I have two Apple computers—a desktop and a laptop. The desktop is always in Motovun, while the laptop goes with me whenever I go to Zagreb, where I spend about a half of my time the last five years or so.  Otherwise, the desktop and the laptop are quite interchangeable. I use them both for the very same purposes. Still, it is amazing to compare Google search results on the two computers. More often than not, they are barely comparable. Whenever I want to amuse myself, I use the same search words or phrases on the desktop and the laptop and compare the results. And I laugh my head off each and every time. Googling for myself is the funniest exercise of all. Apparently, there are two of us in this funny world of ours. And we are pretty different from each other even though we have the same name, address, family ties, career, and the like. So different, in fact, that it appears that we are entirely ignorant of each other. Hilarious, to be sure.

Addendum (September 26, 2016)

Having come across this piece entirely by chance, I googled for myself on my two Apple computers one more time. In particular, this is the phrase I searched for: “Ranko Bon Residua.” I brought my laptop to my study, and compared the results with those on my desktop. This time around, I focused on the ten topmost pieces of writing among the search results. Here is what I got on my desktop:

“Comparing Me with a Nobody” (February 6, 2015)

“A Recipe for Foolproof Subversion” (May 14, 2013)

“Ten Principles of Disaster Management” (January 19, 2015)

“Croatia, Derrida” (January 10, 2016)

“Ranko Bon’s Tiny Pot” (January 19, 2006)

“Barba Bon” (May 24, 2012)

“Alessandra Bon” (March 26, 2012)

“The Bastion of Bigotry” (January 23, 2016)

“The Birth of Dorian Bon” (June 22, 1992)

“Ranko Bon is Not on Any Social Network” (January 23, 2013)

And here is what I got on my laptop, which was right next to my desktop in my study:

“The Bastion of Bigotry” (January 23, 2016)

“Croatia, Derrida” (January 10, 2016)

“Ranko Bon’s Tiny Pot” (January 19, 2006)

“Barba Bon” (May 24, 2012)

“Comparing Me with a Nobody” (February 6, 2015)

“Alessandra Bon” (March 26, 2012)

“The Spectrum of Human Consciousness and Primacy of Abstract Art” (December 16, 2004)

“An Open Letter to Fellow Humans” (September 21, 2014)

“The Birth of Dorian Bon” (June 22, 1992)

“Being Ranko Bon” (July 9, 2014)

As it turns out, the results are not that different, after all. In fact, seven out of ten pieces of writing appear on both lists, albeit not necessarily in the same order. All in all, my original piece quite exaggerates the difference between Google search results on the two computers. Come to think of it, Google might have improved its browser in the meanwhile. They had an entire year for the task, too. Be that as it may, my sincere apologies to the mighty browser.