# Mac people irritate me **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 26, 2003, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011 "2003-09-26T17:26:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![The\_Wrong\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b782af/32.png) [@The\_Wrong\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Wrong_Girl)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/101 "2003-09-28T22:00:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Anamorphic \* > \*\*Are we responding to the same post? \*\* Okay, here’s what I’m responding to. You saying: > [@](#): > > WHAT!!!? You wanna talk about ‘idiotic and insulting’, then I’d really like for you to point out ONE post in this thread of a Mac user demonstrating this behaviour. And I think I provided at least one legitimate (see my whoosh about **Memory Leak** above) instance of someone being idiotic and insulting. Now, I realize that you’re lumping in “idioting and insulting” with Mac people coming in and attempting to convert PC people. However, you said: > [@](#): > > insulting others is not a way to convert anyone I’ve ever known. So, you’ve just conceded that people are coming in and being insulting. Whether or not they’re successful or skilled at converting others doesn’t matter. There have been some Mac people coming into this thread and being assholes. So, maybe it’s a semantic difference? I took your reference to “this behavior” meaning people flat out being insulting and rude, while you meant people trying to convert others to the wonders of Macs? But hey, backing up to what **CanvasShoes** was saying in the first place, she appears to be referring to asshole posters too. So, there’s crossed wires somewhere here…and hell, they might be with me. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time. ---
**Author:** ![Gadfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/aeb1de/32.png) [@Gadfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gadfly)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/102 "2003-09-28T22:05:06Z")
> [@](#): > > Yikes, Memory Leak, color me whooshed! I had no clue. No hard feelings? Isn’t the color of whooshed, like, purple, or something? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Wrong\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b782af/32.png) [@The\_Wrong\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Wrong_Girl)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/103 "2003-09-28T22:13:20Z")
Wasn’t there some way you could just type in a word, and then a random color would be assigned to it? If someone wants to do that, then maybe somehow we could learn what the definitive color of whooshed is! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/104 "2003-09-28T22:29:11Z")
All I know is that I wouldn’t be _half_ as annoyed with Windows users if their stupid viruses and worms and trojans would only make messes for _other_ stupid Windows users to deal with. What empathy I had for Windows folks died in the 2 hours it took for my mail client to clean out all the !#@%&!%#@# email spam from the latest “Blaster” virus variant. Keep your mess in your own sandbox, kids. Us grownups have work to do… ---
**Author:** ![Chief\_Crunch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@Chief\_Crunch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chief_Crunch)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/105 "2003-09-28T22:48:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by rjung \* > \*\*All I know is that I wouldn’t be _half_ as annoyed with Windows users if their stupid viruses and worms and trojans would only make messes for _other_ stupid Windows users to deal with. What empathy I had for Windows folks died in the 2 hours it took for my mail client to clean out all the !#@%&!%#@# email spam from the latest “Blaster” virus variant. > > Keep your mess in your own sandbox, kids. Us grownups have work to do… \*\* Well, rjung, it isn’t “windows users”, but “clueless windows users”. Maybe you should talk to the people who have you in their address books or at least guard that e-mail addy of yours a bit more carefully. 😉 Chief “Friendly Linux User” Crunch ---
**Author:** ![Skeezix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@Skeezix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skeezix)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/106 "2003-09-29T01:43:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The Wrong Girl \* > \*\*Wasn’t there some way you could just type in a word, and then a random color would be assigned to it? If someone wants to do that, then maybe somehow we could learn what the definitive color of whooshed is! 😃 \*\* Just use the normal color tags, with the word in question as your color, instead of red, blue, or whatever. Whooshed, f’rinstance, is sorta blue. I think that’s what you’re remembering, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/107 "2003-09-29T02:58:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bryan Ekers \* > **Jeff Goldblum talking about the appearance of a Wintel box.** That freaking self-righteous sanctimonious idiot \*faux-\*scientist-wannabe Jeff Goldblum is pretty much my acid test for “something I do not want to be involved with in any form”. If Jeff Goldblum starts advertising for Wintel computers, I’m buying a Mac, and fast! :eek: 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/108 "2003-09-29T03:30:37Z")
**Gadfly** : Got any possible backing for your laughs, or just some bizarre desire to rag on a specific OS? ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/109 "2003-09-29T06:21:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Anamorphic \* > \*\*Yes, the person you quote _was_ being snooty and a bit of a jerk about it, and there are a few other people behaving like that in this thread (on both sides of the argument, I might add). And if that’s what you’d accused them of in the post I responded too, it would have made sense, and I wouldn’t have posted such an angry response last night. > > However, the point of the OP was Mac users who try to willy-nilly convert Windows users no matter what the situation and how annoying they can be. I agreed, and as did several others, pointed out that it happens both ways. What angered me was your post, where you _very specifically_ accuse Mac users of coming into this thread and continuing to do just what the OP is deservingly deriding them for: > > And my point is that no one has come into this thread and done that! The examples you (and others) have given are NOT examples of people demostrating this behavor! Snooty and jerky? Yup, it’s there, from both sides. … \*\* The examples I quoted are just snotty ways of saying "Macs are better, you should switch, especially the “jagged rock” post. FTR, my post was made, (and I apologize I should have added the requisite “saying this in a making fun of tone, not a raging violent one” disclaimers), while I was thinking along the lines of laughing at those few still being silly about it, and still insisting, in the middle of a thread protesting that very behavior, that “X is BETTER than Y”. Were they direct about it? In other words did they SAY the exact words “this wouldn’t happen if you had a Mac”? No, it was merely implied in their posts. “Jagged rock vs bow and arrow” is a pretty clear statement to that effect imho. At any rate, my comment was sarcastic silliness, and not at all meant angrily or in a frothing at the mouth hating Mac users way. I certainly wasn’t meaning to insult Mac users or paint them all with the same brush. My post was entirely directed to the two or three folks in this thread behaving in the manner described in my post. ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/110 "2003-09-29T06:29:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Derleth \* > \*\*Well, you shouldn’t judge Linux based on obsolete versions. > > After all, how much sense does it make to judge all Microsoft OSes based on a knowledge only of Windows ME? > > As I said, a lot has changed. Using KDE and GNOME with [OpenOffice.org](http://OpenOffice.org) is now no harder than using MS-Windows with MS-Office, and just about as featureful. \*\* You’re right and good points all. Trouble is that I, like a lot of people already have an expensive system, (mine’s a lot more expensive than just your off the shelf PC, it’s a custom build with top of the line everything), and am not willing to spend time on learning a new one, nor money on software, training etc. IMHO, the bottom line is that PCs still have the majority of variety out there when it comes to software, and especially games (which some may not care about, but I love them, and I have a 13 year old that’s a budding 'puter geek too), Linux and Mac might be catching up, but it seems as if it’s too late, most people want the variety and are willing to put up with occasional Windows based glitches to get it. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/111 "2003-09-29T07:04:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by CanvasShoes \* > IMHO, the bottom line is that PCs still have the majority of variety out there when it comes to software, and especially games (which some may not care about, but I love them, and I have a 13 year old that’s a budding 'puter geek too), Linux and Mac might be catching up, but it seems as if it’s too late, most people want the variety and are willing to put up with occasional Windows based glitches to get it. I dunno. I mean, I like that I have a PC, don’t get me wrong, but when I “switched” to Mac I didn’t notice that dearth of software that I’d been warned about. There are a lot of nice Mac programs out there, I’ve found. Sure, there are a few things that I just _can’t_ do on the Mac (not without using emulation), but it often isn’t that big of a deal. I can go for long stretches without turning on my PC and not suffer a bit. I am sure it depends on the person and the user—if they had some program that was absolutely _vital_ to their business and it’s PC-only, then it’s going to have to be PC. But not everyone’s like that. If they’ve got Word, Dreamweaver and Photoshop and that’s mostly what they need, well, they are all set on their Mac. Actually, I find that many ordinary PC people use only a few programs as well—like Word, an MP3 player, a digital imaging program, an email program, and a browser. And Macs have all these programs. (I love OS X’s _Mail_ and _iTunes._) So hey—if all a person is gonna use is these basic programs, they can get them on either platform. ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/112 "2003-09-29T07:17:34Z")
Hmmmmmmm, well, as someone said earlier, since they aren’t all that interested in games, they wouldn’t care about that part. I occasionally look when I’m at CompUSA and gaming stores, and there don’t seem to be near the variety available for Macs as for PCs. Also there’s still the “I’ve spent 2000+ on an awesome custom build system that’s still working wonderfully, I’m not inclined to go see what Mac or Linux have added that they didn’t use to have” thing. Also, I still like being able to “talk to” the computer and fix it myself. Aren’t Macs still “closed systems” so to speak? I think that would bug me. A LOT. But don’t hate me, one of my best friends is a mac user (HA I kill me :D). He is always touting the advantages of the superior quality of a Mac’s graphics and such. We argue (goodnaturedly) quite a bit about PC vs. Mac. ---
**Author:** ![Cerri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3bc359/32.png) [@Cerri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerri)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/113 "2003-09-29T11:29:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Leaper \* > \*\*See, this is something that’s always confused and bothered me about this point. > > Who cares about games? I mean, no, really? Why is it a requirement that every single OS support the same number of gee-whiz games, 95% of which are crap, and the remaining 5% are so popular that they get ported anyway, never mind the ones like Myst that started Mac-only in the first place? > > I’ve found exactly two game-related programs that made me wish, however slightly, that I had Virtual PC (see, not necessarily a PC, per se, but the emulator). Other than that, I couldn’t care less… \*\* Who cares about games? You’re perhaps not aware just how large the PC gaming industry has gotten, and how many PC gamers there are? Just speaking of MMORPGs, Lineage has almost 3 million active accounts in Korea alone. [http://www.kanga.nu/archives/MUD-Dev-L/2003Q3/msg00509.php](http://www.kanga.nu/archives/MUD-Dev-L/2003Q3/msg00509.php) Here’s a chart for the US multiplayer online roleplaying games (MMORPG) : [http://pw1.netcom.com/~sirbruce/Subscriptions.html](http://pw1.netcom.com/~sirbruce/Subscriptions.html) Computer gaming is a multi-billion dollar industry worldwide. I’d imagine alot of them care, to finally answer your question. EverQuest, the largest US MMO recently released a Mac version, btw, with their own servers) It’s a shame, really…I can think of quite a few of my gaming friends that would use Macs for gaming, if they ever got good game support. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/114 "2003-09-29T18:42:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by CanvasShoes \* > I occasionally look when I’m at CompUSA and gaming stores, and there don’t seem to be near the variety available for Macs as for PCs. Oh, obviously. There is no debate about that. > [@](#): > > Also there’s still the “I’ve spent 2000+ on an awesome custom build system that’s still working wonderfully, I’m not inclined to go see what Mac or Linux have added that they didn’t use to have” thing. This works both ways—no matter what system one is using, if they have expensive software for that platform, or they have just invested a lot of money in a new system, they are not going to “switch” just for adventure’s sake. However, a lot of people just use a few inexpensive programs that are easily found on both programs (or are free—as are the suite of Mac’s iApps). When it comes time for them to get a new computer, some of them might be intrigued to switch. As long as they can still do word processing, listen to MP3s and edit their digital camera’s photos, they’re all set… > [@](#): > > Aren’t Macs still “closed systems” so to speak? I think that would bug me. A LOT. Hmmm…I am not a tinkerer myself, but OS X has the “terminal” where you can do a lot of Unix-like “tinkering.” Apparently some geeks think it’s the bee’s knees. Also, Macs use more generic parts these days, so a certain amount of modification and tweaking of the hardware can be done. Not as much as with PCs, of course, but some. And after all, part of the reason the Mac OS is pretty stable (I’ve _never_ had OS X crash on me yet) is because of its comparatively limited choice of hardware variations. > [@](#): > > But don’t hate me, one of my best friends is a mac user (HA I kill me :D). I don’t care! I am not trying to “convert” anyone, I merely want to share my feelings as a cross-platform user (and Mac “switcher”) and perhaps clear up some misconceptions. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/115 "2003-09-29T19:46:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by CanvasShoes \* > Also, I still like being able to “talk to” the computer and fix it myself. Aren’t Macs still “closed systems” so to speak? The consumer-oriented stuff (iAnything), yeah. The professional Mac hardware, however, is all an open book – they even include easy-open doors so you can break into the box and tweak it that much easier. 😉 (And the only proprietary hardware in a Mac these days are the motherboard and the CPU(s).) ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/116 "2003-09-29T21:13:28Z")
## quote: ## But don’t hate me, one of my best friends is a mac user (HA I kill me :D). > [@](#): > > I don’t care! I am not trying to “convert” anyone, I merely want to share my feelings as a cross-platform user (and Mac “switcher”) and perhaps clear up some misconceptions. Um, that was a joke **Ybabe** hence the smilie? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/117 "2003-09-29T21:29:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by aryk29 \* > **The problem with Mac is there are so few programs for it. Apple Corporation insists on charging a royalty for every piece of software written to run on the Mac.** Ah, that explains [this Kevin & Kell strip](http://www.kevinandkell.com/2003/kk0927.html). ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/118 "2003-09-29T21:33:24Z")
The minor inconvenience of a Mac user popping into a thread to say, “get a Mac, you’ll crash less!” is nothing compared to the litany of bullshit Mac users have put up with from Windows users for the past 19+ years. Get over yourselves. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/119 "2003-09-29T22:11:31Z")
> [@](#): > > ## \*Originally posted by CanvasShoes \* quote: > > ## But don’t hate me, one of my best friends is a mac user (HA I kill me :D). > > Um, that was a joke **Ybabe** hence the smilie? Yeah, I figured you were being light-hearted. I guess my point was, well, that I still don’t care. It’s a non-issue—kind of like if someone said, “Don’t hate me, I use 10W 40 motor oil! \” Oh, whatever—too much energy trying to explain it, isn’t it? The main point is, yeah, I got that you were being light-hearted! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gadfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/aeb1de/32.png) [@Gadfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gadfly)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011/120 "2003-09-29T22:22:40Z")
Derleth, my nightmares with recent distros of Linux incited the laughter. It isn’t as easy as Windows. Not yet, anyway. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mac-people-irritate-me/204011.md?page=7)