Technically Incorrect

A few people came to my house today to watch the Baltimore Ravens steal an NFL playoff game with their usual display of vomit-forward video game violence.

When I say 'people', some, including my friend Ali, were not as fascinated with the game as with checking their friends' breast-feeding pictures on Facebook. So Ali grabbed my MacBook (black, seeing as you ask) with the intention of anti-socially networking.

She tugged at the power cable in order to plug it into the MacBook and seemed to be having trouble. After several attempts she was still not successful in making the magnetic connection with the cable port.

Because her frustration turned to grunting louder than that of Ray Lewis in Surround Sound, I turned to see that she was trying to put the cable into the wrong side of the machine. When I suggested she try the other side, she looked at me as if I was her parole officer. Then she declared my MacBook "stupid" and "discriminatory."

I confess I've never considered the plight of the left-handed laptopper, even though I have some left-handed tendencies myself. Ali said her PC had ports on the right and had never encountered such wrong-headed one-sidedness.

The hand of a depressed MacLefty?

(Credit: CC Okko Pyykko)

So in the interests of her satisfaction and the ability of several hard-working people to enjoy the game, I made her a cup of strong tea, took control of the MacBook and went online to examine the essence of left-handed computing. I found deep discussions about laptop left-handedness. I also found left-handed keyboards, and many examples of the left-handed mouse.

I was even reminded that golfer Phil 'Lefty' Mickelson is not, actually, left-handed. But I failed to find a MacBook with the holes on the other side.

Now I have no idea if many deeply creative, Mac-passionate left-handers out there secretly suffer every day of their lives with this spatial awkwardness. Could it be that some even suffer from a troubling form of MacLefty Tourette's? But perhaps readers might share their discomfort in this most curative of subjective forums.

I wonder if Steve Jobs left-handed or right-handed. I can't say I've ever noticed. I'll ask Ali. She's bound to know.