Seriously though, $129 for a service pack, even a comprehensive one, approaches Micro$oftian levels of asininity. That works out to about $10-11 per month, assuming one big 'Jaguar'-style update per year.
Of course, if Apple were smarter, they'd bundle.Mac and software upgrades into a single annual charge (say $99/year), but they must have thought of this and decided that they could still earn more money overcharging for an online component and service packs while still suffering piracy.
And, btw, the fact that OSX is as good as it is keeps me buying (and recommending) Apple hardware. In fact, one of the big reasons I'm holding off on the 17" upgrade (besides the fact that I'm still waiting for the ol' Direct Deposit tax refunds) is to wait for Panther.
This article on discusses many interesting UI possibilities, but the one I'm most interested in is the 'live search folder' concept, where you declare a 'folder' to contain the continually-updated contents of a search.
iTunes has this (Smart Playlists), and I'm quite smitten by it, and I'd like to see something similar rolled out across the UI (and, possibly, done as a framework for other apps to hook into).
Combined with 'piles', you could have your smart pile of apps, pile of word docs, pile of porn divx, etc.. Makes some sense to me..
360/426x340 color touchscreen, 40GB HDD, firewire + 'proprietary' port (for AV out) + headphone jack, integration into iWatch (which replaces quicktime and DVD players) that lets you rip DVDs down into that smaller framesize in mpeg4. Throw in bluetooth and charge extra for a bluetooth remote control. $699.
I'm picking up my car today, having just had the HK TrafficPro and Ericsson HCB-30 bluetooth handsfree installed. This Nokia doesn't sync with SyncML, have a headset profile for my motorola headset, and would probably have problems with my new car handsfree. What a pile of shite. And isn't that keypad just the dumbest thing you've ever seen (I mean, besides the Pontiac Aztek)? I could even RESPECT a retro moving 'rotary' dial knob ala an iPod with return, but this thing's just retarded.
But I will and it's for the same reason I bought a DeWalt drill insead of the much cheaper Skil drill: the quality of construction in both design and function.
Heck, I got nothin better to do for the next few minutes, so I'll bite...
They cost more. You also get more. Firewire, DVD-R, gigabit ethernet. ON A 15" LAPTOP. THAT WEIGHS LESS THAN 6 LBS, INCLUDING BATTERY.
Audis cost more than Fords.
They are generally slower (I know this is getting better everytime they make the consumer cough up money for a new version Mac OS X).
Apple has been using the same 3D chipsets as PCs for a few years now (ATI, nVidia), and was in fact first with the GeForce 3. Apple doesn't have the benefits (and drawbacks) of the PC parts bin, though in the last few years they've improved this somewhat, by incorporating the aforementioned 3D components, as well as PC-standard RAM, PCI, etc. Therefore, games such as Quake, Warcraft III, et al. run pretty nicely.
The only performance gripes I have relate to DVD ripping. For my needs, anything over 400MHz with a decent 3D accelerator is perfectly adequate.
Oh, and Apple don't play dat DRM garbage (yet), so in theory you could grab an ISO file from a friend who works in a Mac shop, download it over the complimentary ethernet provided by your Vancouver hotel room, burn it on your laptop (after paying the Canadian CD tax:p) and run an upgrade.
In theory.
There is less software available in the retail markets.
There's more 'shrinkwrap'ware for OSX than there is for Linux. Not that I particularly care, but it's nice to see that games are available within a reasonable timeframe for OSX these days. Linux doesn't have nearly as much in the way of native apps, and you have to hope and pray that the games work with WineX (lessn you have the spare time to hack WineX, which in this economy you may have:p).
BTW, which Linux app did you use to do and file your taxes this year? I used TaxCut for Mac, and it couldn't have been easier. Saved me HOURS. I would have gotten TurboTax, but Intuit's DRM junk turned me off.
I am actually curious.
Hey, I'm curious about this: Why, if the PC world is so 'innovative', do they steal so much from Apple? People building systems these days don't bother with a floppy: Apple took that chance in 1998. Remember when USB was suffering from the 'chicken and egg' problem Bluetooth is now? Apple solved that problem by ditching ADB and serial ports outright (and in the process pissing off LOTS of the faithful, but it was the technically correct thing to do), with PCs eventually catching up. Bluetooth: bastard stepchild of wireless, but I would bet it grows now that Apple has started installing it standard across the line in new systems. GL-rendered, accelerated GUI? Maybe in the next M$OS, maybe someday down the line in XFree (or implemented kludgily per app), included NOW for Jaguar. Rendezvous == Zeroconf, and now that Apple's in the game, look for Linux to start incorporating interesting zeroconf stuff, followed by Microsoft (lessn they try to do their own NetBEUI-equivalent garbage).
Apple innovates in both hardware and software. Microsoft doesn't. Linux to some extent does, but not in any coherent fashion, at least as far as desktops go.
Macheads with the computer world so very Windows focused why do you still buy macs?
Because my time is worth more? Because standard PeeCee junk is an affront to any decent aesthetic? Because I don't want to have to futz with DLLs or LD_LIBRARY_PATHs, macro viruses, flaky windowing systems or schizophrenic hardware driver situations?
I can build a really slick linux box out of odd parts and get it working smoothly. I did so for my most recent job: Mandrake on an NForce1 micro-ATX box. I tilted my lance at NVidia's proprietary X and kernel drivers (to get the ethernet, sound and IDE working properly). I spent several hours on this, but I was paid to do it and the result is a blazingly-fast AMD Linux box.
For my personal life, where I'm not getting PAID for th
So now GW is doing the right thing by making it more difficult for gamers to buy their products. This will grow the market by... uh... wait... by... uh....
... ARM Linux on the 400MHz CPU and do netboot and net-mounted filesystems..
If there's drivers for the display and HWR available, of course..
Personally, I wouldn't mind essentially a largish color Newton tablet, particularly if its screen had nice multi-level pressure sensitivity so I could draw and sketch on it..
Still, it looks rather expensive, perhaps an OLED version someday will be cheaper and more durable..
plaintext + stream encryption = very good and space-efficient thing.
plaintext + CPU and disk subsystem from the last 3 years = 2-5% more load when gening/parsing XML.. boo hoo hoo!!
welcome to the 21st century, where we can afford convenient 'waste' like XML!!
If I hear one more person whinge about XML's 'bloat' I think someone's gettin a slappin... Spoken as someone who's had to emacs binary files to 'relink' a hardcoded shared lib reference.. Netscape Enterprise server admin junk..:/
They are less efficient, just as BASIC or C is less efficient than pure assembler,
They are _NOT_ less efficient. Depending, of course, on your definition of 'efficient': CPU-efficient or Programmer-time-efficient?
There will always be a need for 'bare-metal' programming, and there will always be folks who enjoy it. But for a large (and growing) percentage of code, business wants essentially to have a good set of robust, efficient tools and plug them together in ways that benefit the business.
under windows, free berkeley standard distribution or gnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugn ugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnu^C damn recursive acronyms...
(and damn lameness filters... GNU should be capitalized:p)
Slashdot Mirror
... they _do_ regularly give >= 200KB/s download service, and 384kbps upload is fine for my home web server..
(yes, they haven't gotten silly with the port closure on my network.. Yet..)
Seriously though, $129 for a service pack, even a comprehensive one, approaches Micro$oftian levels of asininity. That works out to about $10-11 per month, assuming one big 'Jaguar'-style update per year.
.Mac and software upgrades into a single annual charge (say $99/year), but they must have thought of this and decided that they could still earn more money overcharging for an online component and service packs while still suffering piracy.
Of course, if Apple were smarter, they'd bundle
And, btw, the fact that OSX is as good as it is keeps me buying (and recommending) Apple hardware. In fact, one of the big reasons I'm holding off on the 17" upgrade (besides the fact that I'm still waiting for the ol' Direct Deposit tax refunds) is to wait for Panther.
hehehe
(just dropped a new GPS and bluetooth carphone in it.. bling bling!!!)
Nope, they're recycling Atari names, so the next one is obviously...... .. Lynx.
He wanted a little discount for being a loyal customer. It's a common thing these days.
;)
I prefer the 'I have friends doing tech support in advertising and digital music" discount myself...
This article on discusses many interesting UI possibilities, but the one I'm most interested in is the 'live search folder' concept, where you declare a 'folder' to contain the continually-updated contents of a search.
iTunes has this (Smart Playlists), and I'm quite smitten by it, and I'd like to see something similar rolled out across the UI (and, possibly, done as a framework for other apps to hook into).
Combined with 'piles', you could have your smart pile of apps, pile of word docs, pile of porn divx, etc.. Makes some sense to me..
... more like 2 MILLION TB (2 Exabytes) of addressable RAM, in theory...
$ dc
2 64 ^ # 2**64 bits
1024 / # kilobits
1024 / # megabits
1024 / # gigabits
1024 / # terabits
8 / # bytes
p
2097152
q
$
'cuz I want a bigger screen, less-clunky design, integrated 'host' software, and firewire :)
;)
Still, you're right, one way or another this device is inevitable, if only to take my Mr. Show and South Park divx rips on the ferry
.. How many times do we have to wh1ne about it?
VIDEO IPOD:
360/426x340 color touchscreen, 40GB HDD, firewire + 'proprietary' port (for AV out) + headphone jack, integration into iWatch (which replaces quicktime and DVD players) that lets you rip DVDs down into that smaller framesize in mpeg4. Throw in bluetooth and charge extra for a bluetooth remote control. $699.
Just in time for the direct-deposit tax refund!!!
... then I guess I won't be getting N-GAGE then :(
I'm picking up my car today, having just had the HK TrafficPro and Ericsson HCB-30 bluetooth handsfree installed. This Nokia doesn't sync with SyncML, have a headset profile for my motorola headset, and would probably have problems with my new car handsfree. What a pile of shite. And isn't that keypad just the dumbest thing you've ever seen (I mean, besides the Pontiac Aztek)? I could even RESPECT a retro moving 'rotary' dial knob ala an iPod with return, but this thing's just retarded.
Bad Nokia! No cookie for you!!
But I will and it's for the same reason I bought a DeWalt drill insead of the much cheaper Skil drill: the quality of construction in both design and function.
What, not a Hole Hawg? (google cache)
Heck, I got nothin better to do for the next few minutes, so I'll bite...
:p) and run an upgrade.
:p).
They cost more.
You also get more. Firewire, DVD-R, gigabit ethernet. ON A 15" LAPTOP. THAT WEIGHS LESS THAN 6 LBS, INCLUDING BATTERY.
Audis cost more than Fords.
They are generally slower (I know this is getting better everytime they make the consumer cough up money for a new version Mac OS X).
Apple has been using the same 3D chipsets as PCs for a few years now (ATI, nVidia), and was in fact first with the GeForce 3. Apple doesn't have the benefits (and drawbacks) of the PC parts bin, though in the last few years they've improved this somewhat, by incorporating the aforementioned 3D components, as well as PC-standard RAM, PCI, etc. Therefore, games such as Quake, Warcraft III, et al. run pretty nicely.
The only performance gripes I have relate to DVD ripping. For my needs, anything over 400MHz with a decent 3D accelerator is perfectly adequate.
Oh, and Apple don't play dat DRM garbage (yet), so in theory you could grab an ISO file from a friend who works in a Mac shop, download it over the complimentary ethernet provided by your Vancouver hotel room, burn it on your laptop (after paying the Canadian CD tax
In theory.
There is less software available in the retail markets.
There's more 'shrinkwrap'ware for OSX than there is for Linux. Not that I particularly care, but it's nice to see that games are available within a reasonable timeframe for OSX these days. Linux doesn't have nearly as much in the way of native apps, and you have to hope and pray that the games work with WineX (lessn you have the spare time to hack WineX, which in this economy you may have
BTW, which Linux app did you use to do and file your taxes this year? I used TaxCut for Mac, and it couldn't have been easier. Saved me HOURS. I would have gotten TurboTax, but Intuit's DRM junk turned me off.
I am actually curious.
Hey, I'm curious about this: Why, if the PC world is so 'innovative', do they steal so much from Apple? People building systems these days don't bother with a floppy: Apple took that chance in 1998. Remember when USB was suffering from the 'chicken and egg' problem Bluetooth is now? Apple solved that problem by ditching ADB and serial ports outright (and in the process pissing off LOTS of the faithful, but it was the technically correct thing to do), with PCs eventually catching up. Bluetooth: bastard stepchild of wireless, but I would bet it grows now that Apple has started installing it standard across the line in new systems. GL-rendered, accelerated GUI? Maybe in the next M$OS, maybe someday down the line in XFree (or implemented kludgily per app), included NOW for Jaguar. Rendezvous == Zeroconf, and now that Apple's in the game, look for Linux to start incorporating interesting zeroconf stuff, followed by Microsoft (lessn they try to do their own NetBEUI-equivalent garbage).
Apple innovates in both hardware and software. Microsoft doesn't. Linux to some extent does, but not in any coherent fashion, at least as far as desktops go.
Macheads with the computer world so very Windows focused why do you still buy macs?
Because my time is worth more? Because standard PeeCee junk is an affront to any decent aesthetic? Because I don't want to have to futz with DLLs or LD_LIBRARY_PATHs, macro viruses, flaky windowing systems or schizophrenic hardware driver situations?
I can build a really slick linux box out of odd parts and get it working smoothly. I did so for my most recent job: Mandrake on an NForce1 micro-ATX box. I tilted my lance at NVidia's proprietary X and kernel drivers (to get the ethernet, sound and IDE working properly). I spent several hours on this, but I was paid to do it and the result is a blazingly-fast AMD Linux box.
For my personal life, where I'm not getting PAID for th
So now GW is doing the right thing by making it more difficult for gamers to buy their products. This will grow the market by... uh... wait... by... uh... .
One word: CARTMANLAND
hehe
... ARM Linux on the 400MHz CPU and do netboot and net-mounted filesystems..
If there's drivers for the display and HWR available, of course..
Personally, I wouldn't mind essentially a largish color Newton tablet, particularly if its screen had nice multi-level pressure sensitivity so I could draw and sketch on it..
Still, it looks rather expensive, perhaps an OLED version someday will be cheaper and more durable..
(Maybe Apple's version will do better?)
Don't Laugh.
oh, almost forgot: does Safari have access to bookmarks from the dock? You can do this in Camino by mangling your toolbar preferences..
At this point, only the second one's a show stopper.. This may finally boot Camino from my default!
No flame, just a Q.. How high-res does the WAV (PCM) go? 192k? 384k? 48khz sample rate?
I know folks who bring DATs (and, recently, minidiscs) to live shows, something solid-state would be quite handy..
plaintext == portable across binary platforms
:/
plaintext == greppable usefully
plaintext == mungable inline easily
plaintext + stream encryption = very good and space-efficient thing.
plaintext + CPU and disk subsystem from the last 3 years = 2-5% more load when gening/parsing XML.. boo hoo hoo!!
welcome to the 21st century, where we can afford convenient 'waste' like XML!!
If I hear one more person whinge about XML's 'bloat' I think someone's gettin a slappin... Spoken as someone who's had to emacs binary files to 'relink' a hardcoded shared lib reference.. Netscape Enterprise server admin junk..
They'd have to do this quite often to make any serious dent in M$' war chest. And by the time they could get a laugh M$ would own EVERYTHING..
:p)
(wait, they don't already?
They are less efficient, just as BASIC or C is less efficient than pure assembler,
They are _NOT_ less efficient. Depending, of course, on your definition of 'efficient': CPU-efficient or Programmer-time-efficient?
There will always be a need for 'bare-metal' programming, and there will always be folks who enjoy it. But for a large (and growing) percentage of code, business wants essentially to have a good set of robust, efficient tools and plug them together in ways that benefit the business.
IOW, they want Perl.
Probably.
Why not, at the same time, buy or license the rights to the Apple Corps name?
Apple's had issues like this before (viz. Macintosh vs. McIntosh), and they've figured them out..
... until I got this:
"We're sorry. This Windows Media 9 Series content is only available to be viewed using Internet Explorer.
Learn more about Internet Explorer."
If I wanted M$ duckspeak news I'd go to news.com, not slashdot... *ix duckspeak only here please!!
It is fucking l337, and DVDs look AWESOME on it.. it IS a bit heavy tho.
under windows, free berkeley standard distribution or gnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugn ugnugnugnugnugnugnugnugnu^C damn recursive acronyms...
:p)
(and damn lameness filters... GNU should be capitalized