“What does the world get for the 10% Microsoft tax on every [Windows] PC,” asks Lee Gomes for The Wall Street Journal? “Is the innovation from Microsoft commensurate with the awesome resources it has been given? The average Microsoft customer probably wouldn’t say so. Indeed, the advances the company lists for its new products all too often involve fixing shortcomings of earlier products, such as security and reliability in the case of its operating systems, and ease of use with its Office suite.”
Gomes writes, “In fact, you can argue that genuine innovation is the last thing monopolists want, since it threatens to upset the very applecart that made them rich in the first place. When asked which research from its labs has made its way into Microsoft products, the list from Microsoft officials doesn’t exactly bowl over a listener: better software-verification techniques, digital media-player technologies, additions to the SQL database language… Of course, Microsoft’s research group is still young, and its best years may still be ahead. They had better be. PC taxpayers might start rebelling.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: This from The Wall Street Journal? If this keeps up, you’d start to think the world was waking up or something.
…”PC taxpayers might start rebelling.”…
I rebelled when I bought my first Mac in 1999!
All this talk about the “Reality Distortion Field” surrounding Jobs, but which company has really been guilty of such a phenomenon?
Looks like the Microsoft “FUD Field” is losing it’s power!
BTW- Yesterday, a colleague at another campus wanted to know what my Design students were using on their PowerBooks to write their resumes. He saw that the files had the .doc extension but he was ignorant to the fact that all of our Design students (including his) were running MS Office. He couldn’t even conceive of the possibility that Office ran on a mac! He thought that it had to be some little voodoo app that we had found at our campus. I was incredulous!
Too bad he did not mention the contributions from Apple, but that may be asking too much. As long as the word gets out that Mico$oft $ucks (cash) that is good enough.
Stupid is as stupid does.
Unfortunately, a lot of PC users are incredibly ignorant yet incredibly arrogant when it comes to the Mac. I had one friend who was considering buying a Mac since she is an aspiring singer and was impressed with GarageBand, Logic and ProTools. All my PC friends started telling her that I was wrong, however, one of them admitted they don’t know Macs. She started flipping out! Thank God for the Apple Stores, they do make a difference. She would have never considered a Mac if she didn’t see it in the store.
I love it when we have another convert. =)
The kind of discussion mentioned in this article is healthy. All around us, there are signs and indications of a major backlash against Microsoft. Microsoft is indeed worried about the continued impact that the increasing numbers of viruses is having on their company and their reputation in industry. A number of companies are considering a switch to Mac OS X for their employees. For many business people, Mac OS X is a less-expensive alternative than Windows PCs. Don’t be surprised to see Apple releasing Mac computers geared toward the business environment. These will be hard for companies to ignore. 2003 was the last year of the Microsoft dominance. The flood gates have started to open (no pun intended).
Chomper,
I’ve just had a similar conversation with a client of mine. He’s a millionaire who drives a Ferrari and he asked me about Macs a couple of weeks ago. So I showed him Panther in all its glory (Expos�, Fast User Switching etc.) He was so impressed he said he was gonna buy one, but, not surprisingly, PC World tried to steer him towards a PC, with the salesman saying “Macs are too hard to use, I tried a while ago and couldn’t use them.” He also said “When it comes to viruses, Macs have just as many as PC’s, but no one know about them (so how the f**k does he?)”
He came back to me and told me what PC World had told him. After picking me up off the floor I took him to PC World and asked the salesman to clarify the claims he had made… 10 minutes later we had a grovelling apology from the manager and �100 off the iBook G4 he wanted!
Maybe this is why Apple don’t sell in the High Street, if this kind of crap is dished out to people who ask about those ‘shiny toys in the corner’.
Long Live Apple. Death To Micro$oft.
The first time, Microsoft produces something that does not suck will be when they start making vaccum cleaners.
twelveightyone:
A millionaire buys an iBook? Hunh? Why not the 17″ Powerbook that would make him glean like his shiny weenie on wheels?
Doesn’t make sense. Was his Ferrari a kit car?
Anyways….you got a convert is all that matters.
giofoto
No his Ferrari wasn’t a kit car. He only needs an iBook. However, he is a property developer and is currently building 40 new apartments in La Manga. They are all gonna be sold with plasma TV’s, motion sensor lighting and more, and now a shiny new G5 with 20″ Cinema Display. Yippee!
Do you think Steve will give me some commission?
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The first time, Microsoft produces something that does not suck will be when they start making vaccum cleaners.
Thanks. That made my day!
I’ve lost count of how many times people have said to me they use Windows 97, or confuse Office and Windows. To them, it is just one product. This is partly Apple’s fault for not shouting the facts from the rooftops. Do they honestly think Microsoft is going to shout about it?
Perhaps he’s a millionaire because he’s not wasted money on stuff for his business that he doesn’t need.
“The first time Microsoft produces something that does not suck will be when they start making vacuum cleaners.”
funniest thing i’ve heard in a while. awesome. thanks.
we need some mac missionaries out spreading the word.
The WSJ is a company scorned. Their writers’ computers probably all crashed from a MS-only virus. LOL.
T-shirts bearing the words…
“The first time Microsoft produces something that does not suck will be when they start making vacuum cleaners.”
…are available from the MDN online store for $18.99 (helps us pay for hosting) here:
http://www.cafeshops.com/macdailynews.3251125
“The first time Microsoft produces something that does not suck will be when they start making vacuum cleaners.”
…are available from the MDN online store for $18.99 (helps us pay for hosting) here:
Didn’t know that slogan was already on T shirts. I heard it sometime around ’98. Sorry for the copyright infringement, folks
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twelveeightyone, nice job. I’m glad, claims like that should be deemed libelous. I mean come on, do your research at least. It’s one thing if you are well versed with both, no prob, it’s when you don’t know jack about the Mac and just trash it. I build PC’s for friends cos’ they can’t afford Macs right now, but they still want them. i wish Apple did as one person wrote in the forums, just give me the case, motherboard and processor, I’ll throw everything else into that Mac.
I want to relay a story of what happened to me on the weekend that I think would not only be interesting, but also point to Apple some of the problems they have in the trenches.
I live in Eastern Canada and in my city there are only 2 places where I can buy any Apple product, a small obscure company in the downtown core (closed Saturdays) and FutureShop (owned by BestBuy, and only offering eMacs and iBooks). I know I can go online, but I just want to see, touch, and feel the thing is some regard before I plink down my 2 Loonies.
So I head out to find the small shop closed, then on to FutureShop. Their website tells me they have a 933mhz, 14.1 inch in stock at the store. I lookaround and can’t see any iBooks, but loads of eMachines, Toshiba, Compaq, and other laptops. Finally i talk to a Sales Rep who syas they do not display them because they don’t sell very many (connection there I wonder?) but he knows they have one (yes one!) out back. He states he hasn’t seen one but would like to so using me as an excuse, gets permission to show me the product from some superior.
We carefully took it out of the box and within 30 seconds had a crowd of a half dozen people looking at the thing. I explained to the 2 staff now that were oogling the iBook about all the ports, OS X abilities, Airport Extreme (not available at FutureShop), memory upgrades, etc. I could have sold a couple machines no problem.
So here is the problem I see it. Most people don’t appreciate Macs and all there new capabilities, excellent features, and are basing opinions on old experiences, myths, and the wrong opinions of others. Apple needs to get the message out.
By the way, I will be buying my new iBook any day now.
Twelveightyone. I’ll bet the salesman was steering him to PCs cuz he makes a larger margin and commission on it. At my local Computer store they give me discounts on everything but Apple products cuz they say they don’t make as much margin on them.
First of all I must thank Apple for its excellent products. As Steve Jobs said on Triumph of the Nerds “I have no problems with Microsoft’s success.. what I do have a problem with is that they make really third rate products”.
I was a PC user for 10+ years (since DOS 5) but i bought an ibook in the beginning of last year.. and I love it. I just recently bought a powerbook g4 and I cant put it down.
I have noticed though that all the people (PC people) that I used to talk to, now look at me scornfully when I even mention the word Mac. I was excited when I got my powerbook and when I went to tell people how great it was, they just looked at me and said “phhh.. macs.. you guys are wierd… proclaiming that your stuff is better.. and getting happy when PC users dont have something”. I tried to argue that it wasent true, that macs are better, but they just cant let go. Its like converting to a new religion for them or something.
I rebelled in 1990 when I first played with the Mac Classic
What’s so great about Windows?
I chose Windows because I didn’t think about other choices, and I’ll never start thinking about them now!
That’s what’s so great
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I rebelled in 1981 when I bought a Apple II+
At least when you pay a slight premium for Apple products, you know it is well designed and has a large innovative component to it.
MS seems to fight to keep their party going as well as try to spoil everyone else’s party. Big bully.
What we powerbook and ibook users need to do is go to public places, use airport and surf the net, im sure the glowing Apple in the lid will attract attention. The questions and comments about my iPod are plentiful. Im glad Apple has the retail chain now, and the rumored mini stores sound great for towns.