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Microsoft Switcher Ads: Part 2
burgburgburg writes "We all recall Microsoft's last attempt to emulate the Apple Switch ads. Well, it seems they're at it again. MacNN reports that Microsoft has sent out emails to those who have recently registered MS products, looking for candidates for their 'Sensible Solutions' campaign, which will 'highlight computer professionals that have recently converted from Apple Computer products to Microsoft based systems.' Do you qualify? You must be 'a US resident with a minimum of 3 years experience as a computer professional. You must have used an Apple Computer product and a Microsoft based system as part of your work'. So when does it just stop being the sincerest form of flattery and just become utter, pathetic laziness?"
I have been using computers since the late 80's. In fact, in the beginning we used AppleIIs, for artwork etc... now that im 17 years older, I have switched to Photoshop on a WinXP platform.
would that count O:-)
Sig- http://www.dreamhost.com/rewards.cgi?ayefly
You must also have a picture on a photo library CD.
Right about ... now.
I recently switched to Windows XP, because my Mac Powerbook is broken. So while I wait for that to get fixed, I borrowed a PC from work. I can't wait to get my Mac back.. oh wait, was I not supposed to say that? Do I still get paid?!
Why insist on calling it laziness? Maybe the switcher ads just work -- and it's always good sense to copy what is known to work well...
If Microsoft knows the ads are working for Apple, they'd be stupid not to use them themselves....
Microsoft is basically afraid because Apple has openly admitted their old OS wasn't so great, and the new MacOS has everyone switching to a Mac.. I used to hate mac's but now I use one for every day tasks, even work.. Microsoft may try a switch campaign, and they will get people to do it.. but for every switch ad microsoft makes, 500 more people just bought a mac and ditched their old PC's which can't run XP.
What Microsoft needs is an Ellen Feiss equivalent. How are they going to get her if they ask for 3 years experience as a computer professional?
Went to the local Apple store, and at the Genius Bar there was a man dejectedly putting a brand-new 15" TiBook back into his briefcase. The websites he visits are all optimized for Windows and the software he uses daily (he's a financial planner) comes in Windows-only (and yes, he tried Virtual PC, to no avail). He's selling his TiBook and going back to Windows. The lack of software I can almost understand, but companies that refuse to make their websites accessible and usable to anything other than WIndows IE are demonstrating either major ignorance on customer service, a blatant disregard for standards, or both.
"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
But the adds will never have the pure appeal of the Mac switch adds. "TCO amoritized over the year saved us $$" is not "bleep, bleep, bleep, bleep, gone!"
I have an expensive Mac. It strikes me as slow, sometimes. I get annoyed when software comes out for the PC first. But I'm not giving it up for anything.
"A language that doesn't affect the way you think about programming, is not worth knowing" - Alan Perlis
When you control 95% of the OS and office-suite markets, who else do you have to convince?
The remaining fringe is going to avoid MS no matter what.
Are they just trying to save face against semi-influential Apple ads?
Depends how much MS will pay me.
I've got a PC with XP sitting here, right next to my TiBook, 17" iMac, CRT iMac, G3 Powerbook, OS X Servers...
I'm sensable, I use my PC for the same things my GameCube and PS2 are for...games.
I think this is sad on Microsofts part. Their copying apple with a succesful campaign but coming too late to the party. A lot of it is in the timing and I think Apple's switch has done all it can in mindshare
The biggest part of the apple campaign is that people have left the common world of windowsk, one that people dont think of leaving because they see nothing else but MS MS MS everywhere. Then to switch to Apple or indeed anything smaller is a big task and it can be seen as an active choice
For a switch to windows sounds like 'I used to use X but then I joined the herd' and gave in to peer pressure. Its hardly the same thing
note: the slashdot user 'danamania' is a transexual. beware
So like, I had this Mac. But I started hanging with this "other" crowd, and they were all PC users, so like, I am too now. It's been good. But now I have leprosy. Is that supposed to come with WinXP? Is it a feature or something? My name's night, and I'm a bell-jingling diseased rodent. : D /my Karma has just committed suicide.
I found out that the switcher's story is recursively enumerable. Below is the grammar. Feel free to use this for your application essay.
Hi, my name is <IDENTIFIER>. I am (a|an) <IDENTIFIER> [from <IDENTIFIER>].
I used (Apple|Macintosh) version <FLOAT_LITERAL> for <INTEGER_LITERAL> (years|months) doing (documents | spreadsheets | databases | video editing | MP3 listening | surfing the net | <OTHER_FUN_JOBS>)+. It was all (fun | very nice | pleasant experience) at the beginning.
But, later on I discovered that (it has only one mouse button | some software I bought wasn't supported | their hardwares are so expensive | <REASON_WHY_IT_SUCKS>)+. Since I was only (a yet another broke graduate students | an unemployed bum | a clueless luser | <REASON_WHY_I_SUCKS>)+, I found out that their solution is [completely | absolutely] unviable.
(Enter | Here comes) Microsoft. They provide me (MS Office | MS Windows | <OTHER_MS_SOFTWARE>)+. It is really (a panacea | working like magic | <REASON_WHY_ITS_GREAT>)+. Now I can (surfing a lot faster | do my spreadsheet even better | <OTHER_PRAISES>)+. Even more, I can get added bonus, like (the great blue screen | DRM constricted media player | compulsory activation | <OTHER_STUFF>)+, which makes my computer eXPerience even better.
Now that I switched. How about you?
--
Error 500: Internal sig error
well, if you were under 18 when Windows ME came out, then, yes, Gates did rape you as a child.
When we were using Apple computers, my job was in serious danger of being downsized. They were easy to use and almost never crashed.
Fortunately, due to Microsoft license incentives, my company switched to PC's running Windows.
What a relief! The stress I was suffering over job security is gone! In fact, I just got a fat raise because the bosses have seen how hard I've been working.
Sure, I'm busier now, and I may not have the spare time to check Slashdot incessantly, but that's why they call it work, right?
My reasons are: PIII)Want games, want to add hardware when I want from just about whatever source I want. The PIII is mostly a frankenstein of parts either bought or traded from friends. Unfortunatly I could not do this with a Mac.
But...
iBook) Want small, only 12.1 inch screen, the thing is tiny, fits in my backpack no prob. My friend's dell required him to buy a new "laptop" backpack. Want tough, magnesium caseing, rubber mounted hard drive, the thing is like a small tank in the laptop world. Want Unix, without all the trouble linux causes in laptops. Yeah I know it is very possible to have a very workable linux laptop, but I don't think it is possible to have a very workable linux laptop that works out the box, and I can send back to the company when the DVD-CDRW drive goes kaput.
Would I own a Mac desktop, at the moment, hell no! They would need to be more competative in both the speed and the price arenas for me to even consider it.
But my point is this, there are people out there who have weighed the differences and made the choice of both. OSX is easy, and fast, and pretty. Win2K (sorry don't know about XP) is where most of my professional experience lays so troubleshooting it easy, and it plays games, and it was hella cheap ($50 OEM version when I bought my HDD).
Note to self: No more arguing with the faithful.
Yes. Macs are slow. The ads are meant to sell to user types. As far as crashing goes, yes they used to,or so I hear, but my G4 hasn't crashed in 8 months. Windows sucked just as bad back then too.
You (and this is assuming you have the brains to make an informed, bias free decision), have the right to choose what's right for you. My choice of what's right ranges from Blade servers to Intel/Linux to Onyx's but the Mac is my workstation, and it's staying.
"A language that doesn't affect the way you think about programming, is not worth knowing" - Alan Perlis
I have an expensive Mac. It strikes me as slow, sometimes. I get annoyed when software comes out for the PC first. But I'm not giving it up for anything.
I hear you about the performance issue. I've found the G4/MacOSX combo to have "baffling" performance. Many apps and many functions are zippy as can be, but yet there are still a few areas that can be slow. Resizing a window, for example, is pretty slow for all but the most lightweight applications. Apple's iCal calendar app also has a tendancy to chug pretty hard. Yet this very same machine is an absolute video monster. Final Cut Pro runs like a dream, I'm using "just" an 867 MHz machine, yet I couldn't really ask for any faster video editing performance. The app's gui is fast, scrubbing thru frames is fast, applying layers is fast. It's great! True, I don't do much compositing, so my render times are almost instant... but then, neither do most folks. (though I have heard that some folks are finding iMovie 3 to be somewhat slow) I've also found Photoshop to be extremely fast for the images I work with (never larger than 2048x2048). Others have reported zippy compile and run performance of command-line apps, though I haven't tried this out myself.
Perhaps Apple is still in the early stages of tweaking Mac OS X... maybe they're working on the demanding areas first and will eventually touch up the more minor performance issues (window resize, for example).
I'm a computer tech for a large global enterprise.
When we were using windows computers, my job was in serious danger of being downsized. They were easy to use and and everyone and their mother was an MCSE.
Fortunately, due to Microsoft licenses, my company switched to PC's running Linux.
What a relief! The stress I was suffering over job security is gone! In fact, I just got a fat raise because the bosses think that Linux is so difficult, yet I never work!
I've learned needlepoint. And I knitted a blanket. Oh, I WISH these darn computers would CRASH already!!! I'm so bored!
If you're not a Liberal in your 20's, then you have no heart.If you're still a Liberal in your 30's you have no brain.
seriously - I've been at the computer thing for a while now, I have not known a SINGLE person that registered their windows. I mean, heck man - does that email list have a whole 7 recipients?
Of course, most of the replies otherwise would be like "I went from Apple to MS because I can pirate more software and play more games."
though - sadly, there is a bunch of people who are forced to use mycrudsoft. When the IT dept tells some apple die-hards that they are getting PC laptops or nothing at all, because they want to have "one platform" - though the powerbooks would actually cost less (seriously), last longer on flights, and preserve their values better. Sigh... maybe MS can base their campain on that: Switch - because we make you.
fuckers. (hmm... do I sound bitter?)
My life in the land of the rising sun.
I think this campaign is not aimed at Mac users and convincing them to switch to Windows, but rather an attempt to stop the herd of Windows users out there from considering Macs. I bet these ads will be loaded with implied falsehoods (i.e., Word and Explorer doesn't run on Macs, can't network on Macs, etc.)
--Rick "If it isn't broken, take it apart and find out why."
So.... what does that leave left to advertise? It must get pretty boring working in Microsofts adverts department. I expect they've got bored of spamming OSDN, that was a good wheeze for a while, but now they have to do something to make the long winter days go past right?
Anyway, it's not like MS are actually threatened by Apple, anybody who runs the numbers can see that. It's just a side show, an entertaining game to try and give the surface appearance that there's actually competition in the markets.
windows users are the only ones who dont have a strong connection to their operating system.
there's linux users who tend to be very anti-microsoft, there's mac users who in my experiance are very fanatical. then there's windows users like me. i use windows, it works quite well for me, and i've been using it as long as i can remember, but i dont feel the need to be pushy or get on other people's cases about using a different os, and i dont feel any reluctance to learn other os's as well.
i use windows, for no better reason than it's what's on my pc, and i dont like one button mice.
Apple should not "fix" sites that are optimized for IE - in the vaaaast majority of cases, such sites use ass-whacked HTML, your mother's activeX controls, and were built in FrontPage.
Apple should stick to its guns, and continue to work on STANDARDS COMPLIANCE for Safari, so that sites will work correctly in Saf/Moz/Konq/Op/etc. This will put pressure on MS to fix IE (as they have already started to do, thanks to Tantek Celik's excellent Tasman rendering engine for IE5/mac, and the standards compliance mode triggered via the presence of a legit DOCTYPE at the head of the file).
If you find a site that is *cough* "optimized" for MSIE, do the right thing, and notify the webmaster. I have done so on countless occasions with bank sites and the like, and often I get a response and eventual compliance in the long run.
long live standards. good night.
---E commerce? "selling widgets and/or widget servicing"=sales. OK, question, are you in sales or are you an "IT" guy? Here's a hint, people showing up at a site running osx are usually *not poor*, their demographics are leaning a lot towards "we spend top money and are known for brand loyalty if we are treated right".
Admit it-I got a point? Rhetorical question, I think I made it. Basic rule of thumb in sales 101, you have to get through the noes to get to the yesses. Part of any "yes" potential is , well, having da loot. The interest on the part of the surfer was there, you got the hit, they showed up at your URL, they are doing the customer's part. That's all they can do up to that point. The next step is up to you.
good lucksi
What Microsoft needs is an Ellen Feiss equivalent.
They had one, but he got arrested.
The theory of relativity doesn't work right in Arkansas.
While you're complaining about all the wild-eyed, touchy-feely Mac enthusiasts it occurs to me that you my friend - yes you, mister - need a hug!
Seriously, I think there's a lot of Windows users who have entirely lost touch with the idea that one can like thier computer. I don't think there's anything wrong with doing so either; it's not like allowing such factors to influence our purchases and preferences is "stupid" or otherwise "uninformed." Hell, if it was we'd all be driving around in gray '87 Volvos or something.
I actually the fact that we like our computers annoys non Mac users. "It's a tool" they tell us with visibly strained patience. Like we didn't understand that. We should "grow up" and realize that there should be no fun, pleasure, or delight in the use of such a utilitarian thing.
It's a computer. Yes it's a tool and so is a furnace. But so is a Mini-Cooper. There's a difference. I don't work for Apple and I don't give a rats ass if you buy a Mac or not. But I do get tired of the "it's a tool" argument against computers with taste and style. Given the choice between owning something that feels utilitarian versus something that feels like someone put some love I'll take the love hands down. Ask any Harley-Davidson owner.
You like your Macintosh better than me, don't you Dave? Dave? Can you hear me Dave?
I really doubt that MS can find a real story like this one. None of the Windows users I know prefer the platform for any reason - they either have no choice or simply are ignorant.
You sound like you know a lot about screwdrivers, can you help me? My screwdriver suddenly started stripping my screws. I don't understand. Did I violate my license agreement? Or did I screw in too many screws?
I asked my nephew about this, he's good with screwdrivers, and he says that it's because I'm using a cheap screwdriver and it's not compatible with my Philips screws.
I've been told that I should abandon Philips and use Torx screws in my doorframe. But Torx screws and screwdrivers aren't very common.
Help?
I don't see why almost everyone on Slashdot is making fun of the idea of switching from the Mac to PC. I was an Amiga (2000, upgraded with a Picasso II+ and a 68060 accelerator) owner, then an iMac owner, and now a Windows user.
Two of my friends switched in the last two years from the Mac to the PC. Both of them were hard-core Mac zealots. One of them is married to a graphic designer, and he himself is a user interface designer, so he was naturally a Mac user for a long time. The other had been a Mac user since he was 10, and was a huge believer that Macs were superior to PCs in any and every way.
Well, eventually MacOS X came out, and my friend the user interface designer basically made the switch to the PC. Why? Because Macs are too expensive, don't provide the benefits they used to (let's face it - there's no difference between using Photoshop and Quark on the Mac vs. the PC any more), and because Apple broke all of its own great user interface rules with MacOS X.
My friend who had used Macs since he was 10 switched to the PC because Macs were just too fucking slow. He had a super-speedy Athlon for much less than a new Mac would cost him. He's a big geek, so he runs Linux most of the time, but he uses Windows for gaming.
And me? I like the fact that Apple puts a lot of thought into how the software works, and how the system works as a whole. I like the fact that the computers are cool looking. But, that is not worth the premium of the MUCH higher cost of Macs (I'm sorry, for what I want to do with my computer Macs are way more expensive). Additionally, I was really, really disappointed by MacOS X's interface. The MacOS had such a great interface, and now it's as lame as Windows. So why pay a premium for it?
On the other hand, a friend of mine who was a PC-zealot (he used to mock my iMac all the time, and thought Mac users were idiots) just visited an Apple Store and has become a total convert. It's fascinating.
Anyway, I guess the point is, it's not ridiculous for people to switch from PCs to Macs, and it's not ridiculous to switch from Macs to PCs. Seriously, different platforms have different advantages. MS showing people who went from Mac to PC is no more ridiculous than showing people going from PC to Mac.
(When I switched from Mac to PC, I found the PC annoying at first. But then I got used to it, and now I find the Mac annoying when I first start using it again. A lot of this is what you're used to.)
A web de-singer character.
Someone who is going out of their way to remove singing from the web. Does he work for RIAA? :-)
Cheers,
Toby Haynes
Anything I post is strictly my own thoughts and doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the opinions of IBM.
You still get tons of free stuff with MacOS. iTunes, iMovie, iCal, Mail, iPhoto, iSync, Safari, X11, a complete BSD distribution, Project Builder and related development tools, etc. Last time I checked Microsoft charged an awful lot for Visual Studio, not to mention anything equivalent to the rest of that (I don't pretend to be an expert on the exact product offerings and pricing of Microsoft software).
So, if you want to compare prices between similar Macs/PC offerings, please at least quote the correct price and compare similar items.
It's not that they can't do it, its that they shouldn't do it. It's such a blatant rip off of the Apple ads that it makes them seem rather foolish and desperate.
But then, they rip off so much from so many companies, that I think we've come to expect this sort of behavior from MS.
There they were, sitting in the van with all those dials, and the cat was dead. -V. Marchetti, CIA
Meanwhile, Marketing's switch to dells and XP has left them miserable. Does that count? Sure was a sensible switch in my mind. Their loss, my gain! In fact I'm typing this in using Safari right now!