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Mac Lab Report
Apple Growing a New Backbone?
- 2002.01.14
Could it be that Apple is undergoing a radical mutation and growing a new backbone?
Consider the evidence: While proclaiming Internet Explorer his browser of choice and Microsoft Office X a thing of beauty, Steve Jobs recently blasted Redmond for its proposed settlement in several antitrust lawsuits. Declaring he was "mystified" over a settlement that would essentially give Microsoft control over yet another market segment, this was the first sign in years that anyone from Apple Computer had anything negative to say about Bill & Co.
Now we have "A special message to Windows Users: Welcome" right there on Apple's site. Reminiscent of Apple's old 75 Advantages series (written before the return of Jobs to the company), this one-page fact sheet debunks such well-known "facts" as "Everyone uses Windows" and "Macs aren't compatible."

My favorite is the one about the amount of software available for Macs. With 15,000 programs available, I tell Wintel users, exactly how many hard drives will you need to install it all? When you think about it, it's pretty clear the average user only uses five or six programs: a Web browser, a word processor, a spreadsheet, an email client, maybe an accounting program, and maybe one of Apple's new iSpokes: iMovie, iTunes, iPhoto.
Beyond that only gamers dare to tread.
If present trends continue, we might even see an Apple TV commercial exploiting one of the other many advantages Mac users enjoy: the ability to emulate every major OS, fast processor speed on graphics apps, reliability and high resale value of hardware, and ease of use (gosh!). It sure would be a nice change from the 60s flashbacks and rude airline passengers we've seen lately (could that guy even get on a plane these days with all that gear?)
I've written before that Apple should recruit iMovie users to make ads for the company; probably because they don't want all the losers floating around the Web, the company will never actually do it. But now, maybe, just maybe, Apple is preparing to take the mantle for itself and stand up for itself the way we have been standing up for them all these years. Sure would be nice to have a little backup.
Apple doesn't solicit - or even acknowledge - submissions for ideas on products or advertising; this strict policy is what protects them from doodlers who think they've foreseen the future. (What's the old saw about giving a million monkeys a million pencils, and sooner or later one of them will draw an iMac?)
Here's an idea for a commercial series: The lonely Mac user in an office of Wintels is the only one who can send email after a nasty virus attack. The technician in a Wintel office carries a TiBook with several flavors of Connectix's Windows emulators on it to reduce his carrying load. An iPod user saves the day at a dance when the CD player breaks. Visitors in a home comment on the lovely coffee table books - only to discover they were made using iPhoto
And every commercial ends with a tagline like: Apple. The core of your digital world.
Keep up the good work, Apple. We old timers are encouraged.
Jeff Adkins is a science teacher who isn't afraid to state his preferences in computing platforms. In his classroom he has everything from a beige All-in-One to a a G4 XServe, and they all work together nicely. He calls himself the "poster child for technology integration" in the classroom. He was the 2006 Outstanding Educator of the Year for the California Computer Using Educators (CUE) organization. He also maintains a site for astronomy teachers at www.AstronomyTeacher.com.
Recent Mac Lab Reports
- Microsoft Word 2004 vs. iWork Pages 1.0 for writing a book, 01.10. Microsoft Word is great for technical writing, powerful yet slow, while Pages lets you concentrate on just writing, making it great for novels.
- iWeb a great tool for quickly creating an attractive website, 09.11. Apple's iWeb software isn't just easy to use, it also integrates nicely with .mac and other programs in the iLife bundle.
- Use your Bluetooth phone to control your Mac? Maybe, 02.27. Salling Clicker software turns many Bluetooth phones into remote controls for Bluetooth-equipped Macs.
- Two more markets the iPhone could conquer, 02.01. How Apple could redefine the ebook and calculator markets with a pair of free apps for the iPhone.
- More in the Mac Lab Report index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: 17" iMac G4/800 MHz, July 2002 - The iMac 'grows up' with a 17" 1440 x 900 display.
- Group of the Day: LisaList supports Lisa users.
- November 8 in LEM history: 99: OS 9: I think I like it - 01: The simplified Mac life - Soured on Windows - Flea market Mac - 02: Little room for improvement in new 'Books - Combo drive upgrade for iceBooks - 04: Re-Porter - 05: Fix the old iMac or buy a Mac mini? - Apple's Copland project - 06: MacBook Core 2 - MacBook value equation - Cheap is as cheap does - 07: Problems with Classic mode in Tiger - The G4 Power Mac that won't run Leopard
- Support Low End Mac
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- Quad-Core CPU Makes Sense in MacBook Pro, OS X 10.6 Causing Overheating, Overseas Power, and More, The 'Book Review, 11.06. Also Late 2009 MacBook reviewed, how to add RAM to new MacBook, 18.4in Acer notebook used Intel i7, and SanDisk SSD chosen for Sony VAIO X.
- Dumping Macs for Google Apps, SSD in iMac, Late 2009 iMac Performance Problems, and More, Mac News Review, 11.06. /newsrev/09mnr/1106.html
- WiFi Paranoia, iMac-O-Lantern, Magic Mouse Does Click, Free Clipboard Managers, and More, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 11.05. Also strange time stamps, problem with ColorIt on Intel Mac, and the story behind OS X 10.5.4 install discs.
- IDE Is Dead; Long Live SATA!, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 11.04. SATA has displaced parallel ATA. While IDE hard drives haven't disappeared, the best deals are in SATA hard drives.
- QuickTime X in Snow Leopard Imports, Trims, and Publishes Video Quickly and Easily, Alan Zisman, Zis Mac, 11.04. The long, slow process of importing video into iMovie to edit it, then render it to another format, is history as QuickTime X does that much more quickly.
- More links in our archive.
Recent Deals
- Best Mac Pro Deals, 11.03. Used 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,300; 3.0 8-core. $2,299; refurb 2.66 4-core Nehalem, $2,149; 2.93, $2,549; 2.26 8-core, $2,799; 2.93, $4,999.
- Best iPhone Deals, 11.03. New 8 GB iPhone 3G, $$99; refurb 16 GB 3GS, $149; new, $199; 32 GB, $299.
- Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.03. Used 867 MHz SperDrive, $348; 1 GHz, $499; 1.33 Combo, $298; SD, $559; 1.5 Combo, $448; SuperDrive, $589.
- Best Power Mac G3 and PCI Video Card Deals, 11.02. Used beige 300 MHz, $25; G4/366, $49; blue & white 350, $80; 400, $90; 450, $105; PCI video cards from $15; shipping additional.
- Best Power Mac G4 and AGP Video Card Deals, 11.02. Used 400 MHz, $50; 733 MHz, $69; 933 MHz, $209; 1.25 GHz dual, $299.
- Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 11.02. Used 2.0 GHz, $800; 2.2, $900; 2.4, $1,000; refurb 2.53, $1,449; 2.66, $1,699; 2.8, $1,949; 3.06, $2,169; new 2.53, $1,579; 2.66, $1,799; more.
- Best Mac mini Deals, 10.30. Used 1.33 GHz G4 mini, $379; 1.42, $389; 1.5, $419; 1.83 GHz Core Duo, $350; Core 2, $439; new 2.26 GHz nVidia, $580; 2.53 GHz, $770; Server, $990.
- Best G4 iBook Deals, 10.30. Used 12" 1.07 GHz Combo, $225; 1.33 GHz, $298; 14" 1 GHz, $349; 1.33 GHz, $398; 1.42 GHz SuperDrive, $498.
- Best Classic Mac OS Deals, 10.30. System 6.0.8 floppies, $10; 7.1, $12; 7.5, $20; 7.5 CD, $4; 7.6 $13; 8.1, $11; 8.5, $20; 8.6, $90; 9.0, $20; 9.2.2, $30.
- More deals in our archive.
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