I 100% agree with all of your points. However, that doesn't change the current state of things. Yes, for people with a bit of knowledge, Linux is usable now. Yes, there are reasons Gnome is hideous. Yes, there are reasons I can't drag between any two apps on my screen. Yes, etc, etc, yes. At the end of the day though, it still sucks. I use Debian daily for testing purposes, but I always can't wait to get back to OS X. Luckily for me, either is just a reboot away.
>> "Installing Applications is complicated" > No, it isn't. It's different than what people are accustomed to, but it sure isn't complicated.
Compared to OS X, it is. Most OS X installs consist of one step: "Drag to the Applications folder". And even if you don't do that, it usually works anyway; Just download and run. In my 15 years as a Mac user, I've not once had a problem with an install. The same cannot be said for my experiences as a Linux user.
>> "Directory structures can be confusing to navigate" > Yes, Joe User and my mom don't use linux because of its confusing directory structure. Please... > And don't tell me the directory structure of other systems make more sense, it doesn't.
OS X's structure makes much more sense. Applications are in/Applications. NOT/usr/bin, in one massive folder along with libraries and god knows what else. And furthermore, if for some reason they stick their program in ~/Documents instead, the program will still work just fine, and the computer will still find it if it needs it to open some document. If I want to uninstall an app, I drag it to the Trash: Done.
>> "Interface is confusing and inconsistent" > While I agree that it is far from perfect it sure isn't more confusing or inconsistent than the alternatives.
I'm sorry, but when it comes to consistency, Linux is a complete abomination compared to OS X. Cross-application consistency has always been a strong point of the Mac, and continues to be until this day. Every text field in every program works the same way, sources the same dictionary, remembers the same settings, etc. Apps use the same key commands. Hell, I can drag an image out of Safari onto Photoshop in the Dock, and it opens up fine. I can add a menu shortcut to every single Cocoa application at once. Don't like that all programs have Minimize as command-M? Change it. Don't like that there's no key command for Customize Toolbar...? Add one. People don't even *think* about doing stuff like this in any other system. All programs respond to Applescript, all programs have the same look, etc etc.
>> "Steep learning curve required to understand system functions" > As is the case with any OS out there.
But again, OS X does the best job. Want to run an FTP server? Open up the Sharing system preference, select FTP, and click "Start". Yes, it is that easy -- And if you didn't know what to click, just type in "FTP" in the search field, or even "host files" or whatever, and System Preferences will highlight the correct preference pane for you to click. Unbelievably simple and elegant.
Want to add a new account? Click "Accounts", and click Add. Want to change the Startup Disk? Click "Startup Disk". Etc etc. I still have no idea how to change startup disks on a Linux machine.
Anyone who says Linux is as good as anything else out there hasn't used OS X. Don't get me wrong; Linux is great. I run a dual-boot Debian/OS X system. However, as a desktop machine, Linux isn't even close to the Mac.
Take Adium. No other OS has such a good, solid, beautiful, well-integrated IM client. No other OS has such a simple and sexy IRC client (Colloquy). Quicksilver is a downright godsend, and gives you the productivity of a text-based interface when it is a better solution. The truth is, OS X has the best apps because Cocoa is fantastic. It essentially forces you to great good looking and consistent applications. If you haven't experience Mac shareware/freeware, then you're missing a big part of what makes it the best desktop platform currently available.
And just for the record, my Powerbook is a dual-boot OS X/Debian system... Please don't group all us Mac users together. Like *any* other group, most of the people involved are idiots.
You have no idea what you're talking about. I was giving a very specific example of how software can be installed without administrator privilages in an elegant way. Furthermore, I was talking about access control lists (ACL), which are to my knowledge not available under any other unix-based OS besides OS X. Such lists allow for much greater granularity in control than traditional unix permissions. OS X is a lot more than a pretty GUI. I will agree Mac users can be incredibly annoying, but do give credit where credit is due.
This is just one more example of why software binaries should be installed via drag and drop a la OS X. Also, given OS X's extensive permissions settings (access control lists, which go above and beyond any other unix by far), I can really control which folders people are allowed to access with ease.
The reason BSD continues to exist is that, despite what capitalism assumes, not all people are assholes who feel the need to own and control everything. If I write software and release it under as BSD license, and then come company uses it, is my software any worse off? Of course not. However, people now do have one more avenue to take if for some reason I stop developing my version, or if the commercial version advances at a more rapid pace. The GPL on the other hand somehow assumes that a company using open code to benefit themselves, and hence making better software available to everyone, is a bad thing, because people are making money off of it. Any company with good intentions is going to give back to the community (see the first comment in this thread about Apple). Any company without an interest in helping out won't use GPL code anyway, so the argument that GPL is the only way to encourage contributions is silly. In fact, if not for the BSD license, FreeBSD wouldn't be benefiting from Apple's contributions at all!
BSD works because not everyone is an asshole. The fact that you're shocked it does work is a testament to the terrible state our world is in today. Modern economic theory is an idiotic, self-fulfulling prophesy.
No no no. I was saying if a total chip has a 25% defect rate, and a defect can be due to only one thing being wrong in the chip (even if thousands are right), then the redundancy would bring up the total chip success rate to over 99%.
Folders, ARE NOT REAL. They are labels created for your convenience in an extremely limited database. Your file does not exist in a manila sheet of folded paper on your hard drive.
The fact that so many users think folders ARE real is evidence of how strong of an organizational metaphor it is. Back in OS 9, if you opened up a folder, the window that popped up WAS that folder. It wasn't a view of some data or anything like that. It was actually the folder. In OS X, where folders open in the same window (by default), this effect is lessened as a concession to cleanliness, but it is still there. The desktop/folder/file metaphor is very limiting, yes, but at the same time it works so well because it is analogous to real life. If we ditch having "true" locations, and files start showing up in multiple "smart folders" at once, what happens when you try to delete the file from one of the folders? Are you just removing a label for the file, or are you removing the entire file (and consequently stopping it from showing up in the other smart folders too)? What if you actually do want multiple copies? It is these sort of reasons that folders will not die anytime soon. They are a near-concrete metaphor (aliases being the only stretch, and they're quite natural). Spotlight is great for when you don't know where something is, but it is not a replacement for the Finder.
All of these suggestions to get "Get an SB Live! Value or an SB Audigy!" are useless for people such as myself. As someone who needs sound for creative purposes (i.e. "making music"), the SB cards are just awful. High latency, poor A/D converters, et cetera. Relying on gaming-oriented cards like SB's to make up for the shortcomings present in most Linux-based distros is not at all a decent solution. Meanwhile, my Powerbook comes with very low latency sound and decent converters right out of the box. And if I want to add a card, it is a piece of cake. CoreAudio is brilliant.
It's just like anything else. If you say something enough, people start to believe it. People keep saying that Ubuntu is better than Debian for most desktop users, and hence, more and more people think it is. Truth be told, I think Debian stable, which is rock solid, is a much better choice than Ubuntu in many cases. While Ubuntu flips out on my family's old Pentium II box (installer goes mad, took an hour to sort out), Debian stable installs just fine.
That's just how it goes really. One day, someone decided that it is easier if iChat and Mail were integrated. Personally, I think it is usually useless to have Mail tell me if the sender is currently on iChat, and I think it is very annoying that buddy additions to iChat always end up in my address book. Apple delcared it the way to go however, and now everyone else is doing it too. Bloody annoying if you ask me...
How would 50% more wires mean 50% less errors? If each "unit" has a 0.001% failure rate, then adding a redundant "unit" would give an average failure rate of 0.000001, which is 1000 times lower, not twice as low.
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I 100% agree with all of your points. However, that doesn't change the current state of things. Yes, for people with a bit of knowledge, Linux is usable now. Yes, there are reasons Gnome is hideous. Yes, there are reasons I can't drag between any two apps on my screen. Yes, etc, etc, yes. At the end of the day though, it still sucks. I use Debian daily for testing purposes, but I always can't wait to get back to OS X. Luckily for me, either is just a reboot away.
Since when "must" users have maximum flexibility?
Good design is not when you have nothing left to add; It is when you have nothing left to take away.
Must learn to preview.
>> "Installing Applications is complicated"
/Applications. NOT /usr/bin, in one massive folder along with libraries and god knows what else. And furthermore, if for some reason they stick their program in ~/Documents instead, the program will still work just fine, and the computer will still find it if it needs it to open some document. If I want to uninstall an app, I drag it to the Trash: Done.
> No, it isn't. It's different than what people are accustomed to, but it sure isn't complicated.
Compared to OS X, it is. Most OS X installs consist of one step: "Drag to the Applications folder". And even if you don't do that, it usually works anyway; Just download and run. In my 15 years as a Mac user, I've not once had a problem with an install. The same cannot be said for my experiences as a Linux user.
>> "Directory structures can be confusing to navigate"
> Yes, Joe User and my mom don't use linux because of its confusing directory structure. Please...
> And don't tell me the directory structure of other systems make more sense, it doesn't.
OS X's structure makes much more sense. Applications are in
>> "Interface is confusing and inconsistent"
> While I agree that it is far from perfect it sure isn't more confusing or inconsistent than the alternatives.
I'm sorry, but when it comes to consistency, Linux is a complete abomination compared to OS X. Cross-application consistency has always been a strong point of the Mac, and continues to be until this day. Every text field in every program works the same way, sources the same dictionary, remembers the same settings, etc. Apps use the same key commands. Hell, I can drag an image out of Safari onto Photoshop in the Dock, and it opens up fine. I can add a menu shortcut to every single Cocoa application at once. Don't like that all programs have Minimize as command-M? Change it. Don't like that there's no key command for Customize Toolbar...? Add one. People don't even *think* about doing stuff like this in any other system. All programs respond to Applescript, all programs have the same look, etc etc.
>> "Steep learning curve required to understand system functions"
> As is the case with any OS out there.
But again, OS X does the best job. Want to run an FTP server? Open up the Sharing system preference, select FTP, and click "Start". Yes, it is that easy -- And if you didn't know what to click, just type in "FTP" in the search field, or even "host files" or whatever, and System Preferences will highlight the correct preference pane for you to click. Unbelievably simple and elegant.
Want to add a new account? Click "Accounts", and click Add. Want to change the Startup Disk? Click "Startup Disk". Etc etc. I still have no idea how to change startup disks on a Linux machine.
Anyone who says Linux is as good as anything else out there hasn't used OS X. Don't get me wrong; Linux is great. I run a dual-boot Debian/OS X system. However, as a desktop machine, Linux isn't even close to the Mac.
la la la la la
Take Adium. No other OS has such a good, solid, beautiful, well-integrated IM client. No other OS has such a simple and sexy IRC client (Colloquy). Quicksilver is a downright godsend, and gives you the productivity of a text-based interface when it is a better solution. The truth is, OS X has the best apps because Cocoa is fantastic. It essentially forces you to great good looking and consistent applications. If you haven't experience Mac shareware/freeware, then you're missing a big part of what makes it the best desktop platform currently available.
I'm as left of center as they come, but this doesn't even make any sense. This is idiotic moderation here giving him 5-insightful.
And just for the record, my Powerbook is a dual-boot OS X/Debian system... Please don't group all us Mac users together. Like *any* other group, most of the people involved are idiots.
You have no idea what you're talking about. I was giving a very specific example of how software can be installed without administrator privilages in an elegant way. Furthermore, I was talking about access control lists (ACL), which are to my knowledge not available under any other unix-based OS besides OS X. Such lists allow for much greater granularity in control than traditional unix permissions. OS X is a lot more than a pretty GUI. I will agree Mac users can be incredibly annoying, but do give credit where credit is due.
This is just one more example of why software binaries should be installed via drag and drop a la OS X. Also, given OS X's extensive permissions settings (access control lists, which go above and beyond any other unix by far), I can really control which folders people are allowed to access with ease.
You show those big businesses like CVS! Take your business to WalMart!
Amazing how a small team (is it even more than one person?) can do this, yet all the people working on Firefox/Mozilla can't.
I use a Mac for a reason... *ducks*
Lordy...
... You can't just turn the URL field back on?
You explain to my mom then how to know if a page needs javascript and how to setup a whitelist... and why she needs to.
I have no problem with this. Such sites were incredibly obnoxious, as well as dangerous given the latest phishing trends.
The reason BSD continues to exist is that, despite what capitalism assumes, not all people are assholes who feel the need to own and control everything. If I write software and release it under as BSD license, and then come company uses it, is my software any worse off? Of course not. However, people now do have one more avenue to take if for some reason I stop developing my version, or if the commercial version advances at a more rapid pace. The GPL on the other hand somehow assumes that a company using open code to benefit themselves, and hence making better software available to everyone, is a bad thing, because people are making money off of it. Any company with good intentions is going to give back to the community (see the first comment in this thread about Apple). Any company without an interest in helping out won't use GPL code anyway, so the argument that GPL is the only way to encourage contributions is silly. In fact, if not for the BSD license, FreeBSD wouldn't be benefiting from Apple's contributions at all!
BSD works because not everyone is an asshole. The fact that you're shocked it does work is a testament to the terrible state our world is in today. Modern economic theory is an idiotic, self-fulfulling prophesy.
This is just plain nonsense. There is no reason a program properly coded in ANSI C would be any more difficult to "port" than a Java app.
No no no. I was saying if a total chip has a 25% defect rate, and a defect can be due to only one thing being wrong in the chip (even if thousands are right), then the redundancy would bring up the total chip success rate to over 99%.
Obviously. I was speaking of a hypothetical instance.
Why do I even post here?
But if the current success rate per total "chip" is 25%, then ... oh nevermind.
http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en& q=statistics&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
Folders, ARE NOT REAL. They are labels created for your convenience in an extremely limited database. Your file does not exist in a manila sheet of folded paper on your hard drive.
The fact that so many users think folders ARE real is evidence of how strong of an organizational metaphor it is. Back in OS 9, if you opened up a folder, the window that popped up WAS that folder. It wasn't a view of some data or anything like that. It was actually the folder. In OS X, where folders open in the same window (by default), this effect is lessened as a concession to cleanliness, but it is still there. The desktop/folder/file metaphor is very limiting, yes, but at the same time it works so well because it is analogous to real life. If we ditch having "true" locations, and files start showing up in multiple "smart folders" at once, what happens when you try to delete the file from one of the folders? Are you just removing a label for the file, or are you removing the entire file (and consequently stopping it from showing up in the other smart folders too)? What if you actually do want multiple copies? It is these sort of reasons that folders will not die anytime soon. They are a near-concrete metaphor (aliases being the only stretch, and they're quite natural). Spotlight is great for when you don't know where something is, but it is not a replacement for the Finder.
All of these suggestions to get "Get an SB Live! Value or an SB Audigy!" are useless for people such as myself. As someone who needs sound for creative purposes (i.e. "making music"), the SB cards are just awful. High latency, poor A/D converters, et cetera. Relying on gaming-oriented cards like SB's to make up for the shortcomings present in most Linux-based distros is not at all a decent solution. Meanwhile, my Powerbook comes with very low latency sound and decent converters right out of the box. And if I want to add a card, it is a piece of cake. CoreAudio is brilliant.
It's just like anything else. If you say something enough, people start to believe it. People keep saying that Ubuntu is better than Debian for most desktop users, and hence, more and more people think it is. Truth be told, I think Debian stable, which is rock solid, is a much better choice than Ubuntu in many cases. While Ubuntu flips out on my family's old Pentium II box (installer goes mad, took an hour to sort out), Debian stable installs just fine. That's just how it goes really. One day, someone decided that it is easier if iChat and Mail were integrated. Personally, I think it is usually useless to have Mail tell me if the sender is currently on iChat, and I think it is very annoying that buddy additions to iChat always end up in my address book. Apple delcared it the way to go however, and now everyone else is doing it too. Bloody annoying if you ask me...
How would 50% more wires mean 50% less errors? If each "unit" has a 0.001% failure rate, then adding a redundant "unit" would give an average failure rate of 0.000001, which is 1000 times lower, not twice as low.