# New Apple Ads



## Captain Code (Jun 10, 2002)

From Maccentral :



> Apple's making a concerted effort to interest Windows users in its product with a new advertising campaign, according to CNET News.com. The new ad campaign is themed "Real People," and it kicks off this week.
> 
> The new ads feature Windows users who have made a successful switch to the Mac. The TV ads were directed by famed documentarian Errol Morris, whose previous credits include "Gates of Heaven," "The Thin Blue Line," and "A Brief History of Time." The ads were filmed using the Interrotron, a camera of Morris' own creation that uses mirrors to help interview subjects look directly into the camera lens instead of off-screen at an interviewer.
> 
> The ads reportedly feature "a cross section of Windows switchers" -- eight folks ranging from a college student to a writer to a Windows network administrator. The new campaign will be featured on TV and in print advertising, and will be tied to a new spot on Apple's Web site too.



Sounds good to me, and about time too!


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## ksuther (Jun 10, 2002)

I bet this will do Apple a lot of good. Right now they are in the position that everybody knows about their products, but they just don't see why they should buy them. This campaign should help to remedy that, I hope.


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## Winblows (Jun 10, 2002)

i want to see how PC's market their product when they release a new processor based off the motorola efficient g4 and back down the number, PC people are confused now, wait until Intel releases a 800 mhz and drops down from a 3 ghz. it will be funny to see this


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## ksuther (Jun 10, 2002)

And heeeeere it is! http://www.apple.com/switch/


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## twister (Jun 10, 2002)

Those people are so freaky lookin. Ha ha.

Twister


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## Winblows (Jun 10, 2002)

i wonder if it would be great to have more apple users than PC users.. everybody thinks im a computer guru cause i can do things on a computer, and theirs are so hard to do anything on.. if alot of people switch (which will be great to have them  in the apple family) will it be good for us die hard users???


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## deagle five o (Jun 10, 2002)

i think the coolest thing is the fact that they deicated an entire section ( the tab between Store & iTools )... pretty cool , shows this is most likely gonna be their new "drive" to sell machines.


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## Winblows (Jun 10, 2002)

ya, that and the icard tab was pointless since it was jus a link to the itools tab


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## simX (Jun 10, 2002)

I think this is a great campaign for Apple.  While I was a little dubious about "Everything is easier on a Mac", I think this "Real People" campaign is much better.

I just had to smirk when I heard Liza Richardson say that her iBook "holds a special place in [her] heart".  Try and get a PC user to say that!  And then there was Sarah Whistler who blatantly said her PC was "a horrid little machine".  Hahaha that's great.

It seems like Apple isn't at all bashful in taking Microsoft head-on, and I think that's a good thing.  Maybe we CAN make it to 10% market share after all, with Mac OS X.

I also like it how Apple is maintaining their all white background.  It takes the focus off of the potentially distracting background and focuses the viewer's attention on the actual person.  Even the body language of the people themselves illustrate what they are saying  like Dave Haxton who was waving his hands in a funny way when he was saying "pointy-headed intellectuals from California".   The music is kind of catchy too.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I really like it.


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## Koelling (Jun 10, 2002)

I wouldn't mind seeing one of the computers in the background tho. I really liked the iPod movie thing that was (and should be still) on the apple website with Seal and Moby because the computers or the iPod were right there. It's pretty obvious that they are actors, but at least the letters are real.


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## senne (Jun 10, 2002)

There's a "Tell your friends"-thing. I already mailed to 30 people!! Including my school,they wanted no more macs in our school, i hope when they see the Switch-section  they're going to realize that it isn't a good idea to get rid of those Macs!!


senne.


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## Sogni (Jun 10, 2002)

I think I got a "Reason to Switch" dilema going on here in my home network. 

All of a sudden my PC does not see the network (altho the "Network connected" icon comes up), pluging in my Digital Camera (first time since I boght it) causes it to reboot... And to find out what was wrong with my friend's Camcorder, we pluged it into my Mac (we all assumed it was the PC since something similar happened before).

And while on the phone with a friend of mine, trying to email me something "oh, wait - I got a blue screen" and starts reading me the error (which I tuned out) meanwhile I felt like the bully in The Simpsons, pointing and saying "HAHA" 

My Mac has not caused me any problems or hartship whatsoever! OS9 was great, OSX is a dream... it's very fast and packs a good punch. Sometimes I even wonder why I have the AMD, all it does is it plays a couple of games I don't have for Mac that I hardly play anymore... 

I already have a Linux box, plus my Mac with Darwin... And I can't even think of giving the PC to my mom - even though she wants to learn how to use a computer, I'll be damned if I'll teach her on that blasted thing (I love her too much to do that to her! lol), plus she wants the new iMac (remember, she knows NOTHING of computers! yet she wants it! lol).

I honestly think my Windows (and PCs in general?) days are finally coming to an end... I just can't think of a reason to build or buy another PC for myself (of course I'll still be doing it for others, but that's besides the point).

I might switch hardware and put Linux on the faster PC. But a new one? Nah... 

Now, how to sell off a PC to buy another Mac? Hmmm...


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## Gregita (Jun 10, 2002)

What I had said in my last reply is that I had written an email to Apple from the Switch page. I told them one of the reasons I had switched to a Mac was so I could burn cds.

I told them they should tell people about me and the hundreds of other people that have written letters to support@apple.com. They should tell about all of us pc converts who can't burn cds.

Then I said...I doubt that would help you sell Macs, though.


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## xaqintosh (Jun 10, 2002)

I actually don't want Apple to ever have more than, say, 50% of the market share, because there is a slight possibility that if they did, they could turn into Microsoft. I think its better to have a smaller percentage, but right now we DO need more people so we will be taken seriously and have more compatibility.

I think Apple should buy Virtual PC from Connectix and bundle it with their computers, it would be Great, cuz PC users would switch and we could run all those Windows-Only Apps


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## culo77 (Jun 10, 2002)

WHATS WITH ALL THE WHITE PEOPLE IN THOSE ADS???? 

Wheres the "token" Latino or black guy to show diversity????


Not trying to stir up anything.........just saying my first impresion??


But i think the Idea of the ads and bringing in PC's to the apple stores, Plus the virtualPC demo's are the marketing that apple needs.

but I do think that they should have started 7-8 months earlier on that concept.


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## jesnil (Jun 10, 2002)

*culo77 :*  That is nice to hear. It was my first impresion to. Apple has for me always been something more than the white trash pc-culture.

I went so sad when Apples changed the colorful Apple logo to the new white one. The old one was reminding me of the Pride movement (gay thing for you who dont know).

More culturejamming Apple!


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## Sogni (Jun 10, 2002)

> _Originally posted by culo77 _
> *WHATS WITH ALL THE WHITE PEOPLE IN THOSE ADS????
> 
> Wheres the "token" Latino or black guy to show diversity????
> ...



Hmmm... at first look I thought Liza (the DJ) was hispanic, but now that I payed closer attention to her name it doesnt look like it...


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## dtmdoc (Jun 10, 2002)

interesting culo..

i didnt even think of that, till u mentioned it.  

you have a point 

i also agree these people just look like freaks or geeks or something.
i hope this campaign works for apple.


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## fryke (Jun 10, 2002)

i personally dislike the ad campaign. it might help apple's marketing share, and that's a good thing, but the personal impression i get is that the mac's the computer for the dumb average person (i know, that's where the market is). i feel let down a bit, as i'm actually proud to have paid so much for my titanium. if they all held ibooks and imacs, that'd be okay for me, as those are the consumer computers, but i actually love being part of the elite few. ah well, as i've said, if it sells macs, it's good for me, too.


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## culo77 (Jun 10, 2002)

> _Originally posted by dtmdoc _
> *
> 
> i also agree these people just look like freaks or geeks or something.
> i hope this campaign works for apple. *



I will still stick by the concept of apple's new marketing

no offense to the people in the ads, BUT where in the !@#$% did they find that bunch of @#$%. 

Thank you apple for the great laugh today.


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## Sogni (Jun 10, 2002)

Guys, you haven't noticed? This is what PC people look like - not Mac people! They *just* now converted to Mac, give them time - they'll look like Mac people sooner or later!


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## The Madhatter (Jun 10, 2002)

I too quickly noticed the lack of diversity in the bunch of people they chose to do the Apple ads.  You'd think they would put at least one African-American or Hispanic or something.  Hey, the funniest of the iMac ads features a black man, why couldn't they use one for this?  

I would like the campaign more if there was at least some diversity.  Just some thoughts.


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## Ricky (Jun 10, 2002)

This ad campaign is going to work great though.    No more "PC is better" stuff, because now we have solid proof that Mac is just as good if not better.  This is going to work well with the eMac too.


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## dave17lax (Jun 11, 2002)

it really is funny how easy macs are. i think a lot of us start taking it for granted. my old mac (sold to a friend) is still kickin, even though the adb port got busted. he bought a new keyboard (macalley adb) and was scared to plug it in. i had to tell him over the phone that it would work...and it did of course.
my other "convert" got a tibook, but only has the minimum of ram in it, is scared of os x, and regrets buying it. i'm just waiting for the day when i will buy it from him and UNLEASH THE FURY!!!!


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## BlingBling 3k12 (Jun 11, 2002)

it was so cool to see em on tv and not on my monitor... the only one i didn't see was the one with the old guy in his denim shirt...

granted it was between 2:00 and 3:00 AM...

wait... that's when most windows users are trying to figure out that Blue Screen of Death thing 

great idea to put them at late nite apple!


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## googolplex (Jun 11, 2002)

I think these ads are great! I havne't seen any on TV yet. However I don't watch much TV and they might not be playing in Canada yet. Some of the people are err a little strange though .


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## jmr6809 (Jun 11, 2002)

just my opinion....

1)   perhaps the people who wrote the letters that Apple selected for the adds were actually....white.  We white folks do exist, after all.

2)   I have really enjoyed the lack of discussion of race or racism, moral plurality, etc. on this board.  I hope that this sort of discussion does not become common place.  While I understand that the discussion of racial equity, etc. is quite important for some poeple, those discussions would do well on a site dedicated to these issues.  The people using this site have maintained a fairly good focus on discussions of the issues related to the use of Mac hardware and OS 9.x and OS X.x.  For that, I am greatful.


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## phatsharpie (Jun 11, 2002)

I do think race, etc. does have a place on this board, as long as it's part of the discussion about Macs, technology, and on topic.

Race in technology is a vital topic, there are many relevant discussions in this area, from the digital divide to multi-ligual programming concepts.

I like the new Apple ads, but the lack of racial diversity does stand out somewhat. Think about this, one of the greatest thing about Mac OS X is its multi-lingual features, I think it's far and above anything on the Windows side, so the lack of racial diversity is somewhat odd. Also, one of the most profitable market for Apple is in Japan - if you look at the market share numbers, Apple is much higher there than anywhere else - yet no Asians in the ads.

For now I don't think it's a major issue. The truth is that the distribution of wealth in the US still favors Caucasians, and Apple may want to target that audience first, but I do hope they include a more diverse group in their ads in the future.


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## xaqintosh (Jun 11, 2002)

I'd like to add some ideas:

1. If they had, say, 10 people, all from different races and some in wheelchairs, etc., wouldn't we all be saying that apple is too "Politically Correct"? 

2. I think that if we were in a better society (excuse my poor choice of words), we wouldn't need to notice the lack of racial diversity, because the other races wouldn't mind.

3. The truth is, a lot, and maybe even most, of the mac users in the world _are_ white.

4. just because someone is white or black or hispanic or whatever doesn't mean they are more attracted to something with an ad with a person from their race in it (for example the new iMac commercial had a Black man in it, and I still went ahead and got one, I didn't even think about the fact that he was of a different race than me)

just my 2¢


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## phatsharpie (Jun 11, 2002)

I agree, and as I stated, I don't think it's a major issue for now.

However, what I don't want is for people to feel uncomfortable discussing race in technology, because it's a valid topic. Racism shouldn't be a taboo subject in technology. Apple have been priding themselves for being one of the most diverse corporation in the world, and I commend them on that.

Like I stated, as long as discussions involving race is about Macs, technology, and on topic - and handled with maturity, it should be perfectly alright.


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## culo77 (Jun 11, 2002)

> _Originally posted by xaqintosh _
> *I'd like to add some ideas:
> 
> 1. If they had, say, 10 people, all from different races and some in wheelchairs, etc., wouldn't we all be saying that apple is too "Politically Correct"?
> ...




Whoa ......... i just said that was the first thing i thought when i saw the ad. "Where's the token black or latino guy in the ad"

It was more of a light-hearted comment. ( a joke )
i was stating an opinion, please oh for the love of "what ever you worship" (being politically correct), just let it be, let it be a comment that you read and
a. laugh at
b. dont get
c. agree with
d. bypass and read on!!!!!!!!!!

understand this is a forum on the Internet, and the internet see's no race gender or creed.



on the internet we judge you by your spelling and if you write something we can flame ya about


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## Ricky (Jun 12, 2002)

But did you notice that there were a fair amount of females?    At least we know it's not sexist...


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## xaqintosh (Jun 12, 2002)

> Whoa ......... i just said that was the first thing i thought when i saw the ad. "Where's the token black or latino guy in the ad"
> 
> It was more of a light-hearted comment. ( a joke )
> i was stating an opinion, please oh for the love of "what ever you worship" (being politically correct), just let it be, let it be a comment that you read and
> ...



ok, sorry about taking it too seriously


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## culo77 (Jun 12, 2002)

> _Originally posted by xaqintosh _
> *
> 
> ok, sorry about taking it too seriously  *



I LOVE YOU MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## xaqintosh (Jun 12, 2002)

> I LOVE YOU MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



wait...

I don't get it


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## genghiscohen (Jun 12, 2002)

I have seen the new ads 4 or 5 times so far, and the ad placement is interesting. Most of them were shown during The Screen Savers on TechTV (I have a major thing for Megan Morrone, heheh).  And one was shown during the Stanley Cup hockey final, in among all those incredibly annoying Captain Morgan malt liquor ads.
Looks like they're targeting PC-using geeks *and* morons.


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## edX (Jun 12, 2002)

hey genghis my friend, are you calling us hockey fans morons?


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## genghiscohen (Jun 12, 2002)

Not at all, I was watching the game myself.
It's the Captain Morgan drinkers who are the morons!


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## BlingBling 3k12 (Jun 12, 2002)

"the blue screen of death"

and BOOM i turned my head! just saw it during the replay of the MTV movie awards (which attracts a wide variety of young people)... if they get lots of kids to be like "wow... i hate that d*** blue screen! f'n thing always crashes my pc! i need a mac!" they'll know what to tell their parents to get next time!


*sorry about the slight explitives but that's what me, my friends (and a lot of others i know) say! and at least i kept it predominantly clean... i didn't use the whole word!


and i think that showing race in the commercials would be great! about a month ago, i read an article about the digital divide between whites and blacks... it was a very well written article.... i think with more exposure to the other races, they may be more inclined to jump onto technology instead of just staying back


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## jaybeekay (Jun 13, 2002)

> _Originally posted by xaqintosh _
> *I'd like to add some ideas:
> 
> 1. If they had, say, 10 people, all from different races and some in wheelchairs, etc., wouldn't we all be saying that apple is too "Politically Correct"?
> ...



and the truth is that most of EVERY thing is white, but it is always good to show some diversity. not too diverse of course because then it is contrived. but just ONE token ______(enter race of choice here) would be okay. the very first thing i noticed was that there were no other races represented. 

And no, I am not more inclined to by a product cause it shows a black person in it, but if apple wants to show that it is the kind of computer that can have a "special place in your heart" then it might want to be a bit more diverse with these ads. Now it almost takes me back to the big brother scene in the 1984 ads where everybody looked the same.

even in our columbus store they have the one token black guy. okay i'm not being serious but there is still just one...(hey, i was trying to be that one!)

but maybe they are just trying to keep it "real" by only including those who actually wrote the letters, and those people just did not end up being korean, black, hispanic or whatever. 

well anyways, apple will still have a special place in my heart. you can't expect a computer company to be perfect all the time.



----------------------------------
http://www.jaybeekay.com


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## edX (Jun 13, 2002)

first - hi to jaybeekay in cowtown. Go buckeyes!!

then - i would guess that if apple wanted to make it diverse, they would have. In the SF bay area, whites are the minority. asians and hispanics combined have us outnumbered. not that many people care, but that is how it is. and the points about these being pc users to start with is a good one. frankly, other ethnicities should feel almost honored to be left out. 

besides the black guy in the dancing imac commerical was great.


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## fryke (Jun 13, 2002)

still, I find those people rather dorky. the message for me is, that if you are a lamer, a (l)user, a whatever: Choose the Macintosh.

If you want to use real people, why not use really cool 'real situations'? Like what happened to me, when I was teaching webdesign classes:

Teacher enters the room with his Titanium PowerBook under his arm. Some students chuckle and you hear one say 'He's got a _Mac_!'. The students have Dell (or whatever) notebooks. You can see the strange small antennae on the side of each notebook. "Okay, startup your computers, launch a web browser," says the teacher. "Let's look at some design examples." You can hear some beeping sounds. The teacher attaches his PowerBook to the video-projector and a Mac OS X Desktop appears instantly on the wall. Closeup of AirPort signal rate: All five bars. He brings a browser to the front (whatever choice, why not IE to show that there IS IE for Mac, choice is good!) and enters the URL of some nice website, while the students start to say things like 'Can't connect!', 'The notebook can't download my profile from the server.' and stuff like that. In reminiscence of an old Apple ad, the teacher could make helpful comments in the following order:

1) "Hmm... Try to restart the machine."
2) "Still no-go? Is there some utility for the wireless network access? Ah, you don't have administrative access to the machine."
3) "Can you try to ping another machine on the network?"
4) "Gosh, the school should buy a bunch of iBooks or somethin'."


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## djhpr (Jun 13, 2002)




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## dtmdoc (Jun 13, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Tormente _
> *Guys, you haven't noticed? This is what PC people look like - not Mac people! They *just* now converted to Mac, give them time - they'll look like Mac people sooner or later!  *



DUDE!!!

i was a PC owner, and I look nothing like those individuals... Im about
6'3, 250 lbs, bald with goatee and black... But I digress.

PS: what does a mac owner look like so i know what i will turn too ?


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## edX (Jun 13, 2002)

dtmdoc - sounds like you have been a mac owner all your life, you just didn't know it yet   (bald with goatee   )

stereotypes aren't always true, but sometimes they are - they didn't just invent themselves. so mac users tend to be just a little more 'expressive' in their appearance a lot of the time.  i could come up with lots of rational reasons for this but just remembering apple's last ad campaign should be enough - we not only "Think Different", we look and act different as well. 

but what is different? hmmm. lots of different answers to that one 

but hey dtmdoc, i'll go out on a limb here and guess that while you're black, you don't tend to think of yourself as being an 'average black man'. I'm guessing you see yourself as more than average in a lot of ways. and since you're using a mac now, i figure you _are_ more than average in many areas of your life. (you got here before the commercial, right? )


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## Inline_guy (Jun 13, 2002)

I like the new campaign.  I also think that they are stressing their straight.  Easy of use.  Great for people who are dumb with computers.  I have been a die hard PC user my whole 22yo life.  I got my first computer when I was a tike.  An IBM PS/1.  It has the large and small floppy drive and a 186MB hard drive I think.

I grew up with PC's and loved PC's.  I did a report in High School on Bill Gates and bought his book the day it came out.  I could use my Windows program inside and out.  My parents could not.  They still can't.  

I went to Art school for computer animation and Industrial design.  There I was introduced to the iMac.  The CRT one.  They were amazing looking (I always was a sucker for design).  Still when it came time to buy my fourth computer when I started college I bought a big mighty custom built PC.  Well after like four years of use, it started dying.... like the other three before it.  At this point I had lost interest in computers.  I no longer had the time to fiddle with them.  I decided not to buy a new computer.  Once this one died, I was done.  Problem was I needed a new mp3 player.  I workout 4 days a week, and roller blade non-stop, so an mp3 player was important to me.

Then I saw it.  The flat screen iMac.  I was in love.  And Apple had the iPod.  I went out and bought an iMac with a SuperDrive the next day, and an iPod as well.  That was in May, and I have not looked back.  Since then I have bought the Adobe design collection; started teaching myself html, css, java script, and flash; am soon buying a $3000.00 DV cam; and started to love all things Apple.  As crazy as it sounds to even myself... the iMac has re-inspired my passion to create. 

Since I have been using it I have learned that they are simple for anyone to use.  But they are so complex as well, but only if you want them to be.  I wish to this day that my parents would have bought a Mac.  Their computer experience would be so much better. 

That is what I think these commercials stress.  And I say good for Apple.


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## jaybeekay (Jun 14, 2002)

> _Originally posted by dtmdoc _
> *
> 
> DUDE!!!
> ...



hahahah...i'm bald with a goatee and black too!!


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## Inline_guy (Jun 29, 2002)

Hum

I did not know that there was a new one.  I have not seen that one yet.  I think it is interesting though.  I wonder how many people will know he is the editor and Vice President of "The New Yorker"?  I wonder if they will put this one up on Apple/switch site?  And I also wonder if they plan on bring more "celebrity" like people into their add campaign.  I think it would be helpful kind of like the "falling into the Gap" campaign with all those celebs....

Link:: 
http://maccentral.macworld.com/news/0206/27.switch.php 


Matthew

:: inlineguy.com ::


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