Comments on: I’m Not a Mac #7–Snow Leopard Ate My Macbook Battery http://www.chicagocarless.com/2009/12/20/im-not-a-mac-7-wimax-woes-and-macbook-ba/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=im-not-a-mac-7-wimax-woes-and-macbook-ba My off-road journey to Judaism Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:03:48 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: I’m Not a Mac #9–Why I Walked Away from Apple for Windows 7 | CHICAGO CARLESS http://www.chicagocarless.com/2009/12/20/im-not-a-mac-7-wimax-woes-and-macbook-ba/comment-page-1/#comment-4811 I’m Not a Mac #9–Why I Walked Away from Apple for Windows 7 | CHICAGO CARLESS Fri, 02 Apr 2010 06:55:30 +0000 http://www.chicagocarless.com/?p=565#comment-4811 [...] users permanently in to Mac-centric software solutions (iTunes, iPhoto, iAdinfinitum), promulgates a myth of reliability, and refuses to even acknowledge Linux–all the while marketing its overly expensive machines [...] [...] users permanently in to Mac-centric software solutions (iTunes, iPhoto, iAdinfinitum), promulgates a myth of reliability, and refuses to even acknowledge Linux–all the while marketing its overly expensive machines [...]

]]> By: Shremedy http://www.chicagocarless.com/2009/12/20/im-not-a-mac-7-wimax-woes-and-macbook-ba/comment-page-1/#comment-3754 Shremedy Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:22:16 +0000 http://www.chicagocarless.com/?p=565#comment-3754 Windows in general tends to be electricity-hungry (I'm being specific, as "power-hungry", while probably true, supplies a context I'd rather avoid ;) ) One of the pleasant surprises I got when I converted my aging Compaq laptop from WinXP to Linux (my two favorite distros are KDE3.5-based PCLinuxOS and SimplyMEPIS) was increased battery life, from two hours to three (which is still not great, admittedly, but it's old); my guess is that the savings came by way of more efficient processing and less extraneous hard drive accessing. I agree regarding the cognitive dissonance between Apple's "friendly" image and their "lock-everything-down" business practices. I have flat-out refused to EVER buy an IPod, choosing generic MP3 players instead, and dealing with the headaches of manually transferring music back and forth via normal file management rather than spiffy apps and autosync -- but I also enjoy the control it gives me. Have you seen those ads poking fun at cable broadband services, "You've been BUNDLED!" -- that's what Apple does, wraps you up in their bundle and squeezes. I was so pissed when, back in my WinXP usage, I would try to get Quicktime updates, to play video clips, and get stuck with iTunes, which I neither wanted or needed. The freeware "Quicktime Alternative" eliminated that hassle. In the beginning, OS's were designed for their hardware, and vice versa; building in contingencies for a myriad of hardware and capabilities (or lack thereof) contributes mightily to software bloat. I'm sure Microsoft would dance for joy if they could simplify the hardware base by replacing everybody's PC with an Xbox360 that ran Win7, but one thing you have to tip your hat to M$ for is that they support that myriad. Apple, on the other hand, tries to shove you into a "one-size-fits-none" hardware average. M$ has maintained deep backwards compatibility, back into Win9x, even when it hurt them. OSX, while a great step forward, also represents a continental divide from it's older software. Forget about everything you ever had under System 7. But planned obselecnce is all about making you re-buy what you already own. Windows in general tends to be electricity-hungry (I’m being specific, as “power-hungry”, while probably true, supplies a context I’d rather avoid ;) ) One of the pleasant surprises I got when I converted my aging Compaq laptop from WinXP to Linux (my two favorite distros are KDE3.5-based PCLinuxOS and SimplyMEPIS) was increased battery life, from two hours to three (which is still not great, admittedly, but it’s old); my guess is that the savings came by way of more efficient processing and less extraneous hard drive accessing. I agree regarding the cognitive dissonance between Apple’s “friendly” image and their “lock-everything-down” business practices.

I have flat-out refused to EVER buy an IPod, choosing generic MP3 players instead, and dealing with the headaches of manually transferring music back and forth via normal file management rather than spiffy apps and autosync — but I also enjoy the control it gives me.

Have you seen those ads poking fun at cable broadband services, “You’ve been BUNDLED!” — that’s what Apple does, wraps you up in their bundle and squeezes. I was so pissed when, back in my WinXP usage, I would try to get Quicktime updates, to play video clips, and get stuck with iTunes, which I neither wanted or needed. The freeware “Quicktime Alternative” eliminated that hassle.

In the beginning, OS’s were designed for their hardware, and vice versa; building in contingencies for a myriad of hardware and capabilities (or lack thereof) contributes mightily to software bloat. I’m sure Microsoft would dance for joy if they could simplify the hardware base by replacing everybody’s PC with an Xbox360 that ran Win7, but one thing you have to tip your hat to M$ for is that they support that myriad. Apple, on the other hand, tries to shove you into a “one-size-fits-none” hardware average.

M$ has maintained deep backwards compatibility, back into Win9x, even when it hurt them. OSX, while a great step forward, also represents a continental divide from it’s older software. Forget about everything you ever had under System 7. But planned obselecnce is all about making you re-buy what you already own.

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