I guess you haven't built a PC lately. It's no longer cheaper to build your own. You can buy the bottom line Dell (and others) for much cheaper than you can put one together. Also, you can get a dual-core machine already built for well under a grand, where a comparable Mac is well over 2 grand. Macs just aren't cost-effective.
I "switched" from Windows to the Mac 3 years ago and I am not looking back. I love my Macs and my iPods for that matter. They just seem to work. No need for funny configurations, or virus', pop-ups, and system crashes. I have "converted" five people to the way of the Mac and they love it!
I have been using Mac's for years. I am not in any hurry to buy one of the Intel Mac's though. I already paid to upgrade all of my software for OS X PowerPC, and I am STILL waiting for the promised performance boost. As for iPod - no thanks. My Zen sounds way better, and offers me a lot more for less. (Yes - It works for my Mac) Now we just have to make Apple open up their proprietary AAC-DRM (Fair Play)
They are great to own, but have you ever had a problem with one? The first thing they do with an ipod is give you another and send yours along with all you music to be refurbished for the next person. Along with this you get to make a trip to the over rated "sacred" Apple Store and wait 30 minutes to speak to the "GENIUS" (the only person out of the 12 employees on duty with half a brain) and have them try and sell you either a new ipod of imac because it costs more than half the price to repair the thing. Oh no, don't try and repair your laptop yourself, they make it impossible to get into them. They just need to loosen up and be a little more liberal with the products. Cut the price, and let us upgrade them if we want. The lack of upgrades and flexibility is why these machines are only found in coffee houses and homes. They do look nice and shiny though!
i have never had any trouble opening up and upgrading my G5 Tower, my G4 PB, my wife's G5 iMac, or her IBook. Any Mac I've ever owned actually.
As to the Apple Store, I guess when you don't know what you're talking about, use sarcasm? The sales people there aren't supposed to be techs, which I could also say for ANY computer store (CompUSA comes to mind). They have a couple of people working the Genius Bar for people like you who don't have a clue how to open a computer. When I've gone into the Apple Store, I've observed that they usually have a list of people who want to see them... I've never been one of them.
The Apple website has a great discussion forum for solving problems. Try a little research before tossing a tantrum.
My foray into mac world was a bit of an accident, because I happened to purchase a dual cpu powermac g4 that my old company was disposing off. I just had to install Panther and I was good to go. Ever since, I should say ,I fell in love with the mac and now I have added a MacBook Pro which makes me a mac junkie. Strangely I never considered iPod. May be because I'm rebellious by nature. I went for a relatively unknown iAudio X5 player which supports almost every known music format you can think of and has support for Audio/FM recording as well. I like to evaluate things for myself before taking the plunge rather than depend on someone elses perception and I should say that my decision in this regard hasn't let me down. Because you are always the best person to judge the products you use, since the perceptions and needs are unique to each user. I just have a few items on my wish list for Apple: 1. Make macs a little bit affordable for everyone. 2. Add support for running windows apps on intel mac's natively or through a windows VM 3. Make iLife part of the O.S instead of shipping as a seperate package.
If they do all these things, Apple has a good chance at regaining market share from other P.C vendors and I would like to see this happen since I'm an apple share holder.
My first Mac was a Mac II. The company I worked for had it as an oddity. I was hooked from Day 1 after telling everyone that it could never replace my IBM. Since then, I've owned Performas, early Powerbooks, the first iBook, G3s, G4s and now have an IMac G5 and a Mini Mac in the office/home. Have a third gen iPod and a Shuffle. Couldn't see life without them. Not that I'm an Applecondriac - I just love how they work, intuitively and consistently. And I don't have to go to classes to learn how to use the darned thing.
I love the design and simplicity of the Mac as my everyday communication and media device. But, cannot give up the PC because of: Better Gaming, Better Freeware Programs, Better Web surfing (plug-ins), device compatibility and because of work. Both OS do things well but both have failures. my $39 512MB Sandisk MP3 player does what I want and the IPOD is for trend lackeys only.
First of all, this is either a blatant lie (another plant) or your "IT" person is a complete idiot. Or, of course, you are. If you are a graphics shop based on the PC platform, no one takes you seriously. Do you work on CorelDraw ? If you are Video or Audio and PC based, you're a joke. I'm a technology consultant specializing in production for 20 years and I actually do know what I'm talking about. My Macs can connect to any win2k3 server, out of the box, with no problem. (I've also done PCs since the IBM 8008) I've done it dozens of times to the horror of quite o few other "IT gurus" at numerous large companies. As for Exchange , I've seen my Apple Mail program connect to Exchange servers faster and easier than Outlook on a PC. (and then there's Entourage) And why would a media shop use pathetic Win2k server, anyway. I can show you a FAR superior solution with Xserves that so ridiculously superior .. but I'd have to charge you. Can't print to network printers ??? What ??? Most color accurate RIPs (real graphics shops print ps files to RIPs, not printers) are Appletalk or, recently, Rendevouz (Bonjour) ready out of the box.. the better ones on MACS (Rainbow, Splash, etc..) and OSX can print to LDP, IP, HTTP, even SMB, mDNS, you name it. (It uses UNIX print system, duh) It's soo frickin easy my 6 year old can set it up. And yes, you CAN encode for WMV file on a mac but why ?? the $ 29 version of QT pro encodes MANY Codecs. (Remember, WMV is PROPRIETARY, DUH) even on a PC you have to BUY an encoder. Basically, REAL graphic designers do REAL work on Macs. PCs can't do REAL graphic design. (no system level color engine, for one) Stop these stupid, inane and absolutely FALSE posts.
I didn't even know I wanted a computer until I saw a spread for the Apple Lisa in 1982 (maybe), and sure didn't know what I would do with one if I had one. But there wasn't much chance of that, considering I could barely afford a daisy wheel typewriter at that time.
My wife's starting up a Montessori preschool in 1988 gave me plenty of things to do with a computer, and justification to drop what seemed the immense sum of $900 on a used 512ke Mac. In addition to payroll, student database, newsletters and calendars produced on computer that had one floppy drive, there was the world of the Internet via Compuserve -- more trouble than it was worth, actually. Wasted a few hours on Tetris and the first SimCity, but never ventured down the cul-de-sac of HyperCards. At work, where others made the buying decisions, there were a succession of PCs (and before that, terminals). But I could take off my shoes and get comfortable at home with, since the 512ke, an LC, a Motorola clone hotrodded with a G3 chip and the current G3 iBook.
iPod ads didn't captivate me the way Lisa once did. Though I thought it was cooler than any other portable music thing, I've never really much needed music to go. But somebody else got me one, so I had a chance to discover I love the iTunes experience.
We should treat Windows users with more empathy. If you think about it, it is understandable that they are frustrated and often unpleasant. Their OS is the IT equivalent of living in the house of Usher. They can't get no satisfaction. They've tried -- with Windows 98. With Windows 2000. With Windows XP. And, they will try again with Windows Vista, whenever it arrives. But, they can't get no. . . .
I gave up my last personal Windows box in 2003. I have been happily Mac only since. Currently, I use a PowerBook G5 that is seven months old. I am considering buying the next iteration of the MacBook Pro. I've had each full-size iPod. My current iPod, Alumina, is a white 60 GB iPod video. And, yes, this Mac user is satisfied.
I had an Apple II+, and later an Apple IIGS. Loved every minute. I stopped supporting Apple for two reasons:
1) They milked the Apple II line as the cash cow for them to develop the Mac, then Jobs did everything he could to kill the II line. Even when they were no longer advertised, the things sold themselves. Apple finally had to stop making them to keep people from buying them. When the IBM PC came out, the only real competitor was the Apple II. Had Apple developed it properly and aggressively, things could have been much different than they are today. Instead, the II line was mostly ignored while Jobs worked on the Mac. (The most market share Apple ever had, 15-20%, was _not_ with any Mac, but with the Apple II.) This blunder combined with other factors made the IBM PC the de facto standard.
2) Even if I had switched to the Mac like Jobs wanted, I was tired of seeing the software section at stores getting smaller and smaller. Plus I like to play state of the art games, of which very few are ported to the Mac. I went the PC route and have not regretted it. I made Windows-related technology my career for a time as an added benefit.
Who wouldn't be proud? The Blossoming of the iMac and iBook series exhibit good characteristics and versitility found nowhere, at least nowhere I have visited. Tongue-tied IBM compadet tible users may eventually find enough HONESTY to give merit where merit is due. Nothing I have seen under the Windows banner can begin to match the slickness, and ease of use, as I now experience, on the 20" iMac and the OS X 10.4.4 combination. If I have a regret, it is that my Corel 11 Graphics Suite for the Mac OS, is stumbling and locking-up instead of giving it's usual smooth operation. I am trying to remedy that situation. Those of you who are experiencing similar situations, hopefully can get satisfaction.
Who wouldn't be proud? The Blossoming of the iMac and iBook series exhibit good characteristics and versitility found nowhere, at least nowhere I have visited. Tongue-tied IBM compatible users may eventually find enough HONESTY to give merit where merit is due. Nothing I have seen under the Windows banner can begin to match the slickness, and ease of use, as I now experience, on my 20" iMac and the OS X 10.4.4 combination. If I have a regret, it is that my Corel 11 Graphics Suite for the Mac OS, is stumbling and locking-up instead of giving it's usual smooth operation. I am trying to remedy that situation. Those of you who are experiencing similar situations, hopefully can get satisfaction.
I AM A PRODUCT (30+) OF THE XEROX RESEARCH COMMUNITY-- NOT A PARC PERSON--JUST RESEARCH COMMUNITY WITH 3 ALTO YEARS. AFTER XRX EXITED THE WORKSTATION BUSINESS I WAS GIVEN A NETWORKED WINDOWS MACHINE. THE UI AND APPS WERE SOMEWHAT SIMILAR--MSWORD IS STILL BRAVO-X--EVEN TO THE LOOK AND FEEL. WHEN IT WAS MY MONEY, I GOT A MAC. WHAT A SUPRISE. THE ONE BUTTON MOUSE STRATEGY ACTUALLY DROVE USERS INTO USING KEYSTROKE COMBOS. COMMAND LINES AND KEY STROKES WERE THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND ICONS--POINT AND CLICK--SELECT OPTIONS. WHY HAVE CASUAL USERS PUSH 2/3 KEYS? PART OF MY WORK WAS SYS INTEGRATION MOSTLY SUN/TCP. THERE WAS PC DEMAND, BUT NO NETWORKABLE PC. THE MIGRATION FROM STANDALONE PC TO NETWORKED WS WAS PAINFUL TO WATCH FOR BOTH MS AND MAC. SERVERS APPEARED TO BE THE MAGIC OF SUN AND UNIX. ACTUALLY, THE HARD WORK WAS DONE IF YOU HAD STARTED WITH A REAL MULTASKING OS. I CAN GET THE GATES MSDOS EXCUSE. HOW APPLE GRASPED THE FUTURE OF ALTO AND IGNORED THE FUTURE OF NETWORKING IS BEST LEFT UNEXPLORED. WELL NOW I HAVE THE PICK OF LITTER UNIX, HOPEFULLY REMEMBERING ITS OO ROOTS, AND OBJECTIVE-C CORE.
THE INTEL INTEGRATION PUTS MS AND APPLE INTO THE MOORE'S LAW LEVEL PLAYING FIELD. MS HAS PLAYED CODE BLOAT AND MOORE'S LAW INTO MASSIVE SUCCESS. JUST THINK WHAT 50MM VISTA IS GOING TO FEAST ON. AS LONG AS THE LAW HOLDS, OPEN SOURCE, CODE EFFICIENT SOFTWARE SHOULD BE THE BASIS OF WHAT USERS DREAM OF. IF NOT, WELL AS LEAST I HAVE A 2 BUTTON MOUSE, AND THE COMMON MOORE'S LAW HARDWARE, OPEN SOURCE, UNIX/JAVA APPLICATION JUGGERNAUT TO LOOK FOREWARD TO.
Do you still have that Alto (at that time (1970s) yet to become Apple Lisa yet to become Apple Mac) in your basement?
Further to your discussion: when I finally broke down and bought myself a laptop last September, it was a 12-inch G4 Powerbook (the silver-colored one). I felt I was finally living the dream Alan Kay documented back in the mid-70s when he described his Dynabook notebook-size computer that became the basis for the experimental Alto computer. Now I know I have died and gone to computer heaven -- complete with the music apps (GarageBand, iTunes), office apps (MS Office, etc.), graphics apps (iPhoto, iMovie), etcetcetc, that Alan Kay envisioned in his groundbreaking PARC report and experimentation. (P.S. re: entry into computer heaven --> Alan Kay was there to greet me at the pearly gates ...)
I switch to Mac OSX after Jaguar 10.2 came out. That year I left my SGI O2 running Irix and SGI 320 running Windows 2000. So far I've had a great experience with Mac OSX. I have the ability to run most office products from Adobe suite and Microsoft Office to open source applications using Fink. With X11 built in I can administrate all my other Unix\Linux boxes (Irix, AIX, HP-UX, Solaris, Linux). With Tiger 10.4 Mac OSX offers most of the features I missed in NeXTStep and BeOS are back. Most of the computers at work which I administrate are Windows based PCs, but the Mac population is growing again in my department. Part of this I attribute to its solid performance and lower maintenance costs (TCO). I have a 2nd generation 20GB iPod which uses the Firewire port and with that I used to reload a computer Mac OSX system with in 20 minutes. Very easy to reload computers with Mac OSX and it is extremely easy to install applications. Its a joy to use and one doesn't have to deal with the messy registry or conflicting DLLs that overwrite each other and break applications in Windows. Windows XP makes some progress to security, but I still have to changes the ACLs on several folders to prevent XP from being corrupted from regular use from my users. Mac OSX takes most of its permission and ACLs structure from Unix. Windows XP inherited itself from a single user system and its permission structure is weak, the upcoming Vista is supposedly fixing this issue. Over the years I've had people hack into my Irix computers and compromise many of my Windows computers. The worms of 2002 - 2004 where especially bad for all of us in the IT world. I've never had any problem with my Macs being compromised (yet!) and I don't buy into the argument that its because of the Mac population being small. Well my Irix boxes which is the smallest percentage here on campus used to get hacked into all the time. If former cyber security and terrorism czar Richard Clarke uses a Powerbook G4 , then its good enough for me.
Last but not least, I find the AppleSpell checker very useful when filling out columns and forms like this one. I don't have to go into a word processor, do a spell check then paste the message into the form. I can just type away on Mac OSX and do the spell check inside the form.
To answer the question, "Why are Mac users so fanatical?", the best answer comes from those who use BOTH platforms regularly. I use most of the same software on both (Filemaker, word proc, Office, Net surfing, e-mailing, etc.) and I just like how the Mac works over the XP. Especially when it comes to video editing. I've had less headaches with my Mac than my souped up PC.
Ironically, my wife had some attachments that she had difficulty in downloading and opening on her laptop, so I forwarded it to my Powerbook (1 foot away), opened it up, and printed it out for her!
It's these little things like that, along with video editing, that make us Mac diehards. You can do most of the same things on both, it's just that with the Mac, things work like they should, with less headaches.
Don't listen to the rantings and ravings of Mac-only or PC-only users, listen to those of us who use both regularly and you'll know the real reason why we love our Macs over our PCs.
I was raised on the classic. It still sits in my father's basement. Along with a perfoma, mac IIvx, and imac 233. I still am running my imac 400dv, with panther and linux, seven years later and also have an ipod shuffle. I've always liked the products and have always loved the help i have received at lowendmac to keep my machine running
As a computer professional, I have worked on a large number of OS's. I have worked as a COBOL programmer on an IBM Mainframe, A Fortran programmer on a Prime Mini-Computer, and a Unix SysAdmin on a Sun. Due to my employer, I have to use Windows computers for some tasks, but I still have a Mac on my desk, as well as three Macs at home. (And both of the my grown children have Macs as well).
"Sure, the company has had some notable misses: the Newton operating system, for one, [http://...|http://...]"
Yes, the Newton failed in the marketplace (though people actively use and develop for them today), but the Newton operating system was a thing of beauty and not the reason (cost, quality of the initial third-party handwriting recognizer, size).
I would *far* rather have a Newton OS-powered handheld or phone than Palm OS!
I grew up around main frame computers. The company I worked for right out of college had 1 of the new fangled PCs and we all thought that it was great. The next 18 years I wrestled with Windows constantly trying to make it work with the latest siftware updates. When my kids started needing their own machines, I started looking at the new OS X. Whoa Nellie! That was all it took and I made teh switch. We currently have 2 PowerBooks, 12" and 17", three iBooks, 2 12" and a 14", all running on a wireless AirPort network. I have zero maintenance headaches with my network. The machines never crash, the included software is very usefull for teenagers - iChat, iPhoto and iMovie. I owrk in a large commercial bank's IT department, so I spend more than my fair share of time around PCs. I DO NOT want to go home and wrestle with them, so I have all Macs. We also have 4 iPods, 2 4gig Minis and 2 20gig 3Gs, and the kids get an allowance on iTunes so there is no arguing. The seamless synching between a Mac and an iPod is a joy to behold! Macs rule!
You work with an Operating System that has to compromise quality and reliability to be all things to all machines, whereas Macs are the whole widget.
How many word procesors do you need? One is just fine for me, but I have two (Word and Pages), plus InDesign and Quark!
PC folks seem to not come close to understanding what Macs are about, but they're certianly not short of opinions on the subject. Like the guy who says Macs only have consumer apps.
Ever hear of FinalCut Pro, which is taking over Hollywood? How about the professional Audio Apps? Aperture for workflow? How about all the ISVs who produce software for Macs? Like Adobe, Microsoft, etc. etc.
People sure love to slam what they don't use. Is use Macs, PCs with Windows and Linux and have used lots of other OS's over the years. I am way more productive (photo editor/ photographer) in OS X than anything ever before - espeically on my new Quad G5 with 4 gigs of RAM. Photoshop was never happier.
I am now 16 and I have used macs since I was 4, so apple is an important part of my life. I live in Chile and here is very difficult to have macs, because they are few stores where they sell them, and all of my friends use windows. Its also very difficult to get games so when my father goes to the U.S. he gets me games. But I still love apple computers because of their simplicity, security, and stabillity. Also apple products are always a step ahead in design and technology, they are always original and work as they should. But I would like an apple store here in Chile or at least iTunes Store support in Latin America.
I love Apple products! I have 4 macs at home (iMac g5 - original), g5 dual proc, 2 ibooks and 1 powerbook. We have 2 original iPods, an iPod Photo, iPod Video and a shuffle. I have to use Windows at work and I hate it; I look forward to coming home to my Mac every night.
From Java Apps to Unix Power and a kick-butt, secure server operating system the Mac is all Growed-Up.
What Can I say: I've owned dozens of windows boxes, dozens and dozens of macs -- I've written code, designed imagery and marketing, created software applications, built enterprise networks, produced and edited video, flash, multimedia, etc, and on and on and on.
For me It's a Great Mac World.
The experience is by far the best and MOST PRODUCTIVE!
Manage updates with the Download App
part of the package?
Cheaper then an iMac with equivillent bundles software. Not very
likely.
looking back. I love my Macs and my iPods for that matter. They
just seem to work. No need for funny configurations, or virus',
pop-ups, and system crashes. I have "converted" five people to the
way of the Mac and they love it!
of the Intel Mac's though. I already paid to upgrade all of my
software for OS X PowerPC, and I am STILL waiting for the promised
performance boost. As for iPod - no thanks. My Zen sounds way
better, and offers me a lot more for less. (Yes - It works for my
Mac) Now we just have to make Apple open up their proprietary
AAC-DRM (Fair Play)
'podcast' to change to 'Zencast.'
Apple products! They are damn good!
Along with this you get to make a trip to the over rated "sacred" Apple Store and wait 30 minutes to speak to the "GENIUS" (the only person out of the 12 employees on duty with half a brain)
and have them try and sell you either a new ipod of imac because it costs more than half the price to repair the thing. Oh no, don't try and repair your laptop yourself, they make it impossible to get into them.
They just need to loosen up and be a little more liberal with the products. Cut the price, and let us upgrade them if we want. The lack of upgrades and flexibility is why these machines are only found in coffee houses and homes. They do look nice and shiny though!
Tower, my G4 PB, my wife's G5 iMac, or her IBook. Any Mac I've
ever owned actually.
As to the Apple Store, I guess when you don't know what you're
talking about, use sarcasm? The sales people there aren't
supposed to be techs, which I could also say for ANY computer
store (CompUSA comes to mind). They have a couple of people
working the Genius Bar for people like you who don't have a clue
how to open a computer. When I've gone into the Apple Store,
I've observed that they usually have a list of people who want to
see them... I've never been one of them.
The Apple website has a great discussion forum for solving
problems. Try a little research before tossing a tantrum.
Strangely I never considered iPod. May be because I'm rebellious by nature. I went for a relatively unknown iAudio X5 player which supports almost every known music format you can think of and has support for Audio/FM recording as well.
I like to evaluate things for myself before taking the plunge rather than depend on someone elses perception and I should say that my decision in this regard hasn't let me down. Because you are always the best person to judge the products you use, since the perceptions and needs are unique to each user.
I just have a few items on my wish list for Apple:
1. Make macs a little bit affordable for everyone.
2. Add support for running windows apps on intel mac's natively or through a windows VM
3. Make iLife part of the O.S instead of shipping as a seperate package.
If they do all these things, Apple has a good chance at regaining market share from other P.C vendors and I would like to see this happen since I'm an apple share holder.
oddity. I was hooked from Day 1 after telling everyone that it could
never replace my IBM. Since then, I've owned Performas, early
Powerbooks, the first iBook, G3s, G4s and now have an IMac G5
and a Mini Mac in the office/home. Have a third gen iPod and a
Shuffle. Couldn't see life without them. Not that I'm an
Applecondriac - I just love how they work, intuitively and
consistently. And I don't have to go to classes to learn how to use
the darned thing.
person is a complete idiot. Or, of course, you are.
If you are a graphics shop based on the PC platform, no one
takes you seriously. Do you work on CorelDraw ? If you are
Video or Audio and PC based, you're a joke.
I'm a technology consultant specializing in production for 20
years and I actually do know what I'm talking about. My Macs
can connect to any win2k3 server, out of the box, with no
problem. (I've also done PCs since the IBM 8008) I've done it
dozens of times to the horror of quite o few other "IT gurus" at
numerous large companies. As for Exchange , I've seen my
Apple Mail program connect to Exchange servers faster and
easier than Outlook on a PC. (and then there's Entourage)
And why would a media shop use pathetic Win2k server, anyway.
I can show you a FAR superior solution with Xserves that so
ridiculously superior .. but I'd have to charge you.
Can't print to network printers ??? What ??? Most color accurate
RIPs (real graphics shops print ps files to RIPs, not printers) are
Appletalk or, recently, Rendevouz (Bonjour) ready out of the
box.. the better ones on MACS (Rainbow, Splash, etc..) and OSX
can print to LDP, IP, HTTP, even SMB, mDNS, you name it. (It
uses UNIX print system, duh)
It's soo frickin easy my 6 year old can set it up.
And yes, you CAN encode for WMV file on a mac but why ?? the $
29 version of QT pro encodes MANY Codecs. (Remember, WMV
is PROPRIETARY, DUH) even on a PC you have to BUY an encoder.
Basically, REAL graphic designers do REAL work on Macs. PCs
can't do REAL graphic design. (no system level color engine, for
one)
Stop these stupid, inane and absolutely FALSE posts.
problems.
My wife's starting up a Montessori preschool in 1988 gave me plenty of things to do with a computer, and justification to drop what seemed the immense sum of $900 on a used 512ke Mac. In addition to payroll, student database, newsletters and calendars produced on computer that had one floppy drive, there was the world of the Internet via Compuserve -- more trouble than it was worth, actually. Wasted a few hours on Tetris and the first SimCity, but never ventured down the cul-de-sac of HyperCards.
At work, where others made the buying decisions, there were a succession of PCs (and before that, terminals). But I could take off my shoes and get comfortable at home with, since the 512ke, an LC, a Motorola clone hotrodded with a G3 chip and the current G3 iBook.
iPod ads didn't captivate me the way Lisa once did. Though I thought it was cooler than any other portable music thing, I've never really much needed music to go. But somebody else got me one, so I had a chance to discover I love the iTunes experience.
about it, it is understandable that they are frustrated and often
unpleasant. Their OS is the IT equivalent of living in the house
of Usher. They can't get no satisfaction. They've tried -- with
Windows 98. With Windows 2000. With Windows XP. And,
they will try again with Windows Vista, whenever it arrives. But,
they can't get no. . . .
I gave up my last personal Windows box in 2003. I have been
happily Mac only since. Currently, I use a PowerBook G5 that is
seven months old. I am considering buying the next iteration of
the MacBook Pro. I've had each full-size iPod. My current iPod,
Alumina, is a white 60 GB iPod video. And, yes, this Mac user is
satisfied.
despite being vaporware, was the most important computer in
Apple's recent history.
1) They milked the Apple II line as the cash cow for them to develop the Mac, then Jobs did everything he could to kill the II line. Even when they were no longer advertised, the things sold themselves. Apple finally had to stop making them to keep people from buying them. When the IBM PC came out, the only real competitor was the Apple II. Had Apple developed it properly and aggressively, things could have been much different than they are today. Instead, the II line was mostly ignored while Jobs worked on the Mac. (The most market share Apple ever had, 15-20%, was _not_ with any Mac, but with the Apple II.) This blunder combined with other factors made the IBM PC the de facto standard.
2) Even if I had switched to the Mac like Jobs wanted, I was tired of seeing the software section at stores getting smaller and smaller. Plus I like to play state of the art games, of which very few are ported to the Mac. I went the PC route and have not regretted it. I made Windows-related technology my career for a time as an added benefit.
0atmea1
0atmea1
NOT A PARC PERSON--JUST RESEARCH COMMUNITY WITH 3
ALTO YEARS. AFTER XRX EXITED THE WORKSTATION BUSINESS I
WAS GIVEN A NETWORKED WINDOWS MACHINE.
THE UI AND APPS WERE SOMEWHAT SIMILAR--MSWORD IS STILL
BRAVO-X--EVEN TO THE LOOK AND FEEL.
WHEN IT WAS MY MONEY, I GOT A MAC. WHAT A SUPRISE.
THE ONE BUTTON MOUSE STRATEGY ACTUALLY DROVE USERS
INTO USING KEYSTROKE COMBOS. COMMAND LINES AND KEY
STROKES WERE THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND ICONS--POINT AND
CLICK--SELECT OPTIONS. WHY HAVE CASUAL USERS PUSH 2/3
KEYS?
PART OF MY WORK WAS SYS INTEGRATION MOSTLY SUN/TCP.
THERE WAS PC DEMAND, BUT NO NETWORKABLE PC. THE
MIGRATION FROM STANDALONE PC TO NETWORKED WS
WAS PAINFUL TO WATCH FOR BOTH MS AND MAC. SERVERS
APPEARED TO BE THE MAGIC OF SUN AND UNIX.
ACTUALLY, THE HARD WORK WAS DONE IF YOU HAD STARTED
WITH A REAL MULTASKING OS. I CAN GET THE GATES MSDOS
EXCUSE. HOW APPLE GRASPED THE FUTURE OF ALTO AND
IGNORED THE FUTURE OF NETWORKING IS BEST LEFT
UNEXPLORED.
WELL NOW I HAVE THE PICK OF LITTER UNIX, HOPEFULLY
REMEMBERING ITS OO ROOTS, AND OBJECTIVE-C CORE.
THE INTEL INTEGRATION PUTS MS AND APPLE INTO THE
MOORE'S LAW LEVEL PLAYING FIELD. MS HAS PLAYED CODE
BLOAT AND MOORE'S LAW INTO MASSIVE SUCCESS. JUST THINK
WHAT 50MM VISTA IS GOING TO FEAST ON. AS LONG AS THE
LAW HOLDS, OPEN SOURCE, CODE EFFICIENT SOFTWARE SHOULD
BE THE BASIS OF WHAT USERS DREAM OF.
IF NOT, WELL AS LEAST I HAVE A 2 BUTTON MOUSE, AND THE
COMMON MOORE'S LAW HARDWARE, OPEN SOURCE, UNIX/JAVA
APPLICATION JUGGERNAUT TO LOOK FOREWARD TO.
JK
Do you still have that Alto (at that time (1970s) yet to become Apple Lisa yet to become Apple Mac) in your basement?
Further to your discussion: when I finally broke down and bought myself a laptop last September, it was a 12-inch G4 Powerbook (the silver-colored one). I felt I was finally living the dream Alan Kay documented back in the mid-70s when he described his Dynabook notebook-size computer that became the basis for the experimental Alto computer. Now I know I have died and gone to computer heaven -- complete with the music apps (GarageBand, iTunes), office apps (MS Office, etc.), graphics apps (iPhoto, iMovie), etcetcetc, that Alan Kay envisioned in his groundbreaking PARC report and experimentation. (P.S. re: entry into computer heaven --> Alan Kay was there to greet me at the pearly gates ...)
WM
my SGI O2 running Irix and SGI 320 running Windows 2000. So
far I've had a great experience with Mac OSX. I have the ability to
run most office products from Adobe suite and Microsoft Office
to open source applications using Fink. With X11 built in I can
administrate all my other Unix\Linux boxes (Irix, AIX, HP-UX,
Solaris, Linux). With Tiger 10.4 Mac OSX offers most of the
features I missed in NeXTStep and BeOS are back. Most of the
computers at work which I administrate are Windows based PCs,
but the Mac population is growing again in my department.
Part of this I attribute to its solid performance and lower
maintenance costs (TCO). I have a 2nd generation 20GB iPod
which uses the Firewire port and with that I used to reload a
computer Mac OSX system with in 20 minutes. Very easy to
reload computers with Mac OSX and it is extremely easy to
install applications. Its a joy to use and one doesn't have to deal
with the messy registry or conflicting DLLs that overwrite each
other and break applications in Windows. Windows XP makes
some progress to security, but I still have to changes the ACLs
on several folders to prevent XP from being corrupted from
regular use from my users. Mac OSX takes most of its
permission and ACLs structure from Unix. Windows XP inherited
itself from a single user system and its permission structure is
weak, the upcoming Vista is supposedly fixing this issue.
Over the years I've had people hack into my Irix computers and
compromise many of my Windows computers. The worms of
2002 - 2004 where especially bad for all of us in the IT world.
I've never had any problem with my Macs being compromised
(yet!) and I don't buy into the argument that its because of the
Mac population being small. Well my Irix boxes which is the
smallest percentage here on campus used to get hacked into all
the time. If former cyber security and terrorism czar Richard
Clarke uses a Powerbook G4 , then its good enough for me.
Last but not least, I find the AppleSpell checker very useful when
filling out columns and forms like this one. I don't have to go
into a word processor, do a spell check then paste the message
into the form. I can just type away on Mac OSX and do the spell
check inside the form.
Ironically, my wife had some attachments that she had difficulty in downloading and opening on her laptop, so I forwarded it to my Powerbook (1 foot away), opened it up, and printed it out for her!
It's these little things like that, along with video editing, that make us Mac diehards. You can do most of the same things on both, it's just that with the Mac, things work like they should, with less headaches.
Don't listen to the rantings and ravings of Mac-only or PC-only users, listen to those of us who use both regularly and you'll know the real reason why we love our Macs over our PCs.
OS's. I have worked as a COBOL programmer on an IBM Mainframe,
A Fortran programmer on a Prime Mini-Computer, and a Unix
SysAdmin on a Sun. Due to my employer, I have to use Windows
computers for some tasks, but I still have a Mac on my desk, as
well as three Macs at home. (And both of the my grown children
have Macs as well).
operating system, for one, [http://...|http://...]"
Yes, the Newton failed in the marketplace (though people
actively use and develop for them today), but the Newton
operating system was a thing of beauty and not the reason (cost,
quality of the initial third-party handwriting recognizer, size).
I would *far* rather have a Newton OS-powered handheld or
phone than Palm OS!
quality and reliability to be all things to all machines, whereas
Macs are the whole widget.
How many word procesors do you need? One is just fine for me,
but I have two (Word and Pages), plus InDesign and Quark!
PC folks seem to not come close to understanding what Macs
are about, but they're certianly not short of opinions on the
subject. Like the guy who says Macs only have consumer apps.
Ever hear of FinalCut Pro, which is taking over Hollywood? How
about the professional Audio Apps? Aperture for workflow? How
about all the ISVs who produce software for Macs? Like Adobe,
Microsoft, etc. etc.
People sure love to slam what they don't use. Is use Macs, PCs
with Windows and Linux and have used lots of other OS's over
the years. I am way more productive (photo editor/
photographer) in OS X than anything ever before - espeically on
my new Quad G5 with 4 gigs of RAM. Photoshop was never
happier.
important part of my life. I live in Chile and here is very difficult
to have macs, because they are few stores where they sell them,
and all of my friends use windows. Its also very difficult to get
games so when my father goes to the U.S. he gets me games.
But I still love apple computers because of their simplicity,
security, and stabillity. Also apple products are always a step
ahead in design and technology, they are always original and
work as they should. But I would like an apple store here in Chile
or at least iTunes Store support in Latin America.
From Java Apps to Unix Power and a kick-butt, secure server
operating system the Mac is all Growed-Up.
What Can I say: I've owned dozens of windows boxes, dozens
and dozens of macs -- I've written code, designed imagery and
marketing, created software applications, built enterprise
networks, produced and edited video, flash, multimedia, etc,
and on and on and on.
For me It's a Great Mac World.
The experience is by far the best and MOST PRODUCTIVE!
Dante Orazzi
In this game since day one.