As MacDailyNews reported this weekend (please see related articles below), Aliso Viejo, CA-based Net Applications announced November 2007 Operating System (and Browser) usage stats. With a new, enhanced marketshare site, Net Applications is now able to analyze global marketshare trends in much greater depth.
Net Applications now tracks more trends, summarizes OS versions better, and are now able to view market share by continent, country and even by state/province. Their new Mac OS usage map for the US provided “an immediate visual impact,” Net Applications ask in their December 1st Newsletter.
Net Applications writes, “Higher percentage Mac usage states almost perfectly match up with states that typically vote for Democrats. So, do Democrats prefer Macs? The correlation is striking.”
2004 US presidential election results by state:
(red=Republican, blue=Democrat)
2004 US presidential election results by county:
(red=Republican, blue=Democrat)
Meanwhile, the Mac continues to gain ground in Net Applications measurements of online share. November 2007 usage statistics show that globally, 6.8% of all computers online are Macs. That is the highest percentage Net Applications has seen to date.
More info via Net Applications’ report – “Democrats Vote for the Mac?” – here.
MacDailyNews Note: For what it’s worth:
Apple’s U.S. Retail Store Locations:
Also, via Wikipedia:
Prior to the 2000 presidential election, there was no universally recognized color scheme to represent political parties in the USA. The practice of using colors to represent parties on electoral maps dates back at least as far as the 1950s, when such a format was employed within the Hammond series of historical atlases. Color-based schemes became more widespread with the adoption of color television in the 1960s and nearly ubiquitous with the advent of color in newspapers. A three-color scheme — red, white and blue, the colors of the U.S. flag — makes sense, and the third color, white, is useful in depicting maps showing states that are “undecided” in the polls and in election-night television coverage.
Early on, the most common—though again, not universal—color scheme was to use red for Democrats and blue for Republicans. This was the color scheme employed by NBC—David Brinkley famously referred to the 1984 map showing Reagan’s 49-state landslide as a “sea of blue”, but this color scheme was also employed by most newsmagazines. CBS during this same period, however, used the opposite scheme—blue for Democrats, red for Republicans. ABC was less consistent than its elder network brothers; in at least two presidential elections during this time before the emergence of cable news outlets, ABC used yellow for one major party and blue for the other. As late as 1996, there was still no universal association of one color with one party. If anything, the majority of outlets in 1996 were using blue for the GOP and red for the Democrats.[citation needed]
But in 2000, for the first time, all major electronic media outlets used the same colors for each party: Red for Republicans, blue for Democrats. Partly as a result of this near-universal color-coding, the terms Red States and Blue States entered popular usage in the weeks following the 2000 presidential election…
The choice of colors in this divide is counter-intuitive to many international observers, as throughout the world, red is commonly the designated color for parties representing labor, socialist, and/or liberal interests, which in the United States would be more closely correlated with the Democratic Party. Similarly, blue is used in these countries to depict conservative parties which in the case of the United States would be a color more suitable for the Republicans.
More here.
“The older you get the less you enjoy paying everybody else’s bills so you vote for the conservative agenda.”
It’s not all about money dude.
@Ampar…
“Five pages?”
Nah… WAY too early in the political season for five pages. Three maybe.
Oh ToweTone! Oh TowerTone!
Oh where art thou and thy bigotted comments, TowerTone?
They could quite easily do a regression analysis and make a real comparison. Just looking at two maps, where the Apple penetration map shows little differentiation does nothing to prove anything. Crap, Oregon barely went dem last time, and the same with New Hampshire, and yet they are two of the strongest Mac percentages.
The only obvious states that jump out are California and New York. Then again, Apple stores tend to congregate around urban population centers, as does the Democratic electoral strategy.
An apparent correlation means little without detailed analysis. For instance, there is no direct data on computer ownership versus political affiliation.
There are many possible variables contributing to the apparent correlation. One that comes to mind is disposable income concentrated in the northeast and along the west coast. Besides, if the map were to change drastically in the next election, the political explanation for the Mac usage correlation would be invalidated.
Mac purchases are more related to the ability to think for oneself a necessary element of which is to question authoritative sources. This is also essential to being creative and helps with earning money. Democrats of course are more likely to question authority than Republicans. In general terms it is all related although there are of course millions of exceptions in particular many Democrats don’t like Apple because they perceive their products as elitist.
Last IQ map I saw of the US was similar to the above, essentially higher around the edges, overall pale though compared to the IQ map of China.
Put together these elements and the chances of being a Mac user will be high:
Creative (artistic/business innovation)
Earns a decent salary
IQ top 30%
Democrat
Oh my God…..
Does this mean that I’m a Democrat?
(and shouldn’t this have been posted on a Friday?)
Wow, no wonder why the cliches of Mac users being condescending elistist snobs are perpetuated; just listen to the commenters and MacDailyNews writers in the last day:
Jeremy:
“Areas of dumb-ass country folk who believe everything they hear on the “TeeVee,” … vote Republican and use Windows.
It’s about IQ and sophistication only.”
MacDailyNews:
“Any random blue-vested circus freak trying to push Dells onto the mouthbreathers in Wal-Mart could have told us as much, thanks.”
(http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/15672/)
Feel the love.
Gandalf
I.Q. or education?
Big difference.
There is not always a correlation.
I hope that didn’t confuse you…..
Not this debate again! Ugh.
We’re all brothers and sisters under the aluminum skin aren’t we?
A Republican Mac user from NY.
All I know is that ever since Bush won, I’ve been in a real blue state.
I don’t know, if democrats are more likely to be Apple owners, but….
Rush Limbaugh
Glenn Beck
George Bush
are all Mac users.
The Mac-leaning states tend to be the ones with denser populations, thus requiring better network security (read: Mac). How much network security do you need on your computer, if you’re in the middle of a Kansas wheat field?
I’m a conservative Republican and I have never voted democrat.
I have a masters degree and do pretty well financially. (For SC that is)
I have NEVER owned a PC.
Make of it what you will
Does anyone seriously listen to what Glen Beck says? I mean really?
Well… guess what: wisdom won’t ever be a matter of what computer you use… lol
Can’t we all Mac along?
@Big Al
You’re right Al- I am bad off. I guess I could blame my typos on my public education, or maybe my lack of medical insurance so I can’t buy the meds I need to keep my mind “right” and stop these old hands from shaking, the drool from running out of my mouth and onto my Apple keyboard. But my main point is that not everyone who grows old also turns conservative. I owned an Apple IIe and I still listen to Led Zeppelin on my iPod, and I still hope that the future will have less lies and a better distribution of wealth to hard working people.
Now it’s lunch time and time for me to go open a can of dog food for myself- there are a lot of us older folk who can only afford pet food. Thank goodness for those brands with little cheesy bits. Older people have a natural craving for cheese!
@Grandpa,
You use a Mac, but eat dog food?! You’re values are out of whack!
(And I did use “you’re” correctly.)
WHOOPS! I meant “your”! LOL
Democrats are for the BCS and Republicans want an NCAA playoffs!
I’m not as think as you drunk I am, Officer!
MainMan… now with 3 kinds of irony!
@ChrissyOne
Yeah… I think I’m done with this one now.
Jim – TIV: “Nah… WAY too early in the political season for five pages. Three maybe.”
I’m sticking with five. There hasn’t been a good, long angerfest here in awhile.