You should check out Thomas Greene's article on this. He's a great journalist, IMHO. He makes many good points, but I especially agree with the point about the current American economy in the second to last paragraph. Also, I feel that since most people are pretty computer literate and can't stand spyware, spam, etc. they aren't going to buy into this. Remember how badly Intel got reamed with the processor serial thing a few years back? The more we educate people on how their rights are being screwed with these sort of things, the better off we'll be.
1. Too expensive. Doesn't competition equal lower prices and higher quality? Like I said, Apple should look elsewhere if Motorola is screwing them.
2. Lack of hardware/software. You can get a zillion little peripherals for the PC. And many thousands of software titles. You can get some hardware for the Mac, but only after jumping thru numerous hurdles and paying a helluva markup for "Apple certified" products.
3. Arrogance. Yes, I know everybody sticks with their favorite whatever, but the fact still remains that most Mac people have never used a PC or even Linux, God forbid. Yet they still say the usual "Windows sucks. Lin, uh, Lun, uh, that Penguin thing sucks too!" How the hell can you knock something you've never used??
Also in the arrogance area, why does Steve think we're all just going to drop everything, run to the Apple store, and plunk down $3000 for the newest Mac just because it was announced at Macworld? I'd better see some real performance numbers (MIPS? Memory Bandwidth?) before I throw down cold hard cash on a new box.
True, these are probably minor grips and most Mac junkies are too loyal to give two shits about Linux, but I think they are valid and are gaining steam among Mac users that feel like Apple has been screwing them lately. I simply want to know that my investment in Apple was a worthwhile one. Any investment in Microsoft sure seems to bite you in the ass these days.
BTW: If you'd like to donate a new Sun workstation to me, be my guest. I sure can't spring $10K. I've heard time and time again that SPARC processors simply rock.
Yep, I know my post had less coherency than a crack fiend, but sometimes ya just gotta vent.;)
Steve said that "Apple is the number one supplier of Unix worldwide. Bigger than Sun, bigger than Linux..." If Steve said it, it must be true. Other than the fact that Linux is NOT Unix, but merely a clone. And since when was Linux a,uhm, company supplying UNIX??
I own a Mac too, (G4, 640 Megs memory 2x 18G SCSI, Radeon 8500) but let's face it, Mac OS X is nothing more than FreeBSD 4.4 (pretty outdated by my standards) running Aqua as a window manager. Oh and by the way, it has a crap-load of Open Source goodies rebranded to sound like they came straight from Cupertino.
I'll give Apple one thing: If you think Apple hardware is fscking expensive, try buying a new Sun workstation! I could put a good down payment on a car for that much!
So, the question I have for Apple is: If you want the "average" Windows user to switch platforms, how are you going to convince them to pony up 3x more than a PC with less than a third of the available software? Keep in mind that the average computer user likes to swap out hardware quite a bit instead of buying a new machine every 9 months.
Steve said himself that there are "over 1500 Mac OS X apps". Most of these are haxies or simply Linux software such as GCC or Samba that have been ported over. Or maybe the iApps that are so amazing. Obviously Photoshop wasn't the "killer app" that makes everbody want OS X... So, how about something useful that doesn't cost a kidney to own (Office X, cough, cough)
With all this in mind, I'm not the least bit surprised that Linux is outdoing the Mac. I am surprised that the margin between the two is so close. For one, I can build a box that outperforms even the newest dual 1.2 Gig G4s (Uh, people use more than just Photoshop, Apple. You also haven't benchmarked the Athlons, which beat the shit out of all but the fastest P4s...) and has the latest and greatest hardware for well under $1K. Also keep in mind that the average PC user doesn't throw his entire box away after seeing new product announcements just to have the latest and greatest. If it's that hard to get Motorola to build faster G4s, then you should look elsewhere. Add to that the fact that your typical Linux distro (I also ripped into Macslash.org for calling Mac OS X a "distro")has many thousands of apps and goodies and no DRM, spyware, or product activation bullshit like Windows, and I just plain fail to see why anybody would want to bother with Mac or Windows.
Steve, it's time to break out of the Reality Distortion Field(TM) and offer cheaper hardware to get better penetration in the Windows camp.
Bill, you can take your "Trusted Computing", DRM, WMP9,.NET, buying the U.S. government, BSA, incompatibilities, daily security "patches", Big Brother EULAs and shove them up your fat, money grubbing ass.
In the words of Chandler Bing: "Could I BE more sick of corporate bullshit?"
In A.D. 2101 War was beginning. IT Guy: What happen ? End user: Somebody set up us the auto-update. Network Admin: We get signal. IT Guy: What ! Network Admin: Main screen turn on. IT Guy: It's You !! Billg: How are you gentlemen !! Billg: All your boXen are belong to us. Billg: You are on the way to destruction. IT Guy: What you say !! Billg: You have no chance to survive make your time. Billg: HA HA HA HA....
RIAA CEO Hilary Rosen said in a statement that Berman's bill was "an innovative approach," adding that "it makes sense to clarify existing laws to ensure that copyright owners--those who actually take the time and effort to create an artistic work--are at least able to defend their works from mass piracy."
And all this time I thought musical artists were the ones creating music and not the RIAA. Now we see what Hilary really thinks of the people she's supposed to be representing... Lets not forget that when you sell your soul to the RIAA, you no longer own any music you've created. Here's the proof. Or is Lars readying to "pilfer the grabasses"?
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You should check out Thomas Greene's article on this. He's a great journalist, IMHO. He makes many good points, but I especially agree with the point about the current American economy in the second to last paragraph. Also, I feel that since most people are pretty computer literate and can't stand spyware, spam, etc. they aren't going to buy into this. Remember how badly Intel got reamed with the processor serial thing a few years back? The more we educate people on how their rights are being screwed with these sort of things, the better off we'll be.
My main beef with the Mac is:
;)
1. Too expensive. Doesn't competition equal lower prices and higher quality? Like I said, Apple should look elsewhere if Motorola is screwing them.
2. Lack of hardware/software. You can get a zillion little peripherals for the PC. And many thousands of software titles. You can get some hardware for the Mac, but only after jumping thru numerous hurdles and paying a helluva markup for "Apple certified" products.
3. Arrogance. Yes, I know everybody sticks with their favorite whatever, but the fact still remains that most Mac people have never used a PC or even Linux, God forbid. Yet they still say the usual "Windows sucks. Lin, uh, Lun, uh, that Penguin thing sucks too!" How the hell can you knock something you've never used??
Also in the arrogance area, why does Steve think we're all just going to drop everything, run to the Apple store, and plunk down $3000 for the newest Mac just because it was announced at Macworld? I'd better see some real performance numbers (MIPS? Memory Bandwidth?) before I throw down cold hard cash on a new box.
True, these are probably minor grips and most Mac junkies are too loyal to give two shits about Linux, but I think they are valid and are gaining steam among Mac users that feel like Apple has been screwing them lately. I simply want to know that my investment in Apple was a worthwhile one. Any investment in Microsoft sure seems to bite you in the ass these days.
BTW: If you'd like to donate a new Sun workstation to me, be my guest. I sure can't spring $10K. I've heard time and time again that SPARC processors simply rock.
Yep, I know my post had less coherency than a crack fiend, but sometimes ya just gotta vent.
Steve said that "Apple is the number one supplier of Unix worldwide. Bigger than Sun, bigger than Linux..." If Steve said it, it must be true. Other than the fact that Linux is NOT Unix, but merely a clone. And since when was Linux a ,uhm, company supplying UNIX??
.NET, buying the U.S. government, BSA, incompatibilities, daily security "patches", Big Brother EULAs and shove them up your fat, money grubbing ass.
I own a Mac too, (G4, 640 Megs memory 2x 18G SCSI, Radeon 8500) but let's face it, Mac OS X is nothing more than FreeBSD 4.4 (pretty outdated by my standards) running Aqua as a window manager. Oh and by the way, it has a crap-load of Open Source goodies rebranded to sound like they came straight from Cupertino.
I'll give Apple one thing: If you think Apple hardware is fscking expensive, try buying a new Sun workstation! I could put a good down payment on a car for that much!
So, the question I have for Apple is: If you want the "average" Windows user to switch platforms, how are you going to convince them to pony up 3x more than a PC with less than a third of the available software? Keep in mind that the average computer user likes to swap out hardware quite a bit instead of buying a new machine every 9 months.
Steve said himself that there are "over 1500 Mac OS X apps". Most of these are haxies or simply Linux software such as GCC or Samba that have been ported over. Or maybe the iApps that are so amazing. Obviously Photoshop wasn't the "killer app" that makes everbody want OS X... So, how about something useful that doesn't cost a kidney to own (Office X, cough, cough)
With all this in mind, I'm not the least bit surprised that Linux is outdoing the Mac. I am surprised that the margin between the two is so close. For one, I can build a box that outperforms even the newest dual 1.2 Gig G4s (Uh, people use more than just Photoshop, Apple. You also haven't benchmarked the Athlons, which beat the shit out of all but the fastest P4s...) and has the latest and greatest hardware for well under $1K. Also keep in mind that the average PC user doesn't throw his entire box away after seeing new product announcements just to have the latest and greatest. If it's that hard to get Motorola to build faster G4s, then you should look elsewhere. Add to that the fact that your typical Linux distro (I also ripped into Macslash.org for calling Mac OS X a "distro")has many thousands of apps and goodies and no DRM, spyware, or product activation bullshit like Windows, and I just plain fail to see why anybody would want to bother with Mac or Windows.
Steve, it's time to break out of the Reality Distortion Field(TM) and offer cheaper hardware to get better penetration in the Windows camp.
Bill, you can take your "Trusted Computing", DRM, WMP9,
In the words of Chandler Bing: "Could I BE more sick of corporate bullshit?"
...it's got to be running Linux, because if it was running IIS on Windows, the 150 ton hand of the BSA audit department would crush it in no time.
They claim the vehicle uses 12 standard car batteries, so the invention appears to relate to recharging the batteries.
But do those 12 batteries generate the required 1.21 Gigawatts required for time travel? I think not... Better look for the nearest clock tower...
Before you "rip" another record, you should know you may be violating sections of the lesser known AMCA (Analog Millenium Copyright Act)...
Look out, here comes Rosen & Co.
Please let me know what makes Win2k "good"? =)
ditto for Hotline(where most of the Mac goodies are anyways)... =)
I can see it now: Look out Gamers, here comes Valenti!
This article may be the single best thing to come from Microsoft. It hasn't crashed yet, but I'm sure it's vulnerable to attack (by the RIAA).
In A.D. 2101 ....
War was beginning.
IT Guy: What happen ?
End user: Somebody set up us the auto-update.
Network Admin: We get signal.
IT Guy: What !
Network Admin: Main screen turn on.
IT Guy: It's You !!
Billg: How are you gentlemen !!
Billg: All your boXen are belong to us.
Billg: You are on the way to destruction.
IT Guy: What you say !!
Billg: You have no chance to survive make your time.
Billg: HA HA HA HA
RIAA CEO Hilary Rosen said in a statement that Berman's bill was "an innovative approach," adding that "it makes sense to clarify existing laws to ensure that copyright owners--those who actually take the time and effort to create an artistic work--are at least able to defend their works from mass piracy."
And all this time I thought musical artists were the ones creating music and not the RIAA. Now we see what Hilary really thinks of the people she's supposed to be representing... Lets not forget that when you sell your soul to the RIAA, you no longer own any music you've created. Here's the proof. Or is Lars readying to "pilfer the grabasses"?
I have no doubt that this Rock thinks we're all a bunch of Jabroni's
Hell, Lumbergh fucked her...
... to get one until they have AGP 8x, a DVD burner, and 3d acceleration. Then I can "fridge frag" someone in Quake 3.
Have you forgotten about Darwin? It's based on BSD. 4.4 BSD I beleive...