Microsoft Doesn't Care about Apple...

[Sirtovin]

This is my opinion... I am a Switcher... Been a PC user from Windows 3.11 till Windows XP... I've seen alot of change in the PC industry since I have sold Computers and their parts... When the average Customer goes into places such as Best Buy, Circuit City, CompUsa, or any place that actively sells a Computer, (Magazines also... are guility.) The immediate perception by the average sales person when asked about an Apple is to Stay the hell away from an Apple unless you do Graphic Design or Movie work. They tend to tell the average user that OS-X, is useless because it won't run games which is not true.

Now how do I link this to Microsoft... Simple... Every Computer geek knows of the Story of Gates Vs Jobs... How it all began in 2 garages... etc... Microsoft now see's Apple gaining finally with the move to Intel processors and Bootcamp... Now Microsoft see's the average user can have their cake and pudding too. Before it use to be an old AV Switch box to PC to MAC, or Virtualization... Now its... even more Simple... Bootcamp or Parralles... Me I like Bootcamp cause I can play my favorite games on it... Parralles is good for the user that wants to work on some other high tech programs.

Microsoft to me never has the end-user in mind... Why? Well when I saw the switch from Windows 3.11 to 95... At Office Depot where I worked people came in screaming did I have a floppy disc for printers... For you see when 95 shipped the drivers which were 8-bit were now 16/32 bit drivers for the average old printer that was Windows 3.11-95 Everyone of the manafature's, it seemed did not coordinate with Microsoft to ship a driver disc... that would work with Windows 95.

Now with Vista on the horizon they may face a similar situation where drivers will not work with pre-existing devices... Even though Microsoft is working hard to avoid that repeat...

As for Apple... Microsoft seems to enjoy the stigma that Apple Computers stink... Let's face it... At Best Buy or CompUSA, an employee would rather sell a PC, than an Apple due to ignorance.

The Averager Sales person is programmed to say the following... "Why would you want an Apple? They are overpriced... They can't run games, can't do alot of upgrades expensive to service." Microsoft enjoys this because its fact but its a misconception.

Fact because Apple is expensive...
Fact because Apple is still limited to its games... (But so are PC's now with X-Box, and PS2, and 3 and 360, in place...)

Here's where its false...

Apple is expensive because of piece of mind... when you buy an Apple Apple, stands behind the product. Most Computer manafatures give you a run around if you have a problem. Apple will service the computer and take of the problem. They will bend over backwards at any of their Apple Stores to educate, fix and sell you an Apple.

Apple Computers have come along way Since Steve Jobs, came back to Apple, he has literally turned Apple around with Ipod, the G4, G5, and OS-X. I am happy he has done this. Gates has made a mistake with underestimating that Apple will always be 10% of the Computer Industry... I think Apple has a chance to become more and more popular in the next few months and years than Microsoft and its Vista...

This is just my opinion. I am probably wrong on my facts... but this is the way I feel... Microsoft doesn't care.

[CharlieJ]

I believe that Microsoft just want to sell the product and not actually make the user feel that the product is a good product and they dont need to please the customer as most people do not know what a Macintosh is but apple do they seem to want the user to enjoy the product, I feel Windows is rushed, and the Mac is just a work of art.

(but this is just my opinion)

[Sirtovin]

Originally Posted by CJ MAC OSX IPOD

I believe that Microsoft just want to sell the product and not actually make the user feel that the product is a good product and they dont need to please the customer as most people do not know what a Macintosh is but apple do they seem to want the user to enjoy the product, I feel Windows is rushed, and the Mac is just a work of art.

(but this is just my opinion)

For years as a Retail specialist... Selling Computers I was told over and over by manangment not to push Apple... And when the Computers did sell... (Sears used to carry the Imac colored line of them...) managment would say WoW, nice bottom line keep it up... Conflicting signals.

[Natobasso]

I think the iPod has been Apple's back door into the pc market. The iPod is everywhere, just like pcs, and since it's so easy to use more and more pc users are going to a mac.

Now that we're in intel processors there's going to be less and less difference between macs and pcs, and we'll probably be able to run both systems simultaneously or have one system that runs both (hello Unix and Linux!). The lines are blurring and the mac just looks better overall.

Of course I have just bought a pc laptop so I can start programming in .net. It does have some great features, and starts up faster than my G4 powerbook, but oh the virus and spybot threats are amazing!

[Sirtovin]

Originally Posted by Natobasso

I think the iPod has been Apple's back door into the pc market. The iPod is everywhere, just like pcs, and since it's so easy to use more and more pc users are going to a mac.

Now that we're in intel processors there's going to be less and less difference between macs and pcs, and we'll probably be able to run both systems simultaneously or have one system that runs both (hello Unix and Linux!). The lines are blurring and the mac just looks better overall.

Of course I have just bought a pc laptop so I can start programming in .net. It does have some great features, and starts up faster than my G4 powerbook, but oh the virus and spybot threats are amazing!

should have got a macbook pro.. lol... :P than put bootcamp on it to have the best laptop in the world.. lol.

[Natobasso]

so Bootcamp runs Windows XP pretty well then? Where can I read more on Bootcamp?

[nixgeek]

http://www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp

[Sirtovin]

Originally Posted by Natobasso

so Bootcamp runs Windows XP pretty well then? Where can I read more on Bootcamp?

there have been reports in the Bootcamp forum here.. that Windows Messenger Live is not working on their bootCamp partitioned. Other than that Games run well... I broght CivRome and it runs fine. So did Star Wars Battlegrounds II.