# Good thing they weren't handing out iPods **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 17, 2005, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360 "2005-08-17T01:07:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![madcossack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@madcossack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madcossack)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/21 "2005-08-17T19:28:24Z")
Here’s the part that galls me: “It’s rather strange that we would have such a tremendous response for the purchase of a laptop computer – and laptop computers that probably have less-than-desirable attributes,” said Paul Proto, director of general services for Henrico County. Being a Mac nut, this was offensive. What attributes is he looking for in the new laptops the district will be purchasing? Perhaps a shitty operating system? Or constant worrying about viruses? Or lack of plug and play capability? Of course, this is all said in jest. I don’t want to start a flame war about Mac vs. PC. I just thought it was funny. And I too would stand in line for a $50 iBook. Great for the kids to chat, email, and type up their schoolwork. Sounds like a great deal. And I have wet myself just thinking about a new dual-processor G5, so I wish I could have been there. I would have fit right in. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/22 "2005-08-17T19:28:43Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > $500? Really? > > I don’t spend any time on eBay, so i’ll take you word for it. But there’s no way in hell i’d pay $500 for a four-year old iBook. Yeah, that don’t seem right. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/23 "2005-08-17T19:37:33Z")
> [@madcossack](#): > > Being a Mac nut, this was offensive. What attributes is he looking for in the new laptops the district will be purchasing? Perhaps a shitty operating system? Or constant worrying about viruses? Or lack of plug and play capability? > D Many of the units had been roughly handled and had not been taken care of. Additionally, all of them had been completely stripped of software. ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/24 "2005-08-17T19:40:33Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > $500? Really? > > I don’t spend any time on eBay, so i’ll take you word for it. But there’s no way in hell i’d pay $500 for a four-year old iBook. $300-350 seems to be about the [going rate](http://computers.search.ebay.com/ibook-g3_Apple-Macintosh-Computers_W0QQcatrefZC12QQfrppZ50QQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQmaxrecordsreturnedZ300QQsacatZ4599). ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/25 "2005-08-17T19:57:02Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > Sorry, guys, but I’d be right in line with the iRioters. Being in line with the shoppers I can see; being in with the rioters is a different matter. > [@madcossack](#): > > Being a Mac nut, this was offensive. What attributes is he looking for in the new laptops the district will be purchasing? A nice kickback from the CEO of Dell? 🙂 I wouldn’t be surprised one iota if part of the agreement for the new laptop deal was for the school district to get rid of all their non-Dell stuff first. Hence the fire sale. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/26 "2005-08-17T20:09:26Z")
> [@rjung](#): > > I wouldn’t be surprised one iota if part of the agreement for the new laptop deal was for the school district to get rid of all their non-Dell stuff first. Hence the fire sale. This wasn’t part of the agreement. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/27 "2005-08-17T20:37:09Z")
I don’t claim to be an expert on this; I’m just repeating what got asserted on [Slashdot:](http://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=159217&cid=13333689) > [@](#): > > The special-price deal they got with Dell probably included the condition that they get rid of all their non-Dell computers. > > Salesmen routinely make deals like this. Usually they’re “privately-arranged” deals that are not explicit in the written contract. But the contract is carefully phrased so that they can legally demand more money if they discover any of the old computers on the premises. Some admins resist this sort of deal; many don’t. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/28 "2005-08-17T22:59:48Z")
That Slashdot post is nothing more than random speculation. ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/29 "2005-08-17T23:50:48Z")
> [@Nonsuch](#): > > $300-350 seems to be about the [going rate](http://computers.search.ebay.com/ibook-g3_Apple-Macintosh-Computers_W0QQcatrefZC12QQfrppZ50QQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQmaxrecordsreturnedZ300QQsacatZ4599). The ones going for 300 have bigger hard drives with the 10 gig hard drives they are going for $100 to $150. How big were the ones for sale? ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2005, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/30 "2005-08-17T23:58:36Z")
As I said, I don’t claim to be an expert on this. But dumping $300+ laptops for 20% of their price definitely induces a :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/31 "2005-08-18T00:31:33Z")
All the laptops in question had all software removed (for fairly obviously legal reasons). They’d had the shit kicked out of them for four years by schoolkids. I wouldn’t want to spend more than $50 on such an item. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/32 "2005-08-18T09:05:47Z")
> [@Cerri](#): > > The day my mom and I got lucky enough to get our hands on two dolls, my first choice was _literally_ wrestled out of my hands by one of these crazed mothers. The second box I grabbed, another completely different woman tried to take it out of my hands (I assume because I was a child and she thought I wouldn’t fight back) as well. I kicked her so hard in the shins she screamed, fell against the opposite shelving unit, and didn’t try again. I did have the satisfaction of seeing her limping away, her bare ankle bleeding, and empty-handed a few minutes later as my mom and I stood in line to pay for the stupid dolls. :eek: What kind of an asshole even **tries** to grab a toy away from a kid? Good for you for kicking the second one, but jeez, you shouldn’t even have had to! ---
**Author:** ![Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bb73d2/32.png) [@Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dark_Side_of_the_Floyd)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/33 "2005-08-18T09:33:16Z")
> [@davenportavenger](#): > > Who names their kid “Blandine”? What are her siblings’ names, Boringa and Mundano? Thanks for the laugh. Maybe Dullardia ('It’s pronounced 'Dool-ard’ya!") ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 10:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/34 "2005-08-18T10:20:59Z")
According to the Beeb, in the rush; > [@](#): > > people were trampled on, a chair was thrown, an elderly man was pushed to the ground, a baby’s buggy was crushed and one desperate buyer tried to drive his car through the crowd. This doesn’t deserve a :rolleyes: so much as a :dubious: I’m not into computing as much as I used to be, are these Mac laptops really _that_ valuable? ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/35 "2005-08-18T12:25:14Z")
> [@davenportavenger](#): > > Who names their kid “Blandine”? What are her siblings’ names, Boringa and Mundano? I suspect she was named after Saint Blandine, one of the first Christian martyrs from Gaul (Ville de Lyon), tortured to death in 177 AD. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/36 "2005-08-18T15:45:54Z")
“I’d still sleep better if i saw some trampling” ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/37 "2005-08-18T16:08:54Z")
I’m suprised no one is up in arms about the school district throwing money away. If schools want to complain about underfunding and needing more money they really ought to try to save or earn some money when they can. If these iBooks were such a hot commodity for $50 why didn’t the school auction them off and make a few bucks? If I lived in that school district and the schools were asking for more money next year I don’t think I’d be in a generous mood. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/38 "2005-08-18T17:08:33Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > I’m suprised no one is up in arms about the school district throwing money away. > > If schools want to complain about underfunding and needing more money they really ought to try to save or earn some money when they can. > > If these iBooks were such a hot commodity for $50 why didn’t the school auction them off and make a few bucks? > If I lived in that school district and the schools were asking for more money next year I don’t think I’d be in a generous mood. The County has not “thrown money away.” By law, municipal governments cannot profit from the sale of surplus merchandise. The iBooks were a hot commodity because people thought they were - they had been used by high school students for 4 years and were in pretty bad shape, by and large. They had also been completely stripped of any software. The students that had the computers prior to graduation were given first choice to buy them, and then county citizens were offered the equipment. Given the quality of the schools here, they could ask for the moon and the only question would be “Don’t you want the stars as well?” ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/39 "2005-08-18T19:30:46Z")
> [@Pushkin](#): > > I’m not into computing as much as I used to be, are these Mac laptops really _that_ valuable? I hear they’re already being sold on eBay for $250 and up. Historically, Macs have held their resale value better than Windows-based PCs. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360/40 "2005-08-18T19:40:40Z")
> [@rjung](#): > > I hear they’re already being sold on eBay for $250 and up. Historically, Macs have held their resale value better than Windows-based PCs. We’re going in circles. Are the $250 ones items that have undergone four years of careful handling by schoolkids, and do they lack an OS? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-thing-they-werent-handing-out-ipods/317360.md?page=3)