# How Could One Not Know What Type of Computer One Owns?



## Amie (Jan 7, 2006)

I was at a cafe the other day and saw someone working on their beautiful, 15-inch PowerBook. Being a Mac lover myself, I walked over to her and asked, "How do you like your PowerBook?" She looked at me with a confused expression and said, "What?" I couldn't see her laptop very well because of all the clutter around it (books, papers, etc.) but I *thought* it was a PowerBook, so I asked, "That *is* a PowerBook, right?" She replied, "No, it's a ... uh ... Mac notebook." She then removed her clutter and I got a better look, and it was indeed a PowerBook. I said, "Yep, that's a PowerBook, alright." She said, "OK, if you say so." (She wasn't being snooty; she was very nice and laughing about it; this girl just had no clue.) How could one not know what type of computer one owns? That, to me, is unfathomable. It's like not knowing what type of car you drive.


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## nixgeek (Jan 7, 2006)

That's weird.   If it was brand new, it should say that on the box that it shipped with.  It should also say the name on the bottom of the screen.

Very weird...


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## Amie (Jan 7, 2006)

nixgeek said:
			
		

> That's weird.   If it was brand new, it should say that on the box that it shipped with.  It should also say the name on the bottom of the screen.
> 
> Very weird...


Oh, I'm sure it says it in all the right places. This girl was just clueless. LOL


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## spb (Jan 7, 2006)

Perhaps she needed to borrow someone elses machine to write a paper for a class.  MSOffice on Mac and PC are pretty much the same.


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## sgould (Jan 7, 2006)

I know someone who only knows their car as "a blue one"


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## Amie (Jan 7, 2006)

spb said:
			
		

> Perhaps she needed to borrow someone elses machine to write a paper for a class.  MSOffice on Mac and PC are pretty much the same.


Nope. I asked her how long she'd had the computer. She said she bought it a few months ago.


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## Amie (Jan 7, 2006)

sgould said:
			
		

> I know someone who only knows their car as "a blue one"


It's probably the same person I saw at the cafe.


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## fryke (Jan 8, 2006)

Well: Does it _really_ matter whether it's a PowerBook or iBook? It's a "Mac laptop" alright, gets the job done etc. No worries. Not all people need to be geeky about everything.


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## iball (Jan 8, 2006)

I think that says something about Apple right there.
If an OS caused a user a lot of problems then they would probably automatically know what kind of system they are using from having to tell people over and over again what it is on tech support calls or looking online for answers.
If nothing ever goes wrong and they just flat-out get their work done, then they would never have to know what type of computer it is.


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## nixgeek (Jan 8, 2006)

fryke said:
			
		

> Well: Does it _really_ matter whether it's a PowerBook or iBook? It's a "Mac laptop" alright, gets the job done etc. No worries. Not all people need to be geeky about everything.



Yes, but the darned thing has the model name right below the screen...in plain sight!  How hard is it to read that?


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## Amie (Jan 8, 2006)

fryke said:
			
		

> Well: Does it _really_ matter whether it's a PowerBook or iBook? It's a "Mac laptop" alright, gets the job done etc. No worries. Not all people need to be geeky about everything.


Well, yes, it *does* matter. But that's not the point. If she wasn't sure whether it was an iBook or PowerBook, *that* wouldn't have been so bad. But she didn't even know *what* the computer was.  At all. That's pretty bad.


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## Amie (Jan 8, 2006)

iball said:
			
		

> I think that says something about Apple right there.
> If an OS caused a user a lot of problems then they would probably automatically know what kind of system they are using from having to tell people over and over again what it is on tech support calls or looking online for answers.
> If nothing ever goes wrong and they just flat-out get their work done, then they would never have to know what type of computer it is.


I can just see it now: Because she liked the computer so much, when she decides to buy another one down the road, she'll go into a store and say, "Hey, you know what? I really liked my old computer a lot. Do you have anything similar? Oh, sorry, I don't know what kind it was."


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## fryke (Jan 8, 2006)

She said "Mac notebook" according to the first post. That should get her an iBook or PowerBook should she ask for "something similar" in my opinion. And it also shows she knew "what it was". But whatever, I don't want to defend the innocent too much, so let's just bash that ignorant girl, eh? Yeah, let her burn... No, really: I think you take this too seriously. Sure, it's right there below the screen. But maybe she didn't actually take it for the product's name. Maybe she misunderstood the question(s). Maybe she was somewhere else with her thoughts altogether. What does it matter...?
For example: My girlfriend knows hers is an iBook. But I'm sure she has no idea that it has a G3 processor, doesn't know it has 640 MB of RAM, doesn't know that 10.4 is also called "Tiger", she doesn't know that the technology in that little USB stick is called Bluetooth, but she _does_ synch her mobile phone with her Mac, and I personally think that's more important.


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## adambyte (Jan 8, 2006)

Another thought: It might have been a gift from her Mac-loving relative, and hey, if it does e-mail, web-surfing, and Word, that's all that matters, right?

In all fairness, at least she said "Mac," and not "Apple." That's a little more specific.


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## nixgeek (Jan 8, 2006)

"Reading is fundamental."  

Again, all she had to do was look.  Not too hard to shift the eyes, but that's my opinion.  Not too technical or g33ky either.

No one expects her to knowwhat the specs in detail are, but if the machine's name is plastered on the front, that should beenough to clue her in.


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## Amie (Jan 8, 2006)

fryke said:
			
		

> She said "Mac notebook" according to the first post. That should get her an iBook or PowerBook should she ask for "something similar" in my opinion. And it also shows she knew "what it was". But whatever, I don't want to defend the innocent too much, so let's just bash that ignorant girl, eh? Yeah, let her burn... No, really: I think you take this too seriously. Sure, it's right there below the screen. But maybe she didn't actually take it for the product's name. Maybe she misunderstood the question(s). Maybe she was somewhere else with her thoughts altogether. What does it matter...?
> For example: My girlfriend knows hers is an iBook. But I'm sure she has no idea that it has a G3 processor, doesn't know it has 640 MB of RAM, doesn't know that 10.4 is also called "Tiger", she doesn't know that the technology in that little USB stick is called Bluetooth, but she _does_ synch her mobile phone with her Mac, and I personally think that's more important.


Yeah, sorry, gotta disagree with you there. People should know what they purchase and what they use. Period. If you drive a Honda Accord, you should know it's a Honda Accord and not just "a four-door sedan of some sort." Case in point, if you own a PowerBook, you should know it's a PowerBook and not just "some sort of notebook."


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## Amie (Jan 8, 2006)

nixgeek said:
			
		

> "Reading is fundamental."
> 
> Again, all she had to do was look.  Not too hard to shift the eyes, but that's my opinion.  Not too technical or g33ky either.
> 
> No one expects her to knowwhat the specs in detail are, but if the machine's name is plastered on the front, that should beenough to clue her in.


Eggsactly!


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## fryke (Jan 8, 2006)

You don't know her. Know nothing about her background. You expect her to know something. She doesn't. You judge her. That alone is sad, in my opinion.
You create a thread about it in a public space. Want to know what people think about that "pathetic girl". You get opinions. Disagree with them. Have a definite opinion about how people need to know the product name of their notebooks and cars. That's sad, too, in my opinion.
What's the point here?

You say: "People should know what they purchase and what they use."

Yes, they should. But what defines the PowerBook she's bought? She calls it a "Mac notebook". Fair enough. She could've called it a PC and would have been right, because it's very _much_ a personal computer (hers, even). She could've said it's a tool to get work done and would've been right. She could call it Leopold and would've been right, because it's hers to give a name to. If you expect other people to always meet your expectations, to share your views and opinions or you'll shun them and diss them, you're not going to know a lot of people well. In my opinion.

Come on! I _know_ the PowerBook's got a "PowerBook" logo below its screen. I _know_ that I'd expect a PowerBook owner to know it's called a "PowerBook". If I meet a person with a PowerBook who doesn't know it's a PowerBook, I'd be interested to find out why this person doesn't care about that. Maybe there's something to be learned from that person.

Wow. Moral speech. Sorry. Ignore me tonight, if you must.


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## nixgeek (Jan 8, 2006)

How did "looking at the name on her PowerBook/Mac laptop/magic box" turn into the public stoning of this particular person?  All we're saying is that it wouldn't have been too hard to see what it was.  From Amie's description, is seemed as though she didn't care what she was using, so much so that even attempting to read the front of the Mac laptop  wasn't even a consideration.

I guess my personal beef is that some people love being blissfully ignorant.  I don't understand how anyone can live like that, but I guess they are free to do so.  I just don't understand.  I wasn't there so I don't know the exact scenario, and your right she probably borrowed the laptop.  But again, she had to learn how to use the computer to do anything with it, so she had to know something about it at the very least.

Anyways, that's my stance.....judge me if you will, since I'm seen as having judged another.  I am not without my faults and there are many...hey, I like Linux!  Does anyone think this has gone on longer than it should?  Can we agree to disagree??  _Can't we all just get along????_

Sorry..


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## ecirtap (Jan 8, 2006)

I can see everybody's point, me thinks...

I would have also been surprised that the girl didn't seem to care too much about what brand or model her laptop is. 

BUT: I always love coming across people like that... They just have different priorities...

As probably most of you are, I'm the personal tech support of all my Apple friends, and oftentimes hear: "Wow, I wish I knew as much as you do, etc. etc. etc.", to which I always reply "Thank God you don't and can keep some brain capacity free for stuff that you really care about"...

patrice
http://www.patriceschneider.com/apple-osx/blog/


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## Thank The Cheese (Jan 9, 2006)

she represents the majority of computer users: they don't care what it's called, how it does it, who made it, and what advanced functions it can do - so long as it does what they need it for they're happy. 

My mother has an iBook, but she refers to it as a laptop and nothing else. a couple of times I have asked "where's your iBook", and she gives me a blank look until I add "your laptop". 

If the general public truly understood the computers they used - truly understood the differences between a PowerBook and an IBM Thinkpad, or between MacOS and Windows - everyone would be using a Mac. But people don't get it (not because they are dumb, it just doesn't interest them, in the same way landscaping doesn't interest me) 

Same reason why Internet Explorer is used by most people - most don't understand precicely what IE does, or what alternatives there are. Again, if they DID know why IE is so bad, no one would use it. 

Frustrating for us geeks in the know...


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## adambyte (Jan 9, 2006)

Mr. Cheese, you make a good point. Especially since I can relate: I really don't care about landscaping.


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## Mikuro (Jan 9, 2006)

I'd find it funny if I met someone who didn't know they were using a "PowerBook", too, but I certainly wouldn't consider it a personality flaw. I wonder if my sister would know she has an iBook if she didn't hear me call it that all the time.

Granted, it has a name on it, but I sure don't notice every label on every item I use. I couldn't for the life of me tell you what company made my stove, much less what model it is. I'm sure the company logo and model name/number have entered my field of vision many times a day for many years. I might even have noticed it from time to time, but it's certainly not in my consciousness. Couldn't tell you the company that made my TV, either. Is it Sharp? It might be Sharp. But it might also be Panasonic. I really don't know, and I don't see why I should, even though these were major purchases. The only major household appliance whose maker I can confidently name is my fridge, and that's only because I need to order new water filters from that company every three months. If I didn't need to maintain it, I wouldn't remember anything about it.

For that reason, I think cars are a bad analogy. Cars require much more conscious awareness and maintenance than computers (or at least Macs  ).

I could've sworn my alarm clock was a ConAir, but I just turned my head, and it's a Westclox! I really like that alarm clock, too. Go figure.

If you didn't follow the Mac world like _we_ all do, then the model names wouldn't hold much significance, and so they probably wouldn't stick in your consciousness. *shrug*


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## Viro (Jan 9, 2006)

Amie said:
			
		

> Yeah, sorry, gotta disagree with you there. People should know what they purchase and what they use. Period. If you drive a Honda Accord, you should know it's a Honda Accord and not just "a four-door sedan of some sort." Case in point, if you own a PowerBook, you should know it's a PowerBook and not just "some sort of notebook."



I went to a cafe the other day and saw this guy drinking a diet coke. I was quite impressed and walked over to ask, "Do you know you are drinking aspartame?" The guy looked clueless and replied "Aspar-wha? I'm drinking a diet Coke". I start to get annoyed, I mean, how can you drink a cola and not know what goes into it? I point to the ingredients list on the can, and it says 'sweeteners - aspartame'. Seeing as the guy was a completely clueless noob, I proceed to explain to him the side effects of  aspartame to which he has no idea. I mean, how sad is that? Dammit, people need to learn to read better. Why can't everyone be as 1337 as me?


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## Thank The Cheese (Jan 9, 2006)

rofl viro!!


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## nixgeek (Jan 9, 2006)

Again, everyone seems to be missing the point.  No one is especting someone to know that their laptop has a PowerPC 7457B (G4) CPU with 512k L2 cache, ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 AGP 4x, and a 100 GB 5400 RPM ATA/100.  Heck, I had to even look up all this and I'm a computer tech!  But almost everything that's purchased has a name and it's usually plastered in plain site of the person.

Viro, your analogy doesn't work since you are describing _what goes into_ a Diet Coke.  But I'm sure the person knew it was a Diet Coke.  I'm sure that person didn't blindly pick a soda can since the name is plastered all over it.  I'm also sure that if it was a fountain drink that this person asked for it by name.  I'm sure this person didn't say "let me have a dark colored soda" since they might have gotten regular coke, root beer, Dr. Pepper, or some other dark colored fountain drink.

Again, I can understand if this thing was borrowed since the person might not have that much insight into the various models.  However, this person DID have to learn how to use it or must have had some prior knowledge.  It's not like we're talking about a whitebox computer, in which case I can understand.  

I guess in retrospect I'm sure it was fine that she identified it as a Mac laptop. <shrug>  Heck, some people even get Coke and Pepsi mixed up so I guess it's not that big a deal.  I give up.  Much ado about nothing I guess...


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## Viro (Jan 9, 2006)

It is much ado about nothing, since there are some people who just see computers as a tool, and as such don't really care about what brand/kind it is. I agree the coke analogy is trite, but it does illustrate the point. You may care a lot about something, but that doesn't mean everyone cares about it too.

The person in the original 'case' study is a just a person who sees a laptop as a kind of tool. Much like how I would view a pen. Do I know the brand/kind of pens I use? I don't know and I don't care. All I care about is that they are blue/black.


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## Amie (Jan 9, 2006)

fryke said:
			
		

> You don't know her. Know nothing about her background. You expect her to know something. She doesn't. You judge her. That alone is sad, in my opinion.
> You create a thread about it in a public space. Want to know what people think about that "pathetic girl". You get opinions. Disagree with them. Have a definite opinion about how people need to know the product name of their notebooks and cars. That's sad, too, in my opinion.
> What's the point here?
> 
> ...


LOL

Calm down, boy. 

I'll make it short and sweet:
1. I wasn't judging. I was observing.
2. The answer to your question is: Because I asked her if it was a PowerBook and she said, "No, it's a notebook." True, it *is* a notebook. But she said it *wasn't* a PowerBook, and that is *not* true.
3. This is a public thread. We're allowed to disagree.


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## Amie (Jan 9, 2006)

Viro said:
			
		

> I went to a cafe the other day and saw this guy drinking a diet coke. I was quite impressed and walked over to ask, "Do you know you are drinking aspartame?" The guy looked clueless and replied "Aspar-wha? I'm drinking a diet Coke". I start to get annoyed, I mean, how can you drink a cola and not know what goes into it? I point to the ingredients list on the can, and it says 'sweeteners - aspartame'. Seeing as the guy was a completely clueless noob, I proceed to explain to him the side effects of  aspartame to which he has no idea. I mean, how sad is that? Dammit, people need to learn to read better. Why can't everyone be as 1337 as me?


I think I saw that guy sharing his diet Coke with some girl who was using a PowerBook.


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## Rhisiart (Jan 9, 2006)

I know a lot of people that don't have any concept of what it is like not to have clean water, to have to live on a dollar a week (if you're lucky), to lose one's parents to AIDS, to go blind as a result of a preventable disease....

For the love of God, it's just a computer, even if it is a Mac!


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## Viro (Jan 9, 2006)

Good perspective, rhisiart.


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## nixgeek (Jan 9, 2006)

I agree...can we let this thread die please??


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## Giaguara (Jan 9, 2006)

It goes to me as weird as not knowing any more than of having a "blue car". So take your "blue car" to a car mechanic to have it fixed... when you have no clue if it says cinquecento, explorer, smart, or something else as model, and a zero clue for its manufacturer.


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## Amie (Jan 10, 2006)

rhisiart said:
			
		

> I know a lot of people that don't have any concept of what it is like not to have clean water, to have to live on a dollar a week (if you're lucky), to lose one's parents to AIDS, to go blind as a result of a preventable disease....
> 
> For the love of God, it's just a computer, even if it is a Mac!


Yes, but those people are lucky enough not to ever have to worry about what type of computer they have. 

I'm sorry if that was in bad taste. Just trying to make light of a rather downcast issue. Yes, it's sad. It's equally sad that people are often oblivious of their surroundings, etc. Not everyone is going to agree with each other, and that's OK. It's what makes the world go 'round.

It doesn't matter, really. I never anticipated that this thread would grow into a whole debate about my simple observation on a Sunday morning in a cafe. LOL

Peace!


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## Amie (Jan 10, 2006)

Giaguara said:
			
		

> It goes to me as weird as not knowing any more than of having a "blue car". So take your "blue car" to a car mechanic to have it fixed... when you have no clue if it says cinquecento, explorer, smart, or something else as model, and a zero clue for its manufacturer.


Yep, I know. Ssshhh. Don't waste your time. 

By the way, I LOVE your Hello Kitty avatar. I've been a huge Hello Kitty fan since I was, like, 7. Never quite grew out of her.


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## Esquilinho (Jan 10, 2006)

weeha! MacBooks! The girl was (almost) predicting the future after all!


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## nixgeek (Jan 10, 2006)

LOL.  I had thought about that when the name was officially announced.  But to be honest she would still have been wrong since now the MacBook refers to an Intel Mac notebook and not the one she had.


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## Rhisiart (Jan 10, 2006)

May this thread rest in peace. Amen. LOL


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## nixgeek (Jan 10, 2006)

Along with the PowerPC, eh?? ::ha::


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## fryke (Jan 10, 2006)

Yep. From now on, we can safely call the PowerPC a processor for "computer games", since it'll basically be developed for game consoles. Not that they're bad or anything, just that for "real" computers, they're not the right stuff anymore.


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## sgould (Jan 11, 2006)

I thought about this thread again today while watching the small aircraft pass over the house on their way to the local airfield.  As far as I am concerned they all have a wing each side, a fuselage, a single engine and a tailplane.

Could I tell them apart?  Do I care? 

Now if you asked me about some small detail of the cars I've owned.....


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## Amie (Jan 11, 2006)

Actually, she didn't say "MacBook."


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## fryke (Jan 12, 2006)

Yes, you stated so in the first post of the thread. Still "Mac notebook" is closer to "MacBook" than to "PowerBook".


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## nixgeek (Jan 12, 2006)

Can we _please _stop beating this dead horse....the flies are starting to really bug me.


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## CaptainQuark (Jan 12, 2006)

Buzzzzzzzz

Hi Nixgeek. Some of us have only just found this thread!

Buzzzzzzzz


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## nixgeek (Jan 12, 2006)

CaptainQuark said:
			
		

> Buzzzzzzzz
> 
> Hi Nixgeek. Some of us have only just found this thread!
> 
> Buzzzzzzzz



Hey stranger!  Happy New Year!  So when is your MacBook Pro arriving at your door?? 

**SWAT!!**


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## Amie (Jan 12, 2006)

fryke said:
			
		

> Yes, you stated so in the first post of the thread. Still "Mac notebook" is closer to "MacBook" than to "PowerBook".


Right. That's what I said: She didn't say "MacBook." She said "Mac notebook." In fact, I'm not even actually sure she said "Mac." She might've just said "notebook." Doesn't matter. I'm sure she's enjoying her ... uh ... notebook thing.


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## Amie (Jan 12, 2006)

nixgeek said:
			
		

> Can we _please _stop beating this dead horse....the flies are starting to really bug me.


 *looks at your shoes*


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## CaptainQuark (Jan 12, 2006)

nixgeek said:
			
		

> Hey stranger!


Jeez *another one *I had 3 weeks off work over Christmas, OK!?*
 



			
				nixgeek said:
			
		

> So when is your MacBook Pro arriving at your door??


When the temperature down there hits 0°C!  



			
				nixgeek said:
			
		

> **SWAT!!**



Missed!

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz


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## nixgeek (Jan 12, 2006)

Amie said:
			
		

> *looks at your shoes*




What shoes?? 

I thought something felt squishy between my toes!  Leave it to a dead horse to leave something to remember it by.

Time to buy some TP and bugspray.


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## Amie (Jan 12, 2006)

nixgeek said:
			
		

> What shoes??
> 
> I thought something felt squishy between my toes!  Leave it to a dead horse to leave something to remember it by.
> 
> Time to buy some TP and bugspray.


That horse was anything but dead. After it left that nice, big pile between your toes, it whinnied (which sounded suspiciously like laughter), and galloped away.


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## Rhisiart (Jan 12, 2006)

Amie

I have to give you some credit as you have created a very bizarre thread that has now reached 50 postings and all based on a spectacular non-event.

I don't know whether to hit the nearest wall with my forehead a few times or congratulate you.

I am tempted to do the latter.


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## nixgeek (Jan 12, 2006)

rhisiart said:
			
		

> Amie
> 
> I have to give you some credit as you have created a very bizarre thread that has now reached 50 postings and all based on a spectacular non-event.
> 
> ...



Can I join you?  My feet might smell a little like manure, but it's all good.  ::ha::


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## Amie (Jan 12, 2006)

rhisiart said:
			
		

> Amie
> 
> I have to give you some credit as you have created a very bizarre thread that has now reached 50 postings and all based on a spectacular non-event.
> 
> ...


*dramatic bow*

...ow. 

Hit my forehead on the wall on the way down.


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## Snaffle (Jan 14, 2006)

Wow. Did this thread end? Or am I imagining things?


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## Amie (Jan 14, 2006)

Snaffle said:
			
		

> Wow. Did this thread end? Or am I imagining things?


Ssshhh ... you'll wake them.


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## spb (Jan 15, 2006)

sgould said:
			
		

> I know someone who only knows their car as "a blue one"



Before the blue one they didn't happen to have a car that was, "Uh, yeah, uh, Green.  Some uh, brown, uh or, rust, coloration."


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