This cracked me up

[Hypernate]

I found this on a site about constructive critism about Apple:

Powerbook blues

Another thing we just love about Apple under Steve Jobs is that in each new hardware release, they restore an old feature which was removed for no apparent reason in previous releases and they simultaneously remove a current feature. One example we have mentioned before is the first full-sized Apple USB keyboard -which is used in all current Mac desktop models- and which is the first Apple keyboard in history that does not have a power button.

Another case in point is the latest revision of the Powerbook G4, which is still flawed in our mind because it has no expandability (no drive bays, no upgradable CPU) and has a slot-loading drive, which we hate. At least the drive is now a DVD/CD-RW combo, which was added about a year after the first combo iBook was introduced.

In the last Powerbook/iBook releases, Apple decided to remove the analog sound input jack, apparently on the assumption that hey, they don't have any voice recognition software available, so why bother including a port that can only be utilized by third-party applications? (this is one of the "advantages" of having Apple produce both the hardware and the OS.)

For some reason this did not go down very well with Powerbook owners, so Apple restored the sound input jack in the new Powerbook. But it was impossible for Apple to actually add a useful feature without taking another feature out, so the new powerbooks don't have an infrared port anymore. Of course one reason for this decision may be that the current version of Mac OS X apparently does not fully support the infrared port, so why bother adding one to the configuration? Don't you just love it when Apple is keeping its products "compatible" by making sure that the capabilities of the hardware do not exceed the capabilities of the OS? The only tiny little flaw in Apple's logic is that while you can upgrade your OS for very little cost, to get the missing hardware features you have to either give money to buy external hardware add-ons, or buy another Powerbook in a few month's time with an infrared port (you can bet it will be restored in future models, while they will probably remove some other "useless" feature - the keyboard for example.)

It's true

[sjb2016]

The current USB keyboard is not the first apple keyboard not to have a power key on it. The keyboards that came with my (technically my father's) 512k and Mac Plus did not have power keys on them. I agree with the audio port thing, why did they get rid of them really? As far as infared, who really uses that technology? I'm sure a million people will now post on why its the greatest technology ever, but... Isn't Apple likely clearing the way for Bluetooth to take over?

[BBenve]

"I'm sure a million people will now post on why its the greatest technology ever, but......"


Even though i believe you re right....let me ask you...how much do ya think it cost to put a little IR port???
the answer is a ridicusly small ammount....... so why take out one good technology..??? why make my IRDA cellphone modem useless?
why make my NON bluetooth PALM not able to syng wirelessly? i mean.. you would have to upgrade Cell phone Palm...and other devices..only for a few cents expense??? i mean an IR port is not more than few cents..believe me...especially when you buy a lot of pieces....welll..... I guess we will never know

[kommakazi]

iBooks still have built-in microphones though, you can still easily use voice-recognition software. The removal of the IRDA port is obviously for Bluetooth. They're trying to market Bluetooth, not IRDA, it's not a matter of the cost of adding it. They want you to buy Bluetooth devices, not stick with your olf IRDA ones. It's called advancing technology. Why doesn't everyone start whining that our G4's don't have ABD or serial ports anymore, or IDE instead of SCSI, or remember the port for connecting an external floppy drive found on old Macs? I want one on my new tower. NOW. When new technology comes, the old stuff gets thrown out. Nobody would make money otherwise and technology would advance at a much slower rate.
In other words: 'deal with it.'

[Rhino_G3]

One probable reasoning is cost. Regardless of how trivial a feature may look there are countless hours of engineering,and testing, not to mention the materials involved in production. For all we know there may be serious motherboard restrictions keeping IrDA off the board. The $.30 receiver unit is only one part of the equation.

[JohnnyX12]

I think he's right though. It seems like everytime you gain something with Apple you lose something. Where's my Battery Monitor/Airport Dockling??? Where's my "minimize in place" dock feature??? Ok that's mostly about the OS but still...

[Rhino_G3]

If you're running 10.2 I know for a fact that the docklings are still there. I just saw them on a friends iBook this afternoon. I don't know where to get them back again since I don't use a laptop. But I do know the functionality is there.


As far as the minimize in place... I saw a dock package floating around the net of an earlier release of 10.2. I'm at work right now but I and do not know where I found it. I can post where I got it once I get home, if you are interested.

[Frog]

To add to the conversation, why remove the manual ejects on CD-Roms and Zip Disks.

I don't get it...