If you format your computer and did not back-up your downloaded music you have to PURCHASE it again.
Translation: If I do something completely idiotic, there's no one and nothing to protect me from myself.
What you describe is not like someone breaking in your car and "jacking" your lifelong CD collection. It's like you got high, took it to the dump, and threw it in.
1) He helped popularize the personal computer; 2) He helped popularize the user interface that the majority of those computers now use; 3) He helped revolutionize the computer, industrial and product design industries with the iMac (and made USB truly "universal"); 4) He helped revolutionize the way people acquire, manipulate and experience music (and stopped Microsoft's bid for domination dead in its tracks); 5) He heads an animation studio that is the undisputed leader of what is becoming a new "Golden Age" in animation; 6) He financed the most successful television commercial ever produced; 7) He brought Apple back from the brink of extinction...
And each of the organizations he heads is obsessed with producing the best quality products possible. There's a lot of crowing here in Slashdot and elsewhere when Apple slips, but the people there put more time, effort, intelligence and care into what they do than just about any organization you could name.
AppleScript, through it's scripting roots, is often and wrongfully associated with scripting the system.
While this is still true, AppleScript has evolved into something much more useful: small application and application prototyping.
There was a tool, FaceSpawn, that started it it all. Just like Visual Basic on Windows (and now, RealBasic on Mac), it allowed the creation of complete applications, UI and all, with AppleScript as a back-end.
FaceSpan was the tool to which you're referring. And you're right and wrong in your first statement. Once AppleScript launched, the effort to make the Finder scriptable came right on its heels. I led the quality team for the scriptable Finder and it was wonderful to see the application grow in utility and promise with each build. The most amazing thing was seeing what users did with it post-release. Some of the most gonzo scripters were and are print shops, graphics houses and photographers. They did things with our work that just floored us--complaining all the while about additional features they wanted to see.
I'm real proud of that product because if it had stunk, everyone would have known it.
I mean compare Apple and Windows. Apple supports a very small select group of software and hardware. With windows you can choose from just about any device on the market. Why do you think so many drivers come with the OS and so much legacy support has to stick around. Apple designs all their products, so making sure they are fully supported and work well is easy.
Sounds like you've lost track of the direction the industry's been taking the last several years. First of all, you can use standard memory, monitors, disk drives, media and peripherals in a Mac. Apple invented IEEE 1394 (Firewire) and popularized USB by including it in the iMac in 1997. Apple led the way in establishing 802.11b as the wireless standard and doubtless had a hand in the promulgation of 802.11g. Centrino is a late entry to the game.
Secondly, the entire PC industry is trending toward "legacy-free" connections. Namely, Firewire and USB. Floppies, serial ports, parallel ports, ISA--all these are being wrung out of the computing marketplace. And what was the prototype for this movement? Again, the iMac.
Third, Apple has adopted Open Source software. This allows users the chance to make changes they deem necessary at a much more fundamental level than is possible with Microsoft.
My basic peeve with Microsoft is that they actively diminish the computing experience in service to their own ends. Their website looks better with their products. Media plays more smoothly with their software. Crucial features in the Windows versions of their products are missing from the Macintosh version. They corrupt standards in service to their bottom line (e.g. Kerberos, SMB, Java) or freeze out popular standards for the sake of their agenda (e.g. MP3). They don't tend to compete by being the best; they compete by leveling things to the lowest common denominator--which happens to be Windows.
Sure, Apple is proprietary. You pasted the reason in the last sentence of your post. But don't think for a moment that Microsoft isn't as proprietary as it thinks it needs to be.
To be kind: bullshit. Let's say "Sir Viola" works for Microsoft. He's part of the patching process. Let's say he gets a bad review from his superior and is put on probation for his bad attitude toward authority. Let's say he's written a version of the Blaster Worm that--unlike the first amateurish version--installs itself and sits waiting quietly in the background. And, because of the incident we're discussing here, he KNOWS that he can slip that code into Windows Update and has set up a keystroke to trigger it...
That scenario was unthinkable to me before I read this thread. Now? If you can't see the danger in it, you're either dense or obtuse. You pick.
If I had mod points, I'd boost this one. This poster knows what he's talking about. My partner and I use AdAware for spyware removal because of the sheer volume of malware in the wild. We treated a system day-before-yesterday that contained 420 different malware/datamining/spyware entities. I'm charging these people $85 an hour (the additional twenty dollars per hour compensates for three hours of drive-time). I don't want to charge them for the time it would take to remove that much crap from an infected system by hand. And we'd have to carry around an up-to-date list informing us of the processes, startups and other system modifications that are the telltale signs of infection.
I know Dell has legal issues to consider, but they need to come up with a better response than the one they have. They can remain arms-length from possible solutions, but they can also put users on the road to finding them. BTW, viruses, spyware and malware have made Macintosh and Mac OS X much easier to sell recently. I direct customers to used Macs available on the PowerMax and MacResQ sites if they can't pay full-price for a new system. It hasn't failed yet. And those used Macs are turning out to be much more serviceable than PC's of equal age. I don't recommend anything older than the first Power Macintosh G3 desktops. Anything after that has been flawless so far.
I agree- poor effort on Apple's part to do QA, as usual(just look at the 10.2.8 update that broke half a dozen things). It's a 3-month-old Sony VAIO, not some Joe Shmoe special with some no-name burner etc.
Poor QA effort? Do you realize how many permutations of machines there are running Windows XP and 2000? Can you imagine the potential software incompatibilities inherent in all those configurations? Do you have any idea of the testing effort it required just to get iTunes to the point it is now?
Pointing out the glitches in 10.2.8 is fair, but reporting the weather from your dad's location and declaring it the default for everyone is as naive as it is narcissistic. I don't doubt that WiniTunes could've been released months ago, but they didn't do it. Wanna know why? Because there are people at Apple who give a damn about the quality of the product. I can tell you for a fact that reading about your dad's problem chaps their asses. And you know what? I bet you they'll get it fixed.
I write screenplays. I started out with Microsoft Word (Macintosh) and a template and was relatively happy. As I got better at writing them, I found that the features of Word that I didn't use were getting in my way.
Enter Final Draft 4.0!
It had everything I needed to write my screenplays and very little else. And when I open those early efforts of mine under Jaguar (10.2.8)? Word 5.1a dutifully bounces up and gets to work. Ah, compatibility...
I have non-Mac customers who were petrified at the thought of getting the Blaster worm. I told them not to worry; I have their machines behind D-Link or Netgear routers with only port 80 open. Knock wood, we're battin' a thousand...
First, second, neutral, park! Hie thee hence, thou leafy narc!
I find it ironic that they were resourceful enough to upgrade all their macs for 200$ a pop, but left a mission critical server running windows that got hit by blaster...
The mzchines in the office are strictly dictated (and supported) by the district. Windows all the way.
1. Debugging a system failure of some kind, like a GPF. (YES, they do happen on Macs...it's called "error type 2".) It's impossible to retrieve meaningful information on a Mac.
You've obviously never heard of Macsbug. It is downloadable from Apple. It makes what you say above very, very wrong. This mistake affects the credibility of everything else you say.
I'm not sure what you mean in number two. If you're talking about logging onto a share on startup, there's a checkbox that allows this each time you mount a share pre-OS X. Now that you know it exists, I'm sure you'll be able to find it.
Number three is pure hogwash. Assuming that you have a viable, shared machine available on the network, I don't see why remote installs don't work. Thousands of Mac users do this every day. The simplest install is a drag-copy. Keyed applications are more problematic, but it's done all the time. Just because YOU can't do it doesn't mean it can't be done...doesn't mean that it ISN'T being done. Ease of installation on a Mac as compared to Windows is too embarassing to your case to mention further.
Number Four--Power supplies for a G3-what? Be specific. Before you answer, be advised that entire G3 computers are dirt-cheap on the net right now...whole machines going for just under twice the price you paid for the power supply alone.
The best thing I can say is: you're not a troll, you're just sloppy.
I consult for a couple of schools. The inertia built up by Apple is much more difficult to overcome than this quarter's--or even the next three quarters's--sales figures indicate. There is an enormous investment in software, hardware, expertise, money and time in establishing and maintaining a school computer.
One of the schools I work with just installed a 24-station publishing lab. Do you think Dell pulled off a coup and supplied the machines? Do you think Apple delivered a pallet of iMacs? No. The vice-principal in charge of technology bought two dozen Macintosh LC II's, upgraded the motherboards, memory and hard drives, equipped them all with Ethernet cards, and started teaching for less than $200 a seat with site-licensed software. I was brought in to deal with a little SCSI voodoo. I couldn't argue with the VP's logic or implementation. More bang for the buck (and the only machines affected by Blaster were the mission-critical IIS servers running Windows 2000.
The article is based on anecdotal experiences with a few schools. There is a more vast, more stable "If It Ain't Broke, Dont Fix It" constituency for Macintosh out there than a few recent quarters of sales can affect. The LC II was introduced in 1992. The ones I installed will be in service for at least two more years and possibly longer. As I write this on the fifth anniversary of the iMac, I know of two of the original Bondi Blue models that are running Mac OS X in private homes because of their stability and freedom from viruses, worms and trojans. I just retired a customer's upgraded Macintosh 7500 (equipped with a 400 MHz G4, chock full of memory and with a state-of-the-art graphics card). That machine was released eight years ago.
The tide may be turning the PC's way, but it has a long way to go before it inundates Apple in schools.
Checked the rules on your hardware firewall/router lately? Bet there's an entry or two in there that YOU didn't make.
If Microsoft sees fit to change the rules on hardware that doesn't even belong to it, how are they going to assure homeland security when they can't even get home networking security right?
Nothing personal, but if you're still reading John Dvorak and taking what he says seriously, you need to return your computer to wherever you got it and go back to a pad of paper and a pencil.
...The growth of Open Source has crippled Microsoft's ability to "embrace and extend" critical standards. The first big mistake in that battle is their recent announcement that there will be no more standalone versions of Internet Explorer. Open Source alternatives will be able to develop and implement improvements in browser technology at a much more nimble rate than will Microsoft while maintaining compatibility with current standards. New versions of IE that cripple functionality will drive customers toward alternatives rather than toward IE (and the requisite release of Windows that delivers it).
Caveat: Microsoft is at its most dangerous when it's painted itself into a corner. The next year should be very interesting.
That the public's buying anything at all. These days, the consumer decides what constitutes an "album." For instance, I love my version of "Devil's Night" by D12. The only skits I've left in are the first and last ("Public Service Announcement" and "Steve Berman"). I bet there is a lot of albums these days that have filler like that; stuff that can be elided easily and actually enhance the experience.
Musicians and the record companies will just have to get with the program and give people what they want. That's just good business.
...My customers are convinced that USB 2.0 cables are better than USB 1.1 cables. They don't appreciate it when I tell them that USB 2.0 cables have to be compatible with USB 1.1 and are just the same cable with jazzier packaging and a higher price tag.
If you're making less than $41 an hour, you can file a grievance if they try to make you work these hours without time-and-a-half and double-time compensation. The California labor code is very specific about computer work and overtime. The state's website gives a complete rundown of your rights.
Another considerating: talk to your manager. Any manager worth the title will look out for the welfare of anyone involved in helping the company be successful. If your manager isn't sitting down with you individually and as a team and setting out a plan of action for making the schedule without killing you, look for another place to work.
I worked at a place where management usually didn't have to demand 12-20/7 of us; we did it on our own, if we had to. But that's because we had managers--for the most part--who thanked us for agreeing to do it, pampered us while we were doing it, and kept close account of what we did. Comp time, bonuses, and other compensation made up for the crunches afterward.
Take care of yourself; no one else will. HTH and good luck.
The story doesn't say that the final decisions have been made. A feasibility study is being mounted to replace Windows systems by the end of the year. Microsoft will be pulling out all the stops against this. A May 14th Slashdot discussion on the topic quotes Orlando Ayala, head of sales at Microsoft, as saying: "Under NO circumstances lose against Linux." They're going to practically give Windows away to avoid these setbacks. Even if they do prevail, though, the die is cast against Redmond.
I think that Microsoft has "jumped the shark."
Longhorn is two years away. Palladium-Next Generation Computing is alarming large segments of the IT community. Microsoft's latest licensing scheme antagonized its business customers. It is a convicted monopolist; its options against future challenges aren't what they were before that conviction and they face antitrust action in Europe and elsewhere. Viruses and worms spread by and through Windows IIS, Hotmail, Outlook, Outlook Express and Internet Explorer create weekly embarrassments in the face of Bill Gates's call for improved security. The strategy to impose a Microsoft-powered Digital Rights Management regime on users has been hurt badly by Apple's iTunes Music store. Economic conditions have slowed the adoption of Windows XP because new machines aren't being bought at rates anticipated before the technology industry nosedive. Millions of Windows 98, ME, and 2000 customers see no need (and have little incentive) to upgrade.
And now, the growth of Open Source has crippled Microsoft's ability to "embrace and extend" critical standards. The first big mistake in that battle is their recent announcement that there will be no more standalone versions of Internet Explorer. Open Source alternatives will be able to develop and implement improvements in browser technology at a much more nimble rate than will Microsoft while maintaining compatibility with current standards. New versions of IE that cripple functionality will drive customers toward alternatives rather than toward IE (and the requisite release of Windows that delivers it).
Microsoft's stated goal of "Windows on every desktop" is no longer practical. Steve Ballmer's recent memo to the troops admits as much. I've been in the computer industry for over twenty years now and I assure you that that is a HUGE victory, but the advantage has to be pressed now or Microsoft will catch up like it has caught up so many times before. Open Source has to continue its emphasis on better, faster, cheaper, safer, and more reliable.
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What you describe is not like someone breaking in your car and "jacking" your lifelong CD collection. It's like you got high, took it to the dump, and threw it in.
Cartman already discovered the Sea People! Too late!
Why?
1) He helped popularize the personal computer;
2) He helped popularize the user interface that the majority of those computers now use;
3) He helped revolutionize the computer, industrial and product design industries with the iMac (and made USB truly "universal");
4) He helped revolutionize the way people acquire, manipulate and experience music (and stopped Microsoft's bid for domination dead in its tracks);
5) He heads an animation studio that is the undisputed leader of what is becoming a new "Golden Age" in animation;
6) He financed the most successful television commercial ever produced;
7) He brought Apple back from the brink of extinction...
And each of the organizations he heads is obsessed with producing the best quality products possible. There's a lot of crowing here in Slashdot and elsewhere when Apple slips, but the people there put more time, effort, intelligence and care into what they do than just about any organization you could name.
And, yes, I worked there.
I'm real proud of that product because if it had stunk, everyone would have known it.
Secondly, the entire PC industry is trending toward "legacy-free" connections. Namely, Firewire and USB. Floppies, serial ports, parallel ports, ISA--all these are being wrung out of the computing marketplace. And what was the prototype for this movement? Again, the iMac.
Third, Apple has adopted Open Source software. This allows users the chance to make changes they deem necessary at a much more fundamental level than is possible with Microsoft.
My basic peeve with Microsoft is that they actively diminish the computing experience in service to their own ends. Their website looks better with their products. Media plays more smoothly with their software. Crucial features in the Windows versions of their products are missing from the Macintosh version. They corrupt standards in service to their bottom line (e.g. Kerberos, SMB, Java) or freeze out popular standards for the sake of their agenda (e.g. MP3). They don't tend to compete by being the best; they compete by leveling things to the lowest common denominator--which happens to be Windows.
Sure, Apple is proprietary. You pasted the reason in the last sentence of your post. But don't think for a moment that Microsoft isn't as proprietary as it thinks it needs to be.
To be kind: bullshit. Let's say "Sir Viola" works for Microsoft. He's part of the patching process. Let's say he gets a bad review from his superior and is put on probation for his bad attitude toward authority. Let's say he's written a version of the Blaster Worm that--unlike the first amateurish version--installs itself and sits waiting quietly in the background. And, because of the incident we're discussing here, he KNOWS that he can slip that code into Windows Update and has set up a keystroke to trigger it...
That scenario was unthinkable to me before I read this thread. Now? If you can't see the danger in it, you're either dense or obtuse. You pick.
Go to Google, type in "miserable failure" and hit the I'M FEELING LUCKY button to get the correct answer.
If I had mod points, I'd boost this one. This poster knows what he's talking about. My partner and I use AdAware for spyware removal because of the sheer volume of malware in the wild. We treated a system day-before-yesterday that contained 420 different malware/datamining/spyware entities. I'm charging these people $85 an hour (the additional twenty dollars per hour compensates for three hours of drive-time). I don't want to charge them for the time it would take to remove that much crap from an infected system by hand. And we'd have to carry around an up-to-date list informing us of the processes, startups and other system modifications that are the telltale signs of infection.
I know Dell has legal issues to consider, but they need to come up with a better response than the one they have. They can remain arms-length from possible solutions, but they can also put users on the road to finding them. BTW, viruses, spyware and malware have made Macintosh and Mac OS X much easier to sell recently. I direct customers to used Macs available on the PowerMax and MacResQ sites if they can't pay full-price for a new system. It hasn't failed yet. And those used Macs are turning out to be much more serviceable than PC's of equal age. I don't recommend anything older than the first Power Macintosh G3 desktops. Anything after that has been flawless so far.
One bozo with problems doth not a QA fiasco make...
Pointing out the glitches in 10.2.8 is fair, but reporting the weather from your dad's location and declaring it the default for everyone is as naive as it is narcissistic. I don't doubt that WiniTunes could've been released months ago, but they didn't do it. Wanna know why? Because there are people at Apple who give a damn about the quality of the product. I can tell you for a fact that reading about your dad's problem chaps their asses. And you know what? I bet you they'll get it fixed.
You wanna talk QA? Let's start with Windows ME...
I write screenplays. I started out with Microsoft Word (Macintosh) and a template and was relatively happy. As I got better at writing them, I found that the features of Word that I didn't use were getting in my way.
Enter Final Draft 4.0!
It had everything I needed to write my screenplays and very little else. And when I open those early efforts of mine under Jaguar (10.2.8)? Word 5.1a dutifully bounces up and gets to work. Ah, compatibility...
I have non-Mac customers who were petrified at the thought of getting the Blaster worm. I told them not to worry; I have their machines behind D-Link or Netgear routers with only port 80 open. Knock wood, we're battin' a thousand...
First, second, neutral, park! Hie thee hence, thou leafy narc!
I'm not sure what you mean in number two. If you're talking about logging onto a share on startup, there's a checkbox that allows this each time you mount a share pre-OS X. Now that you know it exists, I'm sure you'll be able to find it.
Number three is pure hogwash. Assuming that you have a viable, shared machine available on the network, I don't see why remote installs don't work. Thousands of Mac users do this every day. The simplest install is a drag-copy. Keyed applications are more problematic, but it's done all the time. Just because YOU can't do it doesn't mean it can't be done...doesn't mean that it ISN'T being done. Ease of installation on a Mac as compared to Windows is too embarassing to your case to mention further.
Number Four--Power supplies for a G3-what? Be specific. Before you answer, be advised that entire G3 computers are dirt-cheap on the net right now...whole machines going for just under twice the price you paid for the power supply alone.
The best thing I can say is: you're not a troll, you're just sloppy.
I consult for a couple of schools. The inertia built up by Apple is much more difficult to overcome than this quarter's--or even the next three quarters's--sales figures indicate. There is an enormous investment in software, hardware, expertise, money and time in establishing and maintaining a school computer.
One of the schools I work with just installed a 24-station publishing lab. Do you think Dell pulled off a coup and supplied the machines? Do you think Apple delivered a pallet of iMacs? No. The vice-principal in charge of technology bought two dozen Macintosh LC II's, upgraded the motherboards, memory and hard drives, equipped them all with Ethernet cards, and started teaching for less than $200 a seat with site-licensed software. I was brought in to deal with a little SCSI voodoo. I couldn't argue with the VP's logic or implementation. More bang for the buck (and the only machines affected by Blaster were the mission-critical IIS servers running Windows 2000.
The article is based on anecdotal experiences with a few schools. There is a more vast, more stable "If It Ain't Broke, Dont Fix It" constituency for Macintosh out there than a few recent quarters of sales can affect. The LC II was introduced in 1992. The ones I installed will be in service for at least two more years and possibly longer. As I write this on the fifth anniversary of the iMac, I know of two of the original Bondi Blue models that are running Mac OS X in private homes because of their stability and freedom from viruses, worms and trojans. I just retired a customer's upgraded Macintosh 7500 (equipped with a 400 MHz G4, chock full of memory and with a state-of-the-art graphics card). That machine was released eight years ago.
The tide may be turning the PC's way, but it has a long way to go before it inundates Apple in schools.
S-C-O The Tortious!
Live by the fee
They frolic in the legal mist
And they cause uncertainty...
Checked the rules on your hardware firewall/router lately? Bet there's an entry or two in there that YOU didn't make.
If Microsoft sees fit to change the rules on hardware that doesn't even belong to it, how are they going to assure homeland security when they can't even get home networking security right?
Nothing personal, but if you're still reading John Dvorak and taking what he says seriously, you need to return your computer to wherever you got it and go back to a pad of paper and a pencil.
I wrote the following a month ago: Caveat: Microsoft is at its most dangerous when it's painted itself into a corner. The next year should be very interesting.
That the public's buying anything at all. These days, the consumer decides what constitutes an "album." For instance, I love my version of "Devil's Night" by D12. The only skits I've left in are the first and last ("Public Service Announcement" and "Steve Berman"). I bet there is a lot of albums these days that have filler like that; stuff that can be elided easily and actually enhance the experience.
Musicians and the record companies will just have to get with the program and give people what they want. That's just good business.
...My customers are convinced that USB 2.0 cables are better than USB 1.1 cables. They don't appreciate it when I tell them that USB 2.0 cables have to be compatible with USB 1.1 and are just the same cable with jazzier packaging and a higher price tag.
If you're making less than $41 an hour, you can file a grievance if they try to make you work these hours without time-and-a-half and double-time compensation. The California labor code is very specific about computer work and overtime. The state's website gives a complete rundown of your rights.
Another considerating: talk to your manager. Any manager worth the title will look out for the welfare of anyone involved in helping the company be successful. If your manager isn't sitting down with you individually and as a team and setting out a plan of action for making the schedule without killing you, look for another place to work.
I worked at a place where management usually didn't have to demand 12-20/7 of us; we did it on our own, if we had to. But that's because we had managers--for the most part--who thanked us for agreeing to do it, pampered us while we were doing it, and kept close account of what we did. Comp time, bonuses, and other compensation made up for the crunches afterward.
Take care of yourself; no one else will. HTH and good luck.
The story doesn't say that the final decisions have been made. A feasibility study is being mounted to replace Windows systems by the end of the year. Microsoft will be pulling out all the stops against this. A May 14th Slashdot discussion on the topic quotes Orlando Ayala, head of sales at Microsoft, as saying: "Under NO circumstances lose against Linux." They're going to practically give Windows away to avoid these setbacks. Even if they do prevail, though, the die is cast against Redmond.
I think that Microsoft has "jumped the shark."
Longhorn is two years away. Palladium-Next Generation Computing is alarming large segments of the IT community. Microsoft's latest licensing scheme antagonized its business customers. It is a convicted monopolist; its options against future challenges aren't what they were before that conviction and they face antitrust action in Europe and elsewhere. Viruses and worms spread by and through Windows IIS, Hotmail, Outlook, Outlook Express and Internet Explorer create weekly embarrassments in the face of Bill Gates's call for improved security. The strategy to impose a Microsoft-powered Digital Rights Management regime on users has been hurt badly by Apple's iTunes Music store. Economic conditions have slowed the adoption of Windows XP because new machines aren't being bought at rates anticipated before the technology industry nosedive. Millions of Windows 98, ME, and 2000 customers see no need (and have little incentive) to upgrade.
And now, the growth of Open Source has crippled Microsoft's ability to "embrace and extend" critical standards. The first big mistake in that battle is their recent announcement that there will be no more standalone versions of Internet Explorer. Open Source alternatives will be able to develop and implement improvements in browser technology at a much more nimble rate than will Microsoft while maintaining compatibility with current standards. New versions of IE that cripple functionality will drive customers toward alternatives rather than toward IE (and the requisite release of Windows that delivers it).
Microsoft's stated goal of "Windows on every desktop" is no longer practical. Steve Ballmer's recent memo to the troops admits as much. I've been in the computer industry for over twenty years now and I assure you that that is a HUGE victory, but the advantage has to be pressed now or Microsoft will catch up like it has caught up so many times before. Open Source has to continue its emphasis on better, faster, cheaper, safer, and more reliable.
But for now? Bravo!