I understand users wanting the newest and greatest, I am like that a lot. I own a Mac Pro which is totally overboard for what I do, but I do it because I can. Home users will always want the newest stuff.
However, when you are talking about a large organization. Upgrading has to be for a reason. Hardware becomes faster, that's a good reason to upgrade. Application x gives new features that our users actually need, then its a good reason to upgrade.
But seriously, what does Vista provide that XP doesn't ? I can't think of a single thing that would justify the cost of upgrading all their hardware to upgrade to a newer OS that doesn't provide anything more for them. I think they made the right call.
I think Microsoft needs to wake up and realize that companies will upgrade when there is a reason to upgrade. Just releasing a new version isn't enough, it needs some major benefit.
Side note: It is starting to seem like Windows 7 is just going to be Vista "rebranded".
As strange as it sounds I am ok with limited DRM. I understand companies need to product their products. However, I have a big problem with the way EA is going about it. They have taken things overboard and won't listen to reason.
That's ok, I will just spend my money else where. I am not going to download it illegally or anything, I am just going to spend my money with a company that appreciates my business.
Anything can happen between now and then, this is an opportunity to Comcast to reverse this idea. If October 1st is the day it happens, then October 1st is the day I switch.
If they put caps on service, there will be a lot of competition making out good on it. I will cancel that day if they put caps on bandwidth. This includes TV, internet access and phone. Sure, I know it will cost me more per month to do it. But, I am ok with this.
Comcast is about to make a big mistake and it will cost them the farm.
I think part of the problem is that right now, the market is flooded with under skilled techies. The company I work for was looking for a good DBA for over 8 months and none turned up. Then, after our DBA left I was bumped up to the position. Instead, we are now looking for a system admin to pick up on what I don't have time for anymore. They are easier to come by, but not by much. We have interviewed countless people and they all come up short.
The same goes for our engineering staff. Countless people interviewed and most of them just flat out suck. Sorry, but just because you have a degree that won't buy you much without strong job experience. If we wanted newbies, they are a dime a dozen.
If you are skilled (and in the right part of the country) you can get work very easily. I had a friend who accidentally made her resume public and got calls for weeks on end. (Keep in mind, it was only public for a day or so)
Based on what I have seen and friends telling me, it seems like a lot of companies are trimming down their departments as small as they can make them. Employing more jack of all trades types rather then a larger department of specialists.
Yes, and look at how many people that ran are re-captured shortly after. Everyone always thinks they can run, and I laugh my ass off when they get caught.
Some of the people on the "top 10 list" also have a lot of connections. Money isn't enough unless you have friends.
Seriously, why has nobody solved this problem in a good way. I have multiple computers and devices that I want to sync my bookmarks with. I don't use just 1 browser, I generally use 3. Safari for those things tied into the OS. Like bring up Google maps from an address. Firefox 3 for daily browsing and use. Opera for some sites I visit that render ultra fast on it.
I know I am not alone. Many people (especially developers) have this problem and there isn't many choices. On the Mac you have services like.Mac that only work for Safari. On Windows there are many utilities that handle syncing bookmarks. (Hell, IE saves bookmarks as files... not a bad idea) Firefox is a bastard when it comes to this because bookmarks.html isn't reliable. You can read from it, just not write to it. Some services use a plugin, but aren't ported to Firefox 3.. also no ETA. I haven't looked at Operas bookmarks, so I dunno how it is.
I just want all of my bookmarks to be centralized. I don't want social bookmarks, I want them private. They can be stored on a "public" system, I have nothing to hide in them. I just don't want them exposed to the general public, I like privacy and I don't want to be part of a data mining experiment.
There are also some sites that you can post your bookmarks to, but I want them locally. No real reason other then I like them in the browser it self.
I have also tried to solve this in the past, but Firefox really makes it difficult to pull off because of how they handle bookmarks.html If you know a way to solve this feel free to contact me.
I will be up front and admit I am a fan boy. However, I have owned quite a large number of phones over the years. I tend to upgrade phones every 3 - 6 months, and I am a total geek when it comes to cool phones. After using the iPhone since launch day, it has been by far the most enjoyable experience I have ever had with a phone. I am not saying that lightly.
Yes, I have had to reboot it 3 times or so. But thats a drop in the bucket compared to other smart phones. A co-worker has a Windows Mobile phone that she has to reboot daily or it stops accepting incoming calls. I had a Treo 700p that required hard resets every 2 - 3 weeks and had Verizon replace the phone, 7 times (iirc).
HTC makes some cool stuff, but nothing interesting until Android is released.
Windows Mobile is a dying breed. The iPhone is here to stay, and I think Android is going to make a major dent when it comes along.
Regardless of the reviews I have seen, I am going to wait till I hear feedback from some friends on it. Honestly, from the trailer alone the movie doesn't look that good. Sure, trailers only mean so much. But then again, looking at the trailer for Speed Racer, I knew it was going to be a train wreak.
Adobe Reader Preview in OS X loads very fast, and is more then a PDF viewer. No reason to install Adobe reader.
Apple iTunes Runs way better on OS X. Not a system hog, don't need to worry about bundled Safari since the OS already has it:D
Windows Update Apple did this right, I don't get random popups saying my computer is being rebooted. Updates are common enough to fix the issues, but not enough to make my life hell.
RealPlayer Wow, these guys are still around ? Last time I used this was like what, 1999 ?
Java Eh, its the nature of the beast. I hate Java anyway, so this doesn't affect me. When searching for applications, I will skip over those written in Java for something native. Cry all you want about Java's more recent performance boosts, I really don't care. Its crap.
Yahoo Uh, why would you install this in the first place ? I have never installed any "tool bars" and I have no plans to do so in the future.
Norton Antivirus This is a Windows problem. Sure, one day OS X might need this... but until then, I sleep well at night and I am productive during the day. No crap background processes running sucking up resources. If you are still using Windows for some reason, might I suggest AVG.
Preinstalled software bundles Preinstaled applications with a Mac are all useful.
Outlook/Exchange Mail.app is light years past Outlook. The _only_ reason I could see using this crap is if I was forced to at a job.
Flash Eh, it comes preinstalled with most OS's. Updates are infrequent. Flash is here to stay, get used to it. Yes, I run flash block on most sites because I am sick and tired of advertisments that make noise in the background. Those few sites spoiled it for advertisers everywhere.
No Mac support is the #1 reason I won't even give AoC a try. Regardless of how fun it is, I don't feel like rebooting into Windows to play a game. The fact that WoW plays very well on the Mac was the primary reason I was willing to give Mac a shot. Yep, I am a switcher. After 2 years, I have no desire to ever use a Windows machine again. I know quite a few people who are doing the same. Everything from grandmothers down to hard core developers.
EQ2 was also a massive failure due to its very high system requirements. I upgrade my machines on my schedule, not to get the newest game or application. Not sure why companies feel they will succeed doing this.
I wish AoC the best of luck. I have a lot of friends going to play it. Its not even close to being a WoW killer. Maybe in time when they get the kinks worked out it will have a shot at taking a chunk of Blizzards market.
Keep in mind, the data is stored on the server. There are over 9 million accounts playing WoW. Each player has to have at least 2 or 3 toons. If they increase the size of the int for all of those players you are talking about a *LOT* of extra storage. Storage on high quality production systems is far more expensive then your typical consumer grade system. Lets not forget the cost of backing up that data.
What it comes down to is that there is no reason to increase it when only 5 or 6 players will ever get that much money.
I have been using an iPhone since day one and let me tell you. I type way faster then my treo and I have far fewer typos. The reason I have far fewer typos is because of automagic spell checking that most devices lack.
Some people can type quick, others are just clumsy or have fat fingers. If you have fat fingers, there is no device besides a laptop that will solve that problem.
I agree, I won't purchase games that don't allow me to skip them. I watch them first them, but after I don't care anymore... I just want to play the game. I just won't purchase a game with low replay value.
It gives me another reason to be a very loyal Jetblue flyer. I love the fact that Jetblue treats all of their customers like people not cattle. Right along with 1st class, there is no 1st class... everyone gets larger seats. Also, outside of people with disabilities or children, everyone goes through the same (fast) line (through TSA).
I can't believe I see that many people loyal to a carrier that treats its customers based on the size of their wallet. I wonder how many of those people fly 1st class everytime.
I know most of that Safari is me... So, the number of people using Safari on my site is way lower then 8.14%. In fact, looking at the access logs once in a while, I don't recall seeing someone else using Safari at my site.
You have better luck then me, over the past few years I have send in over 50 rebates and to date I have received about 5. They are a total scam, it wouldn't surprise me if the rebate processor gets a "bonus" when the number of rebate requests are low.
I play World of Warcraft on my Mac, and it runs really really well. I play HL:2 every once in a blue moon... I generally don't play games on the computer anymore, (Besides wow). Thats what I bought a PS3 for:D However, I totally agree that they play just fine. Battlefield 2 ran very damn well on my Mac.
Not going to flame you, however I totally disagree. Tiger has a fairly consistent UI, Leopard is much better. The office I work in is heavy on Mac, we have at _least_ 30 people who are fairly new to Mac. They all love it and have no reason or desire to switch back to Windows. In fact, I have only talk to 1 person who has tried a Mac for a short period of time and didn't like it.
Macs don't require more maintenance. I have *NO* idea where you came up with that idea. I use my Mac quite a bit. All day at work, few hours a night for gaming and doing some side work. Are you trying to suggest I need to run Viruses scans, defrags, malware scans, etc every day ? *OH WAIT* Thats Windows.
I have found nothing but Love for this Mac. I am a switcher, and I have had the best 2 years of computing. To top it off, I am far more productive at work.
Macs crash FAR less the Windows boxes. Yes, Macs crash... so do Windows boxes, Linux boxes, Solaris, BSD, my toaster, digital cameras, and sometimes my dog. Its been over 4 months since I have had a crash, and that was because of bad Logitech drivers (3rd party).
Looking at my options, Linux is my choice for a server and Mac for the desktop. Oh ya, and an iPhone for my cell. I previously had a Treo 700p that was replaced *5* times in 1 year and crashed 2 times a day with each one. I had 1 crash on my iphone and that was with version 1.0.0 of the firmware. Again, nothing but love for the iPhone.
Here in San Francisco its the same deal, Macs every where... lots of "creative" people using them for their crafts. The office I am in is primarily a Mac shop. Over the past 2 years traveling all the time between NY and CA (2+ times a month), I have noticed a huge increase in the number of Macs at the airport.
I have a feeling Apple is going to have the best year ever at Christmas. I hear lots of people already talking about buying a new Mac at Christmas time (or buying it for their Grandmother). Which is another good point... put a Linux box, Windows box and Mac in front of a 80 year old grandmother who barely knows how to turn on the computer. Then see which one she does the best on... guess which my money is on:D Apples just rock all around, from Grandmother to major pro.
After using a Mac for a year, I don't miss the right mouse button. I have a Logitech mouse I use for WoW, but without it... it doesn't bother me.
I don't understand your complaint about finder. You said it a joke, asking why people hype it... yet you say its only a directory browser. Fine, then why is this a complaint of yours... I don't get it.
UI wise, I love how Apple did it... very clean and simple. Vista is too much, and its very distracting.
The only thing I see when it comes to Mac is pros, no cons.
Long time ago, someone said you couldn't hear (the difference) above 192k... however, thats totally untrue. For most songs, I can't tell a difference. I have found songs with thunder in the background REALLY give a good sense of what you are losing in the bit rate. Even at 192k it sounds very difference from a CD. I encode all my CDs (The very few I own, like all 4) at 320k... because, I can. Thats all, nothing more. I can tell the difference big time in most of the songs I buy off iTunes... but hey, its plenty for me.
Anyone who agrees with the article is being far too anal. Please, go get laid and move on with your life. I never understood audiophiles, strange creatures:D
I switched from using Linux and Windows to OS X when the Intel Macs were released. I gotta say, it has been by far my must enjoyable computing experience.
I only really used Windows for a few games and certain jobs, I could never really stand using it. Besides all the common problems, it just never felt right to me. I didn't like the filesystem structure, or how MS was trying to be different... only to be different. Not to be better. I do not enjoy doing non-stop defrags, virus scans, etc. I out right refuse to work with Windows servers, no amount of money will change that.
Now, on to the Linux world. I have been using Linux for a very long time now. I think its by far the best server platform (for me). However, Linux fails on the desktop part. Lets face it, having access to a billion different desktop managers is nice and all. However, there is gross incompatibilities with config files, for things like bookmarks, menu items, etc. Its hurting Linux more then anything.
Moving on to the day to day installation of applications, upgrades, installing new devices, etc. Linux is by far the worst, even MS is better in this area. I couldn't image someone compiling video drivers for their kids computer. Every single application has its own way of installing, and they all install differently and in different locations. OS X has by far the best method, either drag the icon from the disk image or run the *standard* installation application. Lets also face it, Linux doesn't have the creative applications that were mentioned in this article. Photoshop, Final Cut, iTunes, etc. (and no, Gimp is NOT a replacement for Photoshop) The fact that Linux is also a community effort is going to hinder its success on the desktop.
Now, on to OS X. By far a million times more stable then WIndows. Equally as stable as Linux. Shares some of the same benefits as Linux, such as tighter system security, no defraging, no spyware scans, no viruses scans, etc. Where OS X shines is that the GUI is really nice and simple. OS X does have a slight learning curve if you are coming from another OS. However, my grandmother had no trouble getting "on the internet and surfing" where she had never been able to do that with a Windows machine. People complain about that top menu bar, but over time you learn to love it. The dock is also a great way of having your most used applications with quick and easy access. I don't need a giant applications menu. Lets face it, we all have quite a few applications installed that we use once in a while. No need having it in a giant menu.
Yes, people also complain that OS X only works on Macs. (Sure, some hardware besides Mac works, don't know how well) Guess what, thats a good thing. I think this is the reason why its so stable. Apple knows what hardware it will be used on and how to use it properly.
All in all, OS X works perfect for me for a desktop and Linux for the server. (However, haven't played around with OS X server yet... so, dunno yet) Linux has a lot to catch up on and so does Windows. The question is, who is going to catch up first. Without a doubt, I think Windows is dying and going down hill rapidly. I think OS X has a much stronger shot at being the new king.
I have been using a Mac for over a year now, and my favorite feature by far is how applications are handled. (installed, uninstalled, packaged, contained, etc) This is what Linux needs. I think distros could learn a lot on how to make Unix succeed on the desktop.
Drivers are another big problem in Linux, I agree. Far too much of a pain to do it presently. Sure, most tech people can handle it. However, average Joe Smith with his 2 kids won't be able to do it on the "family PC".
Slashdot Mirror
I understand users wanting the newest and greatest, I am like that a lot. I own a Mac Pro which is totally overboard for what I do, but I do it because I can. Home users will always want the newest stuff.
However, when you are talking about a large organization. Upgrading has to be for a reason. Hardware becomes faster, that's a good reason to upgrade. Application x gives new features that our users actually need, then its a good reason to upgrade.
But seriously, what does Vista provide that XP doesn't ? I can't think of a single thing that would justify the cost of upgrading all their hardware to upgrade to a newer OS that doesn't provide anything more for them. I think they made the right call.
I think Microsoft needs to wake up and realize that companies will upgrade when there is a reason to upgrade. Just releasing a new version isn't enough, it needs some major benefit.
Side note: It is starting to seem like Windows 7 is just going to be Vista "rebranded".
As strange as it sounds I am ok with limited DRM. I understand companies need to product their products. However, I have a big problem with the way EA is going about it. They have taken things overboard and won't listen to reason.
That's ok, I will just spend my money else where. I am not going to download it illegally or anything, I am just going to spend my money with a company that appreciates my business.
Anything can happen between now and then, this is an opportunity to Comcast to reverse this idea. If October 1st is the day it happens, then October 1st is the day I switch.
If they put caps on service, there will be a lot of competition making out good on it. I will cancel that day if they put caps on bandwidth. This includes TV, internet access and phone. Sure, I know it will cost me more per month to do it. But, I am ok with this.
Comcast is about to make a big mistake and it will cost them the farm.
I think part of the problem is that right now, the market is flooded with under skilled techies. The company I work for was looking for a good DBA for over 8 months and none turned up. Then, after our DBA left I was bumped up to the position. Instead, we are now looking for a system admin to pick up on what I don't have time for anymore. They are easier to come by, but not by much. We have interviewed countless people and they all come up short.
The same goes for our engineering staff. Countless people interviewed and most of them just flat out suck. Sorry, but just because you have a degree that won't buy you much without strong job experience. If we wanted newbies, they are a dime a dozen.
If you are skilled (and in the right part of the country) you can get work very easily. I had a friend who accidentally made her resume public and got calls for weeks on end. (Keep in mind, it was only public for a day or so)
Based on what I have seen and friends telling me, it seems like a lot of companies are trimming down their departments as small as they can make them. Employing more jack of all trades types rather then a larger department of specialists.
Yes, and look at how many people that ran are re-captured shortly after. Everyone always thinks they can run, and I laugh my ass off when they get caught.
Some of the people on the "top 10 list" also have a lot of connections. Money isn't enough unless you have friends.
Seriously, why has nobody solved this problem in a good way. I have multiple computers and devices that I want to sync my bookmarks with. I don't use just 1 browser, I generally use 3. Safari for those things tied into the OS. Like bring up Google maps from an address. Firefox 3 for daily browsing and use. Opera for some sites I visit that render ultra fast on it.
.Mac that only work for Safari. On Windows there are many utilities that handle syncing bookmarks. (Hell, IE saves bookmarks as files ... not a bad idea) Firefox is a bastard when it comes to this because bookmarks.html isn't reliable. You can read from it, just not write to it. Some services use a plugin, but aren't ported to Firefox 3 .. also no ETA. I haven't looked at Operas bookmarks, so I dunno how it is.
I know I am not alone. Many people (especially developers) have this problem and there isn't many choices. On the Mac you have services like
I just want all of my bookmarks to be centralized. I don't want social bookmarks, I want them private. They can be stored on a "public" system, I have nothing to hide in them. I just don't want them exposed to the general public, I like privacy and I don't want to be part of a data mining experiment.
There are also some sites that you can post your bookmarks to, but I want them locally. No real reason other then I like them in the browser it self.
I have also tried to solve this in the past, but Firefox really makes it difficult to pull off because of how they handle bookmarks.html If you know a way to solve this feel free to contact me.
I will be up front and admit I am a fan boy. However, I have owned quite a large number of phones over the years. I tend to upgrade phones every 3 - 6 months, and I am a total geek when it comes to cool phones. After using the iPhone since launch day, it has been by far the most enjoyable experience I have ever had with a phone. I am not saying that lightly.
Yes, I have had to reboot it 3 times or so. But thats a drop in the bucket compared to other smart phones. A co-worker has a Windows Mobile phone that she has to reboot daily or it stops accepting incoming calls. I had a Treo 700p that required hard resets every 2 - 3 weeks and had Verizon replace the phone, 7 times (iirc).
HTC makes some cool stuff, but nothing interesting until Android is released.
Windows Mobile is a dying breed. The iPhone is here to stay, and I think Android is going to make a major dent when it comes along.
Regardless of the reviews I have seen, I am going to wait till I hear feedback from some friends on it. Honestly, from the trailer alone the movie doesn't look that good. Sure, trailers only mean so much. But then again, looking at the trailer for Speed Racer, I knew it was going to be a train wreak.
Adobe Reader
:D
... but until then, I sleep well at night and I am productive during the day. No crap background processes running sucking up resources. If you are still using Windows for some reason, might I suggest AVG.
Preview in OS X loads very fast, and is more then a PDF viewer. No reason to install Adobe reader.
Apple iTunes
Runs way better on OS X. Not a system hog, don't need to worry about bundled Safari since the OS already has it
Windows Update
Apple did this right, I don't get random popups saying my computer is being rebooted. Updates are common enough to fix the issues, but not enough to make my life hell.
RealPlayer
Wow, these guys are still around ? Last time I used this was like what, 1999 ?
Java
Eh, its the nature of the beast. I hate Java anyway, so this doesn't affect me. When searching for applications, I will skip over those written in Java for something native. Cry all you want about Java's more recent performance boosts, I really don't care. Its crap.
Yahoo
Uh, why would you install this in the first place ? I have never installed any "tool bars" and I have no plans to do so in the future.
Norton Antivirus
This is a Windows problem. Sure, one day OS X might need this
Preinstalled software bundles
Preinstaled applications with a Mac are all useful.
Outlook/Exchange
Mail.app is light years past Outlook. The _only_ reason I could see using this crap is if I was forced to at a job.
Flash
Eh, it comes preinstalled with most OS's. Updates are infrequent. Flash is here to stay, get used to it. Yes, I run flash block on most sites because I am sick and tired of advertisments that make noise in the background. Those few sites spoiled it for advertisers everywhere.
No Mac support is the #1 reason I won't even give AoC a try. Regardless of how fun it is, I don't feel like rebooting into Windows to play a game. The fact that WoW plays very well on the Mac was the primary reason I was willing to give Mac a shot. Yep, I am a switcher. After 2 years, I have no desire to ever use a Windows machine again. I know quite a few people who are doing the same. Everything from grandmothers down to hard core developers.
EQ2 was also a massive failure due to its very high system requirements. I upgrade my machines on my schedule, not to get the newest game or application. Not sure why companies feel they will succeed doing this.
I wish AoC the best of luck. I have a lot of friends going to play it. Its not even close to being a WoW killer. Maybe in time when they get the kinks worked out it will have a shot at taking a chunk of Blizzards market.
Keep in mind, the data is stored on the server. There are over 9 million accounts playing WoW. Each player has to have at least 2 or 3 toons. If they increase the size of the int for all of those players you are talking about a *LOT* of extra storage. Storage on high quality production systems is far more expensive then your typical consumer grade system. Lets not forget the cost of backing up that data.
What it comes down to is that there is no reason to increase it when only 5 or 6 players will ever get that much money.
Blizzard made the right call on it.
Domain Name: USELESSDOMAIN00001.COM
Registrar: NETWORK SOLUTIONS, LLC.
Whois Server: whois.networksolutions.com
Referral URL: http://www.networksolutions.com/
Name Server: NS1.RESERVEDDOMAINNAME.COM
Name Server: NS2.RESERVEDDOMAINNAME.COM
Status: ok
Updated Date: 08-jan-2008
Creation Date: 08-jan-2008
Expiration Date: 08-jan-2009
Nice, how nice
I have been using an iPhone since day one and let me tell you. I type way faster then my treo and I have far fewer typos. The reason I have far fewer typos is because of automagic spell checking that most devices lack.
Some people can type quick, others are just clumsy or have fat fingers. If you have fat fingers, there is no device besides a laptop that will solve that problem.
I agree, I won't purchase games that don't allow me to skip them. I watch them first them, but after I don't care anymore ... I just want to play the game. I just won't purchase a game with low replay value.
It gives me another reason to be a very loyal Jetblue flyer. I love the fact that Jetblue treats all of their customers like people not cattle. Right along with 1st class, there is no 1st class ... everyone gets larger seats. Also, outside of people with disabilities or children, everyone goes through the same (fast) line (through TSA).
I can't believe I see that many people loyal to a carrier that treats its customers based on the size of their wallet. I wonder how many of those people fly 1st class everytime.
Looking at my joke site (Listed above) since Jan 1st, 2007 I am seeing:
...
... So, the number of people using Safari on my site is way lower then 8.14%. In fact, looking at the access logs once in a while, I don't recall seeing someone else using Safari at my site.
IE: 63.85%
Firefox: 22.93%
Safari: 8.14%
Opera: 0.51%
Others:
I know most of that Safari is me
You have better luck then me, over the past few years I have send in over 50 rebates and to date I have received about 5. They are a total scam, it wouldn't surprise me if the rebate processor gets a "bonus" when the number of rebate requests are low.
I play World of Warcraft on my Mac, and it runs really really well. I play HL:2 every once in a blue moon ... I generally don't play games on the computer anymore, (Besides wow). Thats what I bought a PS3 for :D However, I totally agree that they play just fine. Battlefield 2 ran very damn well on my Mac.
Not going to flame you, however I totally disagree. Tiger has a fairly consistent UI, Leopard is much better. The office I work in is heavy on Mac, we have at _least_ 30 people who are fairly new to Mac. They all love it and have no reason or desire to switch back to Windows. In fact, I have only talk to 1 person who has tried a Mac for a short period of time and didn't like it.
... so do Windows boxes, Linux boxes, Solaris, BSD, my toaster, digital cameras, and sometimes my dog. Its been over 4 months since I have had a crash, and that was because of bad Logitech drivers (3rd party).
Macs don't require more maintenance. I have *NO* idea where you came up with that idea. I use my Mac quite a bit. All day at work, few hours a night for gaming and doing some side work. Are you trying to suggest I need to run Viruses scans, defrags, malware scans, etc every day ? *OH WAIT* Thats Windows.
I have found nothing but Love for this Mac. I am a switcher, and I have had the best 2 years of computing. To top it off, I am far more productive at work.
Macs crash FAR less the Windows boxes. Yes, Macs crash
Looking at my options, Linux is my choice for a server and Mac for the desktop. Oh ya, and an iPhone for my cell. I previously had a Treo 700p that was replaced *5* times in 1 year and crashed 2 times a day with each one. I had 1 crash on my iphone and that was with version 1.0.0 of the firmware. Again, nothing but love for the iPhone.
Here in San Francisco its the same deal, Macs every where ... lots of "creative" people using them for their crafts. The office I am in is primarily a Mac shop. Over the past 2 years traveling all the time between NY and CA (2+ times a month), I have noticed a huge increase in the number of Macs at the airport.
... put a Linux box, Windows box and Mac in front of a 80 year old grandmother who barely knows how to turn on the computer. Then see which one she does the best on ... guess which my money is on :D Apples just rock all around, from Grandmother to major pro.
I have a feeling Apple is going to have the best year ever at Christmas. I hear lots of people already talking about buying a new Mac at Christmas time (or buying it for their Grandmother). Which is another good point
After using a Mac for a year, I don't miss the right mouse button. I have a Logitech mouse I use for WoW, but without it ... it doesn't bother me.
... yet you say its only a directory browser. Fine, then why is this a complaint of yours ... I don't get it.
... very clean and simple. Vista is too much, and its very distracting.
I don't understand your complaint about finder. You said it a joke, asking why people hype it
UI wise, I love how Apple did it
The only thing I see when it comes to Mac is pros, no cons.
Long time ago, someone said you couldn't hear (the difference) above 192k ... however, thats totally untrue. For most songs, I can't tell a difference. I have found songs with thunder in the background REALLY give a good sense of what you are losing in the bit rate. Even at 192k it sounds very difference from a CD. I encode all my CDs (The very few I own, like all 4) at 320k ... because, I can. Thats all, nothing more. I can tell the difference big time in most of the songs I buy off iTunes ... but hey, its plenty for me.
:D
Anyone who agrees with the article is being far too anal. Please, go get laid and move on with your life. I never understood audiophiles, strange creatures
I switched from using Linux and Windows to OS X when the Intel Macs were released. I gotta say, it has been by far my must enjoyable computing experience.
... only to be different. Not to be better. I do not enjoy doing non-stop defrags, virus scans, etc. I out right refuse to work with Windows servers, no amount of money will change that.
... so, dunno yet) Linux has a lot to catch up on and so does Windows. The question is, who is going to catch up first. Without a doubt, I think Windows is dying and going down hill rapidly. I think OS X has a much stronger shot at being the new king.
I only really used Windows for a few games and certain jobs, I could never really stand using it. Besides all the common problems, it just never felt right to me. I didn't like the filesystem structure, or how MS was trying to be different
Now, on to the Linux world. I have been using Linux for a very long time now. I think its by far the best server platform (for me). However, Linux fails on the desktop part. Lets face it, having access to a billion different desktop managers is nice and all. However, there is gross incompatibilities with config files, for things like bookmarks, menu items, etc. Its hurting Linux more then anything.
Moving on to the day to day installation of applications, upgrades, installing new devices, etc. Linux is by far the worst, even MS is better in this area. I couldn't image someone compiling video drivers for their kids computer. Every single application has its own way of installing, and they all install differently and in different locations. OS X has by far the best method, either drag the icon from the disk image or run the *standard* installation application. Lets also face it, Linux doesn't have the creative applications that were mentioned in this article. Photoshop, Final Cut, iTunes, etc. (and no, Gimp is NOT a replacement for Photoshop) The fact that Linux is also a community effort is going to hinder its success on the desktop.
Now, on to OS X. By far a million times more stable then WIndows. Equally as stable as Linux. Shares some of the same benefits as Linux, such as tighter system security, no defraging, no spyware scans, no viruses scans, etc. Where OS X shines is that the GUI is really nice and simple. OS X does have a slight learning curve if you are coming from another OS. However, my grandmother had no trouble getting "on the internet and surfing" where she had never been able to do that with a Windows machine. People complain about that top menu bar, but over time you learn to love it. The dock is also a great way of having your most used applications with quick and easy access. I don't need a giant applications menu. Lets face it, we all have quite a few applications installed that we use once in a while. No need having it in a giant menu.
Yes, people also complain that OS X only works on Macs. (Sure, some hardware besides Mac works, don't know how well) Guess what, thats a good thing. I think this is the reason why its so stable. Apple knows what hardware it will be used on and how to use it properly.
All in all, OS X works perfect for me for a desktop and Linux for the server. (However, haven't played around with OS X server yet
I have been using a Mac for over a year now, and my favorite feature by far is how applications are handled. (installed, uninstalled, packaged, contained, etc) This is what Linux needs. I think distros could learn a lot on how to make Unix succeed on the desktop.
Drivers are another big problem in Linux, I agree. Far too much of a pain to do it presently. Sure, most tech people can handle it. However, average Joe Smith with his 2 kids won't be able to do it on the "family PC".