PC or Mac

[SafeHarbor]

A ways back, a friend asked if I had bought Windows 3.0 for my computer yet. At the time, I was running DOS 3.3 and then 4.1. He warned me: "It'll take over your computer." This friend worked for IBM in Atlanta, and one day he called and said, "Hey, do you try out OS/2 for free?"

Sure, I said, and then I bought a faster computer. I ran OS/2 rather happily for several years, even getting away from Pakmail and onto the net with it. Then IBM tried 2.0 and their advertising was like, "Hey, dude. OS/2 will OBLITERATE your software."

It seems that a lot of people did not want their software obliterated, and IBM eventually pulled it from the general market.

So then I switched to Linux. I ran various versions of Red Hats until I got my present job. I telecommuted for almost a year using Linux until it became obvious that I couldn't provide good support for our products without being familiar with Windows.

Thus Windows finally got to "take over" my computer, and, to my pleasant surprise, there is an abundance of good open source software for Windows now.

That was two years ago. For a long time, I had both boxen sitting side by side on the floor, with two monitors and keyboards, mice, etc. Then I "upgraded" from Redhat to Redhat Enterprise, and that was a rollicking disaster.

Rather than put more effort into it when I still doing a crash course on running Windows, I used Linux less and less. When I got this new to me Excella last year, I never bothered putting the Linux box in it.

As for Windows, I can say that it's much more stable than it used to be.

One of my favorite features of OS/2 1.0 and 1.1 and later was that it remembered where program files were. If you moved one from one place on the PC to another, OS/2 knew about it, and you could still run the program without having to go find it first. Windows still can't do that.

Lamar

[JStanley]

I’m currently using a 20 in. G5 iMac. Apple has always been my first choice since my first PC in 1982, and Apple II+. Since the 70’s I worked with all kinds of computer systems. It may sound crazy today, but I can recall the resistance our “SW Engineers” and programmers had with the introduction of the mouse, the GUI, the touch pad, and the 3.5 in. floppy disk. One HW item the ‘worker bees’ loved was the internal hard drive. Today our family has a newwork of 4 Macs and 4 Wintel machines. Check out the Washington Apple Pie: www.wap.org/ A great user group.

[AirstreamGypsy]

Originally Posted by Jimandrod

Finally, the last time I heard any statistics, Apple had 5% of the market share for personal computers. Does anyone know the current share?

Jim

The last time I heard it was the same. But that was a few years ago. One thing that no one takes into account however is that Apple is a machine and a software; while Windows is just a software run on different brands of PC. (Dell, HP, etc.)

Of course now Apple has iPod, so if you figure that in, well, 'nuf said.

[xFieldTech]

Home use: PC and a Sun Ultra 30

On the road: Laptop dual booted to XP and Linux; can't go camping without a command line

[Jimandrod]

Originally Posted by myoung

jimandrod,
Also, I'm curious what difference market share makes? .....

.....Hanging on to obsolete products is interesting too. Creative exited the MP3 market on September 30, 2005. Try an iPod, which has more compatibility with audio formats than any other player.

Apple's market share has always been low. I'm wondering if their share has picked up with their improvements in compatability and networking.

Creative MP3 players are hardly obsolete. The iPod may be hot right now but there are several better players on the market. The creative Zen series is one of them.

iPod has more audio format compatability??? NOT an accurate statement! It doesn't play WMA files and it's not compatable with Napster.

Battery life??
iPod = 8 hours fully charged
Zen = 24 hours (32 hours at 48kbps)

iPods popularity isn't based on the quality of the technology - it's slick marketing and a hot fad with the under 20 generation.

[AirstreamGypsy]

this is from osxfaq.com

"Speaking of market share, Apple apparently has 7 percent of the laptop market, according to IDC, which is at least more than the company's share in the overall market. That is, if you believe all of the folks who say they keep track of this stuff."

[myoung]

Originally Posted by Jimandrod

Creative MP3 players are hardly obsolete. The iPod may be hot right now but there are several better players on the market. The creative Zen series is one of them.

iPod has more audio format compatability??? NOT an accurate statement! It doesn't play WMA files and it's not compatable with Napster.

iPods popularity isn't based on the quality of the technology - it's slick marketing and a hot fad with the under 20 generation.

As a member of the over 60 generation, I'm quite pleased with my 3 iPods. Some of us geezers care about quality and recognize it in Apple.

iPod Audio & Video formats:

Audio formats supported: AAC (16 to 320 Kbps), Protected AAC (from iTunes Music Store), MP3 (16 to 320 Kbps), MP3 VBR, Audible (formats 2, 3 and 4), Apple Lossless, AIFF and WAV

Video formats supported: H.264 video up to 768 Kbps, 320 x 240, 30 frames per sec., Baseline Profile up to Level 1.3 with AAC-LC up to 160 Kbps, 48 KHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4 and .mov file formats; MPEG-4 video up to 2.5 Mbps, 480 x 480, 30 frames per sec., Simple Profile with AAC-LC up to 160 Kbps, 48 KHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4 and .mov file formats

One might reasonably ask why other players aren't compatible with the audio standard of MPEG 4, like Apple is. Why insist that WMA is so special? The incompatibilities revolve around digital rights management.

Any bets on how long Napster will survive? Will it outlast Real? That would be a bet on two sick ponies.


Newsflash:


Creative's Zen Vision:M green with Apple iPod envy

Friday, December 09, 2005 - 03:32 PM EST

"What's black, white and green with iPod envy? The Zen Vision:M, a familiar-looking video player announced by Creative Technology. The similarly styled and priced device will compete directly with Apple Computer's video iPod for a spot on every technophile's holiday wish list. Creative plans to put the Vision:M up for sale this month, and with less than three weeks left in the shopping season, that makes the device a tough sell. 'They're extremely late,' says Tim Bajarin, analyst with market research firm Creative Strategies, which is unaffiliated with Creative. 'In this stage of the game, I'm skeptical this product will give them enough revenue to impact the bottom line for their next quarter... Though Creative is a worthy competitor, I think Vision:M will have zero impact on Apple,'" Rachel Rosmarin reports for Forbes.

Rosmarin reports, "Creative CEO Sim Wong Hoo denied that his company copied the device's design from Apple, telling the BBC in London that Creative had been planning the new player's design for more than a year. Apple's video iPod has been on the market for only two months. Hoo has a history of making loud claims about competing with Apple in the MP3-player space. In August, Creative won a U.S. patent for an MP3-player interface involving the way multiple screens are used to navigate through songs. Hoo told the BBC that he plans to pursue this patent aggressively. In November 2004, he famously announced that his company's products would outsell Apple's with the help of an expensive marketing campaign. 'He's a colorful guy,' says Bajarin about Hoo. 'But since what he says sometimes doesn't happen, it impacts our ability to see him as truly credible.'"

[Westfalia]

Originally Posted by Jimandrod

iPod has more audio format compatability??? NOT an accurate statement! It doesn't play WMA files and it's not compatable with Napster.

Battery life??
iPod = 8 hours fully charged
Zen = 24 hours (32 hours at 48kbps)

iPods popularity isn't based on the quality of the technology - it's slick marketing and a hot fad with the under 20 generation.

I admit, Apple could put a better battery in their iPod, but you can add a comparable battery to the iPod to match the Zen's power capacity. It costs about $30. Also, who listens to audio at 48kbps? The minimum I prefer to listen to is 160kbps in MP3 format (128 in AAC). Classical music or very dynamic music get encoded higher.

As for WMA, it is a CLOSED audio format. WMA support MIGHT be different if Microsoft bothered to release an updated WMP for Macintosh. Instead, they are too interested in keeping people locked into their own OS where the tools are exclusive.

At least Apple now release iTunes/Quicktime concurrently on both platforms.

[Porky Pig]

Currently using an HP laptop with Windows XP Pro.

I owned an Apple dealership in California for 14 years (1987 - 2001). After 4 years of Apple kicking me in the teeth ... we added PCs to the mix. It was a business decision so we could survive. I was tired of my clients (Doctors, Attorneys, Architects and Engineers) purchasing PCs to run software designed specifically for their profession. Apple was (and still is) shooting blanks in this arena.

Apple makes a fantastic product for the consumer market. For most of us (or the "Rest of Us" ), a Macintosh is probably the better choice. I used to advise my clients to define their goals ... select the software that will help them achieve their goals ... and then purchase the computer. The choice of either Mac of PC was determined by the software. Pretty simple ... pick the right tool for the job.

Now that Apple is switching over to Intel ... this old graphic is once again funny.

[overlander63]

I am the aberration. I had an early Mac, and had nothing but problems with it. Many program I needed were not available for Mac at the time, and I had problems with the machine. I probably got hold of the only lemon they ever built, but it soured me on them for life, even after repairs and re-repairs made it reliable. I now own 3 Dells, 2 desktops and a notebook, and have an old Gateway and a Compaq kicking around. All still function as they were designed to, and I know the systems and am comfortable with them. The Gateway has Win 95 on it, but can still get out on the internet and do what it was built for, just a little slower than the new ones. Of course, using Linux and Mozilla on the newer ones probably helps keep the programming problems down.

[Davydd]

Originally Posted by Jimandrod

iPods popularity isn't based on the quality of the technology - it's slick marketing and a hot fad with the under 20 generation.

And the over 60 generation. I just got the iPod with Video.

[Jimandrod]

Originally Posted by myoung

As a member of the over 60 generation, I'm quite pleased with my 3 iPods. Some of us geezers care about quality and recognize it in Apple.

iPod Audio & Video formats: ..... etc etc etc

Who said video?? Not me. I have absolutely no interest in watching anything on a 2 inch screen. The rest of it really isn't worth getting into a heated arguement about.

You love your 3 iPods. I love my Zen and my Jukebox.

Isn't life great???!!!

[Davydd]

40% here vs 5-7% of the supposed market? There could be a parallel between PC and Mac and SOB and Airstream. If you ask an SOB trailer owner why the like what they have, they describe functionality, practical, versatility, space, cost, etc. but they never say the love them. People do seek out Airstreams because of the quality, design, character, and that "it" factor. They appreciate what they have and they do seem to love them. The SOB owners cannot understand why you would want a trailer with rounded ceilings and corners that cut into layout, space and storage. That is kind of like saying you don't have the software I need. I bet you take this poll on RV.Net's Trailer forum and you would get the 5-7% Mac.

[Jimandrod]

Originally Posted by Davydd

And the over 60 generation. I just got the iPod with Video.

... also replying with a big grin... WOW - you must have great eyesight. I'm in the over 50 generation and I don't enjoy looking at anything that small! but... the music that comes out of either unit is great.

I cart mine around everywhere. When I'm in the air I listen to it with a pair of ER6 earbuds. On the ground at home I pump it throughout my house with a Russound A-Bus distributed audio system. Away from home I use a Bose Wave system.

They're pretty versatile. How else can you cart around your entire CD collection in your pocket!!!???? I have almost 300 CDs on mine.

[Buttercup]

I love it! Yes and I am using windows firewall to boot! But I don't care because there is nothing on that machine of any value at all - literally. Hell we have already been relayed and my smtp "privledges" were revolked by my ISP, etc... I don't need my ISP's mail service anyway. But 3 years running and still up 24/7.

Originally Posted by Silvertwinkie

I got a grin off this one, only because I am looking to install a VPN here at work and was looking for one of those key fobs that give you a random number because we have the type of users that put usernames and passwords on a stick it note on the side of the CPU.

So, I looked and looked but only found a couple I liked and they ran on Win2003 server. So I emailed the Apple Systems Engineer that is assigned to our account asking if he knew if Win 2003 could read our LDAP directory of users or if he knew of a company that made the software that worked off a Mac.

Well, I get this call about 4 minutes after I hit send. He said:

"I got your email, neat you want to set one of those up. We use cryptocard and it works off OSX. But let me be sure I understand you....you were actually thinking of using a Windows machine as a security device?"

....and I thought to myself for a minute, and said, you know, your're right, what was I thinking!

So when I saw your post about using your PC as your security device.....

[Jimandrod]

Originally Posted by Westfalia

.....

...As for WMA, it is a CLOSED audio format. WMA support MIGHT be different if Microsoft bothered to release an updated WMP for Macintosh. Instead, they are too interested in keeping people locked into their own OS where the tools are exclusive.

At least Apple now release iTunes/Quicktime concurrently on both platforms.

Actually, when I got my Zen I looked very seriously at the iPod - I have nothing against Apple products. What pushed me towards the Zen was price (Apple was a lot more $$$ for the same 20GB capacity. I also liked the 24 hour battery. It was the WMA files that cinched it. I already owned a bunch of WMAs that I wasn't willing to rebuy from iTunes.

Too bad Apple wasn't willing to release its GUI interface during the DOS days. My bet is that a LOT more people would have MACs today

[gadgetat]

Hi again all. Fun reading this thread, and how quickly it grew today.

As I said earlier, I use both types of systems, and prefer one. Reading through the thread though I thought the market share question regarding Mac was an interesting one.

We're all Airstream owners here, or looking to be Airstream owners. What's the market share of the RV market that goes to our silver palaces? If we were to place a lot of weight behind market share in our decisions, would we currently own an Airstream? I made my decision based on what would work for me, and that was an Airstream.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by gadgetat

We're all Airstream owners here, or looking to be Airstream owners. What's the market share of the RV market that goes to our silver palaces? If we were to place a lot of weight behind market share in our decisions, would we currently own an Airstream? I made my decision based on what would work for me, and that was an Airstream.

Hmm... Maybe 5-7% of RV owners buy Aorstream products. 5-7% of computer owners own Macs. Coincidence?

[driftwood]

I JUST LOVE APPLE !!!

Bought 100 shares early in October 2004 & still holding.

Once had an Apple Classic (great unit all-in-one) & rented a Prodigy connection. Later on to CompuServe, then MindSpring. Traveled with that Classic like I do my lap-top today, ... way-back-when.

I must be lucky, using my trouble free PC ... although it is a constant blocking, filtering, scanning process to keep it that way. System restore has made life much simpler for us common untrained users. And, of course, one can link to most all fixes through Google ... too bad we need the fixes!

A recently updated back-up external hard drive also seems to be required equipment for the PC user!

[markdoane]

Originally Posted by driftwood

I JUST LOVE APPLE !!!
Bought 100 shares early in October 2004 & still holding.

Let me see . . . (checking historical prices on Yahoo) . . Apple was trading around $40 back in Oct '04, and it's now in the mid $70's, figuring in the split back in Feb '05, you have a
3-BAGGER!

Congratulations