While I still believe my experience at the Apple Store was superior to most computer experiences, I can't sing their praises too much. I do have to admit that my Specialist (who acknowledged he was new) didn't always give me the correct answers. Not knowing Apple software, I mistakenly assumed iMovie and Final Cut Express could handle all standard PC file formats, such as the .AVI's my clients send me, and he confirmed this. Not true, they import from a variety of current video cameras, but importing movies someone else provides in any format other than Apple formats doesn't work. For those of you who care about this, there are free "drivers" I'll call them for lack of a better word, that make Final Cut Express recognize other formats such as AVI. Google "Perian".

When I asked him about the difference between iMovie and Final Cut Express, one of the things he mentioned was you can't control your iMovies at a finer level than 1/10 of a second. Not true. You can control it by entering in times more precise than that manually, or by magnifying your viewer to 1/2 second segments.

While nothing he told me incorrectly would have been a significant deterent to buying an iMac, it was a bit frustrating to start using it at home and find he was incorrect on a bunch of little things. My advice to any PC user about to make the leap: do your research first, or make sure you get an experienced and knowledgeable Specialist to answer your questions.