I just saved £250 by buying a Macbook from John Lewis instead of Apple, so I've had a very good week 🙂

Mind if I ask how you’ve got on? I’m considering the same move but concerned about the reality of running SQL Server in a docker container and having to learn a new OS. Can’t seem to beat the MBP hardware though, and OSX promises better performance and stability.

It took me a while to get used to Rider since I've used Visual Studio for so long, but I now wish I had done it sooner. I probably should have gone for the M3 Pro chip instead of the M3 Max, but I didn't want to wait 14 days for a custom configuration to get the 36GB Ram I wanted. I definitely didn't do enough research on the differences in bus speed etc between the different models, but I doubt I would notice the difference. SQL Server runs great in Docker once you get the storage volume and permissions setup. I found a couple of posts on this blog really useful in getting set up. https://www.nocentino.com/posts/2021-09-25-container-file-permissions-and-sql/. I haven't tried to work on any old .NET Framework sites yet, but I did download the free VMWare software and bought a Windows 11 licence so I should be able to if I want, but I still have my old Windows laptop as a backup, until I try that out. I have turned my old Windows PC on only once since I got the MBP and it took a moment to remember where i had put it since I hadn't thought about since about 2 days after getting the MBP. No regrets from me, although I do have to use a PC at my day job so switching between the different keyboard layout is still a bit of an issue mentally.

That’s great. Thanks for posting the link as well. My MBP is en route. £3K is SO much to spend, but hopefully it pays for itself. I tried Rider one before and gave up instantly. Hopefully I get used to it, because everyone speaks highly of it.