Opinion: Apple -- Here to Stay

MacCentral ^ | March 08, 2005 | Don Tennant

[r5boston]

Nearly a decade ago, just a few months after Microsoft shipped Windows 95, I asked Bill Gates if it was a conscious decision in the development of that product to give Windows more of a Mac look and feel. Of course I knew he'd say it wasn't, but I couldn't resist asking. "There was no goal even to compete with Macintosh," Gates proclaimed. "We don't even think of Macintosh as a competitor."

That was a crock, so I pressed the issue a little. I asked him how he accounted for the widespread perception that Windows 95 looked a lot like Mac 88, and whether the similarity was just a coincidence. I didn't expect a sobbing confession of mimicry, but I thought it would be cool to see how he'd respond. Surprisingly enough, Gates shifted gears and became more forthcoming.

[cowboyway]

the overwhelming majority of computer users don't even consider the Mac a viable computer.

I hear that a lot. Then I ask, "Have you ever owned one or even used one?" Most of the time the answer is No. End of discussion.

[cowboyway]

Owning a PC isn't an adventure. It's just a job

Owning a PC may not be a job, but using one sure is.

[Last Visible Dog]

The iMac (with USB) came out in 1998.

Yeah, you are right.

I know Apple did not originate USB. I found a USB history page that started the point about 2000. Guess it looks like Apple and MS supported USB at about the same time. My point was Apple did not have USB before MS.

[Cat loving Texan]

Pure, unadulterated Texas Catsh*t.

You look up and down this thread and the only people throwing rocks at other computers and their users are you and Bush2000. Typical PC users with serious envy issues.

You might want to check the mote in thine own eye.


Apparantly your religeon has blinded you. If you read beyond the first sentance of my post i said I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH ANYONE CHOOSING A MAC! I am all for choice. The problem with Mac is it is 3% OF THE MARKET. THREE PERCENT. DO YOU NOT COMPREHEND THAT MAC's INCOMPATABILITY WITH APPLICATIONS IS ITS PROBLEM. I can afford a Mac but I DON"T WANT ONE. I have used both and I prefer the shortcomings of Microsoft as opposed to the shortcomings of Mac. There is NO ENVY! I pay extra to have a state of the art Sony Vaio laptop. I am by no means a shrill for microsoft. Both systems have their plusses and minuses but the Mac world sure gets touchy and I have read numerous articles from people talking about the cultish following that Mac has.

[Last Visible Dog]

Your information is wildly inaccurate.

Nope. You must dissect the Ipod to replace the battery and doing so voids the warranty and is beyond the capability of most users.

Apple has lowered the price on battery replacement from $200 to $99. Apple clearly states the Ipod was not designed to be opened by the user but there is an article in Popular Mechanices about how to replace the battery - or you can buy a Creative Nomad that is designed to open and uses a readily available battery.

More important:

Creative Nomad 40GB - $179.00 (best buy w/rebate)

Apple Ipod 20GB - $300.00 (Apple Store)

Apple has half the storage and costs about twice as much and Apple does not support all the popular audio formats. The Ipod is a very nice device and I would have bought one if its price was not so out of sync with the market. Some people don't mind paying a lot more just to get the little Apple logo.

[antiRepublicrat]

I found a USB history page that started the point about 2000.

That page is a couple of years off.

My point was Apple did not have USB before MS.

You're sort of right. Windows 95 OSR2 had USB support before the iMac, but that support was so buggy and broken that I wouldn't count it. But the iMac beat Windows 98 (with full, although still buggy support) by one month.

But that still doesn't mean much. Nobody was putting out USB products for Windows machines at that time because most PCs didn't have USB hardware, making it cheaper to keep manufacturing devices with parallel and serial interfaces rather than sell devices with the new interface for a very small market. The iMac, with its amazingly high sales (the most from any computer manufacturer at the time), and USB-only connectivity is what jump-started the market for USB devices.

[Last Visible Dog]

That myth is pure Microsoft propaganda. Most folks know that Macs are better than Windows PC, but said that Macs were too expensive for their budget. Now that Apple is selling a $499 Mac, a lot of Windows users can afford to upgrade to Macs.

Do you have supporting evidence for this MacMythology claim or do you want us to just take your word on it? The fact is Apple has held 3% of the market for about 10 years and there is no data that shows this will be changing soon. Apple comes out with newer doodads every year and the MacMythology machine churns out statements about great sales numbers yet their market share does not budge. Clearly the Apple 3% buys whatever Apple tells them to.

[Last Visible Dog]

False again. It's less than $100 to replace the battery through Apple, and the average battery life is better than 3 years. The 18 month figure is for constant use.

Tell it to the growing mob of people that are not Ipod fans.

"I just don’t get the overwhelming appeal of the iPod, Apple’s MP3 player. It’s a beautiful device to be sure, but it does exactly what many, many other similar players do: It plays MP3s. Other brands are better, less expensive, have more capacity, are easier to use, and so on. But the iPod has something more than 85% market share. That’s incredible - that’s like finding that 85% of people in the country drive Toyota Camrys. It just doesn’t make sense."

-USA Today

[Petronski]

Nope. You must dissect the Ipod to replace the battery and doing so voids the warranty and is beyond the capability of most users.

Your information is wildly inaccurate. That's undoubtedly why you gave this cursory denial, followed by three paragraphs of changing the subject. The iPod replacement batteries are readily available, they come with instructions on opening the case, and your intimidation by the battery-changing procedure does not reflect on the intelligence or abilities of anyone else attempting it. If you require a dumbed-down battery-changing procedure, great.

As for the iPod, it is as easy as changing the battery on a cordless phone.

[Last Visible Dog]

Myth. The only files you can't send to your Ipod are WMA files with digital rights enabled. That's it, the sole exception.

Factually Incorrect.

The Ipod does not support the WMA format at all. The Ipod has half the storage, twice the price, and limited support for audio formats.

[Last Visible Dog]

False again. It's less than $100 to replace the battery through Apple

One penny less than $100 - it is $99 and you have to send it back to the Apple mothership (and the shipping is not free)

[Petronski]

If the iPod has 85% market share, who is your 'growing mob?' The USA Today? The other 15%?

And how much of your life have you been following growing mobs?

[Last Visible Dog]

Oh, Xerox licensed its GUI ideas to Apple. Some still think they were "stolen."

More MacMythology. Apple DID NOT license the GUI - you could not more wrong. Xerox was an investor in Apple so they let them see what they were working on - Apple stole the ideas and latter tried to claim the GUI was their own copyrighted idea. Xerox sued Apple

[Petronski]

The Ipod does not support the WMA format at all.

Importing a non-protected WMA file into iTunes automatically converts it to AAC, which can readily be stored on the iPod. You're WRONG again.

The Ipod has half the storage, twice the price, and limited support for audio formats.

In this very thread, you quoted $300 for the iPod and $179 after rebate for the Nomad. That's not twice the price. The only limit on audio formats with a basis in reality is the bar on protected WMA files (presumably because Bill Gates won't license the capability to Apple).

[John Valentine]

Dear Texan,

My note was a reply to your statement that Mac owners should "stop throwing rocks at the 96% of society that has chosen an alternative." It was you who said that, right?

All I did was to point out that all the rocks I see tossed are coming from the other direction.

Current case in point: Here we have a post that is of primary interest to Mac users where an Editor at Computerworld comments on the state of the Mac.

Next thing is some PC owners with buyers remorse or some other form of Mac envy show up tossing rocks at the Mac people who are otherswse happily minding their own business.

The second thing that happens is that the stone throwers start complaining about how hateful and clannish Mac owners are. Hey, there you are, right on schedule.

Please don't act all innocent when I call you on your hypocrisy.

By the way, I have no problem whatsoever with your statement "I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH ANYONE CHOOSING A MAC!" If only you had stopped there. But we both know that wasn't your point. That was only camoflage to get you in a bit closer before you unleashed your accusations against the Mac folks.

The ironic thing about unintended irony is just how ironic it is.

[Last Visible Dog]

No wonder. IBM didn't hold a stranglehold on the hardware.

Actually, IBM tried that, but Compaq reverse-engineered it.

WRONG.

That was the bios, not the hardware

[Melas]

Wrong I've moved all of my wma files to my ipod with itunes.

[Melas]

Wrong I've moved all of my wma files to my ipod with itunes.

[HAL9000]

Do you have supporting evidence for this MacMythology claim or do you want us to just take your word on it? The fact is Apple has held 3% of the market for about 10 years and there is no data that shows this will be changing soon.

According to Apple, the installed base of Mac OS X has grown to over 14 million as of January - and their rate of units shipped are increasing each quarter. I'll predict that number will grow to 18.5 million by the end of the year. In January, Apple reported the highest quarterly revenue and net income in the company's history.

Their "marketshare" is increasing too - but since Apple's are higher quality equipment, they don't have to be replaced as often as Windows PCs. The best way to measure the actual market is by measuring the installed base of the competing platforms.

Wall Street is also measuring Apple's performance against Microsoft over the last two years -

Microsoft has been a lousy investment for a while now.

[Last Visible Dog]

Are you truly as ignorant as you appear or do you really like spreading false information?

I see you have decided to start spewing personal insults - how unoriginal. Guess you ran out of intellectual ammunition.

It has been posted on FreeRepublic MANY times that the iPod battery can be replaced... do it yourself for about $30

Are you ignorant of the fact that this voids the warranty? Are you ignorant of the fact Apple clearly states the Ipod is not designed to be opened by the user? Are you ignorant of the fact that replacing the battery in the Creative Nomad (that has twice the storage and about half the price of an Ipod) does not void the warranty?