will be able to order this device, although at least one VR YouTuber, Brian Tong, has heard (via his unofficial, internal sources) that Apple is planning to expand access to the U.K. and Canada next, perhaps shortly before or during the 2024 Apple Worldwide Developers Conference, which is usually held the first or second week of June.
In an interesting move, Apple refers to this device as spatial computing, avoiding any mention of virtual reality, mixed reality, or any of the other terms which have usually been tossed around while talking about other headsets. Also, I find it quite telling that nowhere will you find mention of the now-often-maligned concept of the metaverse, especially after being embraced by numerous crypto/NFT projects which went nowhere, plus Facebook’s much-ballyhooed rebrand into Meta landing with a bit of a dull thud and a shrug among consumers. As fellow metaverse blogger Wagner James Au wrote on his blog last week:
With Meta’s latest earnings report published this week, we find out the company has now burned invested $42 billion on building the Metaverse, with little to show for that: Its metaverse platform Horizon Worlds has less than an estimated 500,000 monthly active users, while sales of its Quest VR headset line (a metaverse peripheral) remain steadfastly small.
While Wagner is certainly more pessimistic about virtual reality than I am, it’s clear that VR headsets are not exactly flying off shelves, especially when compared to the blockbuster sales of cellphones, tablets, and gaming consoles. Andrew Williams of Forbes reported last October:
Meta has sold more than 20 million headsets to date, 18 million of which were the Meta Quest 2.
The Quest 3’s predecessor was highly successful, considering VR isn’t really a mainstream proposition in the way standard game consoles are. But the market has not expanded in the way Meta clearly hoped.
Back in May, the Washington Post reported a significant proportion of Quest users were letting the headset gather dust after just a few weeks.
The somewhat tepid success of most VR/AR/MR/XR/metaverse ventures to date are clearly reasons why Apple has focused, in its usual savvy marketing campaign, on the fact that the Apple Vision Pro is intended to be a wearable personal computer (essentially, an iPad for your face). Apple has announced in a Feb. 1st news release that over 600 new apps built specifically for the Vision Pro were available to American consumers at launch, plus “more than 1 million compatible apps available on the App Store to deliver a wide array of breakthrough experiences.”
The Vision Pro the first completely new category of device launched by Apple since the Apple Watch in 2015, and many people (myself included) have been keen to see what Apple, with its history of launching well-designed products, would come up with. As I often say on my blog, A rising tide lifts all boats, and Apple’s entry into this market has the potential to shake things up quite a bit, especially since they have taken pretty much the opposite tack from Meta, by focusing on an expensive, ultra-high-end device as their first product.
1 TB (terabyte, or 1,024 GB; starting at US$3,899).
So the one-terabyte Apple Vision Pro of my fondest dreams and darkest desires comes out to $5,259.17 in Canadian dollars—and that’s before sales taxes!
Many mainstream media and tech news reviewers prepared print and video reviews of the Apple Vision Pro, using pre-release review units provided by the company. These reviews were embargoed until the official release of the headset in early February, when they landed in a big media splash (Apple has deep pockets to spend on advertising, and has always done excellent marketing for their products).
Brian Tong, the YouTuber whom I mentioned earlier, has put out a very user-friendly, comprehensive one-hour review video:
Nilay Patel of The Verge put out the following half-hour video as part of its extensive print review of the Apple Vision Pro, which did not shy away from talking about what he saw as some problems with the device, describing it succinctly as “magic…until it’s not.”
Joanna Stern of the Wall Street Journal (archived version) took a slightly more unusual, whimsical approach to her review of the Apple Vision Pro. Joanna wore the review unit for a full day, even taking it to out to a ski chalet and wearing it out on skis, on a closed-off bunny hill! (Something definitely not recommended, by the way; DO NOT DO THIS.) Here’s her ten-minute video, which also shows her wearing the Vision Pro while preparing a recipe, and even setting up multiple timers hovering over the different pots on her stovetop:
And yes, one of the many features of the Apple Vision Pro is that you can set up displays anywhere, as demonstrated by in this mind-bending one-minute YouTube video by Himels Tech, as he walks around his house showing off his set-up:
There are many other reviews out there, but these four video reviews between them cover pretty much all the bases, so if you watch all of them, you’re up to speed!
The eye-watering price is not the only hurdle to be overcome by whoever wants to possess one of these Holy Grail devices! Unlike every other VR headset I have purchased, I will not be able to wear my glasses underneath the face-fitting, ski-goggle-like design. So I have two options: to get soft contact lenses (which I have not worn for a couple of decades), or to buy magnetically-attached prescription lens inserts from Apple’s partner, Zeiss. According to an Apple Support article:
To purchase ZEISS Optical Inserts for Apple Vision Pro, you need a legible comprehensive prescription. Here’s the information your comprehensive prescription should contain:
Your distance correction and near correction needs, indicated separately but on the same prescription sheet. This is known as the full manifest refraction.
An expiration date, which should not be expired.
Your date of birth, your full name, and your prescriber’s license number and signature.
Intermediate distance, task distance, or computer distance should not be part of that prescription, and contact lens prescriptions are not accepted. If you’re not sure if your prescription is comprehensive, consult an eye care provider and reference the description in this article.
ZEISS Optical Inserts are available for the vast majority of corrections, including for customers who normally use progressive or bifocal lenses. A very small percentage of people have a prism value added to their glasses prescription. At this time, ZEISS cannot manufacture ZEISS Optical Inserts based on a prescription containing prism value. If you have a prism value, it is labeled on your prescription and noted separately from sphere, cylinder, axis, and ADD values. If you’re not sure if your prescription includes prism, consult with an eye care provider.
Depending on your prescription, your vision needs might not be met through ZEISS Optical Inserts.
So it looks as though I am going to have to go see my eye doctor first, then submit my prescription, then cross my fingers that they will support my combination of nearsightedness and astigmatism (not to mention my need for progressive lenses!). Honestly, it all sounds rather discouraging and disheartening.
But perhaps my apprehension about the Vision Pro not working for my elderly eyes is misplaced, because even blind people are finding the device to be useful! Check out this mind-blowing YouTube Shorts video by James Rath, who tests out some of the accessibility features and settings, James says that he can actually see more clearly with the Vision Pro, than without! This device could open up a whole new use case for the visually impaired.
So, yes, I am very eager to get my hands on an Apple Vision Pro sometime this year! I don’t want to wait; I want to experience this envelope-pushing product as soon as possible. I haven’t been this excited about a headset since the Oculus Rift back in 2016. So please stay tuned as I report on my odyssey to acquire the new Holy Grail of spatial computing!
HOUSEKEEPING NOTICE: Yes, I know this blogpost is somewhat off-topic for a blog about “news and views on social VR, virtual worlds, and the metaverse,” but hey, my blog, my rules. 😉
Also, this is the first of what I suspect will be many blogposts about the Apple Vision Pro spatial computing headset, which I am eager to get my hands on as soon as I can! Accordingly, I have created a new blogpost category, called Apple Vision Pro. I have a second blog post on that project, which I hope to publish very soon. (This device is not yet available in Canada, and we still don’t know when it will go on sale here.)
With my recent focus on Second Life these past few months, you can expect to see a return to more varied topics on the RyanSchultz.com blog from here on in, including but not limited to the latest crop of new VR headsets and metaverse platforms. For example, you might not know that I have received a Meta Quest 3 VR headset as a test/evaluation unit for the virtual reality lab project at my university, and I have been working on a review of that device, but I’m afraid it’s not done yet!
Thank you for your continued patience as I try to find some sort of balance between my full-time paying job (which pays the bills!), this blog (which does not!), and the rest of my life (Auntie Ryan is 60 now, and she needs her beauty sleep… 😜).
Yesterday, Google announced that their generative AI tool, called Google Bard, had been renamed to Gemini, and was now finally available in Canada (The Globe and Mail newspaper provides some background on why there was a delay). So, I signed up, and immediately put it to task, asking both it and OpenAI’s ChatGPT the same question, to compare responses and see how their answers would differ.
The cost of both these generative AI services is approximately the same, at US$20 per month. I subscribed to Gemini Advanced, which gives users access to Ultra 1.0, Google’s largest and most advanced AI model, as one of the benefits of a new Google One AI Premium plan (I was already a Google One user for cloud storage, so this was an upgrade). I get to try out Gemini Advanced for two months on a free trial period, before my credit card is charged.
For my first search, I used both ChatGPT and Gemini to answer a question that I have been thinking about over the past few days:
I am planning to purchase a MacBook Pro laptop to replace my Windows desktop computer. I plan on using the MacBook Pro laptop alone, and with an Apple Vision Pro spatial computing headset when they become available for sale in Canada. What things so I need to keep in mind when I am moving from a Windows environment to a Mac environment?
(Please note, this is a question about my work setup, not my home setup…I’m planning on keeping my high-end Windows 11 PC and Valve Index VR headset!)
OpenAI’s ChatGPT
I wanted to use the latest and most advanced model of ChatGPT, ChatGPT4, which includes web browsing, advanced data analysis, and integration with the DALL-E image generation app. Unfortunately, today ChatGPT4 was not cooperating, forcing me to verify my humanness every time I submitted my query, then giving me the following error message when it did go through:
I got this message every time I tried to use ChatGPT4, perhaps because the system is overloaded?Then, I kept getting the following error: “Our systems have detected unusual activity from your system. Please try again later.”
So, after several attempts, I gave up, and switched to ChatGPT3.5, which bills itself as “our fastest model, great for most everyday tasks.” (I should note that I use ChatGPT with the free Superpower ChatGPT plug-in for Firefox, which allows me create folders, save chats, etc.)
Here’s the response from ChatGPT3.5:
Moving from a Windows environment to a Mac environment can be a smooth transition, but there are several things to keep in mind to ensure a seamless switch:
User Interface Differences: macOS and Windows have different user interfaces and keyboard shortcuts. Spend some time familiarizing yourself with macOS, including the menu bar, Finder, and the Dock.
Software Compatibility: Check if the software you currently use on Windows has macOS equivalents or if there are alternative options available. Many popular software applications have versions for both platforms, but some may be exclusive to Windows.
File Compatibility: Ensure that your important files are compatible with macOS. Most common file types like documents, images, and videos are interchangeable, but specialized formats or proprietary software files may require conversion or specific software on macOS.
Cloud Services Integration: If you use cloud services like Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive, make sure they have macOS applications or web interfaces. This ensures seamless access to your files across platforms.
Learning macOS Basics: Take advantage of online tutorials, guides, and resources to learn macOS basics, such as navigating the file system, using built-in apps like Safari, Mail, and Calendar, and understanding system preferences.
Security Differences: While both macOS and Windows have built-in security features, they operate differently. Familiarize yourself with macOS security settings and best practices to keep your system secure.
Backup Strategy: Set up a backup strategy using Time Machine or a third-party backup solution to ensure your data is protected. macOS has built-in backup software called Time Machine, which makes it easy to back up and restore your files.
Hardware Compatibility: Ensure that any external devices you use, such as printers, scanners, or external hard drives, are compatible with macOS. Most modern peripherals have macOS drivers available, but it’s always good to check before making the switch.
Apple Ecosystem Integration: Since you plan on using an Apple Vision Pro spatial computing headset, explore how it integrates with macOS and any specific requirements or software needed for compatibility.
Community Support: Join online forums, communities, or user groups dedicated to macOS to get help, tips, and advice from experienced users.
By considering these factors and taking the time to adjust to macOS, you can smoothly transition from a Windows environment to a Mac environment and make the most of your new MacBook Pro.
Now, compare this with the response I received from Gemini:
Absolutely! Switching from Windows to macOS can be exciting, and even smoother with the potential use of an Apple Vision Pro headset. Here’s a breakdown of key things to consider for a successful transition:
The Basics
Learning Curve: Expect a bit of a learning curve. The interface and overall philosophy differ slightly between macOS and Windows.
Be patient, give yourself time to adjust, and utilize resources like Apple Support for guidance. Keyboard Shortcuts: Get acquainted with Mac shortcuts. The Command key (⌘) replaces the Windows Ctrl key for many core shortcuts (e.g., Copy = ⌘+C, Paste = ⌘+V). “Right-Click”: Macs have a few ‘right-click’ methods: Ctrl-click, two-finger click on a trackpad, or clicking the right-side of an Apple mouse. Finder: This is the Mac equivalent of Windows Explorer. It’s your primary tool for navigating files and folders.
Ecosystem & Software
Apple Ecosystem: Macs shine within the Apple ecosystem (iPhone, iPad, etc.). Features like AirDrop (seamless file transfer) and Handoff (continue tasks across devices) integrate beautifully.
Software Compatibility: Most major software has Mac versions (Office, Adobe Suite, etc.). But always double-check if you rely on specialized Windows apps – you might need to find Mac alternatives or explore remote desktop solutions.
iCloud: Apple’s cloud storage is deeply integrated with macOS. It’s great for backups, syncing files across devices, and photo/document storage.
Hardware & Connectivity
Ports: MacBook Pros primarily feature Thunderbolt/USB-C ports. Get USB-C adapters if you have peripherals that use older USB-A or HDMI connections.
Touchscreen: While Macs don’t generally have touchscreens, many gestures become intuitive on the trackpad. The Apple Vision Pro may introduce a significantly different touchscreen-based interaction model with macOS.
Preparing for Apple Vision Pro
System Requirements: Be sure to check the requirements for running Apple Vision Pro. It’ll likely need a powerful MacBook Pro model for optimal performance.
Spatial Computing Workflow: Concepts like using apps “around you” in space or hand gestures will be part of spatial computing. Begin thinking about how these interactions will change your usual workflow.
Developer Resources: If you’re interested in developing for Apple Vision Pro, keep an eye out for Apple’s SDKs (Software Development Kits) and development resources.
macOS Basics: Explore Apple’s support pages to familiarize yourself with their desktop operating system beforehand.
Additional Tips
Data Migration: Apple’s Migration Assistant can help transfer files and settings from your PC.
Trial Period: If possible, try a friend’s Mac or spend some time with one at an Apple Store to get a feel for the environment before purchase.
Let me know if you’d like a deeper dive into any of these areas or have more specific questions!
One difference which I noticed immediately is that Gemini integrated Google Search results into its answer. When it did this, it highlighted the text, and provided a link to click through to the Google Search result referred to (see the red arrows in the diagram below):
Interestingly, in one case, there was a link, but no Google Search result! (And, since the Apple Vision Pro has its own CPU and GPU, I would think that you could use any MacBook Pro model without issue.)
And, as you can see in the full response I quoted from Gemini, it even went so far as to give me a direct link to an Apple support document on how to transition from Windows to macOS! (Plus, another Google Search result, a second Apple support document talking about Apple’s Migration Assistant, a potentially useful service which I did not know about.)
Comparing the ChatGPT3.5 and Gemini responses, I found the former to be much more general and less helpful overall, than the latter. This reference librarian also dislikes how ChatGPT just spits out an answer, without telling me the sources of the information.
Also, Gemini had a feature I had never seen before in ChatGPT: the ability to see successive interim drafts of its answer! For a follow-up question, I noticed a Show drafts link which, when clicked on, allowing you to switch between three drafts of the answer to see how they differ from each other.
Anyway, for this question at least, I am going to award Gemini the win (which might not be fair, as I wasn’t able to use ChatGPT4, which might have been a fairer head-to-head comparison). Then again, if ChatGPT is struggling with performance issues due to too many users, maybe that’s a serious problem that OpenAI (backed by Microsoft) needs to address. It’s definitely a factor to take into consideration when comparing the two services (and yes, eventually Gemini, too, could become overloaded).
I will continue to kick the tires on both Gemini and ChatGPT3.5/ChatGPT4 over the next few months, and then I will probably decide to cancel one of the two subscriptions, since I honestly cannot see myself shelling out US$40 a month for two services that essentially duplicate each other. Stay tuned!
