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Stop the Noiz
Apple Takes the Blame
Frank Fox - 2008.04.03 - Tip Jar
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In the PC world, where everyone is responsible for only part of a product, they all get to share blame for big screw-ups. The recent one I stumbled across was the whole "Vista Capable" versus "Vista Ready" labels for computers that were being sold before Vista's release. Here is a forum of angry PC users who wanted to use Vista and are mad that Aero didn't work on the "Vista Capable" PCs they bought.
They're blaming Intel for not releasing "Vista Premium" drivers for the 915 chips.
Intel has come out to say that it's Microsoft fault for releasing the specifications too late.
Then we have Microsoft blaming Intel for continuing to sell their 915 chips.
Next we can blame Best Buy for coming up with the whole Vista Capable versus Vista Ready confusion so they could sell PCs that were in fact not ready or capable.
There's more finger pointing going on than in a political debate about why the economy is slow. No one wants to take the blame for selling computers to users that don't work as expected, even if they tried to promise less with their confusing marketing buzz words.
Compare this to when Apple released an update to Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" and it has graphic card compatibility potential. (See Mac OS X 10.4: Requirements for Quartz Extreme and Core Image graphics.)
Then with the release of Leopard and Quartz Extreme and Core Image, Apple let you know what would work.
Now maybe you had something older and weren't sure, you may still have had doubts about upgrading. There are some resources that have popped up to help users, such as Mac_Geniuses and Low End Mac.
Let's face it, if Apple had tried to confuse people about which computers could use the new features, they would have been blasted for stupidity. And rightly so, since Apple does make the whole enchilada, so is no one to share the blame. If anything is slightly out of place or whatever, Apple has to take all the heat.
This is yet another reason people like me stick with Apple: At least we know who to blame when our computers screw up.
Until next time, avoid all Vista Capable computers and stick with a
brand you know you can blame your problems on.
Further Reading
- Tracing Microsoft's Vista Capable Debacle, ChannelWeb, undated
- Judge OKs suit over 'Vista Capable', Natalie Weinstein, Cnet News.com, 2008.02.23.
- 'Vista Capable' logo - what went wrong?, Adrian Kingsley-Hughes, ZDNet, 2008.02.28
- The Vista Capable fiasco: to hell with system recs!, Joel Hruska, ars technica, 2003.03.30.
Recent Stop the Noiz Columns
- Is Steve Jobs' Health Essential to Apple's Future?, 06.30. Steve Jobs' health is an important thing, but Apple has demonstrated that it can be profitable without him.
- Multicore Strategy: Microsoft vs. Apple, 06.18. Microsoft puts the focus on tweaking multicore support in the operating system, while Apple is going out of its way to make multicore support available to programmers.
- Too Many Options When Choosing a PC, Too Few When Buying a Mac, 05.05. So many brands and models on the Windows side, not even counting building your own, or a very limited number of Mac models that might not meet your needs.
- Apple's 'On Target' Design Sets It Apart, 04.30. While others take a shotgun approach to product design in hopes some will succeed, Apple knows how to focus on essentials.
- More in the Stop the Noiz index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: Clamshell iBook G3/300 MHz, Sep. 1999 - innovative, rugged, heavy, clamshell laptop introduced AirPort and was a huge hit.
- Group of the Day: G-Books is for G3 PowerBooks and iBooks.
- July 4 in LEM history: 00: When Randy met Mac - 08: Wouldn't life be great with an iSlate? - Mac Pro overclocking, Windependence with Darwine, Blu-ray for Macs, and more
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