Why Am I Considering A Mac?

I am hoping those on this forum can give me insight into this insatiable desire I now have to get a Mac. I am a diehard PC and Windows person and have a bunch of PC's, use Adobe products etc. I can tell you I am not one who would have EVER considered a Mac.

My brother got a new IMac and after helping him for 2 hours on it, when I went back to Windows, it felt clunky and uninteresting to me. Then, a guy at Best Buy showed me the new MacBook Pro and that was it. Now I'm here on the Apple forum and I feel like I just have to get a MacBook Pro.

What is it that intrigues me so much - is it OS X or the beauty of the laptop? It's going to be a huge switch for me, but honestly, there is something in me that just has to do it. I feel almost as though I'll be a whole lot more productive doing it. I'm a writer and spend hours on the computer every day.

Anyhow, I thought those of you who have been using the Mac or those of you who have switched could give me insight as to this change in my whole perspective about the Mac. I'm trying to understand if this is just a passing fancy or if I'm gonna get one next week.

Cath

 

I think you've already answered your own questions and hope you enjoy your new machine as much as I enjoy mine.

 

You want something different. I had the same feeling for a year. Don't hold back from it, cause it only gets worse, not better. Not too much longer and you'll find yourself getting up early to watch the live feeds of Steve Job's keynotes, while reading switch stories.


Its not a hard switch. And it can be a satisfy'ing one.

 

If you were sold after going to best buy, try going to an Apple store and talking with the sales help, I predict you will but on the spot.

 

You probably want the new MBP because it comes with a GF 8600 GT in a very thin casing. I'm sure thats what most people were enticed by when they first saw it.

 

I just got the 2.4 C2D 17" Hi Res Macbook Pro and love it. I'm primarily a windows user (I'm a system admin by profession - Server 2k3 etc) but this notebook just rocks. There really is nothing that comes close. I'm typing this on it in Vista - the beauty of these machines is that you dont have to settle for one system or the other!!! You can run BOTH! I grew up on Apple (IIC anyone?) but have been PC for the better part of a decade. I just can't be limited to OS X simply because of what I do for a living - The MBP trashes all barriers when it comes to OSes. Bootcamp is simply awesome and this is by far the nicest machine I have ever owned. Back lit keyboard. Need I say more?

 

While I've never been a Windows' guy, I have never considered a Mac seriously. Nice machines, bla bla, OS X is *NIX, bla bla, but they were just a peripheral thought. I'd never pay a cent more for any machine. Then, one day, after reading the review of the very first Macbook here, I saw an unboxing at Youtube. I was stunned. I HAD to get one of these. Now I know I am not alone. **** you Jobs.
Too bad I am starting to feel the same thing towards the new MBP.

 

Well...regardless of why you want one...there are better places to buy a MBP than Best buy

 

The Apple store has decent prices with the student discount.

 

If you've been hooked, even slightly, all you'll do is get more "addicted" . But really, switching is good!

It is so many things Apple does that pleases the user...beautiful hardware design, as shown by your affection towards the MacBook Pro, and of course shown by the iPod and iPhone. OS X is fantastic. Very beautiful layout and icons, stable and secure, and much more "convenient". Such as barely ever needing defragmenting, or needing to restart every once in a while as Windows does.

As another user said (sorry I forgot your name), next thing you know you start reading reviews, stare at pictures of Macs, spend hours looking at every little detail of Apple's website, reading Switch stories, watching the Get a Mac ads and watching Steve Jobs' keynotes - over and over again. So yeah, once you have an interest, you're hooked, which is a good thing .

Get a MacBook Pro now. The price is right, they've just been updated, very powerful (2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo, GeForce 8600 GT!!), Mac OS X is fantastic, the design of the MacBook Pro is the best in the industry. The only thing that you may possibly watch for is Mac OS X Leopard (the next update of Mac OS X) in October.

 

Oh, that was me. I'd never even touched any Mac. I needed a new laptop (of course!) and didn't want Vista. Someone suggested Mac, I went to the Apple store, and the next day I dragged my husband there to see it, and bought it.

Luckily I had just gotten my annual bonus and a big tax refund.

I love my MacBook.

 

and the feeling will last for awhile, and honestly it will fade, but at least you can live happy for awhile knowing that you are part of a smaller group that have taken a look at what is available, and made your decision that this is the best for you.

 

I wonder how much smaller this group will continue to be...especially now. People seem to be converting left and right!

 

I just went to the apple store today... it was nice :3
The only question I really have now is...
Can you modify OSX's colors and stuff to make it look nice and have themes and the like. Kinda like how in XP you can patch UXTheme.dll and use all the .msstyles from a ton of places.

 

I'm very interested in what Apple has to offer. I've started looking at them and becoming very curious. It does increase by the day! LOL..I think I got the bug.

 

I can relate so much to the story of the TS.
I will order the MBP this week.

 

Another reason...I just had my first BSOD in 3 years today after installing Vista on my old PC

 

PC users always think that Mac users are smug and feel that we are superior because we are such fanboys of the Macintosh. They don't understand, it's not anything like that, the feeling of OS X is so much different than using Windows. I blog on the web so I purchased a Vaio Vista notebook for a week from a store that had a no questions asked return policy. I just needed to play around with Vista so I can blog about it. I don't even have an Apple notebook, I have a G5 desktop. During the time I had the Vista notebook I just found myself sitting back to my desktop G5.
The Mac OS system just feels like a real computer and more fun to use. Although it was quite convenient to use a notebook anywhere I just didn't like the feel of Windows. The connection between you and your computer is important and OS X makes that connection whereas Windows just doesn't.
It's never easy to explain but every friend of mine that switched to the Mac has never looked back at Windows.
It's cool when you have a nice looking machine but when the OS can grab you it's such a great feeling. OS X draws you in.
I have really never heard PC users say they love Windows, it's usually about the software they have to use that requires Windows.

 

I am so appreciating the responses here. I am trying to get a handle on how I could change my mind about an operating system in the matter of a day when I have been so pro-windows for years. I do have to say that once I was working in the OS X environment I liked being there. Windows was a letdown to me experientially after 2 hours in OS X. Not that OS X wasn't a challenge - it was, because I've never used it before. There is just something in me now that has to have a Mac. I haven't totally decided whether to get a MacBook or a MacBook Pro. That one person is right - now I'm interested in what Steve Jobs has to say - what in the world is happening to me. I might even drive an hour to go to an Apple store. I really am learning a lot and getting a lot out of reading all the posts up here on the message board - everyone is a great help to me.

 

Well at least you have an Apple Store to get to , the closest Apple Store is Seattle for me. Across the border!! Well, there are awesome Apple retailers in Vancouver, so I don't really mind. They have excellent service (Apple Authorized service) and good selection, and Apple Store feel.

MacBook vs. MacBook Pro has been going on forever. My suggestion is do you need the graphics card? Do you need the larger screen?

Generally, I think the MacBook Pro has the better design. The graphics card in the MacBook Pro will be useful in gaming (in Windows, of course ) and in some graphics intensive apps. The larger screen is nice for Photoshopping . So if you need/want a graphics card and like the larger screen and the MBP's design, go for it.

However, if you want a more portable laptop, the MacBook is good. Although not that much lighter, the dimensions are smaller, plus the MacBook is much cheaper although not that much weaker in power. The only difference in the MacBook is the lack of a graphics card, yet it is $1000 cheaper than the MacBook Pro. Now I wouldn't say the MBP isn't worth it considering the MacBook is so much cheaper yet only missing a graphics card and smaller screen, but it is a fact that the MacBook is very powerful, so if you don't need a graphics card or the larger screen, the MacBook is the way to go.

Steve Jobs is awesome. Listen to him...his wise words .

 

...That's because in all brutal honesty, some Mac users are. I'd even like to point out the Mac ads. They directly communicate "Macs are better then PC." It's a pretty ignorant selling strategy if you ask me.

Get the MacBook if you don't need/want the graphics card. It's an extremely good deal for the price you pay and what you get out of it. It can do everything a MacBook Pro can just fine... unless your planning on making cover shots for Rolling Stone Magazine or editing 64 tracks of audio.

Don't be so nervous about switching. At the end of the day, its just a machine. 2 years down the road you'll either stick with Macs, go back to PCs, or use both.

 

I like the portability of the MacBook and I travel a lot. I mostly will use it to write books and magazine articles and handle a lot of email and write messages and presentations.. However, I also do a lot of Photoshop and InDesign - mostly for magazine layout. When I'm on the road, I like to pull my photos in to my computer using an SD slot - of course, neither the MacBook or MBP have that. However, the MBP has an express card slot that I could use with an adapter of some kind. I do like portability - I used to do all these things on a 10.4" Fujitsu P series. It's too small for me now (for my eyes) and not powerful enough. I also like power - I like everything to work right now.

I was leaning towards the MBP because the size and weight difference between the two is not huge. A friend is going to let me use his MacBook for a couple of days. Another friend just got the MBP with a glossy screen and is going to bring it to my office to check it out.

And that's another thing - matte or glossy? I'll probably go with matte but I don't want to miss anything by not getting the glossy. I'm conflicted - can you tell? I'm figuring if I just keep reading what everyone here writes, it will become more clear. And one post is definitely correct, I'm sure I'll have something different in 2-3 years, although I still have my Fujitsu, though I rarely use it - I've had it 4 years.

 

Yup I hate that myself by the Mac community. It's almost downright arrogance when it fact the OS is not perfect either but that's how it's sold. Everytime I see those commercials flash on a website I just pause them.

 

Just to play the devil's advocate for a moment, from someone who has had a MBP for all of about a week. There are things I really like about the OS, but there are things Windows does better, e.g. when you copy over a file, it gives you a warning with the dates of the two files, Mac does not do that. Also with Macs, it does not do a great job of telling you whether you are in your hard or flash drive, you can get mixed up unless you pay careful attention to the size of window (obviously the HD is much bigger). If you are on PCs at work and Mac at home as I am, it can be a bit of a hassle. You will end up buying Paralells (another $80) and working both sides of the street. Unlike most PC manufacturers, Macs offer no accident insurance. It is possible to get that handled with your renters or homeowners, but if you have a claim, it affects your insurance rating for a lot of stuff besides the computer. Finally, if you use a Palm, the Mac interface positively sucks, much worse than the Windows. There is a fix Zadillo told me about (Zadillo is one of the wiser voices on this site) I have not yet tried at markspace.com. It is an extra $40 and I am not sure it will address all of my concerns. There is no number to call, I sent an email, but to date have not gotten a response.

I still am undecided about keeping the Mac. It definitely has advantages. Mac is different. I don't know how much I am drawn by it just being different after years in Windows. The new MBP's do strike me as good quality notebooks, as such. Customer service uses people whose native language is English, no small advantage, and usually get on the line quickly. There are good at helping you with Mac issues, but were of little help with the Palm issue.

 

I know I'll be doing Parallels and XP Pro because I will put Adobe CS in the Windows Environment for now on my Mac, mainly because if I switch to the Mac version of CS3, then I'm going to have to buy at least two more sets of it for everyone else so that we can share files. Eventually I'll do it, but not until I'm a pro at OS X. Unfortunately, Adobe does not offer a backsave option to lower versions the way Microsoft does. I will get Microsoft Office for Mac, however. I'm looking forward to the updated 2008 version that should be coming out fairly soon.

I know that there are going to be things about the Mac that probably will drive me crazy. I am leaning towards getting the less expensive MacBook to learn everything over the next year or so. What if I come to the conclusion that it was the craziest decision I ever made? But then, there's another part of me that sees the beauty of OS X and the Mac, and says to just go for it and get the more expensive MacBook Pro with the better graphics etc.

 

probably worth noting that the above is your opinion, your experience, and definitely does not hold true for everyone.

windows feels like a real computer to me. i connect with windows. i get lots of work done with little effort or consideration for how i am interfacing with the os. i like the look of my desktop, now that it all nice a customized.

i do also deal with some bsod's, driver conflicts and other crap. but that is my own fault for watercooling and overclocking the living snot out of my desktop.

i'm still getting a mbp. i also like os x. but the main driver for me is, surprise, the programs! well, that and the sexy hardware. i want logic and i want a more stable, 64 bit, os (leopard) for low latency audio. if i thought i could do better with a butt ugly version of linux that was stable and ran like a bat out of hell i would do that instead.

 

ive also had the mbp for about a week now, after a decade+ of windows.

my opinion:

its really nice. its better than windows xp. its not perfect. its probably a LOT better than vista, but i cant say that for sure because i haven't tried vista. being able to render windows and have them sweep away to show the desktop or shrink down and space themselves out so that you can see all the running windows.... its just absolutely genius. then i think about how this isn't even a recent idea. osx has been around for years with that feature. its just a little thing that makes all the difference in the world to me, because i always end up with a ton of windows open when im being productive. and say goodbye to weird freaky driver compatibility issues. i might never have to mess with drivers again. that is the glory of consistent hardware.

its the same benefit you get with an xbox360 vs a gaming pc. the xbox is powerful, and the pc is powerful. the pc is MORE powerful. but the xbox will end up being able to produce better visuals per horsepower, because developers can write their software with the intent of putting it on ONE piece of hardware. knowing exactly where the software is going, dev's can write better software, taking advantage of strengths and avoiding weaknesses.

now you can put the horsepower playing field equal. we have top shelf parts in our macbooks and our macbook pros. but there is basically just one macbook and one macbook pro. the configurations vary SLIGHTLY- but its nothing that would change how a dev writes or targets software. thats the advantage we have.

but again, its not perfect. this following example happened to me. bear in mind i needed a 30 gig partition set aside for windows.

i started with 160 gigs of hard drive space.
i had 130 gigs available after formatting and installing osx.
i install bootcamp in osx. set aside 30 gigs for xp. 100 gigs osx, 30 gigs xp.
problems arise in osx from messing around with parallels or crossover or maybe vmware. being a novice mac user i decide to reinstall osx just to be sure. upon reinstalling, i had 100 gigs available in osx, but there was no sign of an xp partition, or any partition other than the 100 gig osx partition. after installing boot camp, it failed to partition the remaining 100 gigs into a 30-70 split, and referred me to disk utility, which also failed to show the xp partition and failed to split my remaining 100 gigs. it asked me to insert the osx dvd to resolve my permissions. fine. so it did that, and now i could split up my remaining 100 gigs into a 70-30 split, but i still couldnt see my original xp partition. so upon running boot camp to install xp, i saw (in the windows partition manager thing that you get before installing) - a 70 gig partition for osx, and a 60 gig partition! so apparently boot camp somehow added 30 gigs to the other 30 gig partition... odd... so i went ahead and formatted that 60 gig block in ntfs and installed windows.

sorry if that example kinda drags on, but its a brilliant showing of the imperfections with osx. i KNOW boot camp is beta software. remind me and i will smack you. it was an EXAMPLE of oversight, of which there are many others, some i have yet to come across. osx is really good despite its flaws, my experience has been solid, im enjoying the software, and its better than xp and isn't suffering from puberty like vista.

all the other software- especially that comes with the mac - is really good so far, except for that one program...

dont even get me started on imovie hd... just stay away.

 

That is a godsend!

Sounds like you've lost lots of valuable hard drive space - about 20 gigs maybe. My osx install only took up about 9 gigs. Hold F12 upon startup to go into your BIOS and... oh wait...

Go with a MacBook. It should be sufficient for Adobe and a better price per performance over the MacBook Pro. MBP really isnt that much more power over a MacBook.

 

There is more separation between the MacBook and the MBP. The MacBook lacks the graphics card as well as the Express Card slot. The Express Card slot can be useful for Wifi with Sprint or Verizon. MBP has the Santa Rosa chipset. Screen quality is quite different between the two. Colors are richer and deeper on the MBP. Also you have the choice of a matte screen or glossy on the MBP.
The rest is just preference, aluminum vs. plastic, (incidentally the aluminum is quite scratch resistant) The MBP will look the same after 3 years. Backlit keyboard on MBP, ambient light sensor on screen.
The one thing nobody talks about is the MBP's have a built in backup battery. If you have to change batteries your memory contents including DVD playback will remain in tact for 10-15 seconds while installing another battery.

 

Okay point out one of the ads that say the Mac is better than the PC. Apple hardly talks about how great the Mac is in the ads. The whole show is stolen from the PC guy. Everything touted about PC's are true in the ad. One ad talks about Windows viruses. Macs have no known viruses to this day so the ad was not lying.
One ad talks about multiple versions of Vista. Apple says one version for the Mac. Is that a lie?
One ad talks about having to upgrade the graphics card, processor and memory for Vista. Was that a lie? Vista has a high system requirements.

Not one time in any of the ads does the Mac guy say, "Well PC my system is better than yours and why buy a PC when the Mac can do it all"?
There's nothing ignorant about the ads.
Windows users get mad at the ads because they tout the truth about PC's and they want those truths to stay behind closed doors.
Several of my friends including myself all left Windows and switched to the Mac because we lived all those situations in the ads. Most switchers do.

If you want to know who's really smug? It's Windows users. They always put the Mac down calling it retarded before even trying it because it lacks the amount games vs. Windows and more people use them over Macs. I hear that same smug song and dance everyday.

 

like every every single Mac vs PC ad? their whole point is to bash pc's because macs are "cooler" and pc's are full of problems while macs are "perfect".

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Z7ReS_ur4Kc

1:50 "I'm better"

 

Besides being semi-amusing, I wonder if those ads have hurt Mac sales more than they helped

 

Okay, your point is even more laughable. Is Apple suppose to keep quiet when Walt Mossberg speaks up about how good the Macintosh is? That's good advertising for them. Sorry but you haven't made a point here.
One other thing, remember dude it's an ad. That's what ads are suppose to do, show bias towards the company that created the ad. Ever see Coke and Pepsi go at it all day. At least Apple has never once used the words "Windows" in their ads describing how bad "Windows" is.

Every company compares their product with the competitor pointing out what's good about them and what's not about the other.

 

Unless that's just a joke according to your sig you're getting a Mac. There's been more switchers from these ads then Apple's old switcher ads.

 

None of the ads have pointed out that Macs are "perfect". Relax. If all the Get a Mac ads are lying about how Windows is then they shouldn't bother you.
With Windows having 90% market share you have to expect aggressive advertising. Apple is still a small player in the PC world, there's no reason to act threatened.

 

Let's just say I'm getting a Mac in spite of the ads rather than because of them. I have nothing against them, and there's nothing wrong with aggressive advertising, but I simply don't find them persuasive at all. Think of what the typical uninformed computer consumer would do when confronted by such an ad. Would he convert or even be intrigued enough to be aware that there's a better alternative out there to PCs? Not a chance.

Qualify your statement with some numbers please - and not just saying these ads are better than the old ones - but actually give an estimate of how much market share Apple gained as a direct result of those ads.

 

Unfortunately I am unable to furnish numbers however I read Macsurfer daily and I watch Apple's stock grow based on just the Mac sales. Answer to your question in regards to new consumers buying based on those ads? The answer is yes. Apple's name is huge! Even people that know nothing about the Mac have made the iMac a household name just like the iPod.
See I used to be a PC user. I had 3 Windows machines in 3 years. Never liked being on the phone with tech support dealing with the Windows registry issues and all those .dll files. I hated it. Nothing has changed.
I left Windows and became a Mac user back when it was still Windows 98. I didn't need OS X or funny ads to get me to switch. So yeah, as a new consumer my first computer was Windows.
With Apple's product names being now household words it generally takes just an ad from Apple to get people to buy Macs. Apple is in your face everywhere now which is good. They have the coolest store to visit and many people have been inside before considering any computer purchase.

 

Yup that's the whole point of the ads. Hey "PC you suck, we're perfect", our OS never ever crashes, but yours needs constant repairs. Every Mac site i've been to has always held the Mac in the highest esteem while trashing the pee cee as they like to call it. Now try spelling iMac "IMAC" or "Imac" and watch the ABC aka Apple Bible Children summon the wrath of Steve the messiah.

And for the record i've been using Macs since 2001. I like them and I like PC's as well.

 

Okay well, you guys are all pretty cool people on this forum so I don't want to make things become rude over an Apple discussion but I remember when it used to be a sin to walk into a room full of PC's and sit down with my Powerbook. PC users look at you like you have the plague. Some have said, "We don't use THOSE here". Very smug things to say. The Apple Macintosh was the first GUI computer to hit the street and Bill Gates created Windows and threw it in everyone's face. Now that the world has become PC centric it's unnecessary to become so mad if Apple's ads point out what they do well vs. the competitions mistakes.
Some of you make it sound like you want the Mac to stay in the closet and Apple to be nice to Microsoft.
Have you forgotten what MS has done to Mac users? Took away their browser and their media player out of spite. That hurts the consumer.

 

Even you just said your switch to using Macs was completely uninfluenced by their ads.

The fact that Apple stock is growing does not indicate any direct link between their Mac ads, their Mac sales, and their rising stock. Their name being "huge" is also not necessarily a direct result of their ads for the Mac. Unless and until you can prove direct causality from those specific Mac ads, you can't say that those ads are the, or even a, major factor in convincing people to convert to Macs.

The more recent rise of the Apple name has been a result of much of their focus on the iPod and related items, but not necessarily the result of their ads for the Mac specifically. While marketing one may lead to awareness and sales of the other, it's not the quite the same. You'll also note that it's the iPod and now the iPhone that have become household words - their personal computing division is still holding a very small minority of both business and consumer market shares - not that that's necessarily a bad thing.

While I agree with most of what you say about how cool the Apple store is and how much better Apple products and tech support are in general compared to the competition, those are wholly irrelevant to the point in question - whether or not there is a substantial, if any, direct causal link between the new PC vs Mac ads and rising Apple computer sales.

Now logic would say that there is, or otherwise the marketing dept at Apple would stop running those ads. However, that's not the argument you presented.

It's not that anyone here is mad that Apple's ads point out what the competition's mistakes are. Most people here posting in the Apple forum obviously already agree that Apple computers are superior products. It's just that your fanaticism with Apple tends to make your arguments very illogical and probably is more detrimental to the point you're trying to make (even if people would've agreed with it) than helping it--this is what PC-users are referring to when they say the fanaticism of the Apple computer community is a big turn-off for them.

 

My point was not to bash mac users. I really don't even care about what company X says in their commercials as I don't pay attention to them anyway. I never buy anything because I saw it on tv. Apple makes many good products, and IMO several bad ones too. The same can be said about Microsoft. But to say that apple doesn't try to promote that macs are soo much better than pc's (Microsoft) is just a fallacy. For example, the WWDC keynote started off with bashing the zune and windows vista. Of course it is understandable as Apple and Microsoft are business rivals but I feel it is more professional to promote your product showing off its positives rather than throwing a bunch of muck at a rival (many of which is untrue/very misleading).

 

I think its called humor. Lots of humor. Apple has it, and Steve Ballmer can't take it. The only funny thing I ever saw them really do was the "iPod Amnesty Bin" which I found to be quite hilarious.

 

First off I don't want to keep macs in the closet, because I like using them as much as Windows. They build for the most part nice computers. What don't I like is the smug attitude that borders on lies or deception. The mac faithful or those Apple Ads make it seem that the wheels are coming off of every Windows XP machine in existence, which in of itself is a stretch. Windows XP has been a very solid and stable OS for me (and i'm a gamer) and millions of others who use it. I don't go on PC message boards whenever I get a kernal panic or I have to force quit apps because they've hung. Nope I just go about getting it fixed.

With the mac faithful it's their duty to point out all the errors and ways of Microsoft because it's cool and hip to do so nowadays. OTOH they dismiss when things quit working in OSX or some weird things happen as oh well it's OSX I must have been doing something wrong to upset it.

The fact of the matter is OSX and Leopard will not be perfect. They will behave strangely, and sometimes even ignore logic. It's no different than Windows XP or Vista.

Wrt to Mac IE, Microsoft took it away because it wasn't good business sense to continue it especially with competition from Mozilla and Apple's Safari a small Mac marketshare. IE has been replaced with Safari, Firefox, Opera and Camino. So no loss for Microsoft or mac users. Media Player continues to work even in OSX and it's a basic player. Realplayer is also a competitor and is as good or better than MS media player.

Again no one hear hates Apple including myself as I like and use their products. I just could do with a lot less chest pumping from the mac faithful. When OSX finally ships 100% perfect with no room for improvement then they are welcomed to say what they want at their competitor.

 

Taelrak, okay, I see your point however, in a way you are either missing the point of the commercials or you would prefer to dismiss them entirely. I'm not a "Mac Fanatic", I'm more of a computer fanatic. I stay in the know for both MS Windows, Linux, Unix and my personal preference the Macintosh. I have a computer science degree which is why I love computers. I wanted to mention that because I don't like being called a Mac fanboy or a Mac fanatic. The ads must be creating great revenue or Apple wouldn't keep spending millions of good dollars after bad.
If you really look at it, what the Mac ads are trying to do is to dismiss the myths about Macs. Too many times I hear people, say I HATE MACS! Most of the time they don't even know why. I know, because I was like that before I bought one. When I ask people why they say, well, I need to run MS Office and Macs don't do that. I need to run Photoshop and Macs don't do that. I even had one ignorant person tell me that they want to surf the web and Macs can't use the internet! Most of that ignorance comes from listening to Mac haters misinform them.
When it comes to Windows, all people know is EVERYTHING RUNS ON WINDOWS! When you have strong statements like that passing around and Windows has over 90% of market share then Apple needs to run aggressive ads like that.
As far as the iPhone, I'm sorry buddy but half of the techie people I know don't know anything about that thing nor have they heard of it.

 

Well, then you probably haven't seen Microsoft's latest unforgivable and desperate tactics against the iPod. MS even posted pics of it on the web. MS has a huge trash bin set up at their headquarters for their employees (who are basically being forced) to throw their iPods into in favor of a free Zune player. That's about as tacky as you are going to get from a multi-billion dollar company. Before you post stuff like that please be fair before you throw all the rude tactics on Apple alone.

 

I mentioned this earlier and nobody has posted a rebuttal. What exactly is "untrue" about what Apple's ads say about their rival? Name one.

 

With all the discussions here, which I thoroughly enjoy no one has seen any of my postings putting down MS Windows or their user base.
Do you really think that MS just didn't want to compete with Apple's Safari Browser? Really? No. I.E on Windows dominates over 80% so why would Firefox, Opera or Netscape continue to fight such a losing battle? At this point Apple has a much better chance with Safari on Windows since it's needed for the iPhone.
MS discontinued browser and media support for the Mac because of two main things, they were free and MS wants the Mac to lose. Notice how long it's taken for the Office suite (which we are paying for to get here?).

My point is you guys are getting upset at the wrong company for it advertising tactics when they really aren't doing much else different then any other company. Again, Pepsi is famous for this against Coke.

 

You missed the point entirely. I agree that aggressive advertising can be a good thing. What I don't agree with is how you're just taking for granted that the ads are achieving their purpose merely because Apple is the one making them.

This is probably true, and in fact I cited this as support for the ads. However, this wasn't your initial argument. As I said earlier, your points may be valid, but if the premises you use to get to them are off, they make your arguments equally invalid. Had you adopted this as support for your argument to begin with, this would've been a moot issue.

I cannot speak for your technie people who apparently have been living on another planet these past months
However, you're not going to be able to successfully argue that the iPhone is not at least as anticipated as any Apple computer product by the bulk of consumers out there interested in Apple goods. The investment, both legal and business, that Apple has put into the iPhone is significant. If you call Apple right now, the very FIRST thing the answering system says refers to the iPhone...that, and the fact that people who own and use cell phones far outnumber the people who use Apple computers in the world--you're looking at a significantly bigger market.

But this is all beside the point...the point is, as you cite Apple stock rising and Apple becoming more popular...you failed to provide any conclusive evidence that this is due to the ads for Apple computers, and not due to the popularity of these other products. You still have yet to provide this evidence--the burden of proof is on you.

 

Wow, this thread has been seriously derailed. Poor Cath must have run off by now to make her decision in peace. Perhaps a Mac vs. Windows sticky needs to be set up for venting, but most contributors to this site wouldn't bother.

 

Yeah, Apple stock was around 12 or so when the iPod first came out, and now it's trading at 10 times that. Sure, Mac sales are up... but not that much! What's changed? They now have the iPod, Apple retails stores, and people have high expectations for the iPhone. The Mac ads and even the increase in Mac sales just do not come close to accounting for a 10x change in stock price.

Edit: LOL... dnjnyc, I agree... but at least the Mac vs. Windows flame wars would be confined to one thread... with about 5000 pages.