“I said I wanted it: A Mac that can run Windows. With Apple Computer’s transition to Intel microprocessors well under way, I joined the chorus of Macheads who said they wanted to boot Microsoft’s Windows in addition to Mac OS X. Now that it’s possible, I’m not so sure I’m willing to take the leap. At least not yet,” Arik Hesseldahl writes for BusinessWeek. “At first glance they help make a compelling case to Apple that it should at least consider enabling users to install Windows easily, should they need it. And there’s little doubt that some do need it.”
“However, to me there’s some poetic irony in the timing of the contest. It precedes, by a matter of days, an announcement by Microsoft that the consumer version of Vista, the next revision of the Windows operating system, will be delayed until January 2007,” Hesseldahl writes. “Even before the delay was announced, there was a certain illogic to the idea of running Windows on a Mac. As one commenter on Slashdot.org observed: ‘We’ve figured out how to put an inferior OS on more expensive hardware!’ That way, he says, you can have both the frustrations of Windows and pay a lot for the equipment.”
“Windows certainly is inferior. But like taxes and carbon emissions, many people find it a necessary evil for getting along in the world. I dislike the way Windows gets in your face all the time with system messages, and how it requires so much hand-holding… Indeed, this is no time to make nice with Microsoft and Windows. Now that it’s got a little extra time before Vista is available to consumers, Apple should make every effort before January to take all the market share it can. This a time to go on the offensive: Bring back the ‘Switchers’ TV ads that portrayed happy Mac converts telling their personal stories of Windows unhappiness followed by Mac-inspired bliss. Ellen Feiss, call your agent! It’s time for Apple to publicly flog Microsoft for a long string of slipping development schedules,” Hesseldahl writes. “A day may come when it makes sense for Apple to get serious about offering Macs that boot to Windows easily. But it’s not this day. This is the time to fight.”
Full article in which Hesseldahl also offers ideas for Apple Mac TV advertisements here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “dix99” for the heads up.]
MacDailyNews Take: As we’ve stated many times before, Apple needs to tell the world via TV spots about Mac OS X and why choosing a Mac would be a far better choice for personal computer users than Windows. That Apple has waited this long and continues to do nothing is criminal.
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Has anyone tried the Vista beta? It’s absolutely awful. I’m sure there will be some technology in there somewhere that will be useful for someone but for the standard user it’s nothing but a slower and more complicated OS that really doesn’t add anything groundbreaking. I have a 2.4Ghz P4 with 512MB of RAM and a 6600GT video card and Vista just crawls on my system. I know this is far from a screamer machine but the specs are well within what most normal users are running these days. Granted, Vista is still in beta but if the system remains this way who is going to want to run it on their system? I certainly don’t and I’m not about to go buy a brand new computer for some crappy eye candy and a sidebar on my desktop. From what I can tell it is going to take a minimum of 1gb of RAM to run Vista which IMHO is way too much for just the OS.
“I said I wanted it: A Mac that can run Windows. With Apple Computer’s transition to Intel microprocessors well under way, I joined the chorus of Macheads who said they wanted to boot Microsoft’s Windows in addition to Mac OS X. Now that it’s possible, I’m not so sure I’m willing to take the leap. At least not yet,”
He wanted it but know it doesn’t look so nice anymore because Windows in fast is inferior. Buy yourself a Mac in the first place instead of whining. You’re a writer what other software than Pages do you need, Arik Hesseldahl?
Meanwhile Apple stock has dropped another $1.41 today.
Will it close under $60????
———
Oh yeah, so MDN does not have to write it;
“Sounds like a buying opportunity to us!”
Which they have said from $85 down…..
And when you get VISTA <strike>running</strike> crawling this is the sort of message you can expect to get:
“Error saving file. Format drive now? Y/Y”
Oldes ones are the best hey?
Good point, Gredo. (nice name, too) Has anyone else out there tried the Vista beta? Promise we won’t flame you!
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Also, I think Apple should bring back Ellen Feiss! She was cute in a stoner chick kinda way.
MacDude wrote:
“Intel can’t be allowing Apple to sell ton’s of hardware without giving their best friend Microsoft a chance to have VIsta ready.”
If you don’t think that Intel is open to the idea of freeing their entire bottom line from Microsoft, you’re nuts.
Sure they have to watch that Microsoft isn’t vindictive and push AMD. However, if Microsoft did create a policy like that, I think Intel would have one hell of a anti-trust case.
I don’t see it to be in the best interest of Intel to withhold chips from Apple to make MS happy.
lbuschjr thats exactly what I said. Dual Boot is useless as t1ts on a dinosaur!
Has to be run under an emulator like OS Classic. That way, you never notice XP working but all the Apps work transparently.
To run Windows apps legally, you would need a licensed copy of Windows. To do so otherwise would be illegal and not supported by Apple or any other legit company.
When has Apple ever indicated that they want the type of market share that YOU folks clamor for?
Did you ever stop to think that Apple could not care less that they only hold 4% of the market?
Do you ever hear Ferrari bitching about their market share?
Crtics have been railing for years that if Apple “doesn’t increase their market share” that they will go out of business. Gee – how F&*KING WRONG HAVE THEY BEEN!!!!!
The only people that ever beat the stupid drum of “displace Windows” is YOU frigging zealots. Not everyone in the world is posessed with the King of the Hill mentality. Not every person is obsessed with GREED and PROFIT like you folks.
A long as Apple continues to make great products, they will be bought. And all of you wannabe market analysts and advertising know-it-alls should just STFU and enjoy the ride.
I can see it now:
Steve (reading MDN), slaps forehead.
“Doh! Advertising! THAT’S what I’ve been forgetting!!!”
I mean, you all are SO much better at running a Fortune 500 company….
MS has slipped for the past 5 years with Longhorn/Vista while OSX has charged ahead – without any significant impact on MS marketshare.
Ballmer is not quaking in his boots right now.
magicword: inconsequential
“If you don’t think that Intel is open to the idea of freeing their entire bottom line from Microsoft, you’re nuts.”
Correct, on BOTH counts.
Apple needs to make sure it has the manufacturing capacity and access to parts before it starts flogging the Mac like there’s no tomorow.
I am MacDude!
Lol…I want the same kind of kool-aid Hesseldahl been drinking. GOooo Apple!
“Apple needs to tell the world via TV spots about Mac OS X”
Curiously MDN continues to harp on this but the reality is no matter how they advertize, if the customer goes to their local PC store and is told Windows is just as good, cheaper, more secure, macs are incompatible, or whatever other lies they can think up, all that advertizing is for naught. Perhaps most frustrating is the assertion that Macs are for “creative people” which prompt weird images in people’s minds of Mac users possibly wearing VR googles and gloves in some sort of weird techo-land. In addition to this, most people have an aversion to learning anything new, and you have the position Apple is in where even though they have a superior product, customers stay with Windows simply because they are familiar with it and unreasonably fear the Mac. It’s almost enough to make a company want to bang their heads against a wall and give up, but they didn’t, thank god!
Apple has done a great job combatting this by opening their own stores where their products finally get fair representation. By releasing iTunes to Windows they have made a legion of Windows users familiar with the new file structure and many features of the Mac OS. They are doing an excellent job of creating the image of Apple as a premium product, not unlike the image BMW has. They are creating desireable products that will prompt people to want Macs despite the perceived learning curve. Even seasoned Windows users drool over my Mac without ever seeing its abilities – a direct result of their marketing and design.
I believe Apple will eventually advertize OS X (at least inside the US where the bulk of their stores are located) but only when they have a complete network of stores to send the legions of curious buyers toward, and right now Apple has almost no presence outside of North America and European countries. There are many more stores to open and much more to do, especially with the fundamental shift to Intel under way. To advertize before then would largely be a waste of money that would be better spent on creating more desireable products.
Daniel-san…if you want to run Windows apps, get a Windows machine and access it via Remote Desktop on your Mac.
That is what I do to access Quickbooks Enterprise. I have it running on our Windows 2003 Server, but I access it on my great PowerBook G4 with Remote Desktop.
That way, I can force everyone in my company to use Macs and still get to hang on to their one Windows app that they so much want to hang on to. As a bonus, they can use IE on Windows for those nasty sites that refuse to work unless you have ActiveX.
It is good to be the king.
By the way, infomercials would do a good job of switching folks. Or they could put iMacs for sale on QVC.
Chris wrote: “Do you ever hear Ferrari bitching about their market share?”
I am so sick of this comparison. The auto market and computer market are totally different beasts. Many Mac users like to use the analogy because it makes them feel superior, but it isn’t close to being a valid comparison.
Here is the reason I think it is a poor comparison: Does Ferrari make a Mac-mini equivalent? Where is their low end econo-car? Where is Ferrari’s iMac equivalent minivan or mid-sized sedan? How about Ferrari’s iBook equivalent small econo-sports car, you know, the one in the $20k to $30k range to compete with the Miata? No, the truth is, Apple has products designed to target the entire range of computer buyers, while Ferrari does not target all car buyers. Thus, I conclude that Apple DOES want a larger market share, while Ferrari does not.
Stuart wrote: “Apple needs to make sure it has the manufacturing capacity and access to parts before it starts flogging the Mac like there’s no tomorrow.”
I think this is 100% true, and it is a tricky line to navigate. You don’t want to create too much demand that cannot be met, but you also don’t want a glut of products for an anticipated rush that never comes. One problem I’m sure Apple is wary of is that expanding the number of manufacturers/assemblers or parts providers makes quality control more difficult. This is the one area where the Ferrari comparison may have some validity: by keeping production levels low, Apple can have better quality control. Limiting the number of partners also helps contain leaks, which is a priority for an ultra-secretive company like Apple.
No doubt about it – this is a tricky time for Apple. Since the Intel switch is not complete, it might be too early to ramp up the ad campaigns. However, the Windows Vista ads will be flooding the airwaves soon, and not just coming from M$, but from the PC makers as well. Apple might be smart to get out in front of it. I think they should get their tag line out now: “Apple Mac OS X – the easiest, most advanced operating system in the world.” Make it ubiquitous through repetition, repetition, repetition, and more repetition. Then when Vista hits, update the line: “Apple Mac OS X – STILL the easiest, most advanced operating system in the world.” Did I mention that there needs to be lots of repetition?
I also think Apple could leverage their pro apps. I don’t mean advertising their pro apps to the general public, but showing consumers that Apple makes industry standard pro apps so they take the Mac more seriously. Many consumers think of Macs as school kids’ computers that cannot do very much. If they knew that Apple’s are the standard in many creative industries, it might change their attitudes. And while they are at it, Apple could trumpet the awards their software and hardware has won.
To return to the auto analogy I hate: think of it like Ford touting their ownership of Volvo to improve Ford’s safety image, or Dodge placing the Viper in ads next to the Neon so some glam rubs of on the econo-car. And how many commercials have you seen touting “car of the year” or JD Powers & Associates Customer Satisfaction awards? They’re everywhere, because they work.
Here’s how I think such an ad could go: Show a recording studio with Logic running, then show the same artist using Garage Band at home. Show the pro photographer using Aperture at work, then at home using iPhoto. Show the pro movie director using Final Cut Pro on the job, then at home using iMovie/iDVD. Then a simple but powerful tag line: “Apple iLife – what the pros use at home.” or “Apple iLife – Powerful enough for the pros, easy enough for everyone.” You wouldn’t need all of these in one commercial, either. In fact, a series of 3 commercials might be better. Then there could be another set of commercials about the hardware and software awards Apple has won. And you know what would make them especially effective? Repetition, repetition, repetition, and more repetition.
Just throwing that out there. I’m sure Apple has done a cost/benefit analysis. Maybe they realize that Vista will keep slipping and they have more time than we think. Plus, it isn’t like Apple doesn’t do any advertising at all. They do plenty of print, billboard, and on-line advertising, and they get great product placement on TV and in the movies. They are also getting more recognition in PC magazines lately than I have seen in years, and Jobs gets covered in business and news magazines a lot. Plus, the halo effect is definitely working. Maybe Apple is right on this one.
we don’t need macs that run windows… we need dells and hps and sonys, etc that run mac osx. they would love to license. they will advertise the mac os for apple. not until that happens will apple truly be in a fight with microsoft. windows vista could be delayed until 2009 and the mac market share would still be below 10% unless apple licenses the os.
Someone mention running Windows in a window under Mac OS X. I wanted to let you know that there is currently a contest to run Windows XP at near native speed on an OS X system using virtualization which would mean that OS X would be the primary operating system and Windows XP would run in a window under OS X. This would allow the user to run iWorks (OS X) and AutoCad (Windows XP) among other OS X and Windows programs at the same time. The Lolly (Winnings) at this time for this project is $979. Oh and by the way, you can make a donation to this project to help the cause using paypal at http://www.runxponmac.com
See the below link for the full story
http://thehumanfactor.newsvine.com/_news/2006/03/24/144597-win-money-contest-run-windows-xp-on-os-x-system-using-virtualization