Vista: The 'Huh?' starts now

[Mehen]

In the past the mac apps that made them appealing to users were things like Photoshop - which are available on PCs as well - and whattya knowit? they run better on PC too.

Macs are like Miata's. PC's are whatever car you want them to be. They can be a busted up 1987 Honda Civic, or they can be a Ferrari Enzo, or they can be a 3s 0-60 muscle car. You can customize them to be whatever you want. A Mac will always be that damn girly Miata. I have just as much of a problem with the Mac hardware as I do the software - if not more.

It is the whole Mac image that bothers me - and their anti-MS/PC adds are enough to make me want to boycott Mac regardless of their product. They seem to have taken my car metaphor too far. Leave the bashing for cars and elections.

[Sasq]

Mehen, quick reality check here, new mac pro's come with 2 button mouse, using a microsoft wireless mouse and keyboard.

torrent - azureus - nuff said.
mac has WOW - nuff said
dual boot if you really want to run a version of windows for games.
the apps are there for osx Mehen, you just don't know where to look.

and whadda you know, with a native Intel compile, photoshop et al run the same.

I use notebooks, not really a lot of choice in hardware there if i get a dell or a mac.

I really can't understand your anger toward macs

[Jessterw]

Microsoft apps of course!

Have fun with your one mouse button.

If those mac vs. pc adds were accurate, the one guy that represents a mac would be missing one arm.

As for apps - the majority of free apps (torrent clients etc) make up the bulk of what I am referring too.

Although the matrox crowd doesn't have a lot of gamers anymore (it IS matrox...) - there are some - and most other demographics have a lot more.

Well let's see... I have Office running right now and if I was desperate enough I could run MSN Messenger (or whatever they're calling it these days). If I needed to I could also reboot into Windows or load up (almost) any Windows app via Parallels.

One button mouse? Where have you been? Mac users have been using multi-button mice for years if they so chose to do so. Many don't because they don't have to.

I've heard that Mac ad 'joke' before, try something original.

As for free apps, well there's a plethora of them on the Mac. Oddly enough though, while you're so worried about playing games, most Mac users can afford to pay for their apps and support the developers who make them.... ok, that was a bit harsh, but geez, not even Gurm's Mac rants are that ignorant.

The whole games issue is a pointless debate. If you need to play games on your PC that badly, then by all means, use a Windows-based PC. That would be the right tool for the job, which is what it's all about.


Edit: Looks like Dan in his brevity beat me to it

[Mehen]

You guys are missing my point. It is the mac image, the ads, the superiority thing, that makes me fight back. There is no loyalty to the OS maker that has served us all so well.

You can't understand my anger? They have million dollar ads on tv that do nothing but bash PCs and do nothing to promote their own product. It's childish. Although my attempts to defend PCs/Windows are not the greatest, I am standing up for what has served me so well throughout the years. Another thing that bothers me is the PC bashing that suddenly comes up when MS releases a new product. If there was no Vista -would you all still say you are going to Mac vs. 2k/XP? Know what, for some people, is an even harder transition than from XP to Vista? XP to Mac.

I hate all this bandwagon switching - it drives me nuts. There is no character left.

And JW, that's not a joke - its a METAPHOR (or whatever else you wan't to call it, I don't want to get into a semantics battle).

edit: go to your local game store and check and see how many of the games run on Mac OS.

[Sasq]

Mehen, I did switch from XP to mac, about 2.5 years ago.
I know a lot of people who have, Dude, I am 32 years old give or take change, I built my first pc when i was 14.
I have used MS since dos 3.1, I have watched redmond systematically milk everyones wallets. I have watched them borrow code - super store anyone?? -
You are asking for loyalty to a company that wants to ass rape you, have you read the EULA recently?

Redmond has never been loyal to us - ever. hell go watch pirates of silicon valley to get a good idea of both billy boy and jobs. Both of them are ****oles, just jobs dresses better.

Further, I am an MCSE, MCDBA and MCP. I still chose a *nix based platform for what I do which is primarily server based development.

Gurm's rational against mac's while missplaced at least has some rational basis - even if he is 5 years out of date on his info - your's seems more based on a dislike for black turtle neck sweaters

[Mehen]

What percentage of the general population actually uses a Mac? IDC and Gartner stick it at around 6% for the American user. That's a Dec. '06 stat. You would think that something that seems to be such a great alternative to PCs would be selling more. Maybe its because it isn't that great of an alternative.

Well it must be because of the PC/MS monopoly then - those bastards.

Macs crash just like PCs, they are a b*tch to repair, they are more expensive, the list goes on and on.

I spent a few hundred on XP around 5 years ago, and It'll probably last me another year or two. That's not bad for about 7 years of usage - and I am sure in a year or so when I buy Vista it will last just as long, and be just as good of a buy.

[Jessterw]

I hate all this bandwagon switching - it drives me nuts. There is no character left.

People are switching for a reason and it's not just because having a Mac is trendy, and it certainly isn't because of the ads.

And JW, that's not a joke - its a METAPHOR (or whatever else you wan't to call it, I don't want to get into a semantics battle).

Yes it's a metaphor used as a punch-line, but it fails because it's wrong. While PC users have been laughing at Mac users for using one button mice, Mac users have been laughing right back because they don't use an OS that damn near requires the use of anything else yet still lets them if they want to.

edit: go to your local game store and check and see how many of the games run on Mac OS.

Didn't we already go over this?


You know what I'm tired of, people basing their opinions of a product solely on ignorant assumptions and a dislike of anything that has gained the interest of the public in such a way that it appears trendy. So what. Those who switch because they want to be hip will eventually switch back, but it's time to cut the BS and realize that some people just like Macs and some people just like Windows. You pick the best tool for the job as you see it. If you decide that Windows is that tool then more power to you.

Great products inspire people and often a bond is formed. Mac users are passionate about their hardware and OS of choice, just as FOSS backers are of Linux. If that offends you then so be it.

[schmosef]

Macs are like Miata's. ... A Mac will always be that damn girly Miata.

hehe, reminded me of this:

http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2006/03/03

[Jessterw]

What percentage of the general population actually uses a Mac? IDC and Gartner stick it at around 6% for the American user. That's a Dec. '06 stat. You would think that something that seems to be such a great alternative to PCs would be selling more. Maybe its because it isn't that great of an alternative.

Well it must be because of the PC/MS monopoly then - those bastards.

Macs crash just like PCs, they are a b*tch to repair, they are more expensive, the list goes on and on.

I spent a few hundred on XP around 5 years ago, and It'll probably last me another year or two. That's not bad for about 7 years of usage - and I am sure in a year or so when I buy Vista it will last just as long, and be just as good of a buy.

Well the statistics are iffy because Macs are both the hardware and the OS, but you're right, they don't hold a candle to the market share of Windows-based PCs. Apple made some serious mistakes early on (most after Jobs left actually), and Gates and Company outmaneuvered them. Previous versions of the Mac OS were good, but generally only to those that had been using the OS from the get-go. Apple is playing catchup and OS X is a big part of why Macs are a great alternative again.

Yes the Windows-based PC monopoly had a lot to do with it later in the game and even now. Windows is also heavily ingrained in the business world, and what people use at work they tend to use at home. That's starting to change. Point-in-case, Apple has twice the growth figures of any other PC vendor, and no, that's not because of iPods.

Yes, Macs crash. Every OS and every piece of software written has and will crash. *gasp* Big surprise there. Macs crash less. Windows has gotten a lot better about that though and hopefully Vista will be that much more stable.

Macs can be a pain to repair, there's no doubt about that. To the average user it's not going to be much different than any other PC though. You know, when they take it in to get fixed.

Macs are no more expensive on average than their counterparts from other vendors. Sure you can get cheaper systems from the other vendors, but that irrelevant as Macs don't compete in that space (save for the mini). Then again, why does it matter? People pay more for equivalent products all the time.

You don't like Macs, we get that. Lots of us do. Time to move on.

[Jessterw]

hehe, reminded me of this:

http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2006/03/03

Funny how two serious gamers like Tycho and Gabe could possibly want to use a Mac. It's absolutely inconceivable.

[Technoid]

Turtle neck sweaters itch......

[Jessterw]

Black turtle neck sweaters are worse... hot and itchy...

[Sasq]

Much prefer hot and sweaty, but only when with a woman, not a turtle neck sweter

[Mehen]

It's the people that switch back and forth that bother me. They threaten to do so, then end up coming back anyways. What tires me and what fuels my fire in this argument is that I am TIRED OF HEARING IT, and want it to stop. Honestly, debating it on a forum does not bother me, it is at least constructive. What fuels my fire are the countless headlines, news articles, blogs etc.

Looking on a grander scale - there are better things for the media to focus on. Focus on what is going on, not opinions of what is going on. Let the people who read the media decide that for themselves. [Is the whole world catering to a "dumb" american public or is the media making them "dumb?"] I don't care that some newspaper writer is threatening to switch to mac. Give me the features of the new OS, but don't tell me what to do about this "situation" - "situation" as if it is some global pandemic. That whole "situation" is blown out of proportion. My hate for Mac's is in part fueled by hate for the media, and unfortunately it gets diverted here.

So right/wrong, I will defend PC/Windows to the death and never give up. If you knew me in person you would know that I love to do this - not because I care who wins, but I care about what it shows about the people doing the arguing. Speaking of ignorant - take myself and the demographic I represent. A large portion of my demographic (ie the long-time Windows users, casual gamer, etc) - these are the people that are threating to switch to Mac. And they are completely ignorant to Macs features! They are making their threats/decisions based on what - ? - ignorance? The whole thing ("situation") is stupid.

So while the reasons for switching for the users on this forum may be warranted - this forum represents a sample of people FAR from the average user.

Black turtle-neck sweaters are stupid.

Did you go to that store yet?

[Mehen]

Sh*t - the argument was cooling down, pity it took me so long to write that last bit I could have gotten off easy.