From Chris, following up on Thoughts on the Mac-PC Divide:
Greetings, Charles,
I've thought for a moment about two things: your reply to my
comments on the Mac/PC divide, and use of older, supposedly "obsolete"
products and technologies.
I am not loyal to brands. I am loyal to
products.
First off, your "I am a fan of the Mac user experience who is not a
particular fan of Apple the company" struck a chord with me somehow,
and that's where it hit me: I am not loyal to brands. I am loyal to
products. I don't care who makes it, so long as it does what I want
reliably.
For those of us who use the Mac OS or are dependent on an app
exclusive to it, that pretty much only leaves Apple. Fortunately, the
Macintosh line is mostly a solid computer lineup, though I find their
non-Mac products rather disappointing for my tastes with their
overly-locked-down nature and lack of one or two hardware features I
would've really liked.
As for the other topic - old, obsolete technology - I'm not going to
focus specifically on anything in that list of 10 things that needed to
be dropped by 2010, according to one writer, but keep it rather
general.
One thing that came to mind recently was printers, especially those
all-in-one units with built-in scanners that can also thus act as copy
machines, and some even have a built-in modem for fax machine use.
Why? I scored this HP Photosmart 3210 from a thrift store for under
$8, mostly because I wanted an ethernet-enabled printer that wouldn't
need an old computer turned on to act as a print server. I wasn't sure
how much of it was working, but it did turn on and tell me that there
was no ink, which there clearly wasn't, since whoever put it there took
out the ink cartridges.
I figured I'd test out the scanner function, at least, but
. . . wait, I can't scan because there's no printer ink?
Really? Then there's all the online complaints of black-and-white
prints using color ink somehow, not being able to make B&W prints
if there's no color ink, chipped cartridges that can't be reused and
maybe even rejected if removed and reinserted, said cartridges expiring
after a few years, and of course, the fact that modern printer ink is
insanely expensive! (US$70 for a complete set of HP 02 cartridges, if
you have to buy OEM!) Would that kind of thinking have possibly worked
in the past? Seems like greed (through ink sales) has won out over
customer convenience! (At least the printer/scanner itself did work
just fine, but that ink had better last, even if I'm not making too
many prints!)
Then I look at older printer units and wonder if anyone still has
old ink cartridges and toner drums to sell, and if said units will do
things like deny B&W prints if out of color ink. I don't think the
manufacturers would want to keep making supplies for the old products
when they can push their customers toward the newer ones with the more
egregiously price-gouged ink and toner. Planned obsolescence at its
worst. (I did read a story on LEM about someone getting an old Apple
LaserWriter working again.)
Another thing I look at is the ol' Pismo I haven't been using much
as of late. I found that Classilla
had some updates (up to 9.1 now), so I installed them and found the
browser surprisingly usable on the modern Web for once, with greatly
reduced layout and rendering issues. Now I'd almost feel comfortable
with handing it to someone for use as a basic Web browsing machine, but
before that happens, the NoScript interface needs to be redesigned to
look more like the Firefox one (mostly because it doesn't show what
other URLs may be blocked, aside from the main site). Even then, there
may still be a few sites that are just total non-options unless run on
a browser that only supports OS X Tiger, and I'm not installing
that again on a system with only 256 MB of RAM and a 6 GB hard
drive!
Is this rush toward the new stuff all because of planned
obsolescence? I have a feeling it is. At least when it comes to the
computer side of things, I want something with some fast hardware under
the hood, because even simple things like Office suites and the Web
(largely thanks to bloatware like Adobe Flash) demand it for even
reasonably lively performance, negating the speed gains of newer
hardware. I won't rant on the concept itself, because Tom made a nice one that got posted on
LEM on the same mailbag page that has my Mac-PC divide thoughts.
-Chris
Hi Chris,
We seem to be pretty much on the same page on these
topics.
I have no hands-on experience with those all-in-one
printer-scanner-copy machines. My suspicion has been that jacks of all
trades tend to be masters of none, and inkjet printers of all sorts
seem to be sold as loss-leaders to support the lucrative ink cartridge
market.
I have an old Canon IP2000 that still works fine with
my MacBook, and a source of inexpensive third-party cartridges for my
printing needs and flatbed and transparency scanners (both old but
serviceable.
Charles
From John:
Hi Charles,
You mention Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 as your favorite
must-have application in your August 2009 article My Five Favorite OS X Apps (and
Several Other Useful Ones). I recently started using PE6, which I
got from an Amazon
seller for $50. It's definitely a bargain, and it does everything I'm
used to doing with Photoshop CS 3 on our Mac mini. Its smaller footprint works
great on my 17" PowerBook G4.
I like the three choices in levels of tools to use; sometimes I use
"full", but "quick" has some handy features that help with my work.
My only gripe with PE6 is it's apparent Windows-style interface. I
wonder if Apple begged Adobe to port this application to the Mac, and
Adobe agreed but only put minimal work into making it OS X
compatible. With no familiar red/yellow/green buttons in the upper left
corner and the dark background, I was at a loss briefly as to how to
put away an image. Simply using command-W or File > Close was the
solution. I've grown so accustomed to the familiar OS X
conventions, however, that I was momentarily lost in this unfamiliar
interface. I was happy to find that opening a jpg file in PE6 brings up
a window with the OS X interface, so there's some familiarity
there.
I hope spring has arrived in Nova Scotia. Flowers are starting to
bloom here in Middle Tennessee, and we are told we're likely to have
80º by Friday.
John
Hi John,
I agree about the Windows-y lameness of the PSE
interface, which IMHO is worse in version 6 than it was in version 5,
but the power and versatility of the program combined with its modest
price still keep me using it.
We never had much winter in this part of Nova Scotia
this year - three modest snowfalls that didn't stick for long and one
week of cold weather in early February was about it. We're about
four-to-six weeks ahead of normal now temperatures-wise, with all time
records being broken (by astonishingly wide margins) for the past week
or so, with more to come according to the long range forecasters. I've
never seen anything like it.
Charles
From David,
Hi Charles,
I remember awhile back an article of yours with a source for a 160
GB laptop drive suitable for a Pismo or iBook.
I have lost that article and haven't been able to sort it out on a
search.
Do you still have that source? And could you send it to me?
Thank you in advance,
David
Hi David,
Other World Computing has the following 160 GB ATA/IDE drive
available, which should work fine in a Pismo or iBook: 160 GB Western
Digital Scorpio 5400 RPM 9.5mm SuperSlim IDE Notebook Drive with
8 MB Data buffer - $84.99.
Charles
Editor's note: OWC also has 120, 250, and 320 GB
drives for $79.99, $97.99, and $112.99 respectively. Note that pre-2001
Macs, including Pismo, can only see up to 128 GB on an internal IDE
hard drive. (See How Big a Hard Drive
Can I Put in My iMac, eMac, Power Mac, PowerBook, or iBook? for more details on this
issue.) dk
Charles,
Thanks ever-so-much. I noticed a few bigger ones for a few dollars
more.
Regards,
David
From Pieter in response to Pismo
Thermal Paste Blues:
Hello,
If there's no chime, no boot message, etc., it might just be that
the CPU daughtercard isn't seated properly - a common problem. You need
to press down over the card socket until you feel or hear it snap into
place.
Of course it wouldn't hurt to remove all that extra gunk from the
CPU. I'd also check to make sure none of it got onto the circuit board
itself.
Just in case, the 400 MHz CPU cards are available on eBay dirt
cheap.
Best regards,
Pieter
Hi Pieter,
Good point. Those Pismo daughtercards do require a firm push to seat
them properly.
Forwarded to Jesse.
Charles
From "Philalethes":
Charles,
This weekend one of my favorite writers, "libertarian
author and columnist" Claire Wolfe wrote on
her "Living Freedom" weblog
a piece promoting Linux.
I posted
a response which referenced you and your article Linux, Freedom, and
Frontiers. Relevant excerpt:
"I've never quite understood the antipathy to the Mac
in the freedom community; all right, Apple *is* a corporation, and
'proprietary', but other than that, it is definitely *not* Micro$oft in
all the ways that matter - including the Mac's ease of use (and
security) for non-geeks. And yes, Apple's politics are decidedly
liberal, but that doesn't mean you can't use a Mac while retaining your
own political convictions - as prominent Mac journalist and avowed
conservative Charles Moore makes clear, while non-liberals as diverse
as Rush Limbaugh and Lew Rockwell are Mac users.
"(See also Moore's 'Linux, Freedom, and Frontiers'
http://lowendmac.com/misc/10mr/freedom-and-frontiers.html: 'I've often
mused that were it not for my affinity for the Mac OS user-experience
and my admiration and appreciation for the superior industrial design,
reliability (usually), and longevity of Apple computer hardware, I am
more philosophically and temperamentally a Linux person.')"
This morning, Claire writes:
"Philalethes linked to this excellent article, 'Linux,
Freedom, and Frontiers.' Would it be egotistical to say it sounds like
something I'd write - only better? Maybe I should just stick with, 'I
wish I'd have thought of that.'"
Were I you, I'd feel highly complimented.
Best wishes,
Philalethes
Hi Philalethes,
I do indeed.
Thank you kindly for the referral, and for turning me
on to Claire Wolfe's blogsite, which I had been previously unaware
of.
Her article on Linux is great, and also thought your
comment on it was superb.
Charles
From Lee, following up on Broken G5:
Hi Charles
FYI
It looks to me like
eBay wants me to lie about my purchase - specifically to file a
"Significantly not as Described Dispute". Now it is not "Significantly
not as Described", just broken. And not all broken, just the lower bay
hard drive cable end!
This (lying) seems not to be in the interest of either buyers or
sellers. I can only hope that this person is new or just plain
uninformed. I would have liked to have had it on record that I was and
am having a problem with the seller of my new (to me) G5, but I
am not going to out and out lie about it.
HOT (How On That )
Re Safari, I wonder how many others have had the same problem? I
don't iChat, and as I was unable to get through to customer service on
my Mac, I had to go to the local library and use their PC. Had no
problem there, but as I don't do Windoze I do not know if I properly
cleared the memory on their PC or if someone later could access my
passwords and other I.D.
I don't know if I should bring this to the attention of the B.B.B.,
but I think LEM users should know.
Thanks
Lee
Form Message
PowerMac G5 64-bit 1.8 GHz(x2) 2.5 GB-RAM OS X
10.5
Problems:
1. Did not ship till 08 March by USPS. 11 days after
bidding closed. Had they shipped Monday March 1 by 8 PM UPS it would
have arrived 8 March It did not arrive until 22 March 25 days after
closing. It was damaged in transit. Hard drive in lower bay came loose
breaking the power supply cable end. I did not pay for USPS, I paid for
UPS, a courier.
2. Communication has not been prompt regarding making
an insurance claim.
3. The seller sent me several offers for extended
warrantee. If they knew there was a problem with this machine it should
have been in the listing. After 7 years, if it was going to break down
it would have.
On eBay
I was unable to check-out using either PayPal or eBay
checkout. I do not know what Gecko is, but either eBay's server or my
browser, Safari 1.3.2, do not communicate well. This is not the first
time I have had this problem. On check-out, I get to stage 3, and the
transaction stalls. (Spinning beach ball). I have more than enough
memory so that is not the problem. I have tried at different times of
the day and night so traffic on your servers is not the problem. ?
?
Customer Service: I have tried repeatedly to try to
access customer service to make you aware of this problem. I should not
have to go to the library to get in touch with a rep. My Phone Number
is ***-***-**** please have someone call to try to resolve these
issues.
Thank You
Mr. Lee *********
Begin forwarded message:
From: eBay Canada Customer Support
Date: March 31, 2010 5:01:49 AM MDT
To: <*******@*********.net>,
Subject: Re: RC=CU0281 Other [#CA ?01 ]
(KMM20885446I15977L0KM)
Dear Lee,
Thank you for writing eBay in regard to the item
you bought.
With regard to your problem on the seller what I
can advise to you is to file an Item not Received or Significantly not
as Described Dispute against them so that you will have your refund for
the item and so that we can take the appropriate action on this seller
for their actions on this transaction.
However with regard to the browser issue other
members using MAC have been reporting this happening as well to them.
We are aware of this issue, and we're working to get this resolved as
quickly as possible. I apologize for any inconvenience. But Safari is
not yet compatible on our site.
With regard to the phone support however As an
online company, eBay strives to serve our member online via Live Chat
and email. Because of this, we don't currently offer phone support. But
you can chat with us using this link:
https://cschatlb-na.corp.ebay.com/chat.asp?profile=15
We are committed to making your eBay experiences
pleasant and fulfilling.
Sincerely,
Jayson Sa
eBay Customer Support
Hi Lee,
I guess the operative dynamic for buying stuff online from
other-than-established businesses is caveat emptor.
I expect most transactions on eBay are completed satisfactorily for
both buyer and seller, but I've known too many cases not to be wary,
including a $2,000 dead loss for a family member for a laptop that
turned out to be fraudulent vapor.
Charles
Go to Charles Moore's Mailbag index.
