Yes, I am a Mac OS X user. I do not have an apple tatoo. I do not have the apple logo anywhere in my home or one my car, except for what's on my powerbook. I am not a zealot. The only reason I bought a Mac is because I was tired of using technology just for work, I wanted to fool around with technology: create some tunes with my guitar, gussy-up some photos, do some amateur film-making. I basically just wanted to do stuff not work related. After grilling the Mac owners that I knew, and a lot of research, I took the plunge and got me a 12" 1.33GHz Powerbook. I also have an iPod that I bought awhile back, in 2003.
But here's where I'm at: Macs are now driven with Intel processors, mine is a PPC processor. Because I'm not made of cash. I did not just get back from sailing around Florida. I do not have tenants in my house that I can bilk. So, I would like to have a plan to upgrade. But Steve Jobs has this compulsive secrecy obsession. I'm forced to listen to industry analysts to get a sense of how long my Powerbook will be good for. Do I sell now? Do I have another year? Steve, what is your long term plan for your PPC Macs out there?
And my iPod is also showing its age, the battery life ain't what it used to be, and the video/photo capability of the newer iPods is a feature I think I could make use of. But I don't want to buy now when they haven't been updated in 6 months and a new iPod is imminent. Mr Jobs, can't you just tell me, "Well, we're looking at 3 months at the outset for our next model."
You can't, can you? Let me tell you two reasons why you can't:
(1) You're constantly goading Microsoft for running late on their projects, so if you lay your stones on the line with a date, and you don't meet it, you think you can kiss your cherished bit of anti-Microsoft ammunition good-bye.
(2) You and your ego just love giving those keynote addresses at Mac Expos where you do that routine where you pretend that you're finished your speech and then say "Oh, just one more thing" and then you perform this major unveiling of a new product. After seeing a few of these keynotes, I really am left with a sour taste. I feel like the keynotes are less about the product and more about you, Mr Jobs.
I just don't see what the big deal is. Enough with the "big show" already. Consumers like myself have way more selection now than we've ever had. How long do you think your followers can bow at your feet? Give some candid interviews with some respected tech reporters out there and level with them.
But, Apple makes good stuff, I want to continue to use it. But if my iPod or my PowerBook were to break tomorrow, this whole uncertainty cloud might cause me to look elsewhere. I think the whole secrecy thing had its time, it was a neat little bit of shtick. But, like the NeXT Computer, you have to let it go. (was that last sentence below the belt, Steve?)
16 comments:
So you are ticked off that Steve Jobs doesn't call you up and say:
"How's the wife. Kids? Great. Just to let you know, the new iPod is going to have a tri-mode cellphone, huge screen and wireless internet, so I'd hold off on buying a replacement just now. But keep it under you hat."
Back in the day (1997) when everyone was predicting Apple's demise they had 6 months of inventory of Macs on hand. These days they keep less than 30 days of product. Dell can't even manage that. Apple is a well-oiled machine and secrecy is necessary to not spike the sales of the current product in the channel.
Besides, I thought everybody liked surprises...
ps: this note was written incredibly quickly on an Intel Core Duo Macbook!
Well, at least you know your future with your Intel-based MacBook. Is my PPC Powerbook a paperweight by next spring? I religiously scoop up iLife every year. Will iLife 07 barely work on PPC-based macs?
As far as your "not spike sales" theory goes, I could buy that, sure. But, don't you think Jobs' ego is at play here, just a little?
Have either of you kissed a girl?
Ask your mama.
It is a funny logic to say that because some new OS comes out or some software that may be Intel Mac only that your PPC Powerbook is suddenly useless. What are you doing on it now—something useless? Besides OS X Leopard is PPC and Intel, so your PPC Powerbook is fine for years to come.
If you have to have the latest, resale is pretty high on used Macs, so make friends with ebay and your new Intel Macbook/Pro could be half the price.
Eric: I kiss women. Well, one woman, anyways, but not your Mamma—I never actually kissed her, if you know what I mean.
hmmm, yes how original and unpredictable.
So I'm going to take that as a 'No'. My mother has much better taste than to have anything to do with you 'I'm in love with my Mac and my lips are only for Macs and I really really really love my Mac!' nerds.
Isn't this a case of the pot calling the kettle black here, PC Dork? How was your Command and Conquer game today?
We didn't win today but there's always tomorrow.
Mac people are much more fanatical than PC people are. I mean I am loyal to my hardware alone, I could run Linux, Winblows etc... and it seems a little like sacrilege or even heresy for you Mac fanatics to run Windows on your almighty Macs...
If you were to read the system requirements of Windows XP, it will say something like: Recommended cpu = 400MHz, 64MB RAM 80 MB HD Space. So when I say run, I mean "perform well".
So, yes, they will "run" for years to come. But I not only have to deal with some Mac apps saying they're Intel only, but I have to deal with Rosetta as well.
This is a bit of a worry, as I'd like to get into toying around with making some home movies (featuring Eric's mama).
But, its not the OS I'm worried about, its the apps.
But, we'll see. At the very worst I could put it on eBay and get the MacBook cheapie.
Am I raving upset with Apple? More like "annoyed". Like the sound of Horrick's voice.
You talk about Mac lovers, but have you ever heard of a pc lover? They do not exist. There are Mac haters, but not pc lovers. PCs do not inpire that kind of excitement. In fact, they do not inspire at all. Just dry and dull.
Written with pride on a Mac.
You are wrong about the PC lovers, they are out there. You are confusing PC lovers with Windows lovers. There is so much more flexibilty with a PC, and that is why it has flourished. If only Macs were as customizable, how do you upgrade a Mac? Buy a new one, wow what a concept. I have to fork out another couple of thousand $$$ so I can keep up with the Joneses.
Written by a heterosexual on a PC.
Eric is a heterosexual? I had no idea...
Yeah, there are the tweak geeks for pcs and you are right, much more customizable, but when you buy a Mac you are buying the complete experience and it is Good.
ps: Top end Mac Pro is $1000 cheaper than nearly identical (specs wise) Dell product. Dell has been hosing people for years and Apple is going to be the one to prove it.
My powerbook wasn't so bad to upgrade. I replaced the hard drive in it, went from 60 to 80 GB. (The 60 crashed).
They're more customizable/upgradable than you might think.
They're cheaper than you might think.
They have more apps than you might think, especially since going x86.
I just wish we knew more about what's upcoming from Apple, rather than relying on macrumors.com and appleinsider.com. The "strong silent type" routine is getting stale.
I've never been a fan of Dell or the other name brand suppliers. If Apple would've gone x86 platform years ago they wouldn't be playing catch up right now.
Steve Jobs is crack-pot anyway, look at the upstanding citizen Bill Gates is being helping solve the world's problems. What has Jobs done other than made it easier for to listen to some crappy music on some POS i-pod which has sucky battery life at best.
I can't believe this, but I agree with Eric. Bill Gates is really displaying an astonishing level of citizenship with his philanthropy (no sarcasm, btw).
Gates seems to beat out Jobs in that department.
But Jobs definitely beats the holy hell out of Gates with making cool stuff.
I agree, Gates beats Jobs for philanthropy, but don't you just feel like after all these years that Gates owes us all something? I don't feel that way about Warren Buffet or Trump or other rich folks. It just feels like Gates has been kinda stealing for some time.
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