They don't charge $1000 because that price range would force people to just buy a new computer instead. The retail store price for windows is about $150 more than what they charge computer manufacturers, though. This is because the average computer buyer pitches their restore disk when they buy their computer, or if they didn't even get one they likely delete the directory where the install files were located.
$200 is close to the limit where people just screw it and buy a new PC. If you shop around, you can get an OEM copy for $80. The big guys pay $45 or so per license. They average guy should be incensed that Microsoft sells retail boxed CDs for $180, but OEMs who play by MS's rules only have to pay $45.
It's what the DOJ settlement should have been. Everyone pays the same price for Windows, whether it's pre-installed or a store copy. And OEMs can add whatever software they want to the machine.
All of the other replies seemed to assume you are an idiot beginning an economics degree. Let me explain it to you as if you are just an idiot.... You're thinking of mark-up. Margin is when you figure out how much of your sale price is profit. It's much more useful.
Hold on for just a second. A can of coke costs about a nickle to make, can, ship and refrigerate and I just payed 0.75$ for it out of a vending machine.
What you fail to understand is that you can easily buy a case of 12 cans for $3, 25 cents a can. If you buy from the vending machine for 50 cents or more, you are paying for it to be refrigerated and convienently located.
You also fail to account for the fact that you can easily purchase store brand sodas for 15 cents per can. These cans can be cooled in your existing refigerator. Or poured over your industry standard ice (H2O sub 32 degrees F). They don't require that you retrofit your cars cup holder. They don't need special beverage containers to be properly sipped from. They can be consumed along with your meals just like your precious Coke.
So why does Coke sell so well at twice the price? Coca-Cola works VERY hard to make sure they get the best product placement. They make zero-profit deals with restaurants and college campuses just to make sure that their competitors don't get the sales instead of them. Because people are suckers for celebrity advertising.
There is a big difference in the monopoly that Coke exerts over the soft drink selection at your favorite restaurant vs. the monopoly power that Microsoft exerts over the software/OS market.
The only thing holding down the price of Windows and Office is the fear that consumers will become as outraged as their competitors.
This is just more proof that we live in a police state. There is no excuse for the FBI to be involved in this arrest. One cop with a warrant could have handled this between doughnut breaks without drawing his weapon.
Also, why is this a felony and not a civil matter? Cable companies should offer (unpublished) ultra high bandwidth for a grand per month. Collect evidence of the unauthorized use and bill them at the ultra high rate. Sue them if they fail to pay. They could easily win. Collection would be another matter, though they say they just want to set an example.
Bringing in the FBI to handle their problems is a theft of taxpayers' dollars.
Let me get this straight.... Intentia has a server that is full of files for the public consumption. Every file on that server is intended to be viewed by ANYONE. They then upload another file to the very public server, but THAT file will be considered 'hacked' by anyone who reads it before they announce it's release.
I hope to hell they don't have anyone's credit card numbers stored anywhere. http://www.intentia.com/customerinformation.db
Actually, it wouldn't. (even if this crackpot idea achieved patent status) The patent states that it will select the cat based on fur color. The (working) flo-control device you linked to selects between Flo (the owner's cat) and other cats, or even other animals by comparing the profile view of the animal when it comes in. Also, the flo-control device's primary purpose was to keep Flo out when she was carrying dead animals in her mouth.
Prolly the RIAA bitchin away....
on
Ebay vs. Musician
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· Score: 2, Interesting
I'd bet that the RIAA has a computer that sifts through the music listings on ebay looking for anything containing 'CDR' or 'CD-R'. For every one of these, they probably automatically mail ebay a notice threatening to sue them if they don't remove the listing immediately. The RIAA is just like the mob, coming to collect any dime they can see. The only difference is that instead of beating you with a baseball bat, they send their lawyers after you to steal everything you own.
Crap like this is why I stopped buying CDs, BTW.
I've run thousands of listings on Ebay, and I'm pretty sure that they never go looking on their own. Your listing only gets forwarded to them if it offends someone, or if another seller wants to screw you for digging into their sales.
Don't they put out a decent supply of light? I bet case modders would color the glass and put in a view port so you can see it. It would be a rather unique sight at lan parties.
I'd be alot more worried about the torque on your CPU heatsink causing the die to crack if I dropped my computer. My uncle had an Athlon destroyed by a Dragon Orb when he just moved the computer to another room.
Try getting some strap on handles for your computer if dropping it is actually a possibilty. [Or mod it with some permanent ones.]
The obvious liquid nitrogen ideas have been mentioned already. Try putting one end of a length of thick rubber tubing into the liquid nitrogen. Evaporating liquid at the bottom causes liquid above it to be propelled out the top of the tube. It makes a rather spectacular display as the liquid coming out rapidly evaporates. You can practice this first and aim it at unsuspecting audience members. They just get a chilly blast of nitrogen gas.
Disolving the copper coating off of pennies is fun.
Make soap bubbles in a dish using methane. Have someone scoop it up in their hand and then ignite it in a large burst of flame.
My AP physics teacher had a projectiles section where we launched pneumatic rockets at him from about 150 feet away. Each team's rocket launched at a slightly different pressure. We could time it's flight and measure the distance it went. We each had three shots to work out an appropriate launch angle and try and hit the teacher(A+) or get a lower grade for landing nearby.
Regional coding (mostly in DVDs) should be banned. Most DVDs released in other countries never come out here, and I shouldn't have to buy a second DVD player set to the another region to watch DVDs from overseas. If a movie doesn't get released in the theaters of a country overseas until AFTER the DVD release here in the US, the producing company doesn't deserve the financial help of any law to make up for their slow release schedule.
Regional coding is the kind of thing that I would expect from China, not the USA.
Nowadays you need to undergo background checks to get a pilots license. Even if they became cheap enough to compete with cars, you would have to contend with the possibility of nitwits crashing them into homes, or loading them up with explosives and piloting them into prominent buildings.
Besides, the only feasible way to do this would be if you could file a flight plan (go to X) and let an onboard computer do all of the piloting. But we haven't even been able to get cars to market that can navigate just the highways reliably, never mind local streets.
Automobiles are quite effective for local traffic. We need a better system for long trips. It seems like every other (small) developed country in the world has trains that run at 150 mph, but we are still stuck with Amtrack that averages just as slow as driving.
Pick up a used Palm 3 on ebay for about $60 and two sets of rechargable batteries. All the people buying the newer color Palms are dumping their old Palms for dirt cheap prices. You'll have all of the buttons of a real palm pilot, maybe more memory, and you won't be contributing to the toxic gadget-fills that we Americans are creating with our products that could easily be used for 10 years, but get thrown away after 3 years because they aren't cool anymore.
"damn cool" while drawing as little attention to its self is kind of an oxymoron
I said 'OR'. If you can't be bothered to read the post, don't reply. You even said your self that people buy PC's based on how they look.
Again, you have missed my point completely. In most homes, a computer is a tool. A tool to read the news, do your banking, make travel plans, or entertain youself. It is not something that rooms get focused on like a television. The standard PC beige-box design sticks out like a sore thumb. Early iMac color designs are 100% contrary to the typical color scheme of nearly anyone's living room. Newer Mac designs have a look-at-me white/light gray color scheme. My stereo, DVD player, CD player, VCRs, sattelite receiver, etc all blend well enough into the background that people ask what all of the remotes are for. A computer should do the same. I don't think the computer should be the first thing noticed when you walk into a living room. THAT is why HP sells so many of their machines. They are inobtrusive to the eye. They don't stick out. Whether you are buying a $500 model or a $2500 model, they do their job without drawing attention to themselves. And they all have the same design.
Please don't even compare a computer to a TV. Hardly anyone builds entertainment rooms around computers (myself excluded), but the TV is the FOCUS of at least one room in nearly every home in America. Unlike a computer, it is supposed to draw attention. People invite friends over to watch it. If your new 55 inch plasma TV has an eye-catching design, that's fine. Once again, this is just your opinion.
{sarcasm}Thanks for the clue. As usual, I thought I was just quoting from the book of facts.{/sarcasm}
Single motor designs require a transaxle feeding power to each wheel. This adds up front costs and maintenance down the road. Cheaper car designs are going to get rid of the steering column, transmission and axles. There are too many designs in cars that are based on using an internal combustion engine and mechanical linkages.
Also, the motor doesn't just power the car, it also recovers energy by acting as the break while stopping. The whole vehicle needs to be energy efficient.
Bear in mind that this vehicle is about the length of a limousine, not a car or SUV.
8 wheels increase traction greatly. This allows greater delivery of power to accelerate even if each motor is providing less power. It also ensures that the maximum amount of energy is returned to the batteries when stopping rather than having to use mechanical brakes.
If you read the website deeper, you will also notice that each wheel is independently, hydraulically controlled, so that if a wheel goes flat, or breaks down, it can be retracted so that the vehicle can continue to run.
I imagine that if the rolling friction was too great, they could retract the inside wheels while driving for long stretches at highway speeds.
Lastly, 8 powered, steerable wheels make for a smooth ride that corners really well.
My point is, that by connecting to a public filesharing server, and giving blanket permission for ANYONE to download from you, you are implicitly giving permission for THEM to connect to your PC and examine the files that you are offering for ANYONE to download.
If you want to run a public FTP server, you need to put a message in the opening along the lines of 'This is a private server for downloading use only by Stuart Kahler. All others are considered to be trespassing and ordered to disconnect immediately per federal statute XXXXX.'. You then give out the IP address for people to connect to. At this point, anything obtained is done so illegally.
The real problem here is that a private investigation firm is doing all of the legwork instead of government authorities, so you have to get a better-than-average lawyer to fight the illegally obtained evidence.
The whole Mac line seems to have alot of pastel colors to it. Is it really a coincidence that EVERY time I pick my wife up from any hair salon, they all have their translucent iMacs up front? Pink isn't the only way to make something girly. And silver, gray and white are usually the colors seen on the Bride's side of a wedding.
I used to work in PC sales, and the fact is that women purchase PCs much more based on how they look. Hewlett Packard sells a TON of PCs and overpriced monitors to match them because their PCs aren't an eyesore in the living room. The color scheme is subdued, front drives and ports are covered, and some even have CD storage built into the top so you don't have media laying around.
Most of the girls I know wear a lot of black. Most EVERYONE wears black. It goes with everything because it doesn't stand out like a sore thumb. That's why it's the standard color for all but the most expensive TVs and AV components. I would never buy a DVD player that had the same design sytle as the new iMac. The last thing I want while watching a movie is for the player to be vying for my attention.
Try FalconNorthWest, Voodoo, or Alienware for some cool looking PCs. A PC should either look damn cool, or try to draw as little attention to itself as possible. Your ugly iMac may seem hip yesterday, but it's going to be an eyesore soon when even your grandmother with dementia knows it's an ancient machine.
Since when does someone's computer have anything to do with their gender? I suppose you drive a pink Cadillac? Eh, Mr. In-Touch-With-His-feminine-Side?
Unlike a car, the case of a PC is just a shell. Nobody is going to walk by and go 'Hey, that 6050Z is one sweet-ass machine! Can I try it out?'. (except for that one dork that memorizes the specs for every product model that he can't afford) The case is standard, no matter if you bought a top of the line machine, or scrounged out a $500 model. The appearance of your PC either needs to fit your personality, or fit into the background.
So buy a high end processor and underclock the heck out of it. I have an older PC that I use as an internet gateway and print server that just has a low speed fan on the CPU (hardly any noise) and nothing else. I have it clocked down to about 2/3 of the rated speed. Runs perfectly.
My workstations stay at full speed, because I run some intensive stuff. I paid for a fast computer and I want the productivity.
But Apple isn't out there trying to win away the high end users. They are trying to convert the Ford Escort and Hyundai Elantra people to buy their PCs. They are asking people who are going to spend a week's pay on a PC to instead blow THREE weeks pay on a Mac because theirs is easier to use. The Escort guy is never going to be convinced to move up to the Lexus instead. I know that I'm certainly not willing to pay an extra grand to reclaim 4 square feet of desk space. Their new hemisphere-with-a-monitor-sticking-out computer looks dumb, not cool. And the color schemes they use are girly. Does Steve Jobs really have a penis?
But I digress....
The difference is that Apple could sell their Jag OS for the same price as MS sells their Escort OS. Let someone else deal with the 'god I hope we don't lose money on this PC' hardware market. CDroms are cheap to burn, and the developement costs drop very low when you sell a hundred million copies a year. That should be their goal.
As if a company whose primary business appears to be surfing for warez, movies, mp3s and kiddie pr0n isn't going to have multiple fat pipes to the net... Also, anyone as hated as them isn't going to have their website hosted off the same network as they surf from. I bet they get DoS attacks all the time on their website.
If you connect to a filesharing network or host a web server that is publicly linked to, you are effectively inviting the public to inspect your offered files. It's just as if you go to a trade show and get a dealer booth. You can't bitch when someone comes by and catches you selling something illegal.
The aren't saying that they probe your Windows box for all of the various insecurities and start downloading copies of any.jpgs or.mp3s to see if any of them are 'illegal'.
Anyone who publicly makes 40k mp3s available to anyone strolling by is a crackhead anyway. Never offer more than a small portion of your collection to strangers. Who needs 5 MONTHS of music on their hard drive anyway? And why would they want to buy enough bandwidth to share all of that?
Slashdot Mirror
They don't charge $1000 because that price range would force people to just buy a new computer instead. The retail store price for windows is about $150 more than what they charge computer manufacturers, though. This is because the average computer buyer pitches their restore disk when they buy their computer, or if they didn't even get one they likely delete the directory where the install files were located.
$200 is close to the limit where people just screw it and buy a new PC. If you shop around, you can get an OEM copy for $80. The big guys pay $45 or so per license. They average guy should be incensed that Microsoft sells retail boxed CDs for $180, but OEMs who play by MS's rules only have to pay $45.
It's what the DOJ settlement should have been. Everyone pays the same price for Windows, whether it's pre-installed or a store copy. And OEMs can add whatever software they want to the machine.
All of the other replies seemed to assume you are an idiot beginning an economics degree. Let me explain it to you as if you are just an idiot....
You're thinking of mark-up. Margin is when you figure out how much of your sale price is profit. It's much more useful.
Hold on for just a second. A can of coke costs about a nickle to make, can, ship and refrigerate and I just payed 0.75$ for it out of a vending machine.
What you fail to understand is that you can easily buy a case of 12 cans for $3, 25 cents a can. If you buy from the vending machine for 50 cents or more, you are paying for it to be refrigerated and convienently located.
You also fail to account for the fact that you can easily purchase store brand sodas for 15 cents per can. These cans can be cooled in your existing refigerator. Or poured over your industry standard ice (H2O sub 32 degrees F). They don't require that you retrofit your cars cup holder. They don't need special beverage containers to be properly sipped from. They can be consumed along with your meals just like your precious Coke.
So why does Coke sell so well at twice the price? Coca-Cola works VERY hard to make sure they get the best product placement. They make zero-profit deals with restaurants and college campuses just to make sure that their competitors don't get the sales instead of them. Because people are suckers for celebrity advertising.
There is a big difference in the monopoly that Coke exerts over the soft drink selection at your favorite restaurant vs. the monopoly power that Microsoft exerts over the software/OS market.
The only thing holding down the price of Windows and Office is the fear that consumers will become as outraged as their competitors.
This is just more proof that we live in a police state. There is no excuse for the FBI to be involved in this arrest. One cop with a warrant could have handled this between doughnut breaks without drawing his weapon.
Also, why is this a felony and not a civil matter? Cable companies should offer (unpublished) ultra high bandwidth for a grand per month. Collect evidence of the unauthorized use and bill them at the ultra high rate. Sue them if they fail to pay. They could easily win. Collection would be another matter, though they say they just want to set an example.
Bringing in the FBI to handle their problems is a theft of taxpayers' dollars.
Let me get this straight.... Intentia has a server that is full of files for the public consumption. Every file on that server is intended to be viewed by ANYONE. They then upload another file to the very public server, but THAT file will be considered 'hacked' by anyone who reads it before they announce it's release.
I hope to hell they don't have anyone's credit card numbers stored anywhere.
http://www.intentia.com/customerinformation.db
Actually, it wouldn't. (even if this crackpot idea achieved patent status) The patent states that it will select the cat based on fur color. The (working) flo-control device you linked to selects between Flo (the owner's cat) and other cats, or even other animals by comparing the profile view of the animal when it comes in. Also, the flo-control device's primary purpose was to keep Flo out when she was carrying dead animals in her mouth.
I'd bet that the RIAA has a computer that sifts through the music listings on ebay looking for anything containing 'CDR' or 'CD-R'. For every one of these, they probably automatically mail ebay a notice threatening to sue them if they don't remove the listing immediately. The RIAA is just like the mob, coming to collect any dime they can see. The only difference is that instead of beating you with a baseball bat, they send their lawyers after you to steal everything you own.
Crap like this is why I stopped buying CDs, BTW.
I've run thousands of listings on Ebay, and I'm pretty sure that they never go looking on their own. Your listing only gets forwarded to them if it offends someone, or if another seller wants to screw you for digging into their sales.
Don't they put out a decent supply of light? I bet case modders would color the glass and put in a view port so you can see it. It would be a rather unique sight at lan parties.
I'd be alot more worried about the torque on your CPU heatsink causing the die to crack if I dropped my computer. My uncle had an Athlon destroyed by a Dragon Orb when he just moved the computer to another room.
Try getting some strap on handles for your computer if dropping it is actually a possibilty. [Or mod it with some permanent ones.]
They commonly do exactly that.
The obvious liquid nitrogen ideas have been mentioned already. Try putting one end of a length of thick rubber tubing into the liquid nitrogen. Evaporating liquid at the bottom causes liquid above it to be propelled out the top of the tube. It makes a rather spectacular display as the liquid coming out rapidly evaporates. You can practice this first and aim it at unsuspecting audience members. They just get a chilly blast of nitrogen gas.
Disolving the copper coating off of pennies is fun.
Make soap bubbles in a dish using methane. Have someone scoop it up in their hand and then ignite it in a large burst of flame.
My AP physics teacher had a projectiles section where we launched pneumatic rockets at him from about 150 feet away. Each team's rocket launched at a slightly different pressure. We could time it's flight and measure the distance it went. We each had three shots to work out an appropriate launch angle and try and hit the teacher(A+) or get a lower grade for landing nearby.
Or Coca-cola.
Regional coding (mostly in DVDs) should be banned. Most DVDs released in other countries never come out here, and I shouldn't have to buy a second DVD player set to the another region to watch DVDs from overseas. If a movie doesn't get released in the theaters of a country overseas until AFTER the DVD release here in the US, the producing company doesn't deserve the financial help of any law to make up for their slow release schedule.
Regional coding is the kind of thing that I would expect from China, not the USA.
Nowadays you need to undergo background checks to get a pilots license. Even if they became cheap enough to compete with cars, you would have to contend with the possibility of nitwits crashing them into homes, or loading them up with explosives and piloting them into prominent buildings.
Besides, the only feasible way to do this would be if you could file a flight plan (go to X) and let an onboard computer do all of the piloting. But we haven't even been able to get cars to market that can navigate just the highways reliably, never mind local streets.
Automobiles are quite effective for local traffic. We need a better system for long trips. It seems like every other (small) developed country in the world has trains that run at 150 mph, but we are still stuck with Amtrack that averages just as slow as driving.
Pick up a used Palm 3 on ebay for about $60 and two sets of rechargable batteries. All the people buying the newer color Palms are dumping their old Palms for dirt cheap prices. You'll have all of the buttons of a real palm pilot, maybe more memory, and you won't be contributing to the toxic gadget-fills that we Americans are creating with our products that could easily be used for 10 years, but get thrown away after 3 years because they aren't cool anymore.
Is it really that hard to pick up two sets of rechargable batteries and a charger to sit next to your palm cradle?
"damn cool" while drawing as little attention to its self is kind of an oxymoron
I said 'OR'. If you can't be bothered to read the post, don't reply.
You even said your self that people buy PC's based on how they look.
Again, you have missed my point completely. In most homes, a computer is a tool. A tool to read the news, do your banking, make travel plans, or entertain youself. It is not something that rooms get focused on like a television. The standard PC beige-box design sticks out like a sore thumb. Early iMac color designs are 100% contrary to the typical color scheme of nearly anyone's living room. Newer Mac designs have a look-at-me white/light gray color scheme. My stereo, DVD player, CD player, VCRs, sattelite receiver, etc all blend well enough into the background that people ask what all of the remotes are for. A computer should do the same. I don't think the computer should be the first thing noticed when you walk into a living room. THAT is why HP sells so many of their machines. They are inobtrusive to the eye. They don't stick out. Whether you are buying a $500 model or a $2500 model, they do their job without drawing attention to themselves. And they all have the same design.
Please don't even compare a computer to a TV. Hardly anyone builds entertainment rooms around computers (myself excluded), but the TV is the FOCUS of at least one room in nearly every home in America. Unlike a computer, it is supposed to draw attention. People invite friends over to watch it. If your new 55 inch plasma TV has an eye-catching design, that's fine.
Once again, this is just your opinion.
{sarcasm}Thanks for the clue. As usual, I thought I was just quoting from the book of facts.{/sarcasm}
Single motor designs require a transaxle feeding power to each wheel. This adds up front costs and maintenance down the road. Cheaper car designs are going to get rid of the steering column, transmission and axles. There are too many designs in cars that are based on using an internal combustion engine and mechanical linkages.
Also, the motor doesn't just power the car, it also recovers energy by acting as the break while stopping. The whole vehicle needs to be energy efficient.
d seriously, whats with the 8 wheel design?
Bear in mind that this vehicle is about the length of a limousine, not a car or SUV.
8 wheels increase traction greatly. This allows greater delivery of power to accelerate even if each motor is providing less power. It also ensures that the maximum amount of energy is returned to the batteries when stopping rather than having to use mechanical brakes.
If you read the website deeper, you will also notice that each wheel is independently, hydraulically controlled, so that if a wheel goes flat, or breaks down, it can be retracted so that the vehicle can continue to run.
I imagine that if the rolling friction was too great, they could retract the inside wheels while driving for long stretches at highway speeds.
Lastly, 8 powered, steerable wheels make for a smooth ride that corners really well.
My point is, that by connecting to a public filesharing server, and giving blanket permission for ANYONE to download from you, you are implicitly giving permission for THEM to connect to your PC and examine the files that you are offering for ANYONE to download.
If you want to run a public FTP server, you need to put a message in the opening along the lines of 'This is a private server for downloading use only by Stuart Kahler. All others are considered to be trespassing and ordered to disconnect immediately per federal statute XXXXX.'. You then give out the IP address for people to connect to. At this point, anything obtained is done so illegally.
The real problem here is that a private investigation firm is doing all of the legwork instead of government authorities, so you have to get a better-than-average lawyer to fight the illegally obtained evidence.
The whole Mac line seems to have alot of pastel colors to it. Is it really a coincidence that EVERY time I pick my wife up from any hair salon, they all have their translucent iMacs up front? Pink isn't the only way to make something girly. And silver, gray and white are usually the colors seen on the Bride's side of a wedding.
I used to work in PC sales, and the fact is that women purchase PCs much more based on how they look. Hewlett Packard sells a TON of PCs and overpriced monitors to match them because their PCs aren't an eyesore in the living room. The color scheme is subdued, front drives and ports are covered, and some even have CD storage built into the top so you don't have media laying around.
Most of the girls I know wear a lot of black.
Most EVERYONE wears black. It goes with everything because it doesn't stand out like a sore thumb. That's why it's the standard color for all but the most expensive TVs and AV components. I would never buy a DVD player that had the same design sytle as the new iMac. The last thing I want while watching a movie is for the player to be vying for my attention.
Try FalconNorthWest, Voodoo, or Alienware for some cool looking PCs. A PC should either look damn cool, or try to draw as little attention to itself as possible. Your ugly iMac may seem hip yesterday, but it's going to be an eyesore soon when even your grandmother with dementia knows it's an ancient machine.
Since when does someone's computer have anything to do with their gender?
I suppose you drive a pink Cadillac? Eh, Mr. In-Touch-With-His-feminine-Side?
Unlike a car, the case of a PC is just a shell. Nobody is going to walk by and go 'Hey, that 6050Z is one sweet-ass machine! Can I try it out?'. (except for that one dork that memorizes the specs for every product model that he can't afford) The case is standard, no matter if you bought a top of the line machine, or scrounged out a $500 model. The appearance of your PC either needs to fit your personality, or fit into the background.
So buy a high end processor and underclock the heck out of it. I have an older PC that I use as an internet gateway and print server that just has a low speed fan on the CPU (hardly any noise) and nothing else. I have it clocked down to about 2/3 of the rated speed. Runs perfectly.
My workstations stay at full speed, because I run some intensive stuff. I paid for a fast computer and I want the productivity.
But Apple isn't out there trying to win away the high end users. They are trying to convert the Ford Escort and Hyundai Elantra people to buy their PCs. They are asking people who are going to spend a week's pay on a PC to instead blow THREE weeks pay on a Mac because theirs is easier to use.
The Escort guy is never going to be convinced to move up to the Lexus instead. I know that I'm certainly not willing to pay an extra grand to reclaim 4 square feet of desk space. Their new hemisphere-with-a-monitor-sticking-out computer looks dumb, not cool. And the color schemes they use are girly. Does Steve Jobs really have a penis?
But I digress....
The difference is that Apple could sell their Jag OS for the same price as MS sells their Escort OS. Let someone else deal with the 'god I hope we don't lose money on this PC' hardware market. CDroms are cheap to burn, and the developement costs drop very low when you sell a hundred million copies a year. That should be their goal.
As if a company whose primary business appears to be surfing for warez, movies, mp3s and kiddie pr0n isn't going to have multiple fat pipes to the net... Also, anyone as hated as them isn't going to have their website hosted off the same network as they surf from. I bet they get DoS attacks all the time on their website.
If you connect to a filesharing network or host a web server that is publicly linked to, you are effectively inviting the public to inspect your offered files. It's just as if you go to a trade show and get a dealer booth. You can't bitch when someone comes by and catches you selling something illegal. .jpgs or .mp3s to see if any of them are 'illegal'.
The aren't saying that they probe your Windows box for all of the various insecurities and start downloading copies of any
Anyone who publicly makes 40k mp3s available to anyone strolling by is a crackhead anyway. Never offer more than a small portion of your collection to strangers. Who needs 5 MONTHS of music on their hard drive anyway? And why would they want to buy enough bandwidth to share all of that?