Interview With "Switcher Girl" Ellen Feiss

Ed over in Accounting writes in with a Macinstein interview with Ellen Feiss, an Internet cult figure of a bygone era. Back in 2002, in the heyday of Apple's "Switcher" ads, the 14-year-old Feiss garnered a bit more than 15 minutes of fame. Her Switcher ad became an instant classic — partly because of the widespread belief that she was stoned while filming it, which she says was not the case. In the interview Feiss, who is now a college student with one movie behind her, talks about pseudo Internet fame, drugs, and acting. She says she's still using the same G4 she had when the ad ran. Nostalgia bonus: the ad is embedded at the end of the interview.

Comments

Oh dear.

[Funkcikle]

She actually says "Psych!", as if she is still 14. She may have well as ended a hilariously fallacious statement with "...NOT!".

Re:Oh dear.

[gardyloo]

I hope it is short-lived, it will not be forgivable for long.

    Meh. As if.

Re:Oh dear.

[kjart]

..and you used "oh dear" as if you're retired and like to knit for your grandchildren. Judging people based on a word or two is fun!

Re:Oh dear.

[Hal_Porter]

http://www.encyclopediadramatica.com/index.php/Meh

Re:Oh dear.

[somersault]

I'm a retired grandmother who likes to knit, you insensetive clod!

Re:Oh dear.

[MsGeek]

Returning to popularity? Yeah. Forgivable? Not so much.

Re:Oh dear.

[MarkGriz]

".. hey, missy, go knit me a sweater before I slap you in the face!"

Re:Oh dear.

[roman_mir]

I am the insensitive clod, you, discriminating person.

Re:Oh dear.

[Associate]

What ev!

Re:Oh dear.

[Hal_Porter]

Meh.

Re:Oh dear.

[evilviper]

..and you used "oh dear" as if you're retired and like to knit for your grandchildren.

Oh monkey trumpets...

Re:Oh dear.

[O'Laochdha]

You're forgetting "Michael was hoping for something a bit more dramatic, or at least less dated."

Re:Oh dear.

[umbrellasd]

By golly, you have a point.

Stoned?

[noz]

I wasn't stoned when I saw the ad either!

Re:Stoned?

[jkrise]

"I wasn't stoned when I saw the ad either!"

Getting stoned for watching Mac ads is so 5 years ago... these days you get 'chaired'.

Re:Stoned?

[BrokenHalo]

Fair enough, but I've still got a 5 year old G4 sitting in a corner at home. It runs Linux just fine... ;-)

Re:Stoned?

[kv9]

Fair enough, but I've still got a 5 year old G4 sitting in a corner at home. It runs Linux just fine... ;-)

you'll get double chaired!

Re:Stoned?

[somersault]

it's easier in these cases just to use a couch

Re:Stoned?

[COMON$]

Then you should check out this if you havent already... http://www.ubergeek.tv/article.php?pid=54

Re:Stoned?

[zobier]

Getting stoned for watching Mac ads is so 5 years ago... these days you get 'chaired'. Anyone wanna get chaired this W/E?

pupils

[slazar]

boy those pupils look big in the pic from bed and breakfast. did they do that on purpose? she can never live it down!

Re:pupils

[Gary W. Longsine]

It could simply be that she had a crush on the camera person. Pupils dialate for all manner of reason.

Re:pupils

[lysergic.acid]

she said she was hired for the role because her character goes on a shroom trip. and shrooms do make your pupils dilate.

Re:pupils

[zombie_striptease]

...OR, maybe she could be in low light and looking into the distance? Geez, Occam's razor goes right out the window with you folks sometimes.

Re:pupils

[fafalone]

It could simply be that she had a crush on the camera person. Pupils dialate for all manner of reason.

When filming a scene, there's all sorts of lights pointed at the set, and you can see there's a light pointed right at her face. Natural causes of pupil dilation simply don't dilate THAT much when there's a light of any noticeable intensity on the eye. To have eyes like that without a chemical influence, she'd have to be in dim light AND having a physiological response, or complete darkness, to get that wide.
That said, the chemical influence causing it isn't necessarily a hallucinogen (or a stimulant), it could be the same stuff the optometrist uses, to simulate the effect of drugs. The actors in drug movies don't really take drugs in front of the camera, most of the time anyway.

Re:pupils

[udderly]

or maybe she was frightened by rogue clowns from outer space who just flew into the room wearing nothing but loincloths and Cyndi Lauper concert T-shirts. That's a perfectly reasonable explanation too.

Re:pupils

[smooth wombat]

Geez, Occam's razor goes right out the window with you folks sometimes.

Naw, it's because drugs are cool man. Didn't you know, it's ok for people to be stoned while using heavy equipment or taking care of your bank accounts. Nothing wrong with that. It's like, the thing to do to escape and relax.

Besides, what do you care if the guy next to you is doing coke? Just because he gets a bad batch and flips out on your ass doesn't mean it's a bad thing. It's like, you know, just one of those things.

Re:pupils

[Dunbal]

That said, the chemical influence causing it isn't necessarily a hallucinogen (or a stimulant), it could be the same stuff the optometrist uses, to simulate the effect of drugs.

      Atropine is available in eye-drops, it blocks muscarinic receptors and causes pupillary dilation. It has been used for hundreds of years by women because they thought dilated pupils make them look "sexy". In fact atropine is derived from the "belladonna" plant, bella donna meaning "beautiful woman" in latin.

      There are other antimuscarinincs that can be used by hollywood to acheive this effect, since atropine can dilate pupils for weeks at a time which is not a good thing if you plan to be outside once in a while...

Re:pupils

[thousandinone]

The most violent act ever done under the influence of marijuana would be breaking into a convenience store to get pop tarts.

Re:pupils

[phoenixwade]

Isn't being stoned a much simpler explanation?

Besides, I heard from a friend of the girlfriend of her agents brother that she was "Doing Kermit"...... So I'm sure that's the real story..... And I'm sticking to it.

Re:pupils

[zombie_striptease]

It has been used for hundreds of years by women because they thought dilated pupils make them look "sexy".

Probably made their dates look nicer, too. :P

Re:pupils

[kill-1]

Belladonna is Italian, not Latin. But you were quite close.

Re:pupils

[thousandinone]

That was a joke, and it was in reference to someone 'flipping out' on you under the influence of coke, which I don't believe was mentioned in the article at all.

Re:pupils

[Poltras]

Hey! I love pop tarts.

Re:pupils

[cayenne8]

"Besides, what do you care if the guy next to you is doing coke? Just because he gets a bad batch and flips out on your ass..."

I'm not advocating using coke, but, before you post about it...try to know a little about what the effects of each drug does. People do no 'flip out' on cocaine if it is a 'bad batch'...there is no such thing. This is not like LSD or another hallucinogin where you can lose touch with reality...and 'flip out'.

But, look, all these chemicals have different effects on your body. Alcohol is just as much a drug as pot or coke or anything else, and just as dangerous. No one should be using them when they are working, that is not what you are being paid to do.

Personally, I don't do them, but, I don't see the reasons that some of them are classified illegal and some of them are not...I think in a person's own free time, they should be able to ingest what they wish, I don't think it is the state's place to save someone from their own stupidity if they make bad choices.

Re:pupils

[Blappo]

Someone needs to kick you in the nuts. You deserve it.

Re:pupils

[georgewad]

Man, you should relax. It was a joke. dood.

Re:pupils

[PateraSilk]

Occam's Razor says that someone Photoshopped larger pupils on the publicity still to make her seem more inviting. As is done with just about every photo for public consumption these days.

Re:pupils

[eno2001]

Yes... if someone wants to take an overdose of bleach in the privacy and comfort of their own home, they should be allowed to dammit!!!

Re:pupils

[gardyloo]

The most violent act ever done under the influence of marijuana would be breaking into a convenience store to get pop tarts.

      You've never watched much "Trailer Park Boys", have you? Granted, the cougar on pot was pretty mellow . . .. but horny!

Re:pupils

[lysergic.acid]

He had seen the commercial and wanted me for this particular part-mostly because there is a scene where I trip on mushrooms in it.

If you want to find the most obvious explaination, then that would probably be it. I'm not saying she's actually on shrooms, but the picture shows her with full pupil dilation in moderate light. Isn't it possible that that's the scene she was referring to? I dunno, maybe they gave her contact lenses or something, but it's not like this is a very contrived explaination when she blatantly says thats partly what the movie was about.

Re:pupils

[PakProtector]

Yes... if someone wants to take an overdose of bleach in the privacy and comfort of their own home, they should be allowed to dammit!!!

Yeah, they should.

Just like if I want to go down to the corner pharmacist and buy a massive overdose of morphine, the size that you have no reason to possess other than to kill someone, I should be allowed to do so, then go home and mainline it all so that I go into respiratory arrest.

Freedom used to mean something.

Re:pupils

[krilli]

It has been used for hundreds of years by women because they thought dilated pupils make them look "sexy".

It works. Pupils have different 'neutral' states, varying from person to person. I find myself captivated by girls with naturally large pupils. The effect seems magical.

Re:pupils

[Golias]

but the picture shows her with full pupil dilation in moderate light.

Aren't movie-camera lights typically really fucking bright? Just because that still shot looks like moderate light, doesn't mean that it is.

Re:pupils

[sznupi]

And in some psychological studies it was shown what a powerfull effect it is. For example: basically two groups of participants were given the same photo of a woman holding her child, but one groups photo was slightly "enhanced" (bigger pupils of the mother). Guess "which" mother was more carying, loved more her child? And participants were totally unaware of this, reasons goven were how sche holds her child, her smile, etc.
There's definatelly a reason this method is used in virtually every "romantic" movie scene...

Re:pupils

[Nutria]

I find myself captivated by girls with naturally large pupils.

Stop watching so much anime.

Re:pupils

[mr_mischief]

Me too. And naturally large areolas, too.

let it be

[macadamia_harold]

Ed over in Accounting writes in with a Macinstein interview with Ellen Feiss, an Internet cult figure of a bygone era.

Well, you know what they say. You should let bygones be bygones.

Re:let it be

[kfg]

It's not like the kids these days will believe the conditions we lived under back then anyway (both ways), or our strange social customs, or that we really risked prosecution to download that shitty, old fashioned music.

And Jesus we dressed funny. No, that half decade is an era best left bygone alrighty.

KFG

Re:let it be

[BrokenHalo]

And Jesus we dressed funny. No, that half decade is an era best left bygone alrighty.

Hell, I had some great flared jeans back in the early '70s. I saw an identical pair on this really cute chick a few days ago. I was so tempted to go up to her and demand my pants back. She wouldn't have believed they ever fitted me, though... :-D

Re:let it be

[MightyYar]

People tease me because I still call them "bell bottoms".

Re:let it be

[bynary]

I was born in '79 and I "still" call them bell bottoms, because that's what they are. Flare? Isn't that what Chotchkie's employees are "required" to wear?

Re:let it be

[tenton]

People tease me because I still call them "bell bottoms".

We tell those people to stay the hell off our lawns. Damn kids these days...

Re:let it be

[Gulthek]

Ah yes, the new employee uniforms are also useful for signaling rescue planes.

Re:let it be

[DamnStupidElf]

And Jesus we dressed funny. No, that half decade is an era best left bygone alrighty.

I can tell a true singulatarian when I see one!

There is another . . .

[GMontag]

Another interview, with audio, is linked in the responses to the story.

Apple ads

[suv4x4]

It's been 5 years or so. And still most of the Apple ads represent one or at most two objects (frequently human actors it seems), which are speaking about how much PC-s suck, and occasionally, ONLY occasionally, also mentioning how Mac software never has problems (lie) or how on Mac you can process photos and videos, and on the PC you can't (lie).

And you suddenly know why most people just don't buy Macs. Mac marketing makes impression of being really really desparate.

Maybe they should try some of their iPod concepts for advertising the Mac? This could work better. Show people having fun with a Mac, show Mac being used.

Stop with the "PC sucks" nonsense.

Re:Apple ads

[jkrise]

Stop with the "PC sucks" nonsense.

Maybe the PC isn't synonymous with IBM, Microsoft or Windows anymore?

I think Linux has changed the face of the PC, and what we expect out of them... for the better.

So Apple better say "Windows" or "Office" in their switcher ads, I guess...

Re:Apple ads

[el_womble]

I worry about this too.

I'll be suprised if the new UK ads make an impact. We don't react very well to negative advertising over here and we tend to be more diserning consumers. Most people who are using Windows are using XP. XP, for all of its faults is stable, verstaile and familiar; on modern hardware with oodles of ram its fast and it does work with all of those odd USB gadgets that people buy (my missle launcher doesn't work under OS X).

Its also cheap. You can buy a decent computer from Dell with LCD monitor etc. for under £300.

I'm a devout Mac user and even I don't relate to adverts. Yes, I have made photo albums, they did look fantastic and I could do it with the software that was provided with the machine but it also cost me £30. Yes, I can watch DVDs out of the box, but if I want to watch anything in fullscreen in Quicktime I need to buy a £20 pro update, or import them into iTunes (not iMovie) and watch them in front row.

As for the 'no drivers' being a good thing, I'm not sure what they are smoking. There are laser printers that require you to compile open source drivers to get to work, mobile phones that refuse to connect via bluetooth and perhaps my biggest irritation is cameras whose RAW file format isn't supported. Now these arn't necessarily Apples problem: Fujitsu encrypt their RAW, Minolta only support Macs on their more expensive printers and Motorola are the worst phone manufacturer, but they ALL work on Windows with the drivers in the box.

Telling Brits that they are stupid for buying a PC isn't going to work. Buying a PC is a choice. There is more software (including viruses), they are cheaper and they are as stable. The reason I bought a Mac? UNIX under the hood, a great interface (apart from finder), great hardware and in my experience less goes wrong.

Re:Apple ads

[suv4x4]

So Apple better say "Windows" or "Office" in their switcher ads, I guess...

That'd be kinda ironic given in their ads they specifically stress on the fact MS Office is available on Mac and It Is Good.
They need Office on the Mac and they know that.

As for Windows.. they'd piss off someone's lawyers to directly flame the Windows brand. So they use a "PC" as a generic name, but of course talking about Windows (not Linux or BSD or anything).

Which is *again* ironic, and doubly so, as what they sell right now is exactly a PC. No more, no less. The only single difference being the DRM chip they use to lock OSX, and the EFI (versus the classic BIOS). But new PC-s are sold with EFI too, so..

I remember when they were also flaming the Pentium 2/3/4 chips, talking about how terribly slow they are compared to G4 and G5. Which was again a lie, when they switched to Intels they got away from the situation talking how hugely different Core is, a totally, totally different thing, completely different from the Pentiums we flamed just few months ago!

Of course, those better informed, know Core 1 is in fact enhanced Pentium 3 with more SIMD commands and extra power-saving features.

Re:Apple ads

[91degrees]

It's not lies per se. It's selective sampling. Give me enough PC users, and I can find you one who has never seen a BSOD, and one who has never used a Windows PC for more than an hour without it crashing. You just pick the person who will send the message you want.

Re:Apple ads

[arifirefox]

maybe they could show the imac doing something fun like playing Crysis unlike those boring pc's that can only do black and white spreadsheets.

Re:Apple ads

[giorgiofr]

That's really funny, because today's Macs ARE PCs.

Re:Apple ads

[kjart]

If PC's stop sucking, I'll stop saying they suck.

Fair enough - and when Mac users stop saying things like that, I'll stop saying they're pretentious.

Though, I do actually have a macbook pro, so I guess that includes me too.

Re:Apple ads

[gujo-odori]

I'm a recent first-time Mac owner (except for a brief stint on 7.6.1 on some Motorola-based Mac in the late nineties; that sucked), and do you know what? Windows machines (not PCs; Linx machines are mostly PCs, too) do suck relative to the competition in most respects.

Honestly, unless you're really into PC games, there aren't many areas where a Mac isn't >= to a Windows machine. Granted, one of those areas is that there is no Exchange client on Mac that is as good as Outlook 2003 or Outlook 2007 on Windows. Microsoft Entourage is adequate, though, and Mail.app can handle the mail part of dealing with an Exchange server just fine (I'd love to see Apple add calendar integration, though; the best thing Apple could do here is put out their own complete Exchange client). Mac Office 2004 is decent, and at my company - which my eyeball estimate says is 1/4 - 1/3 Mac, some Linux and FreeBSD, and majority Windows - the Macs work just fine on the Windows network.

Mac is a no-brainer for ease of use, but what may come as a surprise to many is that among the three platforms, I also consider Linux to beat XP for ease of use in most areas (roaming between wireless networks is not one of them, which is one reason I chose a Mac; I move around the building a lot and don't want to have to mess with wireless problems). The main reason most Windows users today would say Windows is easier to use is because it's what they're used to. If they switched to a Mac, they would also find it "harder" than Windows at first, but once they got used to it over a month or so of use, they'd realize there's no way they'd go back.

I don't see myself going over to Mac as my primary system instead of Linux, I just like Linux to much. But migrating my parents from Linux to Mac? Yeah, I can see myself encouraging them to get a Mac. My dad likes to tinker too much to ever give up Linux, but I think they'd really enjoy a Mac as their "real work" computer.

Re:Apple ads

[cyclomedia]

You touched upon an important point there too, Joe Public usually doesnt think in terms of Windows vs OSX vs GNU/Linux vs AmigaOS4 ... They buy a "computer". That computer will most likely come in the form of a Dell a HP or a Mac and may well be from PC World with a free digital camera, oh and have Intel Inside too, because that's what the TV adverts tell them is good.

While us geeks are sitting around slashdot arguing about Vista's lateness, OSX's niceness and Linux's empire toppling innocence PC World, HP, Dell and Apple are raking in the big bucks and conditioning the public's opinions on what constitutes the latest greatest in computing via advertising.

The simple fact is that until PC World adertises their latest Red Hat or Suse bundle during the Superbowl GNU/Linux will not be joe-public's-desktop-ready no matter what we collectively shout about it here.

Obviously, i sincerely hope to be eventually proven wrong, but i suspect my karma's about to plummet rollercoaster style, in which case: Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Re:Apple ads

[hey!]

It's been 5 years or so. And still most of the Apple ads represent one or at most two objects (frequently human actors it seems), which are speaking about how much PC-s suck,

This is known in the trade as "shooting fish in a barrel."

People are aware that computers are these cool, amazing machines. As is written in the Book of Jobs: "bicycles for the mind The problem is that (Windows) PCs do suck. It's like having to work with a manic depressive coworker who drains your energy by making you deal with his weird issues all the time.

You can't sell a computer that you want people to love without reminding them that (Windows) PCs suck, because over time people begin to accept that suckiness is the way computers are supposed to be. You can't change the world without first upsetting the unconscious accomodations people have made to the status quo. The world if full of unreasonable things people get accustomed to; it's only when they are reminded they have a choice that they remember how ridiculous things are.

The reason people "don't buy" Macs is the same reason people "don't buy" BMW cars. There are cheaper alternatives that fill their needs. Yes, the Mac Mini is pretty cheap, but beige boxes are even cheaper. If they could buy the mini at $299, more people would buy them. But cheapness is a game Apple can't win at, and doesn't want to play. BMW could sell more cars if it had an offering to set against the Ford Focus, but that would turn them from BMW into a smaller, less competitive Ford. BMW sells luxury cars, Apple sells luxury computers. And Apple has the luxury of not needing to advertise much if at all to its existing customers; most of them are not going to switch to a PC unless they are forced to be circumstances that no advertising could alter. What Apple needs is to find the people who are disatisfied with their old PC jaloppy and can be interested in trading up.

Re:Apple ads

[aussie_a]

it does work with all of those odd USB gadgets that people buy (my missle launcher doesn't work under OS X).
Microsoft XP: Favoured by terrorists.

Re:Apple ads

[aussie_a]

I don't like being told I can't use particular hardware, just because a company doesn't feel like it.

Re:Apple ads

[jorgevillalobos]

-1, Technicality

Re:Apple ads

[jpellino]

"mentioning how Mac software never has problems"

That's not been said in any ad.

The truth is PCs running Windows are more problematic than Macs.

Just yesterday it took a half an hour to get a mainstream quickcam out of the box and showing video. iSight? No longer than it takes to launch the app than needs it.

Use a thumb drive on a Windows PC. As in, go hunt for it once you plug it in - then use it.

Picasa vs. iPhoto. No contest.

Actually, Picasa (and much of the rest of Google's stuff) has saved Microsoft's bacon as far as good app experiences go - Bill and Steve B should face Mt View and pray every morning in gratitude.

Add a printer? 90% of them work in OSX with included drivers.

Need to do something tough in networking? Go buy another version of Windows.
Need to be a media center? Goi buy another version of Windows.

There's more but I have to get to work...

Re:Apple ads

[soft_guy]

If PC's stop sucking, I'll stop saying they suck.

Fair enough - and when Mac users stop saying things like that, I'll stop saying they're pretentious.

Though, I do actually have a macbook pro, so I guess that includes me too.

We all know that owning an object automatically causes you to have certain personality traits. And it makes you cool and gives you a whole set of new friends, membership in a secret society, etc.

Wait..was I being sarcastic?

Re:Apple ads

[NTiOzymandias]

I'm -really- tired of people saying how well OpenOffice works when it doesn't. Just because it -is- an alternative doesn't mean it's superior, or even on an even footing with its competition.

Re:Apple ads

[cocotoni]

If it's the standard USB Missile Launcher, have you tried the USB Missile Launcher NZ. It should work with USB Missile Launcher and the DreamCheeky Rocket Launcher.

You are welcome!

Re:Apple ads

[AnswerIs42]

But... a Mac is also a PC. So, shouldn't people be saying the "Windows Operating System" instead?

Re:Apple ads

[twistedsymphony]

Do macs make you pretentious or are pretentious people naturally attracted to macs? It's not hard to see why a pretentious person would choose a mac with the slick looks and superiority stereotype delivered by the ID and marketing departments.

I'm not saying all mac owners are pretentious, just the vocal abrasive minority... which doesn't help the stereotype any.

Re:Apple ads

[delymyth]

I'm -really- tired of people saying how well OpenOffice works when it doesn't. Just because it -is- an alternative doesn't mean it's superior, or even on an even footing with its competition. Basically, OpenOffice isn't completely an alternative, not in the "full" sense of the word. It's about 90% compatible, but can crash with some .doc files, refusing to open them and forcing the user to go through through a "open as plain text + copy/paste + new doc + add paragraph formatting" experience, and I bet it also has problems with macros (do they work?) and complex excel sheets.

MS-Office is MS-Office, OpenOffice can read those docs, but it's *not* 100% compatible, and people who use it everyday should be aware of this.

Re:Apple ads

[ZachPruckowski]

The only single difference being the DRM chip they use to lock OSX, and the EFI (versus the classic BIOS)

There is no DRM chip. I have a Mac less than 6 months old. I've spent some time looking for the chip, and I used Amit Singh's software to try to find it. It's only on some models, and is inactive. It's basically only present if it happened to be on the motherboard they use. There's not even an OS X driver for it.

Re:Apple ads

[0xdeadbeef]

The reason people "don't buy" Macs is the same reason people "don't buy" BMW cars.

They don't want others to presume they're obnoxious twats who derive self-esteem from a brand identity?

Re:Apple ads

[Jeff DeMaagd]

I don't remember an Apple ad saying that Mac software never has problems or an Apple ad saying that PCs can't handle photos or videos. Can you please link me to the ad that says this? I get the feeling that your entire rant is about what you are reading too much into the ads, not what the Mac ad is actually saying.

Re:Apple ads

[Short Circuit]

Aside from Access, is there something you've done with Microsoft Office that I haven't done--or can't do--with OpenOffice?

Heck, I can even think of a couple things I've done in OpenOffice that can't be done with Microsoft Office. Take superscript, for example. Yes, MS Office supports a superscript flag, but OpenOffice lets me apply varying degrees of superscript. And that's functionality I've needed.

I've also used OpenOffice to repair Microsoft Word documents that crashed Microsoft's product.

I tutor people in working with Microsoft Office every day, and every day I encounter things that lead me to believe that OpenOffice works better.

Re:Apple ads

[Short Circuit]

I've had the reverse experience. A student's Word document resided on a floppy disk they hadn't been taking care of, and wound up corrupted. The document crashed Word, even after running ScanDisk on the floppy.

I popped the floppy into the one computer in the lab which I had installed OOo on, opened the document, and re-saved it as a Word document. The student lost some of their document, but much of it was still recoverable.

Re:Apple ads

[screeble]

if I want to watch anything in fullscreen in Quicktime I need to buy a £20 pro update, or import them into iTunes (not iMovie) and watch them in front row.

Not true... Open up AppleScript Editor, type...

tell application "QuickTime Player"
present front movie scale screen
end tell

...and save as application. Drag into user scripts folder.

The next time you want fullscreen just use the script.

Re:Apple ads

[Frumious Wombat]

Yes, the Cores are a proper upgrade to the PIII (and arguably what should have been released instead of the PIV), but for floating-point, the old PII/III/IV did suck compared to G4 and G5. Their only advantage was that you could afford to buy them in bulk and make up the difference by number of machines, rather than per-machine performance. The Core floating-point is now adequate, but still lagging.

Such a pity; I was hoping the MacPros would ship with dual-core Itaniums. Intel's last chance to make that chip sexy and desirable.

Re:Apple ads

[el_womble]

Thank god for that, I thought it was going to be difficult! ;)

Whilst your at it... do you have a short folder action that will convert avi to mov and then import to iTunes Movies and delete the original? It doesn't have to re-encode, just repackage.

Thanks in advance

Re:Apple ads

[Jeff DeMaagd]

Your points are more or less what I try to explain to Apple fans. I happen to use Windows and OS X, and OS X is clearly superior, especially on OS/software maintainability, IMO. The people that have never used OS X rarely see or understand why. It's still a hard sell when it's an unfamiliar system and it costs more just to get into one. I'm not totally dumping Windows because I don't want to restrict myself to only the software available on one platform. Both platforms have strong apps that I'd hate to do without Windows or without OS X, to me, that seems short-sighted.

I don't like the arguments put forth by Mac fans that Macs are cheaper when you compare like-for-like and feature-for-feature, because Apple doesn't try selling similar computers, I called them novelty form factors, particularly the mini and iMac. I think that sort of argument that Macs are cheaper for the same type of device is a bit of a smoke screen. Most of the other computers that mimic the current iMac or mini form factors are more expensive, probably only because of economies of scale. Apple sells very few models of computers, about six, where much smaller computer makers have dozens of models, reducing those economies of scale for the competitors that also make novelty computers.

I also don't like it when PC/Windows fans just don't figure into the value the software. The argument on the PC side is that a computer is just a pile of parts, ignoring the software part of the equation. There's also the time taken to remove all the worthless load-on-start stuff and worthless trial software cruft from the bargain computers often have that only hurts the performance of the computer, and Macs don't have that.

Re:Apple ads

[nomadic]

we tend to be more diserning consumers.

Are you all more intelligent and good-looking too?

Re:Apple ads

[hey!]

They don't want others to presume they're obnoxious twats who derive self-esteem from a brand identity?

Maybe. But there are more obnoxious ways to gain self-esteem. ;-)

Re:Apple ads

[CDarklock]

A couple of good points upon which I wanted to expand, in the context of "PCs are not just Windows".

> people begin to accept that suckiness is
> the way computers are supposed to be.

However, using something that sucks is a sign of expertise. Culturally, we associate "ugly and ineffective tool" with "brilliant and experienced user". We actively select for this in tech circles. I get a little flak from people because I don't use Linux on my desktop, but I still run several Linux boxes - I just run them entirely from shell windows over SSH. That way I can leave them sitting in the garage where they run cooler and the noise doesn't bother anyone; it sounds like an airplane hangar in there. The respect I would get for running Linux on my desktop is nothing compared to the respect I get when people see a ragtag collection of mismatched boxes in all sizes, most of them with partial or no outer casings, roaring like a racecar in my garage.

> The reason people "don't buy" Macs is the
> same reason people "don't buy" BMW cars

There are plenty of people who could afford a BMW just fine, but don't buy one. It's not just because they can find something cheaper that meets their needs, but also because they can find something that meets needs the BMW can't. I like 1970s muscle cars. I don't want a BMW. I want a classic Dodge Charger with a big-ass Hemi and glass packs. I want the engine to roar like a pride of lions and the tires to scream like a banshee when I hit the accelerator. I can't get that from a BMW. Sure, on the average day, a BMW would probably be a more comfortable commute - but it's just the wrong attitude. A car should be scary.

Basically, I don't mind the PC/Apple commercials. They just market to someone else. They market to the whiny little pussy who plays the Mac. I know he's supposed to be cool and hip and approachable, but I just keep looking at him and thinking "is he supposed to be gay?" or "I could break him in half". I don't get offended about the PC guy, because that's not me. Sure, I wear a tie, I use a PC, I do a lot of businessy stuff. But that's not me. That's the people I used to work with.

I see these commercials as "don't be the PC guy, be the Mac guy". But I'm not the PC guy, and I don't want to be the Mac guy. I don't relate to these commercials. I don't see them as speaking to me at all.

Re:Apple ads

[vertinox]

And you suddenly know why most people just don't buy Macs. Mac marketing makes impression of being really really desparate.

To be fair, the majority of people who own PCs don't buy Windows either.

Maybe they should try some of their iPod concepts for advertising the Mac? This could work better. Show people having fun with a Mac, show Mac being used.

To be fair, I want to vomit and curse violently when I see the Zune commercials with the happy couples using their squirt feature while the dancing hipsters on the iPod commercials just make me want to punch a few kids at the local mall.

Personally... I'm ok with punching people. The love shit I can't handle.

Re:Apple ads

[Chelloveck]

The truth is PCs running Windows are more problematic than Macs.

The truth is, they're roughly equivalent. My shiny new MacBook Pro has crashed as many times in the two months that I've had it as any Windows machine has in a two-month period. Some things are easier on the Mac, but some other things are easier on Windows. On both platforms I've had things "just work", and on both I've had things "just fail for inscrutable reasons".

I have a vague preference for the Mac, but it's just that -- a vague personal preference. It mostly comes from the Unix underpinnings of OSX, which means that an old Unix hack like me can get in under the hood and actually fix some of the things that go wonky. I have found nothing that clearly sets either platform above the other, at least for the things I need a computer for.

Heresy, I know.

Re:Apple ads

[MightyYar]

Pretentious probably isn't the right word... the people you deride are more ostentatious. They like to show off their nice things. Sort of a "Look, I have the BEST computer!" Pretentious people have a more self-important flavor to them, and certainly a lot of the hipster Mac users fit into that category as well. And of course, ostentatious people can also be pretentious... I think I'm rambling.

That said, I am a Mac user, and I do buy them partially for their looks. To be fair, I also spend extra on the nicer PC cases for my Windows/Linux machines. I just like things to look nice - I guess it could be considered ostentatious, but I've at least convinced myself that I'm not showing off :)

So I think Macs attract the following:

1. People who are pretentious. (The Mac makes me look important.)
   
2. People who are ostentatious. (Look, I have the coolest, nicest computer!)
   
3. People who like things that look good.
   
4. Psuedo-geeks who a unix with a nice interface.
   

I think I'm asking for a flaming with #4. ;p

Re:Apple ads

[WinterSolstice]

I like OO.o, and I use it every day... but here are some examples of why it's not great:
1) Text to columns (WTF? This isn't rocket science)
2) Multi-User documents (like when I have to update a shared group task list)
3) Speed (It takes roughly 5-10x as long to open a document with screenshots as Word)

-WS

Re:Apple ads

[Achoi77]

you're post would have been modded up funny if GP was modded up other than funny.

my post is going to be offtopic because I'm trying to explain the meta-humor, which has nothing to do with this Ellen Feiss article.

maybe I'll be lucky and people won't bother mod me.

Re:Apple ads

[NDPTAL85]

Seriously, whats wrong with deriving self-esteem from brand identity? Considering the number of peoples who have low self esteem issues I would consider ANYTHING that gives folks positive self esteem to be a good thing.

Re:Apple ads

[sheldon]

They don't want others to presume they're obnoxious twats who derive self-esteem from a brand identity?

Only the ones who order the slush box.

Re:Apple ads

[twistedsymphony]

You are certainly correct about the ostentatious, they do make up a relevant portion of Mac users. Though I do believe that the pretentious are attracted to that platform because of it's supposed superiority and it's style falls in line with that. Superior looks becomes another bullet on the long list of why they think they're better then everyone else. Not to mention it's distinctive look makes it easier to boast while toting it in public.

Re:Apple ads

[cunamara]

Yes, I can watch DVDs out of the box, but if I want to watch anything in fullscreen in Quicktime I need to buy a £20 pro update, or import them into iTunes (not iMovie) and watch them in front row.

Just put the .mov, .mpg, etc. in the "Movies" folder and launch FrontRow. Navigate to the movies from there. You don't need to import the file into anything. Hope this makes life a little simpler!

Re:Apple ads

[Straif]

Had a similar thing happen here at work. A co-workers spec document would crash Word or Wordpad on every attempt to open it so in an attempt to save about 2 weeks worth of work I downloaded OO and it opened just fine and re-saved with no problems. No loss of data and no further problem with opening in Word.

Re:Apple ads

[dr.badass]

I'm not sure what you need to do to make this work as a Folder Action, but this should get you started. You might look into using this in Automator's script-running action, as it can save workflows as Folder Actions Also, I have no idea if this works without QuickTime Pro, as all of my machines have it for work; but I think it will. It might make your computer explode, too.

This assumes you have a movie open, and it saves it to the root of the drive ("Macintosh HD" or whatever) as a QuickTime Movie. No conversion, but it may take a few minutes to copy. It saves to the root because I every time I play with paths in AppleScript, it makes me cry.


tell application "QuickTime Player"
        activate
        set savename to name of movie 1 & ".mov"
        delay 1
        save movie 1 in savename
end tell

tell application "iTunes"
        activate
        add "Macintosh HD:" & savename
end tell


Alternately you can use "open" instead of "add" to make it play automatically so you can make sure it works right away. And replace "Macintosh HD" with whatever your drive is named.

Re:Apple ads

[PriceIke]

Or maybe you're choosing to ignore 5. Those who like working with Macs and don't feel the need to crow or boast about it.

I work with both Macs and PCs. I own both, at home. I tend to like working on the Mac better, because it's just a better built system all around. But I don't feel the need to deride people for using Windows or other Microsoft products. I just do my work. I like Coca-cola too. I don't feel superior to people who like Pepsi or Dr. Pepper.

Re:Apple ads

[bogjobber]

Honestly, unless you're really into PC games, there aren't many areas where a Mac isn't >= to a Windows machine.

How about price? Software availability? For most people, those are the only things that matter. I would agree that Mac probably has a slight edge in ease of use, but it isn't as if using Windows is difficult by any means.

Re:Apple ads

[UnknowingFool]

And still most of the Apple ads represent one or at most two objects (frequently human actors it seems), which are speaking about how much PC-s suck, and occasionally, ONLY occasionally, also mentioning how Mac software never has problems (lie) or how on Mac you can process photos and videos, and on the PC you can't (lie).

First off, the people in the Switchers ads were real people and not paid actors. Pulling that kind of stunt is something that MS tried to do but failed.

Second, the gist of the ads was that these real people had issues with the PC and the software. They couldn't do things like photos and videos and a PC not because it's not possible but it wasn't easy for them. Representing average people, the ads imply using PC software can be tricky. While your average computer geek might be able to handle these tasks simply on a PC, your average computer user might not. So the message is to switch to a Mac: it was made for your average person.

Re:Apple ads

[MobileTatsu-NJG]

"That's really funny, because today's Macs ARE PCs."

It's not THAT funny, my PC isn't a Mac.

Re:Apple ads

[19thNervousBreakdown]

Or maybe it's because they're better. I had an old 325 and it was the best car I ever owned, and not because it had BMW logos. Limited-slip RWD meant that if you slid in the snow you could recover... and because they spend so much time making them perfectly balanced it was easy. I used to take corners sideways on snowy days, and never worry I was going to end up in a ditch. The interior wasn't chincy and tacky... No broken door handles, or any of the other usual crap that happens. Heat directed to the rear passengers. A warning if it was below 36F to watch for icy roads. The driver's side door wouldn't lock if it was open, so no locking your keys in the car. A light came on for everything that could go wrong, from coolant level low to washer fluid to a brake light being out. When the weather was good, it positively stuck to the road. Plus, a smooth straight six for plenty of power, a damn near silent exhaust that still passed CA emissions tests after 20 years, and 28MPG ain't bad, especially with over 200,000 miles on it. I recently gave it to a friend because I didn't want to put the $2,000 into suspension work that it neeeded, but he did and it's still going strong. Next time I'm in the market, I'm getting a more recent beamer and I'm sure I'll love it.

Somebody who takes their identity from a car is a jackass, but in my opinion dipshits like you who claim to know better and yet still judge people based on what they drive, are even worse.

Re:Apple ads

[yo_tuco]

"And it makes you cool..."

It kind of does. Case in point. In an all Windows workplace I once attended a meeting without my work issued laptop because I was late getting in. I carry my MacBook everyday to work. In the meeting I needed to take some notes. I brought out my MacBook Pro and started. I got looks from everyone. The Japanese partners just couldn't stop staring. After the meeting I had a crowd around me asking all kinds of questions about the Mac. I guess in a sea of Windows laptops, the Mac stands out.

Re:Apple ads

[el_womble]

Many thanks!

That will save me a lot of time!

Re:Apple ads

[4iedBandit]

However, using something that sucks is a sign of expertise. Culturally, we associate "ugly and ineffective tool" with "brilliant and experienced user".

Would you hire a roofing contractor who uses a rock to drive nails? Would you hire a roofing contractor and then insist that he use a rock instead of a nail gun? After all rocks are "ugly and ineffective" and only "brilliant and experienced" roofers use them.

You can argue all you want that it's not the same thing, but it is. People accept "ugly and ineffective" with computers and that's a shame. It doesn't have to be that way. If you think people choose Macs because they're "ignorant and inexperienced" then you are misguided. I would definitely recommend a Mac to someone who doesn't know anything about computers true enough. But I also recommend to people who know computers to check out the Mac.

A colleague of mine recently bought a MacBook Pro. The second day he had it I asked him if he'd been playing around with it. Do you know what his response was? "Not really. I've found I don't really need to play around with it to do what I want." Stick with "ugly and ineffective" if that's what you like. While I'm sure some may consider it "brilliant" I for one, do not. Ugly I can and do live with. Ineffective? Not unless I'm being paid very well. Fortunately the Mac is neither ugly, nor ineffective. (My opinion to be sure, but the success of the iPod is driving people Apple's way for a reason.)

They just market to someone else. They market to the whiny little pussy who plays the Mac.

Apple is doing what they have to. Reminding people that computers don't have to be "ugly and ineffective." You're absolutely right about one thing, they are not marketing to you. You think "ugly and ineffective" is acceptable and people who deal with it are "brilliant." While there are lots of people who deal with it who are brilliant, "ugly and ineffective" != "brilliant".

Re:Apple ads

[crabpeople]

I take it you don't tutor them with excel? Because thats what everyone complains "doesn't work right" in my office. OO is a great product but its not fully compatable at all. I also remember someone getting very confused by the way it did mail merges. I seem to remember it involved one or two extra steps, but really you cant say "well learn the new way" because people are lazy and its far easier to bitch to my boss than actually take time to learn something new.

Re:Apple ads

[soft_guy]

I'm -really- tired of people saying how well OpenOffice works when it doesn't. Just because it -is- an alternative doesn't mean it's superior, or even on an even footing with its competition. Open Office works fine for me. My company switched to it over a year ago because they didn't want to pay for MS Office and I haven't heard any complaints.

Re:Apple ads

[soft_guy]

How about people who just want to get their work done?

I started using the Mac long before Windows even existed and I haven't found any reason to switch away from it. Although I was tempted to switch to the Amiga at one time, Windows never seemed like it was better.

Re:Apple ads

[MightyYar]

Posting on Slashdot like me, are you suuuuure you don't fall into category 4? I, same as you, just like working on a Mac better. I've never tried to "switch" someone, either. But I'm a geek.

We can add 5 if you want though :)

Re:Apple ads

[drinkypoo]

Just yesterday it took a half an hour to get a mainstream quickcam out of the box and showing video. iSight? No longer than it takes to launch the app than needs it.

Last time I hooked up an ass-brand webcam it just worked. I did have to install the driver of course but it worked fine in less than three minutes, let alone thirty. Also, you are comparing a camera sold by the OS manufacturer to a third party device. This is not a direct comparison.

Use a thumb drive on a Windows PC. As in, go hunt for it once you plug it in - then use it.

This is pure FUD. When I plug in a USB mass storage device, Windows scans its contents and pops up a window asking me what I would like to do with the drive based on the type of content stored on it. Meanwhile, the "Macintosh HD" icon on the Dual G5 2 GHz running OSX 10.3 to the right of me wanders around my desktop, and I have to go looking for it after each reboot. Windows is clearly superior here.

Picasa vs. iPhoto. No contest.

I despise both, personally, and use neither. I find that intelligently categorizing my images and then just using XP's thumbnail and filmstrip views is superior to basically any other interface I've yet used. I would like to have free tagging, but my solution to that is to use drupal to maintain my photo library (which I'm working on... but I'm short on disk space. got to buy more.) This, anyway, is a matter of opinion.

Add a printer? 90% of them work in OSX with included drivers.

Ditto for Windows. And?

Need to do something tough in networking? Go buy another version of Windows.

What? Speak in specifics or go home. Thanks for the additional helping of FUD though.

Need to be a media center? Goi buy another version of Windows.

Okay, you have officially branded yourself an idiot. There are several free media center programs for windows. For example, you could use MediaPortal.

There's more but I have to get to work...

That's okay, we've had enough of your ignorance and FUD for one day.

Re:Apple ads

[MightyYar]

You telling me that you aren't a geek? Heh, okay, we can make a 5... :)

I'm kind of in the same boat - I got my first Mac as a requirement for school pre-Windows95. I tend to keep both a decent Mac and a decent PC in the house. I've got no illusions, though - I'm a geek.

Re:Apple ads

[k_187]

Yes, but those ease of use things are worth something. That's the point of these commericals. Buy a mac and your time will be spent doing more useful things rather than fiddling with the system.

Re:Apple ads

[BlackSnake112]

Yesterday's macs were pcs too.

pc = personal computer

too bad to most people pc = windows

The chip inside can be made by sun, ibm, amd, intel, . If the devie is a personal computer it is a PC no matter the brand.

I would love for apple to sell OSX bt itself. They will never do this for too reasons. 1st they are a hardware company. 2nd Apple does not want to support every different type of motherboard, sound card, video card, etc. that is out there.

2nd point I feel is a bad one. The hardware companies should provide the drivers for their hardware. Let the os makwers provide a set of communication rules (APIs) that all can see. The hard ware companies make the drivers for all the operating systems. Then we the people could getwhat we feel is the bast choice to meet our needs. Wait MS still doesn't fully do that....

I would love to see some scary looking parts not matching computer running OSX (and no I am not talking about the pumpkin macs).

Re:Apple ads

[holt]

Apple crap is as much luxury as a high end Casio. It's no rolex.

Heh, when I first read that, I thought you wrote "high end Casino" and I couldn't figure out exactly what you meant. Anyway...

If you want to see what's real luxury in computing, search for the toughbooks. Panasonic toughbook are much more durable, undestructible than any apple computer ever made. And they are PCs.

Why do you say that durable and "undestructible" == luxury? I'm not necessarily saying that Apple products are luxury, but what you're saying is like saying that a Bentley Continental GT isn't real luxury, an Army Humvee is luxury. Not that a Mac is the same as an Bentley, but you get the idea.

Re:Apple ads

[p0tat03]

How about price?

Check out the pricing on a new MacBook, which is their consumer-level mobile product. Compare that with an equally equipped Dell, and you will see that the infamous "Apple premium" only exists in their prosumer lines. Apple doesn't sell cheapo crap-in-a-box machines, and as such the lowest MacBook would be considered mid-end by PC standards. Compare that with mid-end PC laptops and you will see that the price difference is almost negligible and sometimes favors the Mac, even.

Software availability?

Like what? I recently had an amusing discussion with a PC zealot who went on about how his software choices were vastly better than on a Mac. He even went as far as to boast that he could download torrents, as if OSX doesn't have its own slew of clients. The most popular (and IMHO most usable) office suite, MS Office, is available on the Mac, and is continually being developed. As a software developer there is absolutely no shortage of tools that fit my development needs. Heck, I enjoy the fact that many 'nix apps are perfectly compatible with OSX, opening many doors for a geek like myself. Really, the only lack of "software availability" is in gaming.

I would agree that Mac probably has a slight edge in ease of use, but it isn't as if using Windows is difficult by any means.

Spoken like one who hasn't spent enough time with a Mac. I've converted many of my friends and colleagues over to Mac over the last year. The switch to Intel helped, since nearly all of them wanted to leave Windows on the machine, being unsure about OSX. All but one of these people have since removed Windows from the machine, preferring OSX - and the one that didn't is a hardcore gamer. So am I, I suppose, and that's the only reason I ever run Windows on my MacBook Pro. I've seen many people who pick up OSX for 2 hours, get frustrated at the differences, and then proclaim loudly that Macs suck. Many of these same people then spend more time with the system, and in a week or two they're all pretty much die-hard OSX proponents.

Re:Apple ads

[tsa]

Very good point. You'd almost be tempted to buy a PC after seeing those ads. And another thing: according to Apple, Macs are for 'fun stuff'. If that is so, then why can't I play the games I like on a Mac? Without first putting Windows on it I mean. And why do most Macs come with mediocre videocards at best? I mean I just love my MacBook Pro but I'd never buy an iMac, just because of their crappy videocards.

Re:Apple ads

[cliveholloway]

Oh dear, oh dear. That's not self esteem. That's the problem. If you base your "self esteem" on the brands you identify with, unlesss they are walmart and costco you can end up having bigger problems than basic self esteem. Do you know how many people buy cars, clothing and electronics they can't afford on credit cards because of brand based self esteem? Sure, short term it puts these issues on the back burner, but sooner or later they have to deal with the fact that they can't live that life.

Re:Apple ads

[giorgiofr]

Your thoughts about Apple are mostly correct but yougot the PC thing really wrong - in fact, it is the very kind of chip inside a computer that determines if it is a "PC" or not. "PC" used to be a trademark, owned by IBM, and was later extended to include all kinds of x86-based computers (see "IBM or compatible PC" on old software). Today, "PC" means (at least, that's how most people regard it) a computer running its OS on a x86 (or its clone). PPC, Spark-based etc computers CANNOT be PCs. Even though I do have a personal G3, it's still not a PC.

Re:Apple ads

[Phroggy]

Just yesterday it took a half an hour to get a mainstream quickcam out of the box and showing video. iSight? No longer than it takes to launch the app than needs it. Ah, but how long would it take you to get that same "mainstream quickcam" working on your Mac?

Re:Apple ads

[boriquajake]

Yes, anyone who has ever watched parliament on TV is amazed at how you brits hate negativity and would never be swayed by it. Of course *discerning consumer* is just a euphemism for to poor to by what you want. I am sure you all have just "discerned" that tiny-ass houses, bus passes, and public television are better than their more expensive alternatives, douche.

Re:Apple ads

[elsilver]

The reason people "don't buy" Macs is the same reason people "don't buy" BMW cars. There are cheaper alternatives

If people didn't by BMWs for the same reason as Macs, then BMWs wouldn't take the same gas as the other 90% of cars, would have problems driving on non-BMW roadways, won't fit into the company car park, wouldn't be allowed on the road rally until 6 months after race day, and getting spare parts would be a real pain in the ass. Oh, yeah, and they're more expensive.

Uhuh, it's exactly the same situation.

While price is no doubt a factor for some, the fact that it isn't what's used at work or school, the fact that games are limited, the fact that I need to worry about compatibility (which is completely different from whether there are any actual compatibility issues), and so on, are what's holding more people back.

If I was told I could have this $500 Dell or a $800 Mac, I'd take the Mac. But that's not the choice. The choice is I could have this $500 Dell, or a $800 Mac which may or may not be at all familiar to me, may or may not run half the software I'm interested in, etc.

The only way Apple can change this is to (a) come up with some killer features that Windows doesn't have (and I mean really outstanding, not like widgets, not things that MS can copy in their next OS), or (b) to build up their percent user base (which they need (a) to do).

Until I'm working on a Mac at work, I'm not getting one at home.

E.

Re:Apple ads

[nasch]

Would you hire a roofing contractor who uses a rock to drive nails? Would you hire a roofing contractor and then insist that he use a rock instead of a nail gun? After all rocks are "ugly and ineffective" and only "brilliant and experienced" roofers use them.

His point was not that we ought to be using ugly and ineffective tools, but that it takes more skill to get the same thing done with ineffective tools than it does with effective ones. If one roofer is using a claw hammer and the other a nail gun, and they get the same amount of work done in the same amount of time, I would assume the claw hammer guy is better, because he can do the same job with an inferior tool. This does not mean I think it is a good idea for him to use a claw hammer - he's probably even faster with a nail gun.

Re:Apple ads

[SmittyTheBold]

What hardware are you talking about, and to which company are you attributing blame?

Re:Apple ads

[bogjobber]

Check out the pricing on a new MacBook, which is their consumer-level mobile product. Compare that with an equally equipped Dell, and you will see that the infamous "Apple premium" only exists in their prosumer lines. Apple doesn't sell cheapo crap-in-a-box machines, and as such the lowest MacBook would be considered mid-end by PC standards. Compare that with mid-end PC laptops and you will see that the price difference is almost negligible and sometimes favors the Mac, even.

That is exactly the point I was making. There are no low-end Apple machines. If I want to buy a $300 PC or $600 notebook, Apple isn't even an option. When people compare Macs to other PC's, they usually don't take into account price. Here's a car analogy. BMW cars in general are nicer than Honda cars, but there is a reason Honda sells more. Price is the single largest factor for nearly every person buying a computer.

And I would dispute the fact that the price difference between mid-end systems is "negligible". Here is the link to Dell's PC page and Apple's iMac page. You can see that the E520, which has the same processor, same size monitor, twice as much memory, and 100GB larger hard driver is $150 less than the lowest priced iMac. On Dell's notebook page you can see that the mid-range 1501 has more memory and a larger screen than the lowest price MacBook. It has a less powerful processor, but it is over $250 less! The notebook with a similar AMD processor is still over $100 less than the cheapest Macbook. So you are full of shit about the pricing aspect.

To reiterate my software point when was the last time you ever, under any circumstances, saw a piece of mass-market commercial software that ran on OSX but did not run on Windows? It almost never happens, simply because of Apple's lower market share. There are, however, quite a few programs that run only on Windows (not just games).

Spoken like one who hasn't spent enough time with a Mac... I've seen many people who pick up OSX for 2 hours, get frustrated at the differences, and then proclaim loudly that Macs suck. Many of these same people then spend more time with the system, and in a week or two they're all pretty much die-hard OSX proponents.

This is a completely ridiculous argument. I have used Mac software, and like I said I agree with you that Apple has the edge in ease of use. I like OSX, I'm just not convinced it is such a huge step above Windows as most Apple fans make it out to be. I like a very sparse and unobtrusive UI, and I have my Windows machine set up to reflect that. For this reason, I personally find the Dock to be a huge pain in the ass, although I can see why some people would like it. It's not that I haven't spent enough time with it, I just don't like it. For you to claim to know better than me what I like and don't like is ridiculous.

Besides, my point was that Windows is also fairly intuitive and easy to use, so ease of use isn't as big of a deal for most people as Apple makes it out to be. I have no difficulty doing anything that I want in Windows, so Apple isn't going to drag me away by telling me that it's easier on OSX. I assume most other people using Windows feel the same way.

Re:Apple ads

[burndive]

Seriously, whats wrong with deriving self-esteem from brand identity?

Self esteem is only "good" to the extent that it is accurate, and "bad" to the extent that it is inaccurate.

Deriving your self-image from what advertisers tell you you will be when you buy their products is almost always "bad." They have a vested interest in not portraying reality accurately and reality is messy and nuanced. Apple commercials are simplistic blurbs about one, maybe two, things.

Re:Apple ads

[Kancept]

http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/ 30149 Maybe that'll help solve your missile launcher dilemma. Unless you have the super new green one, which IIRC is the Rocket Launcher, which is this link for progress: http://dgwilson.wordpress.com/ Enjoy!

Re:Apple ads

[CDarklock]

> People accept "ugly and ineffective" with computers and that's a shame

I would actually argue that people seek out ugly and ineffective tools in a classical confusion of cause and effect: they believe that by using an ugly and ineffective tool, they will appear to be brilliant and experienced users. Conversely, they avoid pretty and elegant tools because they don't want to look like dumb novices.

Instead, they get an ugly and ineffective tool they don't understand, and have no hope in hell of doing a decent job with it. This makes them look like dumb novices to everyone except... dumb novices. The learning curve is steep, so they look like that for a much longer time. Meanwhile, the dumb novice who got the pretty and elegant tool has rapidly outgrown it, moved on to the ugly and ineffective tool - and recognised the other guy for the dumb novice he is.

The Mac commercials are not helping this phenomenon. Indeed, they are encouraging it.

Re:Apple ads

[Anonymous Coward]

Reminds me of what a buddy says - You know the difference between a BMW and a porcupine?

The porcupine has the pricks on the outside...

Re:Apple ads

[jpellino]

1 install of ecamm's mac software, they all work.

Re:Apple ads

[binarysins]

I'm still waiting for the Dell commercial where the Dell and the Mac walk into Electronic Boutique and the PC walks out with Quake X or whatever and the Mac walks out with Choplifter

Re:Apple ads

[StikyPad]

[W]e tend to be more diserning consumers...my missle launcher doesn't work under OS X.

So was the discerning part picking the missile launcher over the mini lava lamp, or picking one that didn't work on multiple OS's?

Re:Apple ads

[mibus]

I'm -really- tired of people saying how well OpenOffice works when it doesn't. Just because it -is- an alternative doesn't mean it's superior, or even on an even footing with its competition.

Depends on the criteria used to judge superiority... For me, something in Debian Unstable is much more preferable than something not, just for ease of (un)install & upgrades. There are only a couple of things that I use that aren't available through apt, and they almost never get updated, because it's just too much hassle. They also typically don't fit into my desktop theme. I can't flick a document to a friend with a comment "if you can't open it, just get the software yourself".

On the other hand, if you want "word count" in a sensible place... ;)

Re:Apple ads

[aussie_a]

Any non-Apple hardware which Apple uses DRM to lock you out of using. So Apple.

Re:Apple ads

[mikael_j]

Actually, the term "Personal computer" existed before the IBM PC. Somehow over the years "PC" and thus also "Personal computer" became a term mainly used for IBM PC-compatible machines powered by some chip compatible with the Intel x86 series of CPUs. Using the term to describe a Mac, an Amiga or a Spectravideo SVI-328 would thus be perfectly alright. In fact, as late as the mid-90's boxed software would still list "100% IBM PC Compatible computer" or some variation as a requirement..

/Mikael

Re:Apple ads

[UtucXul]

On the other hand, if you want "word count" in a sensible place... ;)

% which wc
/usr/bin/wc
%
Looks like a sensible place to me. Maybe that's just because I tend to use LaTeX for all my writing. :)

Re:Apple ads

[Logic and Reason]

I'm a devout Mac user and even I don't relate to adverts.

Apple has no need to advertise to you, since you already own a Mac. Apple is trying to convince people who are far less tech-savvy than you are, people who may not even know what an "operating system" is, that Macs are a better option than "PCs" (by which they mean PCs running Windows). In fact, just making people realize that Macs are an option may be enough, since many people may just buy a PC without ever considering what kind of software it comes with.

Re:Apple ads

[StarfishOne]

I want the engine to roar like a pride of lions and the tires to scream like a banshee when I hit the accelerator. I can't get that from a BMW. Sure, on the average day, a BMW would probably be a more comfortable commute - but it's just the wrong attitude. A car should be scary.

There are of course different models of BMW. Also models which are both comfortable and very, very fast.

E.g.: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tS5znezR3tg

Just sit through the first 6-7 minutes or so. :P :P

Re:Apple ads

[CDarklock]

A stock BMW doesn't have a Hemi.

Game over. ;)

Re:Apple ads

[StarfishOne]

Ok, you win. ;)

Still nice for the daily commute though, lol! :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OafZfaI9MyM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJQAcZBXrYI

Nice stuff to watch :)

Re:Apple ads

[CDarklock]

> Still nice for the daily commute though, lol!

True dat. Realistically, I couldn't have a muscle car; I get too damn many speeding tickets in my big-ass boat of an Oldsmobile. If I had something with any real power, those tickets would just start being for THREE digit speeds, and I can't afford that.

Besides, I like Oldsmobiles; they're nice and comfortable, and when's the last time you heard of ANYONE, ANYWHERE stealing an Oldsmobile?

Go PowerBook G4!

[Anonymous Coward]

Interesting to hear she's still using the same G4. I'm using the same PowerBook G4 I bought in 2003, because it still is a surprisingly competent notebook after 3.5 years, even for my daily graphics work. I hear all these Windows people complaining about how a PC only lasts a couple of years before you have to buy a new one; I hear that and think, well, that just about negates the "PCs are cheaper" argument...

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[Curien]

Since when do we take computer advice from Windows users?

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[Tiro]

Well, I'm still using a 2.0 GHz celeron with 256 MB ram, and it runs a stripped down version of XP quite well, not to mention Ubuntu.

I think the main reason people "have to" upgrade is because Windows gets bloated registries. Even without viruses, things crawl on a poorly maintained machine with a lot of crappy apps like AOL installed.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[Nirvelli]

The only reason that a majority of PCs generally can't keep up in graphics-intensive applications is because there are two main groups of PC users:
1) The common household who buys some pre-built Dell box with no actual video card, and
2) The crazy gamer who is always buying the brand new bleeding-edge graphics card, and doesn't mind paying for it every year (or month or whatever).

For any other use, a well-maintained PC will run just fine in the typical household, and those only slow down because users are constantly ignoring instructions and security warning and thus getting viruses and/or spyware on their machines.
Also, Windows applications and hardware are a dime a dozen, and it is not hard to find something on the store shelf that will blue-screen you because the programmers didn't know what they were doing when they were interfacing it with Windows.
Programs for Mac have to work because the market is much smaller. (Though this definitely doesn't guarantee a problem-free experience.)

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[bozho]

Hm. I'm not your average Windows user, but...

I bought my PC back in 2002. It's a P4 overclocked to 2.4GHz, 512MB RAM and 80GB HDD. Components I have replaced since I bought it:

- graphics card (Radeon X800 XT) - didn't have to, but I like to play a game every now and then
- TV card (Terratec 600) - again, didn't have to, my sister got the old one, it still works
- motherboard - had to, the old one died due to a strange electrical discharge incident at my friend's house
- DVD burner (the old one's motor died) - I could have bought a cheaper one, but I'm a Plextor fan

How much would these upgrades/fixes cost on a Mac?

Oh, and Windows XP on it have never been reinstalled (install date is August 23rd 2002, if we are to believe creation dates on system directories :-) Only once I had a trojan-related incident (late night and one click too many :-) and twice had to revert to a restore point because of a funky TV card driver that caused BSOD when running my TV app.

The system still runs fine.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[isopossu]

Or that you can afford to buy a new inexpensive PC more often than a more expensive Mac.

There's a difference between choosing to and having to use older technology. If Macs costed the same as PC:s, would you still have refused to update your gear?

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[fabs64]

I haven't upgraded my PC for 4 years now and it does everything you could possibly want it to other than playing the latest games.
But then, the playstation I bought 4 years ago doesn't do that either.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[Jesus_666]

True. Despite me having to resolder a contact on the DC-in board* and replacing the hard drive once my G4 iBook is still going strong (okay, except for the cables of the power adapter finally succumbing to the abuse I put them through**). The only reason I will upgrade to a MBP once Leopard is out is because the notebook has become my main work machine and 1024x768 is a bit too small for that. Oh, and I could use x86 compatibility.

The iBook (once I have a replacement power adapter) will probably go to my parents or my brother. No reason to throw it away.

* Apple should develop something that keeps people from trying to walk through power cords. MagSafe is nice, but I'm thinking more along the lines of barbed wire...
** Just because notebook backpacks have a little pouch for you to store the power adapter in doesn't mean the cables won't break from you doing so.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[StarKruzr]

I just got an MBP two weeks ago and it is one of the best investments I've ever made. The thing is inhumanly fast.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[C10H14N2]

I still use several ca. 1998 PCs for various tasks. My primary concern in continuing their life has nothing to do with their capacity to fill their useful purposes, but simply their power consumption in relation thereof...which should explain quite a bit about the true lifespan metrics of the hardware...for which no platform is immune. A $500 MacMini has a similar performance vs. power consumption curve compared to its decade-old equivalent, which In 1998 was the iMac at 233Mhz--that's not a damn sight greater leap in performance over the lifespan.

Face it, the technology is and has always been roughly equivalent.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[dreamer-of-rules]

A couple months ago, I upgraded from a 3.5 yr 1.0GHz TiBook to a 2.33GHz C2D MacBook Pro. The speed goes way beyond being able to play H.264 videos without stuttering.

I gave my brothers a demo, with all of these running simultaneously..
* iTunes playing music
* VLC playing a video
* DVD playing (a ripped folder)
* iPhoto open with 5,000 photos
* VPN/VNC to several work systems
* Parallels running Windows XP
* ...and that Windows XP running XCOM:UFO Defence
* A second Parallels window installing Windows 98

I hit Expose to show all windows-- there was no stutter.

The CPU load was only at 75% :-D

/ love the MagSafe adapter more than I expected.. it just works

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[aussie_a]

it still is a surprisingly competent notebook after 3.5 years
Wow. You're surprised to get 3.5 years out of your Mac? I got 6 (I consider anything less then 5 years out of a computer to be less then my money's worth) out of my PC and only replaced it because it broke.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[steelfood]

I think most of the upgrading talk comes from the hardcore gamers. Games always push the envelope when it comes to hardware requirements, especially so because the hardware specs of a gamer's machine can be a moving target. There isn't much talk about having to upgrade Mac or Linux boxen because most people using those OS's don't game with them, or aren't interested in playing the newest games on the first day of release. They either game on a separate machine (which does require upgrading), or, they stick to one or two games (WoW) and play nothing else on their computer.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[dr.badass]

i don't usually get real emotional feelings for my tools or material objects. but after using this computer every day for the last five years i am sad to see it go.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[Jesus_666]

...and that Windows XP running XCOM:UFO Defence

There, it's proven: Mac users do automatically have good taste. ;)

By the way, there's one thing I'd really like to see - VLC not dropping frames like there is no tomorrow when the Thunderbird icon starts hopping. That alone would be a major improvement... That or closing Thunderbird before watching something.

By the way (again), do Intel Macs have a system load of 2+ when mdimport indexes something? I'd guess that problem still exists since I think mdimport is mostly an I/O hog.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[ghyd]

What do you mean get old quicker in the PC than in the MAC ? the hard drive ? the ram ? the parts that make it a gaming capable machine ?

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[Inda]

I'm still using a P3 450. Boy, what a games machine that was when I bought it!

I rip DVDs to Xvid on it - 36 to 48 hours. Lower the priority of VirtualDubMod to idle and I can still play MP3s (Foobar2k), run DC, Trillian and Firefox.

New computers? pfffffft

PS. Can I have a silver medal? I'm getting bored of the gold ones.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[C10H14N2]

...that was precisely my point: five times the computing power for half the power consumption, and that relationship over time is roughly equivalent for both "PCs" and Macs.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[thesandtiger]

/ love the MagSafe adapter more than I expected.. it just works

No shit! When the new MacBooks first came out and people were raving about it, I was like "... Ohhhhhkay...." I mean, I'm a macgirl, but jesus, that seemed to be carrying fanboyism a weeee far.

Then I got mine. First 10 minutes out of the box and my dog goes tearing ass across the room and runs right into the cord. I yelp, can't look... But no, just popped right out.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[linuxpng]

I hate to always be the guy that's contrary, but go get yourself an easynews account and hit alt.binaries.mp3.complete_cd. If I do this in Safari both of my processors go above 70 percent. I know my mac is good for somethings (drive crunching) but it's horrible for others (opengl performance, even with multithreaded opengl).

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[evilviper]

I hear all these Windows people complaining about how a PC only lasts a couple of years before you have to buy a new one;

Did you maybe hear that more than 5 years ago, when it really was more or less true?

Or are you perhaps surrounded by idiots who don't know how to reinstall Windows, and just buy a new one when they finally get overwhelmed by the unchecked viruses and spyware?

For the record, my PPro from 1996 is going strong as a firewall/router. My DVR box is a 4+ year-old AthlonXP 2000+. And my desktop machine is a 1.2GHz Athlon, with PC-133 RAM, and a 40GB HDD...

Older systems are great. My machines, that were light on memory even for their time, now all have over 1GB each. When old systems start dying, or just no longer being useful, parts are damn-near free. That applies to most everything.

Today, you can put together a low-end tower for $100 with all-new parts.

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[sootman]

Yup, just depends who you are, what you like, and how clean you keep your system. My 1 GHz PIII HP Pavilion with W2K, FireFox 0.6, and Photoshop 7 is still doing very well, thankyouverymuch. OTOH, fat web pages make my 800 MHz G3 iBook crawl, so I stepped up to a MacBook. Man, dual cores in a laptop kicks ass. :-)

Re:Go PowerBook G4!

[AirLace]

The CPU load was only at 75% :-D

One of the goals of any operating system is to maximise efficient use of resources, so if it's not utilizing near 100% available CPU, the kernel is probably failing to efficiently schedule tasks and is leaving processes IO bound.

So in summary 75% CPU use at that kind of load is not impressive and doesn't sound at all competitive with the schedulers in Linux, Solaris and even Windows.

Apple's Demographic?

[SpzToid]

...What do you think it was about your ads that made you a stand out?
Ellen: I don't know? Because people thought I was stoned, because there aren't that many young girls in computer commercials.

Ellen seems to have figured out where fanboys come from.
- - - -
You can't be ahead of the curve if you're stuck in a loop.

Re:Apple's Demographic?

[jkrise]

"Ellen seems to have figured out where fanboys come from."

Not from Slashdot, at any rate.... BTW, she says No Comment, wrt her availability. Any PC users on Slashdot like to switch?

Re:Apple's Demographic?

[Corporate Troll]

Well, it's obvious, isn't it? Sex sells, and nerdy boys don't need much because they only know girls from .jpg anyway. So, she is perfect for appealing the high school nerds. That, and dirty old men, like me ;-)

I'm not a fanboy, but I do think she's cute...

Re:Apple's Demographic?

[kv9]

Sex sells, and nerdy boys don't need much because they only know girls from .jpg

get with the times, you old fart (.mpg/.avi)

Re:Apple's Demographic?

[Dunbal]

she was 14 when she made the adverts.

      Before you lock kv9 up as a sex offender, there's nothing wrong with thinking or saying a 14 year old is cute/hot/sexy or whatever. It's a valid opinion.

Re:Apple's Demographic?

[StikyPad]

It's a valid opinion.

Did you actually SEE her? She looks like Molly Ringwald without the orange hair.

Is there nothing better to read?

[kaan]

I saw her Switch ad when it came out. I didn't get the cult fascination then, and I don't get it now either. So fine, whatever. Fast forward 5 years later and I'm wondering what the hell any of us are doing reading an interview with her.

I read part of the interview and have concluded that it's just as interesting as most blogs by strangers I'll never meet. Funny thing is, most people are immediately appreciative of how much most blogs suck, yet an interview with Ellen Feiss is somehow above that.

Please, someone tell me, what the hell am I missing here? Really. I don't get it.

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[Jugalator]

Funny thing is, most people are immediately appreciative of how much most blogs suck, yet an interview with Ellen Feiss is somehow above that.

Yes, but at least they aren't hypocritical, because what Feiss did wasn't blog related.

Please, someone tell me, what the hell am I missing here?

A 14 year old Mac loving stoner chick, to some geeks. :-p

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[CAIMLAS]

I think you're missing the fact that she is no longer a stoned-looking 14-year-old, but a very hot redhead 19-year-old college student. :P I mean, my god man! Look at her eyes here!

http://www.faq-mac.com/mt/archives/img/escaparate/ Ellen%20Feiss.jpg

Don't fall in! The lips aren't that unattractive, either. Ok, yeah, the rest may not be so hot (I've not seen any of her 'film acumen') but that much, at least, is.

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[lysergic.acid]

C'mon, she's adorable in that ad.

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[gujo-odori]

I had never seen the ad because I was living abroad at the time, not using Macs (just Linux, but I have a Mac at work now, a MacBook Pro 15; I like it almost as much as a Linux box, and better in a few specific areas), and AFAIK it wasn't broadcast on Japanese television.

Now that I have seen, I don't see what the big deal was. It's hardly something that would compel me to want a Mac, unlike the current Mac and PC ads, which are hilarious. And she's absolutely right that it's creepy how so many people were so into her and are still so into the 14-year old her.

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[Mark_in_Brazil]

I think you're missing the fact that she is no longer a stoned-looking 14-year-old, but a very hot redhead 19-year-old college student. :P I mean, my god man! Look at her eyes here!

http://www.faq-mac.com/mt/archives/img/escaparate/ Ellen%20Feiss.jpg

Don't fall in! The lips aren't that unattractive, either. Ok, yeah, the rest may not be so hot (I've not seen any of her 'film acumen') but that much, at least, is.

I have to wonder if the "don't fall in" eyes have anything to do with pupil dilation because she filmed a scene in which her character was taking magic mushrooms...

That said, she kinda reminds me of Luana Piovani, a Brazilian model/actress/generally famous person that keeps most Brazilian men drooling.
Check out a pic of Luana here, or visit her official site (where I didn't see any pics in which she resembled the switcher girl quite so much).
That's actually kinda funny, because it was a sort of "open secret" for some time that Luana smoked the wacky tobacky, and then a few years ago she openly declared it, setting off a stupid controversy.

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[sacrilicious]

I saw her Switch ad when it came out. I didn't get the cult fascination then, and I don't get it now either. So fine, whatever. Fast forward 5 years later and I'm wondering what the hell any of us are doing reading an interview with her.

I agree, this epidemic of fascination with girls one has never met just seems put on. Plus, all my energy is currently devoted to my adoration of Natalie Portman.

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[Anonymous Coward]

It's just a good shot -- most of the time, she still looks wasted: http://www.ellenfeiss.net/?p=19.

Still would though*.

AC.

* but, like the rest of you, I'm a geek and can't afford to be fussy.

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[lonechicken]

In that picture, she looks like Chloe from Smallville.

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[climbing]

She's ok and all.

BUT SHE DIDN'T SAVE CHRISTMAS!!! Oh Janie Porche, where are you?

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[CAIMLAS]

Actually, that's interesting, and a distinct possibility I'd not considered. See, I met this girl who looked a hell of a lot like the 'older' Feiss in those movie screen caps, and man did I have the hots for her. And she was a stoner. Weird coincidence, particularly since I can't stand that shit.

Re:Is there nothing better to read?

[StikyPad]

She looks like a stunt double.

I think you're missing the fact that people tend to attribute characteristics -- attractive people are good and conversely good people are attractive -- based on unrelated factors. Seeing a chick with a computer can be as compelling for a nerd as seeing an old man in a Ferarri might be for a model, where seeing the same people in different circumstances would likely result in indifference.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but people don't always realize everything they're beholding.

Is submitter, like, 12?

[superdude72]

2002 is not a bygone era damn it. We haven't even decided what to call this decade yet.

Re:Is submitter, like, 12?

[bh_doc]

This decade? You mean the naughties?

Re:Is submitter, like, 12?

[carpe_noctem]

Sure it is. Those were just the web 1.0 days!

Re:Is submitter, like, 12?

[aussie_a]

I'd be somewhat worried if Slashdot's accounting is done by a 12 year old.

Re:Is submitter, like, 12?

[kannibal_klown]

2002 is not a bygone era damn it. We haven't even decided what to call this decade yet.

What do you mean? A lot has changed!

For example, now the Internet uses tubes.

Re:Is submitter, like, 12?

[Cervantes]

"We haven't even decided what to call this decade yet."

'The Aughts'
That's what Grampa Simpson would do, and that's just right, dagnabit.

I'm just looking forward to the Tickitys coming up in 13 years. That'll be a great decade.

Re:Is submitter, like, 12?

[mamer-retrogamer]

Personally, I'm partial to "the turn of the millennium" for the aught years. ("Turn of the century" still conjures images of the 1900s for me).

I'm just waiting for the next two years to pass to see if people will start using "twenty" instead of "two-thousand": i.e. "twenty-ten" instead of "two-thousand-ten".

Re:Is submitter, like, 12?

[Cervantes]

People (at least in Canada) are already using "Twenty" for everything...

Ellen's take on the iPhone...

[SpzToid]

as quoted by a MacFan magazine...

Macenstein: What do you think of the newly announced Apple iPhone?

Ellen: Sounds expensive.

Macenstein: Ok, we've taken up far too much of your time already.

- - - -
    You can't be ahead of the curve if you're stuck in a loop.

Re:Ellen's take on the iPhone...

[Dilaudid]

Love it... Even better since it's a verbatim quote FTA...

Re:Ellen's take on the iPhone...

[drinkypoo]

Yes, the interview makes Apple look like what they really are - businessmen.

Macenstein: I read that after the Apple ads aired, Apple sort of advised you to not try to capitalize on your celebrity, and sort of fade away. Why do you think that was?

Ellen: A multinational company obviously doesn't want to be associated with weed. Their instructions made me want to capitalize on it though.

Macenstein: So as far as you know, your friends who did the ads with you did not get those same instructions from Apple? You were singled out because of the "stoner" moniker?

Ellen: Hamilton's ad was the only ad besides mine that was picked up. The other two girls I was with, their ads never aired. Apple was advising me not to take acting roles, not to go on the talk shows, so they were talking specifically to me.

And this doesn't make them look bad, but I thought it was funny:

Do you currently own a Mac now?
Ellen:Same computer I had when I made the ad. G4

G5? Intel-based? Who needs 'em? Most people do fine on an "outdated" computer.

I read the story...

[Jugalator]

I was reading the story, and thought I was going to see something interesting, and it was like "beep beep beep". It's kinda... a bummer.

Re:I read the story...

[thefirelane]

It was a really good interview...

Re:I read the story...

[jkrise]

I was reading the story, and thought I was going to see something interesting, and it was like "beep beep beep". It's kinda... a bummer.

Welcome to Slashdot.... most 'stories' here just go beep beep beep.... or dupe dupe dupe. And the comments are mostly bummers.. like this one!

Re:I read the story...

[mackermacker]

I was reading the story, and thought I was going to see something interesting, and it was like "beep beep beep". It's kinda... a bummer.

I was reading the story, and thought I was going to see something interesting, and it was like "beep beep beep". It's kinda... a boner.

Fixed that for ya.

A hero among us?

[Annoymous Cowherd]

The internet highlights a rather interesting aspect of human nature - the need to idolise other people.

The rise to fame of actors and actresses is a bit more straightforward, since their performances are laid bare for all to rewind and review. We needed to see something about a person before we decided that they were worth the worship.

Now, as we move forward, it seems the time and effort required for someone to bask in the aura of fame is drastically reducing. What we find more often in public forums are people, represented by no more than the text of their name or a default avatar, enjoying heroic receptions.

I guess anonymity of others allows us to identify one or two things we like, and then our imagination fills in the rest.

I think this will negatively effect self esteem in the long run.

Hmmm

[Bloke down the pub]

From TFA:

My image in that commercial belongs to them. The money from Ellen Frisbees and alarm clocks would have to partially go to Apple.

And the blow-up doll?

Re:Hmmm

[hachete]

And the blow-up doll? That'll be Heidi Fleiss you're thinking of. Easy mistake.

Re:Well

[Fengpost]

Are you lost? Couldn't find you way to Digg?

Don'now how many of you got the 'stoned' part..

[jigyasubalak]

But, first time I read it I thought the evil microsoft fanboys stoned
her 'coz she switched. And it was polite of her to say 'it wasn't the case'.

Re:Don'now how many of you got the 'stoned' part..

[cerberusss]

Hehheh. Well, I'd stone her. Softly. With plush cows that 'mooo' when they hit her :-)

Yeah, PCs, please stop sucking!

[LKM]

Stop with the "PC sucks" nonsense.

Yeah, I agree, PCs should really stop sucking. However, I wonder why you're telling that to us. Most of us aren't working on Windows.

Re:Yeah, PCs, please stop sucking!

[suv4x4]

Yeah, I agree, PCs should really stop sucking. However, I wonder why you're telling that to us. Most of us aren't working on Windows.

So you're not working on a PC? What are you working on, Amiga?

Re:Yeah, PCs, please stop sucking!

[LKM]

I meant "working on Windows" as in "being in a position where we can fix Windows' suckiness, i.e. working on Windows' code," not "sitting in front of a Windows box all day long."

Re:Yeah, PCs, please stop sucking!

[drinkypoo]

Yeah, I agree, PCs should really stop sucking. However, I wonder why you're telling that to us. Most of us aren't working on Windows.

PCs stink on ice without running Windows. The PC BIOS is a pile of shit. The x86 ISA is sad and pathetic.

Also, most of us ARE working on Windows. We don't get user agent stats often any more but last I checked Windows was an overwhelming majority here (but so was firefox.)

Re:Yeah, PCs, please stop sucking!

[LKM]

Yeah, I didn't actually mean that most of use don't use Windows. I meant that most of us aren't working at Microsoft and thus are in no position to make it suck less.

Re:Yeah, PCs, please stop sucking!

[burndive]

I meant "working on Windows" as in "being in a position where we can fix Windows' suckiness, i.e. working on Windows' code," not "sitting in front of a Windows box all day long."

I think that's actually what the Mac ads are asking people to do: fix what's wrong with their computer experience by getting a Mac in stead of a PC. Getting a new computer is what most people do to fix their Windows problems anyway. Hard drive fragmented? Get a new computer. You installed annoying spyware? Get a new computer and install it on that one.

Re:Apple's Demographic? - lesbian

[Anonymous Coward]

She is dating a female. So any takers would have to be lez.

Re:Foreign film

[lysergic.acid]

have you seen the ad? she was most definitely stoned. even if she had put in clear eyes you'd be able to tell from her demeanor.

Re:Well

[BlackMesaLabs]

Exactly! Indeed! Here Here! Sex has no place on Slashdot, you insensitive clod!!

L Word? No Comment

[dissolved]

Seems to me fanboys are bang outta luck. The fanGIRLS though....

Re:Bitch?

[lysergic.acid]

you're readin something out of that article that's totally not there. maybe you've just got personal issues. besides, she sounds pretty down to earth in this podcast interview.

Re:Go MMX166

[OP_Boot]

Twin PIII 500 still running NT here....

Re:Go MMX166

[name*censored*]

Back in my day, we had competitions to see who had the BEST computer... you damn crazy kids!

[disclaimer: I'm not actually old, but it seemed appropriate]

Re:Go MMX166

[hey!]

And it still has its original CMOS battery.

Your setup would be cooler if you replaced the button battery with a potato that had a nail and copper wire driven into it.

Dinosaur is in da place !

[DrYak]

All the machine I still use at various place are still based on Pentium II mother boards. Some of them dating back from 1998.
Sure, I upgraded processor a couple of time (Slot1 interface and Slotckets are a wonder ! I just long until similar board with AM2 & DDR2 sockets on them and HTX interface to the main board appear...) maxed out the memory, but it still mostly the same old computers with derelict 3DFX Voodoo AGP video cards... ...and they still do the job I need them done... ...mostly because I run Linux on them and configure the interface according to the computer performance.

Interestingly, the reason I start considering upgrading the hardware is Windows : I use it to double-boot for playing games, and even adventure games start to require performance that my hardware can't provide.

Re:She likes the L word!

[somersault]

"troll" is also a term for a shitcocked nerd who is so bitter and twisted that nobody loves him that he has to anonymously insult random people in an effort to regain his confidence without having any possibility of retribution.

On BMW

[pwhysall]

The 3-series outsold the Ford Mondeo range last year. (And the year before that, if memory serves).

The 1-series is an offering set against the Focus, too. Although it might not be available in the USA.

Re:On BMW

[Anonymous Coward]

The european focus is a different car than the American focus. Completely different.

Don't ask me why they don't sell the Euro version here. The current focus here is tired and old. Same model for at least 5 years now. '07 has sheet metal changes but that's it.

Your point remains, I'm just fyi'ing...

Re:Go MMX166

[Dunbal]

Back in my day, we had competitions to see who had the BEST computer... you damn crazy kids!

      So what did you do, count the rows of beads on your abacus to see who was more modern, grandpa? :P

Re:Foreign film

[Gospodin]

Wow am I square. It took me until this post (I haven't RTFA yet) to realize that the summary wasn't referring to a Biblical stoning. Yikes.

"Clear eyes? How would that protect this poor girl from a thrown... ooooh!"

Re:Go MMX166

[Short Circuit]

I've got several CoCo IIIs.

Wait, you're saying that's not a personal computer?

Re:Foreign film

[operagost]

She claims it was cough medicine.

The ad was like

[kimvette]

I saw the ad. It went beepbeepbeepbeepbeep and then I was like, huh?
It was a bit of. . . a bummer.
Then I had to watch it again. It was a really weird commercial.

clueless college classmates

[chad_r]

She was in college for an entire month, and no one recognized her from the ad until someone looked up her name for an unrelated reason? Just where was this college anyway?

Imagined different switcher girl

[timchampion]

When I saw the headline, the switcher girl that came to my mind was Janie Porche. Much cuter than Ellen!

Re:Imagined different switcher girl

[tkrotchko]

You appear to have sent a picture of Iggy Pop by mistake.

Re:Imagined different switcher girl

[onemorechip]

I also liked Liza Richardson, a KCRW (Santa Monica, CA) DJ.

No links to the movie?

[Randolpho]

I mean, come on, we're SLASHDOT, people! Why hasn't anybody found the movie online and posted a link to it yet?

Pay absolutely no attention to the fact that I failed to find it. Yeah. And ignore that man behind the curtain, too.

Re:No links to the movie?

[shish]

It's right there, in the article. You did read the article, right?

Re:No links to the movie?

[Randolpho]

Er, by that I meant the full movie that can be watched. Not the movie's website.

Sorry, thought I was being precise there. My bad.

Audio link: Podcast interview with Ellen

[macgirl03]

A lot of this was covered in an earlier interview with Ellen, and as a bonus, it's audio, so you get to HEAR some new classic Ellen-isms: http://www.theflux.tv/index.php?/Podcast_Player/el len-feiss-interview/

Reverse psyche.

[argent]

Macenstein: I read that after the Apple ads aired, Apple sort of advised you to not try to capitalize on your celebrity, and sort of fade away. Why do you think that was?

Ellen: A multinational company obviously doesn't want to be associated with weed. Their instructions made me want to capitalize on it though.

Sounds like my teenager. :)

DON'T

[LKM]

I think most people are perfectly capable of inferring from context what the actual subject of a conversation is. Here's a hint: If a Windows user tells you that his PC sucks, he's probably talking about things he doesn't like in Windows, not about the ugly color of his minitower.

The rest of your rant isn't very clever, either. If you tell others to "stop talking shit," you might as well try and be the shining light we can all follow instead of ranting and raving about imaginary fanboys who presumably stole your toy when you were a toddler, or something similarly nefarious. Furthermore, the early 90s called. They want their "Macs are expensive and made of shiny plastic" rants back. Have you actually seen a Mac recently?

Re:I want her to lick my balls and taint juice

[Anonymous Coward]

And you clearly haven't tasted enough.

Re:Good job, /.

[Adambomb]

Seems the best analogy for Apple advertising that I can think of, thats for sure. Only appropriate given the articles content =).

What a nice young lady

[Swift2001]

I'd be proud to have her as a daughter. Any of you nerds want to mess with her, you'll deal with me. Seriously, I thought she was intelligent and genuine in the interview. Quite perceptive about the bizarre kind of celebrity that accrued to her.

Guess she switched again

[hudsonhawk]

n/t

iWork

[Kadin2048]

Once they put out their spreadsheet program it is quite likely that the Microsoft Business Unit will be broken up and assigned to Windows products.

I guess this explains why they've never done a spreadsheet...if Microsoft stopped making Office for Mac, it would cripple the Macintosh platform and probably depress sales tremendously. Apple knows it -- hence why the advertise that the Mac will run Office -- and so does everyone else (iWork didn't sell very well, heck, it couldn't even outsell Word Perfect).

Not to be conspiratorial, but if you're right, I'd sooner believe that Apple planned a spreadsheet and pulled it out of iWork, essentially scuttling it in order to save the Mac as a platform, rather than believing that they're going to implement one and take on Office directly.

There are thousands, if not millions, of users who can only get away with using Macs, despite their advantages in other areas, because they run a native version of Microsoft Office and thus can be argued to be "100% compatible." Without a native version of Office, the Mac's marketshare would evaporate -- either with users switching back to Windows in order to get "real Office," or to Linux, because it would then be just as good (or bad), and significantly cheaper.

There is Office, and there is everything else. iWork is not Office, therefore it is, to most people, no better or worse than any number of 'alternative office suites,' some of which are free. I think it's a great program, but unless it supports ODF and ODF catches on in a big way (like, the U.S. government mandates it as the One True Format, not bloody likely) it's competing in a niche that's been dead for years.

I'm hardly a MS fanboy: I have a dual-proc G5 (last of the great PPC Space Heaters) at home, sitting next to a Linux workstation that I bought no-OS. I've never purchased a copy of Windows in my life, and don't plan to. But if Office didn't exist for Mac, I'd probably have to bite the bullet and get one, because it's just not practical to not speak the lingua franca of the electronic-document world, with perfect fluency. I despise the fact that DOC, and not an open standard, has become entrenched, but that's the situation users have to deal with.

Re:Apple's Demographic? - lesbian

[MBGMorden]

Do you have a cite for this? Not saying you're wrong, just that the "rumor" alarm went off.

Idiot, she's 18 now

[melted]

She was 14 in 2002.

woah! Flashback!

[identity0]

Geez, is 2002 retro already? That's younger than my Slashdot account!

In 2002...
iPods were hot
Google was cool
Mozilla 1.0 was released

Oh yes, things are *totally* different now.

Re:woah! Flashback!

[wiredlogic]

You know. We really need to have an end of year /. zeitgeist to catalog these sort of significant events in nerddom for use as a quick historical reference.

Re:SHE'S LEGAL

[Jugalator]

Knowing the Internet, we'll soon enough have well crafted Photoshopped fakes with her on a naked body. :-p

Re:Well

[Jugalator]

No, because you seem to be more excited about her than Natalie Portman.

All Switch ads

[Anonymous Coward]

Here's a website with all the switch ads http://plex.us/videos/switch.html

Re:Go MMX166

[xtracto]

No kiddo,

We counted the bags with more pebbles.

Re:Foreign film

[CptPicard]

Are you by any chance related to Ned Flanders?

Re:I want her to lick my balls and taint juice

[Anonymous Coward]

If it's a taste you truly want to acquire, use hypnosis. I did. On the site WarpMyMind you can find a file named "PussyLover". It makes you absolutely love eating pussy. I went from not liking doing that to craving it all the time. Hell, I enjoy eating pussy more than getting head or even regular sex.

After using the file for a few months, you get to a point where the taste is just amazing. Better than anything else. The smell becomes incredibly arousing. Seeing her react and orgasm creates a feeling better than an orgasm, in addition to actually getting many orgasms from doing that (without touching yourself).