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My Turn is Low End Mac's column for reader-submitted
articles. It's your turn to share your thoughts on all things
Mac (or iPhone, iPod, etc.) and write for the Mac web. Email your
submission to Dan Knight
.
We're not quite sure why "MindTrip" sent this in to My Turn, but it's
always interesting to read a rant from someone who actually has a
working knowledge of the Mac. Besides, we get a kick out of being
called a "slave to Apple site." dk
I've worked on both ends of the spectrum. I used to sell Macs to
publishing houses for desktop publishing. Later I moved over to the
PC world, due to the large number of programs available and, at the
time, the flexibility of system configuration that just didn't go
with Macs.
Over the years I've worked in research labs using Macs, PCs, and
Unix. I have experience in many realms, and can say quite firmly that
Apple will never win me over.
I've always hated the way Macs hide things from the user to
"protect" people who know nothing about computers. I can't find where
all files get installed, I don't have the option of restoring or
replacing individual files to fix something broken, and I don't get a
command line. I can't examine the properties of devices to figure out
why it's not working, and every time I've ever used the Help feature
of a piece of Apple software, the lack of useful information has me
seeing red in less than 10 minutes, as the solutions offered
never seem to work.
I recently bought an iPod and have slowly been making progress in
getting it to work with my PC. Would I consider switching to a Mac to
make it work? I've had friends suggest just that, but, quite frankly,
I'd much rather sell my iPod and get a PC-knockoff.
What really pisses me off is all the people who claim that Macs
are "crash proof." I can't tell you the countless times I lost
research data due to Mac crashes. Integrating the hardware and OS
does not result in a more stable system; it just creates a
monopoly that is profitable to the seller and frustrating to the
user. I have not observed more stability in Macs; they crashed just
as much as the PC systems next to them - and they cost three times
as much.
After reading several articles on the
Low End Mac website, I can see that this really is just a rabid
slave-to-Apple site.
Am I a slave-to-Windows? No. I continue to run a Windows machine
(for access to the wide range of applications available) as well as a
Unix box (for greater security, control of the environment, and the
great joy it gives me to not be a slave to Bill Gates).
Would OS X change my mind? It might. But I hand-build every
system I own, and that option simply isn't available with a Mac. I've
never seen a Mac system that is exactly what I want - just
like I've never seen a boxed PC that is exactly what I want.
That's why I spend a little more and build my own. But a kick-ass
custom built beauty I've made myself is still half the cost of an
equivalent Mac system, and regardless what you might think, that
matters to me - along with the other 85% of home computer users in
the country.
If I can't get my iPod to work, I'll chuck the the iPod, not the
PC.
Share your perspective on the Mac by emailing with "My Turn" as your subject.
Recent My Turn articles
Using Low End Macs for Internet Radio, 08.18.
When the local public radio station moved classical music to HD radio, it was time to find another way to listen. An old iMac with iTunes solved the problem.
'That's Not a Computer', 07.30.
Salvaging a broken PowerBook by turning it into a desktop computer.
My 4 favorite PowerBooks, 05.28.
The PowerBook 150 has a big screen for a vintage PowerBook, the 165c has color, the 100 is diminutive, and Lombard has USB and a great keyboard.
Mac of the Day: 14" iBook G3/600 MHz, Jan. 2002 - The first 14" iBook ran at a comfortable 600 MHz.
Group of the Day: Mac OS 9 List covers Mac OS 9 as both a freestanding OS and as Classic mode in OS X.
December 1 in LEM history: 99: Monitor dot pitch - 00: Macs for new users - Everybody wants to use iMacs - Career options - 03: Pfinder: Panther-like Finder for legacy Macs - 04: Why I use an eMac, iBook, and Power Mac - ThinkFree Office - MacLink Plus 15 - 05: PowerBook 190 still a great laptop - Eudora, the Mac's most powerful email client - 06: Core 2 'Books cooler and faster
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VirtualBox is aimed at a different audience than Fusion and Parallels. While it works well, the typical desktop user will probably prefer Fusion.
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