Keyboards like that already exist. There is the "Happy Hacking" keyboard layout, which is basically a 101 keyboard with everything to the right of F12 lopped off. If I remember right, IBM even made a version of the famous Model M that way. And then there is my favorite, which is the Deck 82 key. At first, I thought I would not be able to live without the numeric keypad. And sure, at times I do miss it. But overall, I like the extra desk space more than the keypad.
True, but what good is the processor if you don't have a good motherboard to stick it into? I found the VIA chipset boards to be crap, and I didn't have much better luck with the AMD chipset ones either. I had a lot of problems with the socket A systems I built, until I started using nForce2 boards - those seem to be alright.
Apple chooses not to compete in the "build your own computer" market. They don't have a microscope big enough to find said market.
That's real funny, considering that their marketshare is right around 2% when it comes to desktop PCs. The DIY crowd, combined with the small whitebox manufacturers hold about 8% the last I heard.
Most computers sold by Dell do not live past 18 month mark with average non-technical user. At which time they have $0 resell value. Actually negative value, since you need to pay for recycling. After these 18 months and usually much sooner the only way out is a costly repair or what most people opt for, buying a new Dell.
The average lifespan of a Dell is a lot longer than 18 months. Even if the you didn't want the machine, you would have no problems giving away P4 class hardware.
After 18 months, the resell value of Mac is usually still very high, way over half the original price and the computer is still working fine even after twice as long for a non-technical user. Any way you slice it, this brings the value of Apple computers to more than twice the value of comparable Dell.
That's assuming that the current crop of Macs hold up their resale value. The fact that they have pretty much the same hardware as a PC, combined with the reputation that the new Macs have for problems makes me doubt that they will have as strong 2nd hand market as previous Macs. And don't forget that anyone who bought a PPC Mac right before the switch has watched as the resale of their machine value plummets.
Apple is competing on price. You just need to remember: We aren't rich enough to be able to afford cheap things.
You don't get it. That's called competing on quality. As in "We have a product that costs a bit more, but the extra quality is worth the extra cost in the long run." Walmart competes on price, not Apple.
But does Honda compete with Kia on price? Isn't this closer to the analogy of Apple v. Dell?
No, not really. Honda costs more than Kia. They also cost more than Chevy, Ford, Dodge, and even the likes of Nissan. They compete by providing a superior product.
I completey miss your point, but I also completely disagree with the "2-3 times as much".
Of course Apple machines cost more; good quality, long lasting, intelligent products do. But 10-20%, not 2-3 times.
People tend to decide what they want, then they go shopping for it. Most people just want a car that'll get them from point A to point B, in relative safety and comfort. They buy a Honda because it can do that at the cheapest cost. Sure, the cheapest Mercedes can do that too, and to equip a Honda in a similar fashion puts the cost about the same. But both cars are too expensive to the buyer. They are both similar, and include features that are nice but the buyer doesn't want to pay for. So they buy a basic Civic or Accord.
Same applies to the Mac vs. the PC. The buyer sees a PC system that can do what they want for $300-$500, and the Mac Mini for $599+keyboard/mouse/monitor, and the PC is 1/3-1/2 the cost. So they buy the cheap PC. Sure, there is some PC that is more similar to the Mac that costs about the same as the Mac, but they don't care about all this "equilivent PC" crap Mac users like to talk about. To them, the Mac *IS* quite a bit more expensive.
That's great if you really want or need a small form factor computer. A lot people are willing to give up a bit of space for a computer that is cheaper. Or comes with a bigger and faster 3.5" harddrive. Or expansion slots. Or has a better video card (or atleast makes it easy to add one). Considering that you can get that for Mac Mini prices in the PC world, but you have to pay a lot more to get that in a Mac, I could say that Apple doesn't come close on price either:)
There is more than the two extremes of Apple and the cheapest Dell crap. I can get a quality machine with the performance and features I want without paying Apple prices for it by building it myself*. I'm pretty much always cheaper than the OEM PC makers too. The only time I find to buy OEM is the extreme low end - I can't build a $300 system as nice as Dell can, or if I want something like a really small form factor - in which case you can't beat the Mac Mini.
*Of course, Apple makes this easy when I want things like expansion slots, not integrated with the monitor, and more than one 3.5" harddrive, given the price of the cheapest PowerMacs.
The problem is that the "cheap crap" does what most users want, thus they buy that instead of the Apple machine that costs 2-3 times as much.
Apple isn't competing in price. In order to compete in price you have to be cheaper than the competitors lower end products. To use a car analogy, Kia competes with Honda on price. Mercedes doesn't compete with Honda on price, even though you could certainly say their lower end models featurewise are equilivent to some of Toyota's high end models at a similar cost.
Yeap, I'm biased too. I have used Macs, and overall I like them. But the arrogance and elitism exhibited by both the users and the company pretty much means I'm going to stick with my "made for the common man" PCs for now.
What stupid IT manager figured to get Generation 1 Macs for your business. Any IT manager who knows anything it is to be more conservative and wait for Gen 2.
It's not like they had a lot of choice, given that Apple pretty much stop selling the PPC version of a system once they released the Intel version. And sometimes you just don't have a lot of choice when it comes to the time to buy new systems.
And of course, there is always the the people who absolutely needed an Intel Mac, because they had to dual boot or because they were developing software for the Intel Mac.
If you are so sick of activating Windows XP, why not use a WPA crack (Windows product activation crack)
That's risky. First of all, the hack itself could be a trojan or other malware. Even if it's not malicious and from a trusted source, it's still a hack that could very well break Windows. And even if you get it successfully installed, Microsoft could easily "accidently" break your system with some update. At the very least it's certain that they will likely break the hack, which means you have to hunt down another crack.
I find it easier just to not run IE, not run Outlook Express, and run a software and hardware firewalls, and just stay behind the curve when it comes to Windows updates so I don't have to deal with WGA.
While the connection itself may take very little power, due to inefficiencies in the RF gear, as well as in the power supplies to power the gear, you are probably pulling atleast a couple of watts continously to power that connection. Sure, it's not much, but it does add up - my main computer, when it's "off" as well as the all the accessories are "off", draws about 10 watts total power from the wall. Or right about zero when I flip the switch on the power strip.
Monitors are going to be a problem. Take this flat panel - 32 bits per pixel, 1600x1200 pixels, updated 60 times a second ~ 460MB/s over the DVI cable if I did my math right. Though sound should be possible, I have one of those USB sound cards that works fine over a USB "Full Speed" (12mbps) port.
I have some used HP Vectras that come apart just as easily. I can pop open the side, remove the harddrive cage, optical drives, install and replace AGP, PCI, (and on the old ones) ISA cards, and install ram without a screw driver and only in a couple of minutes total. Pretty much every mid to high end "corporate" class PC I have come accross is built in a similar fashion, though for some reason people around here seem to think it's just a Mac thing.
Tablet PCs are very much a niche technology. Apple doesn't sell enough computers to make such an alternative model profitable.
I wouldn't be so sure. An Apple tablet PC could very well flop - that's for sure, but remember Apple pretty much dominates the niche market of all-in-one desktops, as well as the niche market for ultra-small desktops. They also took over what was once a niche market that appealed only to geeks - the portable MP3 player - and turned it into something everyone wanted. If they do it right, they could pretty much corner the market for tablet PCs.
moveon wasn't pulling this kind of shit in a much more public forum not too long ago? so what if it was a PR firm, moveon is really no different.
You're wrong. There is a huge difference between a political party directly doing this stuff (the GOP), and a third party doing it (moveon.org, Michael Moore, etc.).
For faxes, non-whitelist numbers are automatically disconnected.
How dull. I would have the server auto-negotiate down to a very slow speed, and use lots of flow control. Though you may want to set it up so it only behaves this way during the night, otherwise you could be without a phone for a good chunk of the day.
I need to copy my 5.25's before they turn into dust. Fuck, it's been 20 years, they are dust...
You might be surprised - disks from back then were designed to last more than 3 seconds after they were written to. I would say a majority of my old disks are still readable, as well as good fraction of the cassette tapes. Of course, there is also a good amount of them that have been lost to time.
I agree, buy used. A while back I spent about $75 for a used HP Laserjet 4+ with a 10mbps ethernet adaptor in it and it even came with a toner cartridge. So far, a few thousand trouble free pages out of it, and I haven't even had to replace the already used toner cartridge I got with it (though it has be getting low by now). A Laserjet 5 series will probably run you about $150 or more, but is still a good deal if it can do what you want it to do.
A good place to look is someplace that deals with retired office equipment, such as RetroBox - though I suggest trying to find a local source, as old Laserjets are built like tanks and shipping them can get very expensive.
Off the top of my head, I think the GX280 is a P4 based system, and uses DRR266 memory. An AMD 754 system uses DDR400 memory. So it's basically the same stuff, except your memory is faster. You should be able to swap the memory sticks around, however if you put the Dell's memory into the AMD system you'll have to slow the memory speed down to 266Mhz in the BIOS.
Assuming those Dell machines use DDR memory, I would recommend staying late one night and nicking a couple of sticks of memory from them. It'll probably help your machine a lot, and won't really hurt the Dells much (almost every Dell I have worked with in the last 5-6 years seemed to perform well below what their specs would lead you to believe - like P3 systems performing like a decent P2 system, etc).
It's not like everything out there is something rehashed from 40 years ago. Off the top of my head, in the past few years we have been introduced to the Serenity universe, the Riddick universe, Matrix universe, the Star Wreck universe, and if you step away from the Sci Fi realm - the Pirates of the Carribean "universe". The problem is that there is always a risk when going with something new - that it will flop (atleast commercially). Which is why film makers like to go with the "tried and true". Star Trek is well known, has an established fan base, and plenty of people will go to see it just because it's Star Trek. Financially, the new Star Trek film is a pretty safe bet. It could be a smashing success, but even if it's absolutely dreadful - I'm sure it will still do alright due to the huge Trekkie following.
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Keyboards like that already exist. There is the "Happy Hacking" keyboard layout, which is basically a 101 keyboard with everything to the right of F12 lopped off. If I remember right, IBM even made a version of the famous Model M that way. And then there is my favorite, which is the Deck 82 key. At first, I thought I would not be able to live without the numeric keypad. And sure, at times I do miss it. But overall, I like the extra desk space more than the keypad.
C'mon, you're the alpha geek. Why not remap the Caps lock key to something else? Even better, just switch to Dvorak - that'll show her.
True, but what good is the processor if you don't have a good motherboard to stick it into? I found the VIA chipset boards to be crap, and I didn't have much better luck with the AMD chipset ones either. I had a lot of problems with the socket A systems I built, until I started using nForce2 boards - those seem to be alright.
Apple chooses not to compete in the "build your own computer" market. They don't have a microscope big enough to find said market.
That's real funny, considering that their marketshare is right around 2% when it comes to desktop PCs. The DIY crowd, combined with the small whitebox manufacturers hold about 8% the last I heard.
Most computers sold by Dell do not live past 18 month mark with average non-technical user. At which time they have $0 resell value. Actually negative value, since you need to pay for recycling. After these 18 months and usually much sooner the only way out is a costly repair or what most people opt for, buying a new Dell.
The average lifespan of a Dell is a lot longer than 18 months. Even if the you didn't want the machine, you would have no problems giving away P4 class hardware.
After 18 months, the resell value of Mac is usually still very high, way over half the original price and the computer is still working fine even after twice as long for a non-technical user. Any way you slice it, this brings the value of Apple computers to more than twice the value of comparable Dell.
That's assuming that the current crop of Macs hold up their resale value. The fact that they have pretty much the same hardware as a PC, combined with the reputation that the new Macs have for problems makes me doubt that they will have as strong 2nd hand market as previous Macs. And don't forget that anyone who bought a PPC Mac right before the switch has watched as the resale of their machine value plummets.
Apple is competing on price. You just need to remember: We aren't rich enough to be able to afford cheap things.
You don't get it. That's called competing on quality. As in "We have a product that costs a bit more, but the extra quality is worth the extra cost in the long run." Walmart competes on price, not Apple.
Huh???
But does Honda compete with Kia on price? Isn't this closer to the analogy of Apple v. Dell?
No, not really. Honda costs more than Kia. They also cost more than Chevy, Ford, Dodge, and even the likes of Nissan. They compete by providing a superior product.
I completey miss your point, but I also completely disagree with the "2-3 times as much".
Of course Apple machines cost more; good quality, long lasting, intelligent products do. But 10-20%, not 2-3 times.
People tend to decide what they want, then they go shopping for it. Most people just want a car that'll get them from point A to point B, in relative safety and comfort. They buy a Honda because it can do that at the cheapest cost. Sure, the cheapest Mercedes can do that too, and to equip a Honda in a similar fashion puts the cost about the same. But both cars are too expensive to the buyer. They are both similar, and include features that are nice but the buyer doesn't want to pay for. So they buy a basic Civic or Accord.
Same applies to the Mac vs. the PC. The buyer sees a PC system that can do what they want for $300-$500, and the Mac Mini for $599+keyboard/mouse/monitor, and the PC is 1/3-1/2 the cost. So they buy the cheap PC. Sure, there is some PC that is more similar to the Mac that costs about the same as the Mac, but they don't care about all this "equilivent PC" crap Mac users like to talk about. To them, the Mac *IS* quite a bit more expensive.
That's great if you really want or need a small form factor computer. A lot people are willing to give up a bit of space for a computer that is cheaper. Or comes with a bigger and faster 3.5" harddrive. Or expansion slots. Or has a better video card (or atleast makes it easy to add one). Considering that you can get that for Mac Mini prices in the PC world, but you have to pay a lot more to get that in a Mac, I could say that Apple doesn't come close on price either :)
There is more than the two extremes of Apple and the cheapest Dell crap. I can get a quality machine with the performance and features I want without paying Apple prices for it by building it myself*. I'm pretty much always cheaper than the OEM PC makers too. The only time I find to buy OEM is the extreme low end - I can't build a $300 system as nice as Dell can, or if I want something like a really small form factor - in which case you can't beat the Mac Mini.
*Of course, Apple makes this easy when I want things like expansion slots, not integrated with the monitor, and more than one 3.5" harddrive, given the price of the cheapest PowerMacs.
The problem is that the "cheap crap" does what most users want, thus they buy that instead of the Apple machine that costs 2-3 times as much.
Apple isn't competing in price. In order to compete in price you have to be cheaper than the competitors lower end products. To use a car analogy, Kia competes with Honda on price. Mercedes doesn't compete with Honda on price, even though you could certainly say their lower end models featurewise are equilivent to some of Toyota's high end models at a similar cost.
Yes, but it will be the first generation with the Merom processor! Oh no! Better wait for the 2nd generation!
Yeap, I'm biased too. I have used Macs, and overall I like them. But the arrogance and elitism exhibited by both the users and the company pretty much means I'm going to stick with my "made for the common man" PCs for now.
What stupid IT manager figured to get Generation 1 Macs for your business. Any IT manager who knows anything it is to be more conservative and wait for Gen 2.
It's not like they had a lot of choice, given that Apple pretty much stop selling the PPC version of a system once they released the Intel version. And sometimes you just don't have a lot of choice when it comes to the time to buy new systems.
And of course, there is always the the people who absolutely needed an Intel Mac, because they had to dual boot or because they were developing software for the Intel Mac.
If you are so sick of activating Windows XP, why not use a WPA crack (Windows product activation crack)
That's risky. First of all, the hack itself could be a trojan or other malware. Even if it's not malicious and from a trusted source, it's still a hack that could very well break Windows. And even if you get it successfully installed, Microsoft could easily "accidently" break your system with some update. At the very least it's certain that they will likely break the hack, which means you have to hunt down another crack.
I find it easier just to not run IE, not run Outlook Express, and run a software and hardware firewalls, and just stay behind the curve when it comes to Windows updates so I don't have to deal with WGA.
Try using the infamous pre-SP1 vlk that starts with FCKGW
That probably wouldn't work, as that key is blacklisted from even downloading SP1, which means no WGA for you.
While the connection itself may take very little power, due to inefficiencies in the RF gear, as well as in the power supplies to power the gear, you are probably pulling atleast a couple of watts continously to power that connection. Sure, it's not much, but it does add up - my main computer, when it's "off" as well as the all the accessories are "off", draws about 10 watts total power from the wall. Or right about zero when I flip the switch on the power strip.
Monitors are going to be a problem. Take this flat panel - 32 bits per pixel, 1600x1200 pixels, updated 60 times a second ~ 460MB/s over the DVI cable if I did my math right. Though sound should be possible, I have one of those USB sound cards that works fine over a USB "Full Speed" (12mbps) port.
I have some used HP Vectras that come apart just as easily. I can pop open the side, remove the harddrive cage, optical drives, install and replace AGP, PCI, (and on the old ones) ISA cards, and install ram without a screw driver and only in a couple of minutes total. Pretty much every mid to high end "corporate" class PC I have come accross is built in a similar fashion, though for some reason people around here seem to think it's just a Mac thing.
Tablet PCs are very much a niche technology. Apple doesn't sell enough computers to make such an alternative model profitable.
I wouldn't be so sure. An Apple tablet PC could very well flop - that's for sure, but remember Apple pretty much dominates the niche market of all-in-one desktops, as well as the niche market for ultra-small desktops. They also took over what was once a niche market that appealed only to geeks - the portable MP3 player - and turned it into something everyone wanted. If they do it right, they could pretty much corner the market for tablet PCs.
moveon wasn't pulling this kind of shit in a much more public forum not too long ago? so what if it was a PR firm, moveon is really no different.
You're wrong. There is a huge difference between a political party directly doing this stuff (the GOP), and a third party doing it (moveon.org, Michael Moore, etc.).
For faxes, non-whitelist numbers are automatically disconnected.
How dull. I would have the server auto-negotiate down to a very slow speed, and use lots of flow control. Though you may want to set it up so it only behaves this way during the night, otherwise you could be without a phone for a good chunk of the day.
I need to copy my 5.25's before they turn into dust. Fuck, it's been 20 years, they are dust...
You might be surprised - disks from back then were designed to last more than 3 seconds after they were written to. I would say a majority of my old disks are still readable, as well as good fraction of the cassette tapes. Of course, there is also a good amount of them that have been lost to time.
I agree, buy used. A while back I spent about $75 for a used HP Laserjet 4+ with a 10mbps ethernet adaptor in it and it even came with a toner cartridge. So far, a few thousand trouble free pages out of it, and I haven't even had to replace the already used toner cartridge I got with it (though it has be getting low by now). A Laserjet 5 series will probably run you about $150 or more, but is still a good deal if it can do what you want it to do.
A good place to look is someplace that deals with retired office equipment, such as RetroBox - though I suggest trying to find a local source, as old Laserjets are built like tanks and shipping them can get very expensive.
Off the top of my head, I think the GX280 is a P4 based system, and uses DRR266 memory. An AMD 754 system uses DDR400 memory. So it's basically the same stuff, except your memory is faster. You should be able to swap the memory sticks around, however if you put the Dell's memory into the AMD system you'll have to slow the memory speed down to 266Mhz in the BIOS.
Assuming those Dell machines use DDR memory, I would recommend staying late one night and nicking a couple of sticks of memory from them. It'll probably help your machine a lot, and won't really hurt the Dells much (almost every Dell I have worked with in the last 5-6 years seemed to perform well below what their specs would lead you to believe - like P3 systems performing like a decent P2 system, etc).
It's not like everything out there is something rehashed from 40 years ago. Off the top of my head, in the past few years we have been introduced to the Serenity universe, the Riddick universe, Matrix universe, the Star Wreck universe, and if you step away from the Sci Fi realm - the Pirates of the Carribean "universe". The problem is that there is always a risk when going with something new - that it will flop (atleast commercially). Which is why film makers like to go with the "tried and true". Star Trek is well known, has an established fan base, and plenty of people will go to see it just because it's Star Trek. Financially, the new Star Trek film is a pretty safe bet. It could be a smashing success, but even if it's absolutely dreadful - I'm sure it will still do alright due to the huge Trekkie following.