“To woo customers to pay $129 to upgrade to its new Tiger operating system, Apple Computer (AAPL) is testing an offer that may be a first in computer retailing: free installation or a one-on-one training session with a Macintosh specialist showing personalized tips and tricks,” Jefferson Graham reports for USA Today.
“The offer — beginning today at 6 p.m. — is available only at Apple’s fast-growing retail stores, where traffic has nearly doubled from a year ago to 9,800 visitors a week. Many other retailers are discounting Tiger aggressively at about $99, without the personalized service,” Graham reports.
“‘Many people get nervous about upgrading their operating systems and worry about potential conflicts,’ says Apple Senior Vice President Ron Johnson. ‘Fine, we’ll do it for them.’ Apple’s installation offer ‘is a really interesting way to introduce an operating system and get people to buy it,’ says Mike McGuire, an analyst at research firm GartnerG2,” Graham reports. “Microsoft’s long-delayed new version of Windows, code-named Longhorn, is slated for December 2006. If Apple’s hand-holding program is successful, says McGuire, ‘You’ll see something very similar’ then with retailers offering to install and teach consumers.”
MacDailyNews Take: Yeah, that would go smoothly. A Windows install compared to a Mac OS X install? Get real. About ten Windows customers per CompUSA could grind each place to even more of a halt for a year or so.
Graham reports, “IDC analyst Roger Kay notes that the Mac Mini helped Apple slightly increase market share from 2% in the fourth quarter to 2.3% in the first quarter. He thinks Apple is on track to keep sales moving upward but doubts it will return to its onetime position as serious challenger to Microsoft. ‘I don’t see the great exodus,’ he says. ‘I use Google desktop, and it works great in a Windows environment. I don’t need to switch platforms for desktop search, and I know corporate customers aren’t about to switch either.'”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: IDC analyst Roger Kay is as clueless as usual. If Kay and Rob Enderle ever locked vacant eyes, the resulting vacuum would destroy the universe.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Whoops! IDC ‘left out a chunk’ of Apple Mac shipments, quietly adds 115,000 Mac units to tally – April 20, 2005
IDC VP Roger Kay sees no evidence of Apple ‘iPod Halo Effect’ based on ‘Apple’s desktop share’ – January 10, 2005
How fast is Google Desktop?
“IDC analyst Roger Kay is as clueless as usual. If Kay and Rob Enderle ever locked vacant eyes, the resulting vacuum would destroy the universe.”
My God, I LOVE THIS SITE!
Please never, ever stop publishing.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
MDN take: “If Kay and Rob Enderle ever locked vacant eyes, the vacuum created would destroy the universe.”
That is so funny!
“IDC analyst Roger Kay is as clueless as usual. If Kay and Rob Enderle ever locked vacant eyes, the resulting vacuum would destroy the universe.”
Sheer briliance. Thank MDN, making my day.
Where’s Triumph lately?! I miss him. Err… I miss his takes, I mean!
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Google desktop is great, but it is no Spotlight.
It isn’t anywhere near as rich and visual as spotlight nor can you do any sorting of results. How ever 2 things it has a lead on Spotlight in are it searches cached web sites and Im chats.
Does that make it better no but those are pretty neat features.
Question for the panel about backing up prior to installation: I have a 200GB firewire drive connected to my Mac. I also have a DVD burner. Would I be best to back up to my external drive or to a DVD? I only have about 26GB of data in my Users directory. Is that the only directory I really have to back up for certain?
Thanks, JvW
Kay: dumb, but right. Spotlight isn’t going to create many switchers. Who said that is the point of tiger anyway?
Jimbo: “…best to backup to… a DVD?” Sir, your 26GB of user directory data would take about 7 DVDs to back up to. Your firewire drive is by far your best choice. You also should back up your applications folder as well. But why not just back up your entire internal drive to the firewire, then do an Archive & Install of Tiger. That’s what I did. Everything went smoothly and the backup wasn’t needed at all. Google for “Carbon Copy Cloner” – it makes an exact (and bootable) copy of your internal drive. Haven’t used it but I’ve read where it’s a fine app.
Oh, and be safe… when you install Tiger be sure to have your firewire drives disconnected during the install & initial boot of Tiger. Bad things happened to some firewire drives during install of Panther. I’m sure it won’t do that again, but better safe than sorry.
The locking vacant eyes comment is priceless. This is the kind biting sarcasm based on what somebody does (vs how fat or ugly they are) that makes the MDN Take fun to read.
Leave the fat jokes behind (and believe me, I am not fat).
“MacDailyNews Take: Yeah, that would go smoothly. A Windows install compared to a Mac OS X install? Get real. About ten Windows customers per CompUSA could grind each place to even more of a halt for a year or so.”
Stop with this ridiculous bias. I don’t use Windows- I’m pretty much dedicated to the Mac platform- but stop envisioning elaborate fantasies about MS failing.
I hope Longhorn does well- the more marketshare and attention that Longhorn gets benefits OS X users, in so far as exploits, viruses, and so on will be oriented towards the MS world.
So ‘Go Longhorn’! I wish you all the best.
Thanks Wingsy. I’ve copied my User directory over and will also copy over my Apps. Will buy my copy of Tiger tonight and have fun this weekend.
“If Kay and Rob Enderle ever locked vacant eyes, the resulting vacuum would destroy the universe.”
Damn it! I just spit coffee all over my keyboard and monitor.
I’ve used google desktop fairly extensively and while it’s quite nice – especially the IM chaching, it’s biggest pitfall lies in the fact that it’s 3rd party and not actually a part of the file system. The results are kinda clunky and if you have to reinstall the app for any reason, you lose your index…and all of your cached IMs and web pages. Don’t forget, with Spotlight you can save your searches as smart folders. Yet another reason why it pays to be part of the framework.
Is Kay the new Thurrott, since Paul has evidently defected.
Gambit: Where’s Triumph lately?! I miss him. Err… I miss his takes, I mean!
Gambit, go here …
http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/5627/
and here …
http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/5626/
and here for a particularly good one about Cobb County …
http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/5625/
No, also go here for Triumph, yesterday. This one had me laughing prety good. It was about a post by that racist ‘Bloodomen’ who posts every now and then. It’s been removed by MDN, but Triumphs post is still good.
http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/5604/
What to do while the Apple store is busy installing OSX Tiger? (all they have to push a couple of buttons, the install does the rest) I guess walk around the store and shop for more Apple stuff. Brilliant!
If I was shell shocked from upgrading Windows in the past, then doing it at the Apple store would definitely appeal to me. Brilliant again!
dat was the funniest take I’ve ever read MDN, u go boi!! dat’s why I’ll continue to come back for more!