[Ti] Apple's Future

[cheshirekat]

On Mon, May 26, 2003, CBIRDS cbirds at earthlink.net, invoked powers within
the internet realm, to proclaim ...

>I still do the hardest and most serious work on OS 9, longest uptime is
>about 1 year save for installs.
>I guess X is a wash with many of us....and Apple can't afford to lose core
>user base, if it is true that it is we who are the hardest on it.

Hmmm. I guess that would make me a fence straddler. I wasn't anxious to
get rid of OS 9 and have to adapt to so many new things. While "ease-of-
use" and "user-friendly" are terms that I've always felt was the Mac
experience, I can no longer say that with OS X. I know there are power-
users and developers and super-geeks who think that all the UNIX
abilities are great, but I do think the changes have made the Macs more
like the pc. It has also made Mac users obsolete.

I really do enjoy my TiBook, and most of the time I truly love it. But, I
see Apple moving further from "ease-of-use" and "user-friendly" and that
means that I really don't feel compelled to continue to buy Mac over pc.
Far too often, the solutions I hear refer to "do shell", "boot into
root", "repair permissions", and "re-install the OS" and that just isn't
my idea of living the better and Mac way-of-life. For all those who are
anxiously "switchers" because of these features, I say, great for them.
But for those of us that enjoyed the Mac experience, we are pushed aside.
If I have to remember archaic and obtuse commands and configurations in
my daily computer usage, I may as well save some money and make my next
purchase a pc. I don't see a point in paying a premium price for the
confusing headache of being more like pc users.

Some people say, "but the Mac is still more solid - more so with its UNIX
core." That's all well and good, but I see the pc is also becoming more
solid as the ms stranglehold is loosened. I'm glad I bought my TiBook,
though not because it's a Mac. I've come to realize that I really wanted
a faster computer that would allow me to do more up-to-date things and
make school easier. But, the Mac is just different enough that I think
that I would have been at the same point with a pc, if not for the few
software investments I can still run in OS 9 and Classic. Those are
applications and games that I rarely use because there are OS X
alternatives and upgrades that I've switched to using. With the exception
of only some of my USB peripherals and my DSL modem, I don't have decent
support for the hardware I invested in before OS X.

Apple's future direction is to appeal to more users by becoming more pc-
like, not by creating more appealing Macs. For that reason, I can no
longer say that I will ALWAYS be a Mac user. That's a big difference for
me and I'm sure many Mac users. I've been able to do a lot with my new
TiBook that has filled me with many hours of enjoyment. I am able to do
things I could not do just a year ago, only because the computer I had
was not capable. But, I was comfortable with everything on my old Mac.
Now, there are a lot of cryptic pieces, parts and processes going on -
most of which I can't pronounce, and can't help but hoping I can continue
to avoid learning how to configure, modify or deal with them for a while
longer.

Apple is telling me that I have to move forward. I moved forward. I fully
embrace OS X because I made the investment - I chose my Mac. I waited
until the last minute to look into OS X, but didn't think it would be as
big of an adjustment as it has been. I've accepted Apple's decision to
make me move forward with the changes, but those same changes might make
me move toward a pc for my next purchase. If I make that move, I believe
that I will still be moving forward, and I never would have imagined that
I'd consider becoming a pc user as a step forward. But, I certainly don't
see it as a step back because the playing fields are nearly even since
"ease-of-use" and "user-friendly" are becoming a fading memory on my
platform of choice. Fortunately, there's just enough of the Mac left in
my Mac that I am determined to enjoy my current Mac while I can. I have
to evaluate my life experiences and my goals when it's necessary to make
changes or continue to move forward. Apple is doing the same. My future
isn't written in stone; neither is the future for the computer I will use
known to me. One thing I am certain of - the future isn't here and now,
where I choose to be. Even with all its frustrations, my Mac, OS X, and
Apple are the present I deal with instead of trying to predict what is
possible, probable and unknown. I'll leave that for the analysts who
already know how I will spend my money next week, next month, and the
next few years.

cheshirekat

-- 
* 867 PowerBook G4 * OS X 10.2.5 * 768 MB Ram *
* Addictions: iTunes 4 * WarCraft * The Sims *