John Gruber has interviewed my friend, ATPM publisher, and SpamSieve creator, Michael Tsai.
The two discuss SpamSieve intensely, including thoughts on a server version of SpamSieve, which sounds intriguing (nudge, nudge, Jim). AppleScript and other scripting languages are kicked around, as well as programming in general, and Michael talks about his involvement with About This Particular Macintosh, which began in 1996 when he was 16.
Michael asked for input on his answer to Gruber’s question on what sets ATPM apart from other Mac publications, and I think he puts it quite succinctly:
The biggest difference in the content, I think, is that we don’t cover news. We try to write more in-depth articles that will be interesting to people a year or two after they’re written. And we do multiple editing passes and accuracy checks, which hopefully set us apart from the average Web site in terms of quality.
In reviews, we tend to write about products that we use every day. That’s the only way to really go beyond the spec sheet and press kit, and get at what it’s like to actually use the product. In general, we write about what interests us and the topics where we have something to add, rather than feeling an obligation to completeness. For example, Eudora is an important product, but we haven’t reviewed it since 1997 because I don’t think anyone on staff normally uses it.
When I was an ATPM reader, I liked the down-to-earth, personal writing style, and I hope some of that still remains. Compared to other Mac publications, I’d like to think that ATPM is most like TidBITS — only with graphics.
My online life is a lot less harried thanks to Michael and SpamSieve, and if you are a Mac user, yours can be, too.