OS X + XP: Who will really win?

What will the competition between OS X + XP result in?

  • Mac and Microsoft will both keep the same market share.

  • Mac will gain market share among niche groups.

  • Mac will gain market share from the general public.

  • Mac will lose market share.


Results are only viewable after voting.
I think my experience is probably more typical of a business and casual user of an OS. I just recently began using a digital camera on a regular basis. iPhoto and the ease with which OS X uploaded the pictures was amazing. The presentation of the photos, with music, blew my friends and family away.

I can guarantee that there will be numerous new Mac converts out there - who were moved and amazed by the sophistication and ease with which a laptop became such a powerful new medium of communication.

These are people who all have Wintel based machines and are very dissatisfied with their experiences. So, I'm not going to disregard the Apple Digital Hub strategy. I think Apple will definitely increase it's market share with this strategy. I have absolutely no doubt on that.

As to Microsoft's .net strategy, or their new tablets - I think that these tools will appeal more to the corporate set. And that won't be good for Apple. However, for small businesses - and for medium sized businesses, the .net strategy is still meaningless and without context. It sounds good - but it's not going to translate as a counterpunch to Apple's digital hub strategy. The digital hub strategy is clearly a consumer and niche market strategy (advertising/film/media).

Also, with the Jaguar strategy, and the power of Unix, there is no question that Apple will still be making inroads into the corporate space. People want an alternative that works - that makes their life easier - and that integrates all pieces of their digital life together - professional and personal - conveniently, powerfully and elegantly. As the platform speeds up - I think the market will warm heartily to Apple's integration of hardware and software into a better platform that connects easily into a system of standards based additional hardware and peripherals. Microsoft continues to mess with the standards - and that mindset will not make their products better. Maybe I'm wrong - but I'm confident in my future expectation.
 
I started on this thred today, not realising how old it was, and came over a hefty discussion between Slimey and RazorX (and some others).
Now that this thred has been ressurected anyways it would be cool to hear from these guys again to see if there has been some change in their oppinion, in light of the changes over the past year.

As to who will win the os war... I don't know.
I like OS X and i hope more people will use it so that more apps (and games) will be developed for it (as seems to be the trend now). The thought of sometimes in the future being forced to use any kind of windows francly scares me.

btw, RazorX or Slimey (or whoever wants to reply to this), it might be a good idea to start a new thred insted of countinuing on this one.
 
Just wanted to point something out:

Originally posted by MacCentral
Market research firm International Data Corp.'s (IDC) latest research numbers indicate a small increase in Apple's market share in the United States. For the current quarter (Q1, 2002) IDC shows Apple as the number six computer maker with a 3.48 percent market share. This is an increase of 0.4 points over Q4 2001 and a 0.25 point increase year over year. Worldwide, Apple is in ninth place with a 2.4 percent market share.
 
Yeah, no matter what we say theres too many M$ Windows users out there... but in my opinion quality is more important than popularity :)

Torz
 
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