Did you read the article? No mouse required. And this isn't inteded to be on your workstation. It's intended to be used with a computer sitting next to your television/AV Receiver.
This has been discussed several times. Sony is huge in home entertainment. They manufacture everything that you can plug into a television AND they make computers. They're big into Linux now that Microsoft has jumped in on their gaming profit shares.
Panasonic was trying to do cool stuff with Nintendo's GameCube... but I don't think they got very far.
I suspect the next generation of all gaming consoles will be more of an all around entertainment box with all the Internet connectivity of a home computer. The only thing missing from the XBox is a keyboard, mouse, and web browser. The only thing missing from the PS2 is... oh wait, nothing is missing. I'm going to go place my order for PS2 Linux now.
What the fuck is wrong with you GOD DAMN MAC BIGGOTS! You can not compare a fucking three thousand dollar computer to a four hundred dollar computer! People want their shit CHEAP.
Apple may have 'their foot in the door' with OS X, but they're not gaining as many customers as WAL-FUCKING-MART. If Apple were to partner with Walmart (when hell freezes over...) then they'd have something. But the masses are dirt ass poor and half of them don't even know who Apple is.
Get your head out of your upper-middle-class ass and snap back to reality.
But what if I want to buy a Mac and not pay for stupid software like iPhoto? I don't want that cost "calculated in" as it is now. One of my many gripes about Apple is the utter lack of configurability.
My CRTs don't flicker. I'm sorry that you have experienced inferior hardware.
I have a low end CRT sitting here and a brand new iBook on my desk as well. Everything about the CRT is better than the LCD. I'm not saying the iBook's display is bad, but it just can't compete with CRT.
I don't know what you guys are smoking, but LCD hasn't caught up with CRT yet. Maybe in another couple of years the manufacturers will finally give you something really nice. But they're just not up to par yet. The only benefit I find is they consume less power and are smaller.
Yes, Command isn't a "terminal shell", but it's as close as it gets. There are lots of tools on the "Unix Services" cd that comes with the Developer disks for Windows. I think most of them are available on the website as well. Stuff like pskill.exe and the like.
And by informative, I guess I'm comparing Task Manager to the wrong application. There is a program called Process Viewer for OS X (included with the install) but how many people know it's even there? And if you Mac people think that Window's file naming is bad with stuff like svchost, try some of those UNIX names... kextd... right. Unix is cool and I use it on a regular basis, but someone has got to come along and push for better naming conventions.
SCSI... replaced? Firewire is 'easier' than SCSI, not better. SCSI is faster and more reliable than Firewire could ever hope to be. Unfortunately it's more expensive... (:
You use a terminal to kill apps in OS X? I use the "Force Quit Applications" option in Finder. You get there with Option+Apple+ESC. It's similar to the Windows Task Manager but... less informative. And if you like your Terminial on your OS X you should give Command a try in Windows. Just run 'cmd' and you'll get a similar app with similar commands.
And the bit about your AMD... yeah well same here. That's why I buy Dells at work. Intel's stuff "just works". Much like the mantra of most Mac users claiming "I just plugged it in and it works". There's something going on with AMD and VIA chipsets - you might want to search Google. I think my problem revolved around bad memory though. The jury is still out on it though, but I swapped some RAM last night and it's been stable for 12+ hours, incuding a bunch of gaming.
Anyway, Windows XP on a Dell will dollar for dollar run circles around OS X. Apple acheives their "ease of use" and "plug it in and it works" by limiting options and limiting the included software packages. There's less there, so there's less to break. In my opinion I have to agree with that philosophy for the home user, but at work and for my more geek-oriented friends we like to have all the extra OS options.
Do not compare an iMac to a Dell workstation. That's not what I was doing. I was comparing it to a PowerMac G4, which is what it takes to get real work done.
No it doesn't have an LCD. LCDs can not compare to a Trinitron CRT monitor. The quality of his monitor is infinitely better than an LCD of the same display (20" or better) and a fraction of the price. I would call a 21" flat CRT Trinitron at $700 and higher output a better buy than the leading Sony 20" LCD for $2,000 - wouldn't you?
I'm not encouraging anyone to shell out money for a DVD writer. If that were the case I would get a PowerMac, not an iMac.
No they're not using a Unix-based OS like Mac OS X. He's using Windows XP, which blows OS X out of the water. I don't wish to discuss this with anyone who has not used both operating systems for a prolonged time in a working environement on quality hardware. But if I wanted a UNIX operating system on my Dell I would probably run Mandrake 9. It's pretty, just like OS X... oh but it's fast too like Windows XP.
No it does not make a lot of racket with its two fans. The damn 17" iMac that sits on my boss's desk makes a lot of racket with its fan and unballanced DVD drive though. It does, however make a lot of racket with its Soundblaster Live audio and speakers. Lets see you do that with your iMac.
How about plugging a SCSI device into your iMac. Or an additional hard drive or CD/DVD drive. What about a second monitor? Oh, I guess you're shit out of luck.
I find it interesting how you say I've victimized my employee when he came to me and asked that I configure a comparable new Dell to a new PowerMac. He realized that the Dell was over a thousand dollars cheaper, had longer hardware support and life-span, and could communicate with other computers and the world much more effeciently.
Arguing on Slashdot is as good as pissing into the wind - I don't know why I do it. On this particular topic no one has a voice until they've played with both options in a high-end configuration doing high-end work loads. I have and for me Windows XP on a loaded Dell absolutely smokes OS X on a loaded PowerMac. And it does it at a bit of a cost break. If you're playing at home or running a business by yourself, spend your money however you want. When you work for someone that is trying to turn a profit in the real world you go with the best bang for the buck - for us that's XP on a Dell.
I hear you. But I don't know that you're wholey correct. I know of several new Mac users that recently acquire the Apple taste and actually threw down the cash for the over priced hardware. Try as I might, I couldn't talk them into getting a Dell. Oh well...
In other news, just a few weeks ago I switched a long-time Mac user at work to a Dell. The computer cost $1,200 LESS than a comparable PowerMac and it is more robust. The only thing missing is the dvd writer, which can be purchased for about $350 now.
I disagree. I think, if anything, they'll make it less of a machine than it is... by industry standards. Basically saying it won't take as big of an upgrade through the next revision as it has in the past. It's become too powerful to be an "iMac". It's supposed to be more of an internet appliance running Mac OS than anything. If it gets too much more powerful it will be an easy alternative for graphics design people and casual gamers. That would steal sales from the PowerMac, and that doesn't sit well with Apple.
That's probably the most intelligent responce that will be posted about this topic. Apple's bread and butter are their PowerMacs. If a product with smaller profit margin are stealing PowerMac sales you can bet they'll drop the lower product. They're not here to make their customers happy, they're here to make money.
The 17" iMac was one of the very few Apple products I've had any interest in. If there's any truth to this, maybe they'll have a sale on the remaining stock.
This was posted just a short while ago. http://apple.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=02/12/25/ 1532236&mode=thread&tid=141 Perhaps what you're asking for isn't all that far away.
All they've done there is make a big laptop with a bar down the middle of the screen. What's the good in that!?! Why not just have a single big ass screen? Dell, Apple, Gateway, even AlienWare... they've all already made such devices, and they're not $5000. I haven't been able to see the laptop featured by this article, but surely it's better than this thing.
It might just be me, but it seems the author feels that all products generate similar performance. I find this to be completely ignorant. If you can't see the difference in quality between a Sony Trinitron and an RCA television, you don't have the right to discuss the topic.
I buy higher quality products (at a higher price) because they will out perform the cheap stuff, and additionally last longer. In the long run I find myself spending less money replacing old busted cheap products because my stuff is still kicking. I even have a six year old CD changer that's humming along like it was fresh out of the box.
My basic methodology is to make a 40gb tape, stick it in a vault, and move the data to the archive server where it's marked read only. Then I dump it from the 'active' file server. Works pretty well, actually.
Yeah, that's the big issue - reducing your single-points of failure. The big one is the RAID controller. But in most cases you can just replace the broken hardware and the system will recover.
No flame, other than the term 'RAID 5'. Tapes aren't as dangerous as hard drives, but they can still mess up. It's not like they're garounteed beyond all odds. So a RAID 5 IDE array takes care of your data.
I'm currently using Dell NAS machines as archival backups.
Bonuses (as I see them): Online 100mbit access to old data. Cheap! Fits in a physically small space.
Negatives: Higher failure rate than tape. Pop fizzle, your data is gone. Difficult to take off site. Long-term replacement isn't really an option. (for RAID replacement)
The way we negate the negatives (double negative, is that a possitive?): -Failure rate / Data loss is countered by RAID -Taking it offsite... it is possible to cost effectively mirror an IDE RAID system over broadband Internet and do it securely. If you are a major corporation surely your campus is large enough to simply run fiber to two corner and put mirrored backup at each location. -Long term replacement of RAID drives... buy a truckload of disks when you do the initial installation? (:
I think this is totally awesome, and I'd like to build one of my own, but theres just something nice about being able to pull a piece of hardware out of the box and have it work, no questions asked.
But, maybe this will lead to more hardware manufacturers building machines like this that don't have monthly fees. I mean, what's it cost to build and store a database of television schedules? Can that cost be countered by simple ads? Slashdot seems to be making a great thing happen with its small amount of ads. I would be glad to trade a monthly subscription for some possibly helpful advertising inorder to have a PVR.
But what about automobiles? Who's paying for the disposal of them? How about old stereos and all the different media types like records and cassettes?
Great that a big company appears to be concerned about their product, but I think there are additional fish to fry. When Pontiac takes responsibility for all the trash they're generating (double meaning intended... ?) then I'll be impressed by corporate action.
I guess geeks don't see the disposal of computers as a major issue, though. We have stacks of old computers in our bedrooms with everything humming along nicely. whether it's doing anything or not, we're not likely to throw it out (:
How about we skip the whole idea of text output? This is stupid! It's a complete waste of technology and time. Translating one person's audio into a 3d modeled face. Brilliant...
How about they just use a video phone? Or have the audio be displayed in a text output? It has to go through that step anyway.
Slashdot Mirror
Did you read the article? No mouse required. And this isn't inteded to be on your workstation. It's intended to be used with a computer sitting next to your television/AV Receiver.
This has been discussed several times. Sony is huge in home entertainment. They manufacture everything that you can plug into a television AND they make computers. They're big into Linux now that Microsoft has jumped in on their gaming profit shares.
... but I don't think they got very far.
... oh wait, nothing is missing. I'm going to go place my order for PS2 Linux now.
Panasonic was trying to do cool stuff with Nintendo's GameCube
I suspect the next generation of all gaming consoles will be more of an all around entertainment box with all the Internet connectivity of a home computer. The only thing missing from the XBox is a keyboard, mouse, and web browser. The only thing missing from the PS2 is
Blink? What's that? Something like the rumored "outside"?
What the fuck is wrong with you GOD DAMN MAC BIGGOTS! You can not compare a fucking three thousand dollar computer to a four hundred dollar computer! People want their shit CHEAP.
...) then they'd have something. But the masses are dirt ass poor and half of them don't even know who Apple is.
Apple may have 'their foot in the door' with OS X, but they're not gaining as many customers as WAL-FUCKING-MART. If Apple were to partner with Walmart (when hell freezes over
Get your head out of your upper-middle-class ass and snap back to reality.
But what if I want to buy a Mac and not pay for stupid software like iPhoto? I don't want that cost "calculated in" as it is now. One of my many gripes about Apple is the utter lack of configurability.
Options people! Options!
My CRTs don't flicker. I'm sorry that you have experienced inferior hardware.
I have a low end CRT sitting here and a brand new iBook on my desk as well. Everything about the CRT is better than the LCD. I'm not saying the iBook's display is bad, but it just can't compete with CRT.
I don't know what you guys are smoking, but LCD hasn't caught up with CRT yet. Maybe in another couple of years the manufacturers will finally give you something really nice. But they're just not up to par yet. The only benefit I find is they consume less power and are smaller.
Yes, Command isn't a "terminal shell", but it's as close as it gets. There are lots of tools on the "Unix Services" cd that comes with the Developer disks for Windows. I think most of them are available on the website as well. Stuff like pskill.exe and the like.
... kextd ... right. Unix is cool and I use it on a regular basis, but someone has got to come along and push for better naming conventions.
And by informative, I guess I'm comparing Task Manager to the wrong application. There is a program called Process Viewer for OS X (included with the install) but how many people know it's even there? And if you Mac people think that Window's file naming is bad with stuff like svchost, try some of those UNIX names
Well he thinks it's a bad ass computer.
... replaced? Firewire is 'easier' than SCSI, not better. SCSI is faster and more reliable than Firewire could ever hope to be. Unfortunately it's more expensive ... (:
... less informative. And if you like your Terminial on your OS X you should give Command a try in Windows. Just run 'cmd' and you'll get a similar app with similar commands.
... yeah well same here. That's why I buy Dells at work. Intel's stuff "just works". Much like the mantra of most Mac users claiming "I just plugged it in and it works". There's something going on with AMD and VIA chipsets - you might want to search Google. I think my problem revolved around bad memory though. The jury is still out on it though, but I swapped some RAM last night and it's been stable for 12+ hours, incuding a bunch of gaming.
SCSI
You use a terminal to kill apps in OS X? I use the "Force Quit Applications" option in Finder. You get there with Option+Apple+ESC. It's similar to the Windows Task Manager but
And the bit about your AMD
Anyway, Windows XP on a Dell will dollar for dollar run circles around OS X. Apple acheives their "ease of use" and "plug it in and it works" by limiting options and limiting the included software packages. There's less there, so there's less to break. In my opinion I have to agree with that philosophy for the home user, but at work and for my more geek-oriented friends we like to have all the extra OS options.
Do not compare an iMac to a Dell workstation. That's not what I was doing. I was comparing it to a PowerMac G4, which is what it takes to get real work done.
... oh but it's fast too like Windows XP.
No it doesn't have an LCD. LCDs can not compare to a Trinitron CRT monitor. The quality of his monitor is infinitely better than an LCD of the same display (20" or better) and a fraction of the price. I would call a 21" flat CRT Trinitron at $700 and higher output a better buy than the leading Sony 20" LCD for $2,000 - wouldn't you?
I'm not encouraging anyone to shell out money for a DVD writer. If that were the case I would get a PowerMac, not an iMac.
No they're not using a Unix-based OS like Mac OS X. He's using Windows XP, which blows OS X out of the water. I don't wish to discuss this with anyone who has not used both operating systems for a prolonged time in a working environement on quality hardware. But if I wanted a UNIX operating system on my Dell I would probably run Mandrake 9. It's pretty, just like OS X
No it does not make a lot of racket with its two fans. The damn 17" iMac that sits on my boss's desk makes a lot of racket with its fan and unballanced DVD drive though. It does, however make a lot of racket with its Soundblaster Live audio and speakers. Lets see you do that with your iMac.
How about plugging a SCSI device into your iMac. Or an additional hard drive or CD/DVD drive. What about a second monitor? Oh, I guess you're shit out of luck.
I find it interesting how you say I've victimized my employee when he came to me and asked that I configure a comparable new Dell to a new PowerMac. He realized that the Dell was over a thousand dollars cheaper, had longer hardware support and life-span, and could communicate with other computers and the world much more effeciently.
Arguing on Slashdot is as good as pissing into the wind - I don't know why I do it. On this particular topic no one has a voice until they've played with both options in a high-end configuration doing high-end work loads. I have and for me Windows XP on a loaded Dell absolutely smokes OS X on a loaded PowerMac. And it does it at a bit of a cost break. If you're playing at home or running a business by yourself, spend your money however you want. When you work for someone that is trying to turn a profit in the real world you go with the best bang for the buck - for us that's XP on a Dell.
I hear you. But I don't know that you're wholey correct. I know of several new Mac users that recently acquire the Apple taste and actually threw down the cash for the over priced hardware. Try as I might, I couldn't talk them into getting a Dell. Oh well ...
In other news, just a few weeks ago I switched a long-time Mac user at work to a Dell. The computer cost $1,200 LESS than a comparable PowerMac and it is more robust. The only thing missing is the dvd writer, which can be purchased for about $350 now.
I disagree. I think, if anything, they'll make it less of a machine than it is ... by industry standards. Basically saying it won't take as big of an upgrade through the next revision as it has in the past. It's become too powerful to be an "iMac". It's supposed to be more of an internet appliance running Mac OS than anything. If it gets too much more powerful it will be an easy alternative for graphics design people and casual gamers. That would steal sales from the PowerMac, and that doesn't sit well with Apple.
That's probably the most intelligent responce that will be posted about this topic. Apple's bread and butter are their PowerMacs. If a product with smaller profit margin are stealing PowerMac sales you can bet they'll drop the lower product. They're not here to make their customers happy, they're here to make money.
The 17" iMac was one of the very few Apple products I've had any interest in. If there's any truth to this, maybe they'll have a sale on the remaining stock.
This was posted just a short while ago. http://apple.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=02/12/25/ 1532236&mode=thread&tid=141 Perhaps what you're asking for isn't all that far away.
GOOGLE CACHE!
... so they'll be slow.
And as usual, all the internal links target the original sources
All they've done there is make a big laptop with a bar down the middle of the screen. What's the good in that!?! Why not just have a single big ass screen? Dell, Apple, Gateway, even AlienWare ... they've all already made such devices, and they're not $5000. I haven't been able to see the laptop featured by this article, but surely it's better than this thing.
It might just be me, but it seems the author feels that all products generate similar performance. I find this to be completely ignorant. If you can't see the difference in quality between a Sony Trinitron and an RCA television, you don't have the right to discuss the topic.
I buy higher quality products (at a higher price) because they will out perform the cheap stuff, and additionally last longer. In the long run I find myself spending less money replacing old busted cheap products because my stuff is still kicking. I even have a six year old CD changer that's humming along like it was fresh out of the box.
My basic methodology is to make a 40gb tape, stick it in a vault, and move the data to the archive server where it's marked read only. Then I dump it from the 'active' file server. Works pretty well, actually.
Yeah, that's the big issue - reducing your single-points of failure. The big one is the RAID controller. But in most cases you can just replace the broken hardware and the system will recover.
No flame, other than the term 'RAID 5'. Tapes aren't as dangerous as hard drives, but they can still mess up. It's not like they're garounteed beyond all odds. So a RAID 5 IDE array takes care of your data.
... it is possible to cost effectively mirror an IDE RAID system over broadband Internet and do it securely. If you are a major corporation surely your campus is large enough to simply run fiber to two corner and put mirrored backup at each location. ... buy a truckload of disks when you do the initial installation? (:
I'm currently using Dell NAS machines as archival backups.
Bonuses (as I see them):
Online 100mbit access to old data.
Cheap!
Fits in a physically small space.
Negatives:
Higher failure rate than tape. Pop fizzle, your data is gone.
Difficult to take off site.
Long-term replacement isn't really an option. (for RAID replacement)
The way we negate the negatives (double negative, is that a possitive?):
-Failure rate / Data loss is countered by RAID
-Taking it offsite
-Long term replacement of RAID drives
How about we see this bad boy!? I'd sure like to paste it into my "info.txt" file for future referance. It could come in handy sometime.
I think this is totally awesome, and I'd like to build one of my own, but theres just something nice about being able to pull a piece of hardware out of the box and have it work, no questions asked.
But, maybe this will lead to more hardware manufacturers building machines like this that don't have monthly fees. I mean, what's it cost to build and store a database of television schedules? Can that cost be countered by simple ads? Slashdot seems to be making a great thing happen with its small amount of ads. I would be glad to trade a monthly subscription for some possibly helpful advertising inorder to have a PVR.
Oh ... guess I had my ignorance flapping in the breeze again ... (:
Thanks for the info!
But what about automobiles? Who's paying for the disposal of them? How about old stereos and all the different media types like records and cassettes?
... ?) then I'll be impressed by corporate action.
Great that a big company appears to be concerned about their product, but I think there are additional fish to fry. When Pontiac takes responsibility for all the trash they're generating (double meaning intended
I guess geeks don't see the disposal of computers as a major issue, though. We have stacks of old computers in our bedrooms with everything humming along nicely. whether it's doing anything or not, we're not likely to throw it out (:
How about we skip the whole idea of text output? This is stupid! It's a complete waste of technology and time. Translating one person's audio into a 3d modeled face. Brilliant ...
... what the crap.
How about they just use a video phone? Or have the audio be displayed in a text output? It has to go through that step anyway.
3D modeled face