Mac users have it pretty good. Apple's stock is high (despite its
recent slide), a new OS is on the way, and market share has
stabilized.
So what's next for Apple? How does it intend to remain on top?
Colored computers were definitely the lifesaver for them, and they
continue to deliver knockout products. What I'm more concerned about
is the long-term strategy that Apple will use to survive and
thrive.
Product
announcements have slowed down a lot recently. The slowdown comes
after several product successes. The iMac
was a hit, the iBook was a hit, the
new PowerBook was a hit and the
G3 and G4
desktops were hits. This acceleration of product introductions was
probably the result of Apple's desperate scramble from the brink of
death.
On the design front Apple, appears to be coasting. No new designs
appear to be in the works. Of course, this could easily be attributed
to Apple's no leak policy that has made the Macintosh rumor an
endangered species. For all we know, the iMac's replacement is
heading for production right now. Of course, the iMac, G4, iBook, and
PowerBook still look great. Why mess with what works?
It's still a little disconcerting, however, that no new designs
seem to be in the works to keep Mac sales high. The decline
in iMac sales isn't doing anything to reassure investors. I think
that OS X is probably affecting new hardware designs and products. OS
X is a huge undertaking that requires a fair number of resources.
Motorola's chip problems also seem to be holding Apple back.
I'm still interested in Apple's long-term design plans. Are new
designs waiting in the wings? Will the venerable iMac see something
more than a speed and RAM bump in the near future?
On the software side, things are a little clearer: OS X is where
we're going. I firmly believe that OS X is the foundation of Apple's
next great leap forward. This leap would not be possible with the
current Mac OS.
Microsoft has been touting their Next Generation Windows Services
as the technology that will ensure their market dominance.
Unfortunately, Microsoft is basing this strategy on an OS that, while
greatly improved, remains less stable than Unix machines. Potential
users may also question Microsoft's ability to keep their data secure
over the Internet. Recent bug scares indicate that their doubts would
be well founded. At least if Apple chooses a similar strategy, the
Unix-based core will be rock solid and reasonably secure.
As several readers pointed out after my last
column, Apple is making a somewhat low-key push into the server
market with a Web Objects price cut. More Web Objects developers and
more applications means more OS X servers. That's one more cog in the
machine to drive Apple forward.
So what's the deal? I haven't heard or seen anything on Apple's
strategy beyond OS X. Not much seems to be up as Adam Banks put it in
MacUser.
Where is Apple going? I don't know. But I'm sure they have a plan.
Stephen Van
Esch is the founder and president of
the
E-learning Foundry, an online training
resource for Mac users. Steve loves the Mac and is doubly bilingual,
since he's also fluent in Windows and French.
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Product
announcements have slowed down a lot recently. The slowdown comes
after several product successes. The 
