[Ti] 10.2.8

[Rod Duncan]

Here - Here. Excellent post ~flipper. So good in fact, I'm not going 
to snip any of it in response. I think you gave Apple your version of 
the flipper AND they deserve it. Sadly they have earned it.

Now you've got me going...

Here's something else you could have mentioned. Apple's continued use 
of "stock options" a not-so-time honoured and bogus misuse of 
publicly traded stocks. Instead of paying legitimate dividends to 
investors when they make a profit, Apple instead rewards insider's 
with big-fat stock options. Stock options should be outlawed; made 
nil and void. But since they are not in a Bush-run or Bush-league 
Enron and Worldcom investment world; they continue to exist. 
Microsoft recently, and admittedly too late, has even done away with 
them. It was interesting in April/May 2002 when Apple hit $26+ a 
large number of stock options were dumped before "we the people" were 
informed that computer sales were off and as a result of the 
downturn, Apple dropped $8 in a day. But not before millions of stock 
options were exercised at around $24 before news of a serious slow 
down of Apple sales was made public. Insider trading? Shrug - what 
else is new. Who's going to police them? Bush's Bunch? $300+ million 
dollar deferred bonus stock exchange leaders?

My point... don't expect Apple, a company with these kind of business 
practises to care two hoots about you the end user with something as 
mundane as losing your valuable computer related information due to 
their lack of software quality control.

After years of holding Apple shares I finally, in disgust, sold them 
and WILL NOT buy them again. I am looking for ethical companies to 
invest in.

No longer an Apple cheerleader - It's tough chewing when you bite 
into a rotten Apple.

Rod


>
>Why cheerleader?
>
>Good question, but a more relevant question is: Does Apple see 
>themselves as powerful computing, 'for the rest of us', with plug 'n 
>play, easily navigable systems that Grandma can use to post pictures 
>of the dog on her .Mac account, or a company catering to these (in 
>their own mind) wizards who run OpenFirmware reboots, 
>repair-in-advance routines,  and use extensive third-party 
>'security' procedures to inoculate themselves from Apple software 
>that is 'rushed out the door'?
>
>The boys in Cupertino, and their sycophantic cheerleaders, can't 
>have it both ways. They harp about quality, so fine, lay it on us, 
>starting with latches, updates that aren't destructive, and a 21st 
>century Finder, for starters.
>
>For one thing, with all due respect, we have to realize that 
>commentators here, who are also part of the Apple-centric media, 
>have a vested interest in saying Very Nice things. I'm al for that. 
>But really, dear readers, don't look to the ad-conscious advance men 
>for consumer advocacy.
>
>Think different doesn't imply think dumb, after all. IBM's thing 
>"Think" was a little terse, but more to the point.
>
>I don't 'hold Apple responsible', for anything. As a matter of fact, 
>with the relatively few mechanical problems on the Ti-Books, I think 
>those underage children in Taiwan and mainland China deserve a nice 
>round of applause. Don't get me wrong, all the big companies use 
>slave labor, somewhere. But the deal is, when you slap your brand 
>name on the item, you take the heat. And Apple can't blame their 
>hugely bungled 10.2.8 update on children in Asia, IBM, or the fact 
>that their Marketing-targeted demographic isn't entirely composed of 
>semi-paranoid techno wunderkinds.
>
>The 'buck' (so to speak, not to be confused with the buck-a-day 
>laborers) has to stop 'somewhere'. I think that was what was 
>referenced to by the notion of 'coming clean'. Making it 'right' 
>would be a nice gesture. I'm not holding my breath. <laughs>
>
>~flipper