Heh, heh, heh…so they do. I forgot about actual Lotus automobiles.
Ahem…well, for one thing I never said there was “no valid reason” to use Windows. For another, I would put it to you that while Windows functions relatively well now – apart from the flaws the OP complains about – the Mac OS truly was a paragon of operating excellence compared with DOS. It was the DOS system the world embraced, and the was the DOS system I was analogizing with the 3-speed Clunkmobile.
That’s the impression I got from your post. My apologies if I’m mistaken.
Perhaps. And surely the IBM name had a lot to do with the success of DOS, but the PC clone was a big part of it too. Apple effectively marginalized themselves by trying to be a software vendor and the sole supplier of the hardware the software would run on. Many people didn’t (and still don’t) like that.
No problem. Thanks for the apology. (I might also add that I’m on Windows machine right now.)
Well, I’d say it might have played a small part in Apple’s marginalization, but I still think it was the overwhelming influence of IBM’s name that caused such immediate and widespread acceptance of DOS machines. However, I’ve never been a fan Apple’s stand in this regard. I’ve often said I thought Steve Jobs was both the best and worst thing that ever happened to Apple.
And please, don’t bother telling me how I can avoid all these hassles simply by devoting a portion of my daily routine to running the latest antipopupspywarevirusremoval utility – after all, I’m already safe, secure, and protected without having to deal with all those gyrations.
Perhaps the answer lies in the fact that machines that operate on the MS system – whether it’s Microsoft’s “fault” or not – have these problems and Macs don’t?
Yeah, well I’ve got a machine at home that is popup, virus and spyware safe, damn easy to run, and is a damn sight cheaper than anything else on the market, and yet I still switched to PC. Linkypoo .
Congratulations. You are indeed to be lauded for making this move. Now, about that horse and buggy you’ve been getting aroung in, they make these machines called cars…
Hey, didja know that PCs have outperformed Macs in the vast majority of graphical and content creation programs? Have since the G3! At half the cost, too!
Didja know the new G5 runs at 75 degrees Celcius! Crikey! An’ people thought the Prescott was hot…
(Hey, as long as we’re wanking, might as well wank with gusto, eh?)
Strike one,
I refer you to post # 11 in this thread by Patty O’Furniture. I have always been told that “serious programming” was done with Linux and/or Macs so perhaps Google and all the “serious” web-mail sites need to tighten up some.
I have been a computer operator (I run specialized proprietary Windows based software in the oilfield) for almost 15 years and I have had 3 or 4 annoying virus encounters and 1 major catastrophe that involved rebuilding onto a new hard drive (primary HDD failure, it was a mechanical deal), I am happy with that record.
You would not believe what I put my PC’s through, I bounce them around for hours on boats and trucks, I bash them into things with cranes, I dump drilling fluid and coffee in them and that’s just the stuff I will admit to. And after all that I run my PC’s 24/7 for months on end (and they don’t sit around idling either).
The Mac ::sniff:: superiority thing pisses me off, they are different, I understand different (you are talking to a 300 LB. guy with a 6 1/4 HP. motorcycle) but they all seem to be under powered and they seem to be “tinkerers specials”. I have no interest in a computer that I have to fiddle with and work on as in my world a computer is a tool and not a toy.
Oh, come now, is Patty’s wisecrack really the definitive answer? I would imagine there are more than enough Macs out there to make spyware, malware or what have you profitable enough for someone to work around if they were able to do it. I don’t believe most of these viruse makers have large R & D departments doing cost analyses to determine whether or not they should unleash a team of programmers to hack into Macs. Therefore, strike one is a bad call, ump.
Thank you for the insight into your experience. I can easily understand why you’re partial to your PCs. But I think you have to admit that you are not the typical PC user. I think, and I always have, that Apple preemptively strives for an easy and high-quality user experience with their products, with profits being secondary to, and dependant upon, this superior user experience. Microsoft on the other hand, seems to me to be profit-oriented first and foremost, and only cares about user experience to the degree that Apple or some other software developer forces it to through competitive pressure.
The fact that Apple took (and continues to take) such pains to try to develop and deliver ease-of-use and problem-free products is the reason that I feel such loyalty to Apple, and the opposite is the case with Microsoft. Although I have tremendous admiration for Bill Gates, his intelligence and his accomplishments, I have very little admiration for the products he produces. Apple innovates and strives for quality; Microsoft capitalizes on others’ innovation and delivers only what it has to in order to stay competive.
There were some viruses for Mac OS 7/8/9—I never got any of them, but apparently there were some. Even with its small market share, Macs sometimes had viruses targeted at them. Now, with OS X, all of a sudden, no known viruses. Still the same small market share, but no viruses. Why is that? OS X. I’m not saying that nobody could devise a virus, but obviously it’s less easy to do so in OS X. So no, I’m not holding my breath, worrying about a rash of Mac viruses. Anything could happen I suppose, but after several years, it simply hasn’t.
As far as inexpensive Macs, well, I offer you the Mac mini. It’s a low-end Mac, but if all you want is web surfing, email, iPhoto, iTunes, word processing, it’s going to serve you well in an easy-to-use, virus-free environment. I use my Mini for Garageband, a Mac-only app that has no rival on the PC side (meaning, nothing on the PC side offers the same ease of use and the same amount of bundled loops and features in the same price range). I also use my Mac mini for Photoshop and Dreamweaver, not exatly lightweight apps, and it does well for that. If I were into games, I might not want to use a Mac, but since I don’t play many games, and since all the applications I need are available on the Mac (or only available on the Mac), I’m happy.
Very true. As I always say, working on a Mac is very peaceful. Quiet and peaceful. No elaborate routines to go through. Why should I want to give that up?
Though, since I also work on a PC running Windows XP, I will put in a good word for it and say that I much prefer it to any other Windows OS I’ve ever tried (Win 3.x, 95/98). No brainer, I know, but it is much better. But still, there’s something special about Mac OS X in my opinion, so it remains my favorite OS.
I don’t “fiddle” with my Macs and I’ve never been a big “fiddler.” I use my Mac a lot, but since I don’t play many games, it’s rarely used as a toy. In my opinion, if you are going to define any computer as a “toy,” it would seem to follow that you’d call the computers which play more games to be more toy-like, and as we know, more games are available on PCs. Of course, I personally would not call a PC a “toy,” because a lot of people use it for serious work. Just like many people use Macs for serious professional work, (sometimes with Mac-onlyapplications that are regarded as the best available for their type of work).
I meant to address the “toy” aspect of unclviny’s post, but I forgot. I think once again we’re going back to the original IBM/Apple dichotomy. In the early days of the PC, IBM’s machines were purchased by businessmen and considered to be – vis-a-vis IBM’s weighty image – serious computing “tools,” while the Mac was portrayed as a “toy” computer. After all, look at who makes it: a bunch of hippies at a company named “Apple.”
And I’m afraid to a large degree this image still holds, especially among corporate types (and certain hard-charging oil field workers).
But Apple (along with Jobs and Wozniak) is largely responsible for this. Jobs and Wozniak were a couple of brainiacs (who only looked like hippies) who virtually invented home computers and whimsically decided to name their company Apple. Who knew, when Wozniak and Jobs were assembling their Apple I circuit-board computers in Jobs’ garage, that they would one day be competing with IBM for computer credibility?
(And hey, neutron star, thanks for the offer but I’m sure I’m seeing just fine, thank you very much.)
I will say, that my Phillips-head screwdriver is better for me, but if you prefer a straight-head screwdriver, and feel it is better for your work, then I am most happy for you. May you continue to have a wonderful business relationship with your straight-head screwdriver.
Acid Music Studio. The fact that there hasn’t been an Acid vs. Garageband lawsuit yet leads me to believe that there must be some sort of licensing deal going on under the table. I know that the Acid timestretching algorithm was licensed to be used in FinalCut Pro’s audio system, which makes sense - they could then market that as its own app w/ loops, and call it “Garageband.” Acid has been around for about 7 years longer than Garageband.
I’m very skeptical of the Mac Mini - I’d imagine that something like Logic or FinalCut would barely function on it, and even toy consumer software like Garageband and iMovie probably barely get by.
I do a lot of audio recording and video editing with computers, and I’d love a mac. But when I can put together a superior PC system for $800 vs. an equivalent Mac system for $6,000, there’s just no comparison.
