# Damn it Apple! Just make a freaking tablet computer already! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 5, 2004, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252 "2004-09-05T19:56:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2005, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/41 "2005-05-12T19:43:29Z")
> [@rjung](#): > > …though Microsoft did stop development of Internet Exploer for the Mac, probably because (a) it was getting spanked hard by all the other Mac browsers available, and (b) they couldn’t make money selling it. 😉 None of that has anything to do with why the MacBu stopped development of MacIE. But it sure sounds funny! Ha Ha! M$ Pwned! ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2005, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/42 "2005-05-12T19:56:56Z")
> [@Dooku](#): > > None of that has anything to do with why the MacBu stopped development of MacIE. But it sure sounds funny! Ha Ha! M$ Pwned! Well, why did they stop development? As far as I know, they never charged for IE on the Mac, so it’s not unreasonable to assume that lack of a profit motive had something to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2005, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/43 "2005-05-12T20:04:12Z")
> [@Finagle](#): > > Well, why did they stop development? > > As far as I know, they never charged for IE on the Mac, so it’s not unreasonable to assume that lack of a profit motive had something to do with it. Although I can see that it wouldn’t be unreasonable to think so, lack of profit had nothing to do with it. It was never intended to make money and we knew it was a limited release - we knew what was coming from Apple. Unfortunately I can’t discuss exactly why we stopped development. I was directly involved in the decision and I don’t want to risk getting in trouble for giving the specifics. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/44 "2005-05-13T05:33:32Z")
> [@Troy McClure SF](#): > > :eek: > > [Two weeks short of four years](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_OS_X_v10.0). nitpick: Apple have never officially licensed the unix name so, MaxcOSX cannot be officiaaly be called a unix operating system. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/45 "2005-05-13T07:03:32Z")
It’s as much of a “Unix operating system” as Sun System V is, I’d say. But really, this is an issue only of interest to the purebred propellerheads. Apple would have to spend a lot of money to get Unix certification, and the benefits are negligible, since Unix-using alpha geeks are already flocking to MacOS X like there’s no tomorrow… ---
**Author:** ![galt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@galt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galt)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/46 "2005-05-13T19:33:31Z")
> [@rjung](#): > > But really, this is an issue only of interest to the purebred propellerheads. And it’s not really even an issue to most of them. Just like saying, “nyah, nyah, it’s not a kleenex, it’s a scott facial tissue!” … For most discussions, it’s overly-pedantic. ---
**Author:** ![galt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@galt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galt)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/47 "2005-05-13T19:34:35Z")
…and in **Shalmanese’s** defense, he **did** say it was a nitpick. ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/48 "2005-05-13T20:06:42Z")
> [@asterion](#): > > Other than the fact that I don’t have any software for Mac, the other reason I haven’t bought something like an iMac or a G5 is that I want to be able to upgrade it. There is no freaking room to get in there and work to add or a replace a drive, much less pull the motherboard or change the processor. That may be true for an iMac or Mac Mini, but a PowerMac G5 is just as user-upgradeable as any desktop PC. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/49 "2005-05-13T20:16:37Z")
Actually, the new iMac G5s (the ones that look like a flat panel monitor) are trivially easy to crack open and dink with: [iMac G5 interior pics](http://homepage.mac.com/dbudde/PhotoAlbum27.html) Not sure if the motherboard or the graphics card can be upgraded, but the other stuff should be easy enough to swap out/upgrade as you wish. ---
**Author:** ![drewbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drewbert/32/15890_2.png) [@drewbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewbert)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2005, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/50 "2005-05-15T15:13:35Z")
> [@drewbert](#): > > If you have Tiger, and a graphics card capable of Quartz Extreme, go to System Preferences, and hold down option while you click on “Displays”. You’ll get an extra pop-up menu that lets you rotate the display in 90 degree increments. Just popping back in to warn that some people have had big trouble with this feature - on some VGA CRTs it doesn’t work, and there’s no easy way to revert to normal rotation. Guess this option is hidden for a reason. Try at your own risk. [http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20050505095132556](http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20050505095132556) ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2005, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/51 "2005-05-15T21:01:23Z")
> [@Muad'Dib](#): > > I mean, come on! You guys invented the PDA (and some how managed to screw that up)! Towards the end of it’s life the Newton was [Obviously going in that direction](http://www.planetnewton.com/features/featuresindex.htm). Eat up Martha. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2005, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252/52 "2005-05-15T21:36:50Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Style doesn’t matter. > > PC users are perfectly happy with their beige boxes tucked under their desks. Yeah, that’s why [these guys](http://www.casemodgod.com/cmg/index.html) all use Macs. Oh wait. . . . [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/damn-it-apple-just-make-a-freaking-tablet-computer-already/263252.md?page=2)