Posted on 01/13/2005 12:28:42 PM PST by ambrose
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By Stephen Evans
BBC North America business correspondent
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It's tempting to think that Steve Jobs is some sort of religious leader rather than the chief executive of a rather successful computer company.
And you could be forgiven for thinking that his Apple products are objects of religious devotion rather than mere pieces of plastic enclosing silicon chips.
The Cult of Mac does have some rational basis.
There seems little doubt that the products are very good. Its strong attractions are usability and good looks (though not usually price until this week's announcement of a less expensive home computer).
Inspired behaviour
There is clearly, though, something more to it than mere mundane functionality.
Lots of companies make good products but they don't attract the kind of religious zeal that Mac inspires.
Take the case of John Charlton, for example, who, according to Wired magazine, travels the world with his Newton, the PDA which Apple discontinued in 1998, and has now created a gallery of pictures of the said gizmo in front of various global landmarks from Florida to Munich to Lisbon.
Or the people who cut their hair to show an Apple symbol or who get Mac tattoos or who dress up like Steve Jobs or who trek around the world to the opening of a new Apple Store.
Rebellious streak
It is a tribal thing - the Mac Tribe - and a sociological phenomenon, to do perhaps with a minority who believe they have seen a truth, much like the drivers of VW Beetles would wave to each other in the 60s, knowing utterly that their car was superior, but it was a secret unperceived by the rest.
There may also be a type of person who delights in going against the herd.
Whatever is fashionable for the masses becomes unfashionable for the minority. Manchester City and the New York Mets both have their loyal followers who would rather die than head for Old Trafford or Yankee Stadium. And so it is with Microsoft and Apple.
While the big company dominates the market with its uncool product, Macs offer an alternative to those with a streak of bolshiness and perversity (both nouns are compliments).
Cool dudes?
None of which is to say that Apple and Mac offer style but no substance.
Clearly, the company is getting a lot right. Its devotees (disciples?) swear by their products as being effective and easy to use.
It's just that there's something more to it than that: the packaging and sales-pitch have succeeded brilliantly in conveying a whole life-style and image.
That style emanates from the top.
Steve Jobs is the counter-image of a stuffy businessman. He wears trainers, jeans and black sweaters.
Apple's attitude to the media is actually tight and highly controlled yet the image portrayed is of a cool and easy-going counter-culture.
Pure marketing
Let me declare an interest: I own a Microsoft driven personal computer. It serves me very well. I have no strong feelings about it. Mac may or may not be better; it's just that it's not the route I happened to take.
I get stalked, though, by colleagues who insist on telling me how much better their iPod is than my Dell Jukebox, even as the reviews say the battery life of an iPod isn't the best around. Or how I should throw my PC away and get a Mac.
They may be right.
It's just that some of the message is in the marketing.
We asked you, our readers, if you are Mac followers or loathe Macs, or indeed whether you are simply puzzled by this phenomenon? The feedback printed below reflects the wide range of views held.
I have not got a clue about this issue and i am a loser when it comes to technology.
Hassan Shah, Watford
Not to knock Jobs, but that iPod shuffle round his neck looks terribly unfashionable. Sort of like when you were back in school and you had that teacher with the big glasses and pen hanging round her neck. I for one won't get one until it is covered in zebra stripes and purrs everytime I do something right, like my girlfriend ;-)
John, London
Macs have always lead the way. They are simpler, more intuitive to use and now cost less! They are also better quality.
Jeff Lil, Hull UK
I must admit to being puzzled by the whole Apple cult. I too have had my ear bent by Mac nerds, but I've ignored them because I can't see the point of paying over the odds for an inferior product just because someone considers it to be stylish. Why buy a Mac when you can get a PC that will outperform it in every respect for half the price?
Anthony Jones, Leeds UK
Once again, disappointingly, a report on Apple rehashes the old myth, that Macs are more expensive than their equivalent PCs. Utter Tosh. TCO (total cost of ownership) studies show, time and again, with equivalent hardware and software, that Macs are actually cheaper. Lazy journalistic nonsense.
John, Forfar, Scotland
I like the idea of the Ipod shuffle and also the price but I can't help but feel that they are really taking advantage of new computer users with the mini Mac. They are taking advantage of Mac as a hip brand name to sell a product without a keyboard, mouse and monitor and are marketing it like they are doing the consumer a favour.
People will buy them because Mac is the it thing to have but these will be home users wanting something to look good next to their lava lamps or something. If Mac just lowered the prices for their Macs anyway they would be able to compete with PC no problem in my opinion, I feel we are being slightly ripped off by this mini Mac.
Andrew Maddock, Harrow, London
I am indeed puzzled. The Mac Mini is lacklustre. The specification are so 2003. And yet people are willing to pay money for that. The iPod Shuffle is even worse.
March Suffot, London
I am always amazed with how intuitive Apple products are to use. Proof: they come with no manuals.
Bav, Brussels
I'm a user of Macs and PCs (and by the way, it's not just a matter of Apple versus Microsoft: Microsoft Office is very widely used on Macs, at any rate in corporates).
I don't have a strong preference as regards the working environment: as an IT professional, I've worked on and supported both platforms (and others). I suppose if I didn't need to maintain my skills on both platforms I'd be content enough with a Mac.
I think, objectively, the interface is generally better, not to mention friendlier for non-experts, and I've happily produced reams using one or other of my Macs. But then, I've done the same on PCs.
However, I do get irritated by the aggressive evangelism of many Mac (and Linux) users: perhaps Mac users really are smarter, cuddlier, safer and more creative than PC users (but I'd like to see some reliable, objective statistics!), but in my experience they're often rude and arrogant.
I suspect that this often shows a deep-seated defensiveness and insecurity. Apple do many things just right (and I'm not just talking marketing either), but they aren't perfect.
Furthermore, Mac users don't live in a vacuum: the Mac experience might be more productive and pleasant if the rest of the online world supported the platform better. The fact that they don't isn't the fault of Apple or the customers (well, sometimes it is: insularity is not an attractive trait), but it isn't an argument for putting all your eggs in the Mac basket, either.
David Harley CISSP, Headley Down, UK
I think that for most Mac users there are a range of factors that influence us. A distrust or dissatisfaction of Microsoft is one factor - in this sense Mac users are similar to people who choose Firefox over IE or Linux over Windows.
In many cases there are also very specific, practical reasons. I use a Mac at work because I have something like 10 years of resources created on Macs (some of which use software unique to the Mac).
I use a Mac to read email by preference to reduce my exposure to viruses (most of which can't damage the Mac OS or Mac files).
Finally, Mac products tend to have a longer shelf-life than Windows PC products and tend to be easier to use. This last point is no longer as true as used to be (Apple has adopted generic PC components in its machines and lowered quality slightly over the years), but I have never had a serious or expensive hardware fault with any Mac I've used at home or for work. This contrasts with the experience of many PC using colleagues at work over the years.
Thom Baguley, Loughborough
Your reporter sounds a bit defensive, insistent on portraying Mac users as "other" than normal computer users. Perhaps that makes him more comfortable with his Windows PC. If he focused on which computers are better for most users, his stubborn resistance to trying a Mac may give way. Oh, the horror!
Ted Rebarber, United States
I have used Macs for almost 20 years and a Windows PC on only a couple of occasions. I don't drive a Beetle (or Bug) but chuckled at the article, agreeing with it and identify with many aspects of it.
It's not a religious thing, just about finding what works best for you ... except you then want to evangelise about the 'great truth' you have discovered, which sort of makes it a quasi-religious thing!
PS. I have already placed my order for an iPod shuffle!
Lester Peters, High Wycombe, UK
Apple has an outstanding Marketing department that could sell rain coats in the desert. As for their products, its all down to hype and marketing. Many companies offer better products at far lower prices.
"Macs are really easy to use" they cry. Anyone who has ever sat down in front of a Mac for the first time will realise that a Mac is very easy to use - but only when you know how to use it!
Phil Templeton, Poole, Uk
As is usually the case with these things, those pursuing "anti-fashion" are the biggest fashion victims of them all. It reminds me of my teenage niece who wants to be "different" just like the rest of her friends.
Matt, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (ex. UK)
If this goes on, in few years time it'll be rebellious not to have a Mac product. So far, I'm doing well, I don't have any! ;-)
Konstantinos M, Athens/London
Everybody knows that Macs are better than PCs. But we all have to use PCs for compatibility, because everyone else does.
Adam, London, UK
Who cares?
Chris, Lincoln
Four words: "Buy a Microsoft Mouse."
I have a Microsoft laser mouse hooked up to my iBook. Not only does the right mouse button work in most applications just the way you'd expect it to but the scroll wheel works, too, and can even be used to do things like adjusting the volume in iTunes if you hold the mouse curser over the volume control and use the scroll wheel. I think I got my no-frills wired Microsoft mouse for about $10 at a computer show from a PC vendor. Plug in a USB mouse for a PC and go.
No analogy is perfect. And pointing out the imperfections doesn't invalidate an analogy. You are making a "distinction without difference."
*Why* is your Harley worth that much? Answer: because someone else will pay that much to aquire it... nothing more. Your personal ability to work on the bike is completely irrelevant to what the market says it's worth.
I can't make you admit there is an emotional/goodwill component intrinsic to the assessed value of any Harley, but you'd be silly to try to deny it.
I'm simply asserting Macs enjoy a similar reputation.
In what way is it hell on resources? I do similar activities on a 6 year old 440BX chipset motherboard with dual PIII/800s and 512MB of PC100 RAM. This machine runs an assortment of server processes on a 24/7 basis and the usual assortment of desktop processes on demand.
Yuck, yuck.
This "Mac=gay" thing is nearing "Moose" and "Cheese" stature around here.
It's the only reason I look at the Mac v. PC posts any more.
I like to watch.
Me too.
Gee, that's the first time I've ever heard someone characterize taking offense at an unsolicited insult as "defensiveness" on FR.
Happens all the time over on DU though... of course, everyone *expects* them to have the manners of a farm animal.
What 4 inch screen? The new Macs do not come with a monitor or a keyboard. Just use any monitor up to 52 inch models and your eyes will survive. I'm thinking of getting one for my sales calls. All I need is a small monitor, I insert my CD and start selling (it sounds good...)
I can't make you admit there is an emotional/goodwill component intrinsic to the assessed value of any Harley, but you'd be silly to try to deny it. I'm simply asserting Macs enjoy a similar reputation.
A Mac is a hippy thing that is worthless in three years. A Harley is a manly thing that maintains its usefulness and value forever. The ONLY thing they have in common is high price AND the Harleys now cost less than BMW and Goldwing so your analogy is not only wrong, it insults manly men.
Being a VERY manly man,whose Harleys have been insulted, I am going to explode with rage and cause your CPU to run in fear of my extreme manliness.
Then I will post pictures of my manly bikes! So there!
Hmmm, I right-click on my Mac every day.
While my old G3, purchased in 98, is still happily chugging along, doing its duty... I have to admit, your animal magnetism is undeniable.
Mercy! I do declare! I believe I'm getting the vapors!
Do you like gladiator movies, Tommy?
;o>
1948 Apple (education edition)
Because the processing power needed to stream the DVD content and run display an image and lay sound is already CPU-intensive. Tossing disc burning into the mix just ups the CPU load to something unbearable. I don't like having my DVDs stutter indefinitely or pause for half a minute.
If I had gay friends, I'd seek approval buy using an Apple at home.
They have like totally buff colors and shapes.
And stuff.
;-)
Check ebay. The market disagrees with you.
Oh really? The Mac I bought 13 years ago is still running, error-free as is the 5-year old IMAC I gave my grandkids. I often wonder if the Army Harley made in WW II that we used might still be running. Those were tough machines!
OK, so they aren't entirely worthless in three years...
But they are hippy stuff.
Well thanks for stopping by and contributing absolutly nothing to the discussion.. Thanks..
1) Low end Dells usually run about 500$, and 2) the Mac mini runs 500$
huh? pretty much all components are upgradeable..
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