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Weblog:   Mac's New Slogan: Viruses for the Rest of Us
Subject:   PC Pundits Incapable of Acknowledging Reality
Date:   2005-03-23 11:13:19
From:   sammy90483
Response to: PC Pundits Incapable of Acknowledging Reality

You're right, Idiocrity is not a word. Winston Churchill used the word on purpose to demonstrate the level of mediocrity pervading the masses. It was an artful play on words.


I'd really like to see your Windows PC setup that is cheaper than a Mac. Once you add anti-virus software, FireWire 800, ambient light sensing technology on keyboards, XP Pro to be corporate network savvy, comparable programs to bundled software like iDVD, GarageBand, iMovie, and iPhoto, and then add a fleet of tech support to handle Windows problems I hardly think you'll find it cheaper. Apple has 4 help desk staff members to support their entire company worldwide. I hardly think Virginia Tech considered the Macintosh platform to be more expensive when they created the third fastest cluster computer in the world for less than 10 millions dollars. The fastest and second fastest, cost 300 million and 200 million respectively. Imagine how fast the Xserve cluster would have been if they had invested 300 million into it since the two faster ones were only 2 times faster than Virginia Tech's. Obviously you're a more savvy computer user and have had few security issues on the pc. On the Mac even the most novice user has been safe from all the ills associated with the PC-world. That's just the point, you don't have to be an IT talking-head to have a secure computer that just works. You're free to come to my workplace and offer up free support to PC-users since you seem so convinced that the experience is cheaper and just a secure.
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  • PC Pundits Incapable of Acknowledging Reality
    2005-03-23 12:41:38  DanCoulter [Reply | View]

    I never said that PCs are inherently more secure. I said that mine is as secure as any Mac because I am a responsible user. I agree that people who are less tech savvy (and in many, though certainly not all, cases, people who are downright lazy and irresponsible) are more secure on Macs. You could make the case Also, notice that I said things that I need it to do, not the things that YOU need it to do. As I am not a musician, I don't understand how GarageBand is going to change my life. If I wanted to make crappy home movies with iMovie, I could easily accomplish that with Windows Movie whatever it's called (Most digital video I've worked with was in Final Cut Pro on a Mac and I thought that it was a very good piece of software). iDVD? My DVD burner came bundled with very good sotware, thank you very much. What does iPhoto do for you that free software like Picasa and Gimp won't do for you?

    I've priced out Macs as I have been in an IT purchasing position at the educational instution I work at. I know how expensive they can be. Sure, they might not be as expensive as PCs if you're buying from AlienWare, but I built my own computer from quality parts that haven't exploded yet and it was quite a bit cheaper than an equivalent G5. I run WinXP Pro and that is the only piece of softare (aside from the odd game) that I have paid for. Everything else is done with freeware. I even run AVG for my anti-virus protection. Also, as I have no firewire components, I don't exactly need to spend money on FireWire 800 (though my computer does support the standard FireWire).

    I don't particularly dislike Macs. The fact of the matter is that they are probably more secure. Certainly more secure than PCs running Internet Explorer. Microsoft has been pretty lousy about fixing those problems. They've been doing a much better job as of late of patching their vulnerabilities in Windows. The main problem, however, is that people ignore the little thing telling them that they need to update their computer. This comes back to computer users being lazy and irresponsible.

    Again, I'm not condemning Macs. When I read the news story about the cluster, I thought it was pretty cool. Macs have a place in this world. If you're a musician, I can certainly see the uses. I'm not, though. And just because I can see past the hype and millions of dollars put into marketing by Apple, that doesn't make me a "PC-pundit". If they always "just worked" then I wouldn't have seen all of the problems from our Mac users that I have. Buying into the "it just works" idea is as bad as buying into any of Microsoft's cheesy marketing.

    By the way, could you include a reference on the Winston Churchill quote? I did a couple quick googles on "Idiocracy begets Mediocrity" and "Idiocracy" and "begets Mediocrity" + churchill and even Idiocracy Mediocrity churchill (without quotes) and I simply couldn't find anything on it.
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