Comments on: Latest Windows ads parodied in Web video

A slightly off-color video parodies Microsoft's "laptop hunter" series of ads. It features Frank, a homeless guy who still doesn't want a PC.

[The_happy_switcher]

"I'm poor but not retarded." lol

[Super2online]

He may not be retarded, but he obviously isn't putting what he does have to good use!

[Inconnux]

yeah i burst out laughing when I heard that one!

[Seaspray0]

It was funny but it still made a point... that macs are too expensive to be used as sun shades while sleeping on the street.

[topgunb2]

as expected from apple, don't have good product/numbers to compete, lets have a parody instead!

[goodspeed8701]

this new windows ad is becoming so popular. guess what I'm a pc.

[Jayemmbee]

that was funny i wont lie, but a lot of pc haters , misinformed at most though

[sanjayb]

This makes more sense than the regular Microsoft commercials. Did Apple produce this? :-P

[slecalvez]

Not really funny....

[Seaspray0]

That's because they missed the connection to Lauren's commercial. If they had a few more seconds in the parody, the homeless guy sleeping on the sidewalk could have poped his head from under the laptop and said, "If I wanted to stay cool, I would have bought the mac."

Aww, it's just a parody! Have a sense of humor, please.

[WickedRabbit]

First off, that video was pretty hilarious. Second, though, I don't know if the video was created just be mocking the Windows commercials or if it's created by fans of Mac, but regardless, the video still sort of finds itself inside the Apple stigma in that they chose a poor/homeless guy to represent the PC shopper and I couldn't help but be reminded yet again about one of Apple fans' stigmas in that they are rich people who view PC users as inferior and poor.

[c4s2k3]

"...one of Apple fans' stigmas in that they are rich people who view PC users as inferior and poor."

1st time I've heard that one. There is a big difference between someone describing a product (like Windows) as inferior and a poor choice, and saying those who use the product are "inferior and poor." I've never heard that kind of generalization from any of the Mac users I know.

[ducttape36]

you havent?!?! read the comments on any mac or windows related article, you'll see plenty of elitism rhetoric from both sides.
to sum it up, here is every argument you will hear.

PC- mac users pay too much, I can do more with a pc (games), macs are capable of gettin viruses but no one writes any for them because of their low market share.

Mac- PC's are prone to viruses, PC users are dumb for not using mac os because mac os is more stable, PC users should get a job to afford a mac.

[seven7dust]

@ ducttape36
thats a load of bull

[ducttape36]

oh ok, my mistake. pc and mac fan boys get along great and never bring up any of those points in argueing. thanks for clearing that up for me.

[Seaspray0]

@7dust. You're good at insinuating that apple is the BMW of computers, but how many poor people buy them?

[Seaspray0]

Oh, better yet. Let's quote from one of your fellow fanboys... "If by "effective" you mean they promote the idea that PC users are poor and not choosy, then yes, they are a home run."

Defend that, sevendust. Elitism at its finest.

[seven7dust]

@seaspray
who exactly said that ? and you can Find these Kinds of People on the Pc side as well
Look up users like jabberwolf etc they do the same kind of name calling !

That commercial should be used on network TV. It's better than the usual crap Microsoft and Apple put out combined.

[toosday]

No it shouldn't.

Why? Because in this economic climate, the last thing you want to do is make fun of homeless people. Especially when the foreclosure rate on homes is so high and even your average family can be homeless in a split second. (Heck I just watched a report on NBC News about now-homeless children trying to stay in school.)

This is a tasteless ad, if you ask me. And I'm a Mac user.

Not funny at all.

[stuxstu]

And then there was none... Guess Ina has left journalism and joined the blogger community on CNET. Sorry to see it...

[Orion Blastar]

Assuming that Journalism still exists, I think we lost it before the 21st century. Everything is blogging now, even in real newspapers and TV shows. Opinion, Gossip, Comedy, and Entertainment have replaced Journalism and News.

[Orion Blastar]

It also mocked the Macbooks, $1700 for a Macbook is too expensive for someone on a $1000 and under budget.

I'd get a $700 Vista Home Premium Laptop and buy a copy of Windows XP Pro for $139 on Pricewatch.com and then use that, which is what I did in real life.

As soon as they get decent driver and Internet application support I'll use either AROS or HaikuOS to replace Windows.

[ducttape36]

i guess i could understand posting about windows commercials and even bashing them, even though all commercials can be picked apart (like apple's commecial touting it's "green" macbok dispite the solid aluminum contruction hardly being green at all), but posting about paradies? its clear to me now that ina just wants to poke fun at microsoft at any opportunity. Unless somehow i missed all the postings about other commercial paradies for other tech companies.

[drhamad]

Solid aluminum is a hell of a lot more green than plastic.

[ducttape36]

both are recyclable, but the process to make the solid aluminum has been criticised. heres a quote: "EcoGeek.org deemed the MacBook's solid aluminum brick construction an environmental "step backwards." For a detailed critique of the new MacBook's greeniness, check out Green, Inc." you can easily find supporting sentiments with a simple google search.

[jacobhanks]

Wow.....this is a funny bit but at the same time totally stupid. What is wrong with plastic....when i had a mac book pro the aluminum would get so hot it would scald my skin. I have had many plastic laptops and never broken one. Korea can make good motherboards.....do any of this guys complaints make any sense? My wife uses an HP and it is great and does anything just as well as a macbook....it cost us 500 dollars and it has 3gb ram 320 gb hd and a ten key...its 16 inch screen is 16:10 aspect ratio which is awesome. Sorry apple but the mac tax is stupid.

[Perry_Clease]

"and a ten key"

Too much effort to press "1" and then "0" :)

"What is wrong with plastic"

Nothing, but there is plastic and then there is plastic. However, I get your point and most laptops, be they Apple or Brand X, that are made out a plastic, resin, or whatever, is more durable than woodpecker gums.

[ducttape36]

does perry clease know what a ten key is? or was that a joke?

[Perry_Clease]

"does perry clease know what a ten key is? or was that a joke?"

In my best Foghorn Leghorn voice "That's a joke son... I say, that's a joke, son!" Didn't you see the smiley?

[ducttape36]

sorry, i must have left my sense of humor at home today. its been a long week (and its only tuesday)

[Perry_Clease]

"sorry, i must have left my sense of humor at home today. its been a long week (and its only tuesday)"

You know if you has OSX you could use "Back to My Mac" to get that humor :)

Have a great week

[ducttape36]

i do have osx.

[sciontcya]

Ah yes, the humorless "PCs" come out on this one.
Not too shocking, you'll defend your piles no matter what.
The MS commercials suck, this is at least funny.

[Vegaman_Dan]

I guess this means the MSFT ads are pretty effective in getting the message out if someone already thinks they are worth making a parody of. I don't think Microsoft will do anything about it- it's free advertising and doesn't exactly put the Apple lineup in a good light either.

[Random_Walk]

I believe it only means that Microsoft is so much easier to parody.

[rhsc]

@Random_Walk :

take a look around, there are far more Mac vs PC parodies out there than this one Laptop Hunter parody

[The_happy_switcher]

If by "effective" you mean they promote the idea that PC users are poor and not choosy, then yes, they are a home run.

[Inconnux]

and you haven't seen the many parodies of the 'im a mac, im a pc' commercials???

[thelemurking]

AppleRocks is the perfect example of why Apple users are hated. He thinks he is so much better and smarter than everyone else... He's a great little MacIntard troll... He can't be using a Mac for creative reasons because he spends all damn day on news.com trolling every Microsoft topic. He's almost always first to post. Great little troll, probably one of the kids that got picked on the most at school and this is how he lashes out.

[The_happy_switcher]

thelemurking: A good therapist could help you with your inferiority complex.

[Random_Walk]

@rhsc: Correct, though how much exposure did they get? Unless you hunted them down on YouTube, not much.

Many of them were funny, though most fell way short of actually touching on the point. This on on the other hand skewers the Microsoft ad completely.

(The best parody of any computer ad? There was one a long time ago that parodied the "switcher" ad, and it was actually made by a Mac afficinado. Can't remember what the title of it was, or I'd be able to dredge it up for you).

[thelemurking]

I have no inferiority complex you silly billy you... but I don't go around pretending to be better than everyone else. You aren't fooling anyone trollboy...

[seven7dust]

@rhsc
exept those parodies are lame as hell !

[pentest]

Keep telling yourself that Dan.

Those MS commercials are flat out misinformed. It would be like McDonalds comparing themselves to a 5 star restaurant in ads.

[Random_Walk]

I have to admit - that was hella funny!

No snarkiness or pretention that the real ads have... just a go-for-the-jugular parody.

[trevorbsmith]

I am pretty sure Frank is the ninja from Ask a Ninja.

[numatik]

I'm with you. Totally that dude. I am ninja too!

[CDubber]

Even when you save money by buying a cheap Windows laptop, you still lose.

I use a Mac. Because I'm happy to pay more to avoid misery. And because I'm worth it.

[sythara]

Perfect example of elitism as described above.

[c4s2k3]

What's elitist about this? Is stating that you are willing to pay more for something you perceive to be of higher quality "elitist"? People apply that same logic to lots of consumer items, from a pen, to a steak, to cars, and yes, computers. I would hope everyone feels they are worthy of "quality," however they individually define it.

[Vegaman_Dan]

It's one thing to say that you are happy with your computer and are proud to tell others that.

It's elitist to tell others that what they have is inferior to your own personal choice.

Just use what ever works for you and don't degrade others for their choices.

[c4s2k3]

I don't see how expressing an opinion about a product "degrades" anyone. If I say "I think that computer is a piece of junk" I'm not attacking or degrading anyone. If I say "I think you are a @#%&$# because you own that computer," that's an entirely different matter, and I agree it is wrong. I just didn't see how CDubber's comment qualified as anything other than the 1st example, yet it was labeled "elitist" by sythara. I think if someone expresses an opinion about a product and that makes someone else feel like they are being degraded simply because they happen to own that product, maybe they are just too sensitive. Better off not reading any kind of product review on-line or in print.

[Dalkorian]

by c4s2k3 April 14, 2009 5:00 PM PDT
I think if someone expresses an opinion about a product and that makes someone else feel like they are being degraded simply because they happen to own that product, maybe they are just too sensitive.

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Try telling an abused wife to leave her abusive husband and watch her reaction. Same thing. They LIKE the pain, they're masochists!

[seven7dust]

@Dan
say that to all the Pc fanboys who go on and on about Mac users being Dumb and paying for Logos
hell even Ballmer AKA monkeyboy said it !
So stop with the generalization we are just defending ourselfs
and
yes Microsoft products are crap there I said it , Now is that elitist ?
look at the no. of bug fixes they did just this week alone !

[Bill_I]

Cubs vs. Sox.

[Vegaman_Dan]

Chevy vs. Ford

[ducttape36]

godzilla vs mothra

[sanjayb]

Tastes great vs Less filling

[Angmarr]

Worth the buck vs. Expensive S____

[brief]

Goku vs. Superman


-_-

[Dalkorian]

Duh! Ford's rule, Godzilla would kick Mothra's butt if Mothra had one and who cares how filling something is or is not when it tastes like fertilizer!

As for the Cubs vs. Sox, well if I wanted to watch a bunch of men groping themselves and spitting I would rent some redneck gay porn.

Go ahead, aim those flame throwers my way. I'm fireproof!

;-)

[merlefisher]

Coke vs. Pepsi :-)

[Seaspray0]

Roe vs Wade

[sciontcya]

Hemi vs Yugo

[Dalkorian]

ROFLMAO. Thanks, I needed that today.

[seven7dust]

wats Funny about this whole Apple vs Microsoft thing is
Apple makes Computers ,Microsoft makes Software
Comparing the 2 companies is a Apples to oranges comparison {no pun intetnded}
but it seems to be the most debated Topic ever ! only religion can create more interest !

[pentest]

Apple puts computers together like Dell.

Unlike Dell, Apple also writes its own OS.

Compare the OS's. MS loses that race as well.

[sciontcya]

Funnier thing is - you're an idiot.
How's it feel sleeping on the street with a Dell over your face???

[Vegaman_Dan]

People don't like to compare OS to OS because then you have to acknowledge that the hardware is no longer a component in the comparisons.

The two products can never be truly compared on a level playing field. Not unless Apple releases OS X for the PC or if Microsoft starts producing hardware.

[Dalkorian]

by sciontcya April 14, 2009 1:00 PM PDT
How's it feel sleeping on the street with a Dell over your face???

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Cheap and tawdry. Only the lowest, most degraded soul would sleep on the street with anything less than a 17" Macbook Pro on their face! LOL!

[eltoro2827]

this article was indeed very "gay".