The Macintosh Is Dead

I personally _really_ wished Apple would update more often. Upgrading the hardware with "baby steps" every month or every second month would make the step much smaller than if you buy late in the one-year cycle just to see the hardware _seriously_ updated a week or two later. My point is: When *I* am ready to buy a new MacBook, Mac Pro or whatever, I want Apple to sell me the thing with the greatest components available at that given time.
Then again knowing a little more about Apple and its cycles helps avoiding to buy shortly before new models are introduced. At least most of the time.
 
But then how would it be possible to change in "baby steps" from the iMac G3 to G4, or from the G4 to the G5? First the G3 instead of the G4 display on top of the G4, then smaller, smaller, smaller and then the iMac G4? Then they make the "Hügel" at the bottom smaller, smaller and smaller till it's gone and start to put more stuff behind the screen as they make the Hügel smaller? I dont think that would work! If they wouldn't change the iMac IC2D now except for making the screen slimmer etc... then ok, but if they'll make a major update, as they did twice already with the iMacs, then it won't work. But I get your point Fryke!
 
Just because your neighbour is a sinner, doesn't make you a saint. Ergo, just because Windows is so cumbersome, doesn't make the Mac OS the perfect alternative (albeit we are only then left with Linux).

I applaud Apple for continuing to create a relatively intuitive OS, compared with Microsoft's piss-poor creation. However, that doesn't mean that any criticism of the Apple's product development is unjustified or unnecessary. A few salvos from enlightened observers might help keep Apple on its toes.

However, on this occasion the author of the said article doesn’t seem to have any real substantial recommendations to make to address what he sees as Apple’s shortcomings. Just a hollow rant really.
 
Ferdinand said:
But then how would it be possible to change in "baby steps" from the iMac G3 to G4, or from the G4 to the G5? First the G3 instead of the G4 display on top of the G4, then smaller, smaller, smaller and then the iMac G4? Then they make the "Hügel" at the bottom smaller, smaller and smaller till it's gone and start to put more stuff behind the screen as they make the Hügel smaller? I dont think that would work! If they wouldn't change the iMac IC2D now except for making the screen slimmer etc... then ok, but if they'll make a major update, as they did twice already with the iMacs, then it won't work. But I get your point Fryke!
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they could, for example, get rid of the 'chin', that unsightly huge chunk below the screen, and also, the bezels on iMacs are huge. they're not the lightest things, either. and i'd like to see them bring back convection cooling, iMacs get quite whiney after a bit.
 
I think you have more fun with macs that are 5 years and older, theres just something about using old systems and pushing the limits with new software, and taking them apart and rebuilding them that gives it the charm for me.
 
There is one thing we can agree on, perhaps:

Referring to the Intel/Mac as "Mac" and also referring to the PowerPC/Mac as "Mac" is a little difficult when trying to find software.

But, that will change, eh?

As far as the hardware changes: "Thank GOD!" I can now afford a "Mac" which I could not afford before, and the hardware is B-E-A-utiful.

Open my last 5 "PC's"...what a mess. Open the "Mac", and enter Eden.

I personally believe a "Mac" is a "Mac" and not a "PC"...neither hardware, nor software.

"It just works"...my PC never did (except when brand new).
 
I think, if you get as nitpicky as this guy, you would say that a 2007 Buick isn't an automobile because it doesn't look or work like the cars Buick made 100 years ago!

By the way, when you come to Vietnam and ask about Macintosh computers, they will correct you on the pronunciation: Here it's...

Massintoss!
 
loyaltubist said:
I think, if you get as nitpicky as this guy, you would say that a 2007 Buick isn't an automobile because it doesn't look or work like the cars Buick made 100 years ago!

By the way, when you come to Vietnam and ask about Macintosh computers, they will correct you on the pronunciation: Here it's...

Massintoss!
Click to expand...

Actually, I think that is a perfect example of how language changes over time. Who uses the word "automobile" now? Or the 1950s equivalent "motorcar"? Our "saloons" have become "sedans" and our "estates" have become "wagons" (in most parts of the English speaking world, anyway).

So when you hear somebody say "I travelled to the coast in my automobile" you'd be likely to get a mental image of someone in a 1920s car. The word hasn't changed in meaning, but because it hasn't been used in a long time, we tend to associate it with usage rather than definition.

So in that sense, maybe the word "Macintosh" is dying out. In 10 years time, when someone says "I have a Macintosh at home", will we be picturing the latest model off Apple's production line? I somehow doubt it.
 
To a degree, and probably for different reasons, I have to agree. To an ordinary user, the Mac's great advantage was a single machine integrating monitor with computer. But the eMac is now officially dead--fortunately I got one before it was discontinued. But Tiger has no significant advantage that is obvious except for Dashboard, which I rarely use, and Spotlight, which only works with Mac programs, not second party programs like Mariner Write. Esthetically, the old Mac All-in-One idea was wonderful: now we are stuck with laptops with limited lifespans (the battery is not generic, and when they stop making the battery, you're dead in the water) or huge tower systems. Small wonder no one wants Macs anymore--Apple is increasingly, it seems to me, depending on its iPod, a triviaity. Apple needs to resurrect the eMac approach again, and take hold of its birthright again.
 
Sparrowhawk said:
... To an ordinary user, the Mac's great advantage was a single machine integrating monitor with computer. But the eMac is now officially dead--fortunately I got one before it was discontinued.
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Huh? What's wrong with the iMac? Just because it has an LCD rather than CRT monitor doesn't mean that it is not a a single machine with an intergrated monitor.
Sparrowhawk said:
... Spotlight, which only works with Mac programs, not second party programs like Mariner Write.
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What in God's name are you rambling on about? Spotlight also works with files. But, it is MacOS X facility on a Macintosh computer. What more do you demand of Spotlight?
Sparrowhawk said:
Esthetically, the old Mac All-in-One idea was wonderful: now we are stuck with laptops with limited lifespans (the battery is not generic, and when they stop making the battery, you're dead in the water) or huge tower systems.
Click to expand...
... and the iMac and the Mac mini. Why do you continue to deny the existence of the iMac? In fact, with its introduction of the 23" iMac, Apple seems to be pushing the iMac at the expense of the Mac Pro.
Sparrowhawk said:
Small wonder no one wants Macs anymore--Apple is increasingly, it seems to me, depending on its iPod, a triviaity. Apple needs to resurrect the eMac approach again, and take hold of its birthright again.
Click to expand...
Where on Earth of you getting your information? The Mac is increasing its marketshare at the same time that Dell is suffering massive layoffs. You need to go back to bed and get up on the right side this time.
 
Spotlight is actually quite flexible. There are third-party Spotlight plugins to read all sorts of other file formats, like zips, NeoOffice files and many others (see http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/spotlight/ ). The folks behind Mariner Write could make Spotlight work with their file formats. Spotlight is certainly not limited to Apple's programs or file formats.

Don't get me wrong, I'm no fan of Spotlight. I consider it a very good reason to stick with Panther (for reasons I will not go into here; search the forums if you care). But that particular problem is not Apple's fault.

As for the all-in-ones, the low-end iMac seems like a decent successor to the eMac. It's more expensive, which is unfortunate, but then the Mini also went up in price with the switch to Intel, so I guess that's just the way it is for now.
 
Gee, Mr. Me, we love you too. Thanks for your more reasoned response, Mikuro, I will look into it. Mr. M, some of us don't want a cinema screen, but prefer a working tool, not something we wrap our lives around.
 
Maybe the Mac isn't the same as it once was but if it was the same then Apple would have truely been out of business a long time ago. The overall packages is what makes it a Mac and I was cautious about how the transition to Intel hardware would affect the Mac but the thing is, it hasn't really affected what makes the Mac a Mac. The hardware looks pretty much the same on the outside, the OS works exactly the same etc. This MBP works the same way as my G4 tower except much faster.

If you want to complain it's not the same as OS 9, well that's a good thing. OS 9 used to be much more unstable for me. My IIci would freeze all the time running Netscape. Now we are transitioned to a more modern(even though a lot of the tech is from the 50s) OS and you can see how well it's helped Apple. Imagine if we were still using some derivative of OS 9. There would still be the Apple loyalists that would use the systems, if Apple even still existed, but the huge growth rate we're currently seeing wouldn't be happening. Currently Mac sales are growing 3-5 times faster than the industry average. i.e. industry growth rate is X, Mac growth rate is 3X-5X, 3X world wide, 5X in the US.

P.S. writing a Spotlight plugin is trivial, so if the application doesn't support it then complain to the authors.
 
Thank for the Spotlight link, Mikuro. The plug in worked like a charm. (I accidentally thanked someone else, but I'm sure he would have provided the link if he knew/thought of it. BTW, does anyone remember when Apple sued E-Machines when they tried to integrate a CRT with their computer? Apple at the time thought the concept was important enough to protect THEN.
 
Sparrowhawk said:
... BTW, does anyone remember when Apple sued E-Machines when they tried to integrate a CRT with their computer? Apple at the time thought the concept was important enough to protect THEN.
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The main issue in the suit was not the fact that the E-Machines all-in-one had a CRT. Apple sued E-Machines because it sold a computer that looked like an iMac/eMac of that era. If any computer company produced a computer which looked like today's iMac, then Apple Legal would get busy in a hurry.
 
I suppose I should make my point clearer, with my apologies. Some of us do not like LCDs. They fade out unless you are looking straight on at them, and environmentally they seem to use up more mercury than other screens. And amazingly, there still doesn't seem to be a comprehensive recycle program for computers. (Not Apple's fault, although they have scored very low on this front as we know.) And, purely a personal aesthetic note, the eMac is a much more attractive machine. Why? Can't account for personal taste, but it has a rather organic look to it that the flat screen. For that matter, so did the original Macintosh.
On an entirely different matter which I invite everyone to offer their opinions: will Apple continue the use of CDs/DVDs for data storage, or will there be a switch to HD or BluRay disks? Can a standard Mac use this still new form of data storage?--or will we have to buy new machines to keep up? Does anyone remember the book and phrase, "Future Shock"?
 
LCD's may use traces of mercury, but apple is starting to transition to mercury-free lcd by the end of 2008. CRT's on the other hand, have a whacking great lump of lead in them! CRT's are hateful to the environment. CRT's also fade, and blur over time, and a 4 year old CRT can be nearly useless.

as for the viewing angles, that's utter rubbish. maybe 6 years ago, but certainly not now. the picture on my 20" acd is as colour perfect at a 10 degree angle as it is straight on.
 
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