Being a curious sort I thought I'd look at the software I have on my computer, grade it for how often I use it, track down the origin of the company or person selling the apps. I must say the Apple world is the IT region I most enjoy, with frequent, sometimes painful, excursions into the world of Microsoft — because I interact very often with corporate users of MS products.

I was surprised — and a bit pleased, as a European — to see most apps come from my home continent.

Australia 1
Not known 1
Open source 1
Canada 3
USA 4
Europe 10

 

If I added how likeable an app is to use, the European group would also be high. Small companies in Europe are making some beautiful, useful and reliable tools for us. Oddly, I bought a word processor from Israel years ago and found a beautiful note-taking app from China.