# The logical end result of the PC/Mac wars. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 5, 2004, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684 "2004-02-05T17:08:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2004, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684/21 "2004-02-06T04:40:07Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > This is the problem with the internet. Some 14 year old weenie can write “if you were in front of me I’d pop a corn-born Teflon bullet from my Glock in your fucking face.” and other such nonsense without fear of reprisal. Drop the feds on his doorstep asking about the ‘death threats’ he’s been making, that’ll shut his trap right quick. Or just go the Jay & Silent Bob way, track the kid and kick the snot out of him 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2004, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684/22 "2004-02-06T04:52:09Z")
> [@SPOOFE](#): > > You forget that $400 worth of PC parts perform just as well as $3000 worth of Mac parts. 😃 Ahh, you beat me to it laddie. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2004, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684/23 "2004-02-06T06:54:24Z")
> [@SPOOFE](#): > > You forget that $400 worth of PC parts perform just as well as $3000 worth of Mac parts. 😃 [In your dreams, son. 😉](http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,61252,00.html) ---
**Author:** ![Andros\_X](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@Andros\_X](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andros_X)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2004, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684/24 "2004-02-06T07:08:51Z")
I actually helped in the assembly of that supercomputer. The boxes themselves seemed sexy as all hell; smooth, brushed aluminum all around, glowing lights… Until I picked one up. Those things are _heavy_. And they took about two minutes to boot up. Testing a pallet of Macs for DOAs took several hours. Whether this was due to the machines running OS X (not Linux, as reported), I don’t know; I don’t have that much experience with it. Here’s the thing, though – the setup reported in the article [will soon not exist anymore](http://www.cs.vt.edu/site_pages/home/whatsnews_systemx_01_28_04.php), if it doesn’t already. Good thing for me is that some of those G5s might make it to one of the monthly surplus auctions, which would be sweeet. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2004, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684/25 "2004-02-06T08:05:00Z")
Yes, indeedy! Those G5s are soon going to be replaced with Apple’s G5 Xserve servers. More business for Apple! (I wish I were in your area so I could pick up one of those “cast-off” G5s myself! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2004, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684/26 "2004-02-06T13:43:37Z")
The responses in this thread are not reassuring my faith in humanity. > [@](#): > > So, sure. A few nutcases got all wound up. But most of us were upset by how wasteful and disrespectful this guy had been of his parents’ gift. So, let’s not go assuming that the vast majority of Mac people were flipping out over this in an over-the-top way. We weren’t. Not any more than the PC people were, anyway. The PC equivalent of “Clinton did it too!”, it appears. Not that I’ve seen any proof of that, but that’s OK. I’ll take your word for it. Truth is, it’s not particularly relevant anyway. > [@](#): > > I suspect the more outrageous “emails” are part of the hoax. Ok, but of COURSE they are. It’s unbelievable that anyone could get so worked up about stuff like this, isn’t it? Isn’t it? Apparently not, because we have this to follow: > [@](#): > > The guy lied about gutting a G5. Why should we believe he’s telling the truth about these “death threats”? He’s a “PC guy”. They apparently never tell the truth. And then this gem: > [@](#): > > You forget that $400 worth of PC parts perform just as well as $3000 worth of Mac parts. Maybe, maybe not, but let’s not forget that a Yugo gets you from point A to Point B the same way as a Ferrari does. In other words, personal preferences aside, it DOESN’T MATTER. Ultimately, then, in calling attention to this particular occurrence, I have unwittingly brought the war here. Again. And here I thought there might be some rational discourse about the absolute absurdity of threatening to kill someone over an appliance. Nope. Instead we have excuses, lame rationalizations, and attempts to start some more crap right here. Well done, people. I knew I could count on you. I wonder about the death threats that I’m sure would occur were there not a rule about it here. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2004, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684/27 "2004-02-06T20:44:33Z")
> [@Airman Doors](#): > > The responses in this thread are not reassuring my faith in humanity. > > The PC equivalent of “Clinton did it too!”, it appears. Not that I’ve seen any proof of that, but that’s OK. I’ll take your word for it. Truth is, it’s not particularly relevant anyway. Why isn’t my personal, first-hand experience with a Mac community “relevant”? I was _actively involved_ in a Mac community which was responding to this story, before we knew it was a hoax. I saw how we reacted. I saw how it all went down. I know what my reaction was. I am pretty familiar with the whole story (as this guy spinned it) too. I am sorry I’m not telling you what you want to hear. I’m sorry, but I can’t report that all the Mac people in the Mac community I belong to were frothing at the mouth and out for blood. Some were upset, and a few fanboys were acting like idiots. But I don’t think that any of them (that I know of) sent death threats. I don’t, however, doubt that a few sick or melodramatic fanboys did send off threatening emails. I just don’t know how many. And judging by the reaction _ **I** _ saw, the percentage wasn’t that high. You read a story in wired and you reacted to that. I went through it _as it happened_ and I reacted to that. Sorry, but I think my involvement with the story, somewhat more first hand, trumps what someone reads in a news article. > [@](#): > > He’s a “PC guy”. They apparently never tell the truth. No, he’s a guy that already lied once for fun, who knows what he’ll lie about next? I don’t doubt that he got some nasty emails. But I don’t know if I’ll take his word for how many. He already fabricated a false story and got a lot of reaction from that. He could still be exaggerating for dramatic effect. Or, perhaps he’s telling the truth, and a few fanboys are sending multiple emails which are flooding his mailbox. Or, perhaps there’s a pocket of psycho Mac fanboys somewhere—a type that I don’t commonly encounter online—and they’re causing all the trouble. Who knows? All I know is that this guy’s credibility has already been, shall we say, “compromised” by the recent stunt he pulled. > [@](#): > > Maybe, maybe not, but let’s not forget that a Yugo gets you from point A to Point B the same way as a Ferrari does. In other words, personal preferences aside, it DOESN’T MATTER. Agreed there. I’m tired of people giving a damn what kind of computer I use. > [@](#): > > Ultimately, then, in calling attention to this particular occurrence, I have unwittingly brought the war here. As far as I am concerned, the story related in the OP is about a guy ruining an expensive gift because he was too gutless to tell his parents he wanted something else. A lot of people, both PC and Mac people, were discussing this guy’s wastefulness online. Apparently, a few Mac fanboys probably popped a cork. But how many is hard to say. I didn’t see hardly any freaking out that badly. And all the “proof” we have that a lot of fanboys did pop a cork is the word of someone who’s already lied for fun once already. > [@](#): > > I wonder about the death threats that I’m sure would occur were there not a rule about it here. There’s no need to be so melodramatic. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2004, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684/28 "2004-02-06T21:24:04Z")
> [@SPOOFE](#): > > You forget that $400 worth of PC parts perform just as well as $3000 worth of Mac parts. 😃 Are you talking post-assembly? ---
**Author:** ![Geek\_Mecha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecae2f/32.png) [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2004, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684/29 "2004-02-07T13:01:07Z")
**Airman Doors, USAF** , I guess you haven’t read the Mac/PC Pit threads since, like, ever. There’s no such thing as prolonged “rational discourse” in any thread whose topic is linked to the platform wars. You probably wanted comments like, “Oh, man, that’s totally fucked up, everybody should loosen up and relax, y’know?” or “Screw that, that lying bastard deserves a mindfuck!” But you underestimate how seriously some people take their platforms. No one was going to justify the death threats, but it was a foregone conclusion that staying on topic was not going to happen. FWIW, I felt that this > [@](#): > > Neither one of them will threaten to kill you. However, based upon the above, their users will. How pathetic. came across as a jab at Mac users in general instead of being a condemnation against only the ones who would send death threats. I think you may have inadvertently started the hijack of your own thread. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-logical-end-result-of-the-pc-mac-wars/227684.md?page=1)