Apple Planned Obsolescence

Her laptop is DOA. The towers are functional, but pretty much antiquated for their original intended use.....which was video editing. They've all been replaced by Macs as we changed/updated some video editing software.

 

My Mac Pro is version 1,1, so I am stuck on 10.7.5 as well. I do have the better ATI graphics card though. I think my stepfather has had 3 PC computers since I have owned this Mac Pro. I am running iTunes 12.01 and have not had any issues. I know soon this old girl might not be able to run a version of iTunes that I might need with a new phone but until that happens she soldieries on.

Pat

 

1. This isn't about how much better/worse Apple is vs. PC. You guys remind me of a bunch Beta lovers (oohh it was so much better for 6months in 1976!) whining about VHS, when they both look about the same - crap. Apple and PCs are both crap, because of the IT mentality of fix it a patch. I've had older Macs, have an iPhone, and a couple iPods, of course, the beauty of all software, iTunes. Lots compatility issues that are neither Mac or PC related, just Apple software. Windows has the same things. Hardware? Good PCs can be built or bought and they are much less. Both have lots of headaches, only one has a cult following that was built on success from 10-20 years ago. it is all garbage. IMO.

If it was a hard good, it would returned over and over at stores, but being, software, it is gets a pass.

2. What it is about, is that when one has file formats, they should transferable over time to new OSs and newer versions of the application software. i.e. standardization. The idea of having to buy a new music collection, videos, and even Office docs or emails are not readable because of "lack of support" of the interface is idiotic.

 

Um. What?

 

i.e you buy a TV it doesn't work, it gets returned, you a refund.

Software, you get an excuse.

 

I've never had an ENTIRE PC fry. I've lost power supplies, drives, etc but just replaced the part. Usually they last until long after they are of no further use, or at least not worth the space they take up. It's kind of hard to justify holding on to an old PC with a case modern motherboards don't support that don't have the CPU power of a Raspberry Pi, unless you need a DOS box to flash Motorola radios or run an ancient Audio Precision box, or something like that.

Compare that to an iMac. When the display or the CPU board goes you have to trash the whole thing.

My main desktop PC has a case I bought at least ten years ago and is on its second motherboard and power supply.

When I was responsible for maintaining Macs, we wound up with piles of old Macs that still worked fine but were not updateable to the software our Mac users wanted and 'needed'. Apple hardware was well built, but not like a Microvax or SPARC box, and we wound up having-oh, I hated to do it-to destroy a huge bunch of them. Then they dumped the ADB so we had to get rid of all the ADB peripherals and replace them with USB ones. Eventually those became very reasonable but at first they were very expensive and crummy-remember that stupid round mouse?

Now I'm seeing those pretty all aluminum Mac Pro towers scrapped out because the motherboard has died and replacements are uneconomic, and there are no front drive bays. Some will take a standard PC motherboard, but the power supply and other parts are different in size.

 

With new prebuilt PCs you pay a "Bill Tax" for the Windows OS, you can see the license sticker on the case, a large OEM will pay about $40, or about half what a OEM Windows license costs from Micro Center or off the web site. With an Apple product you pay a "Steve Tax" of much more than that. Apple margins are much higher than commodity PCs, even though Apple does use a better grade of components than low end commodity PCs, they are not as good as the better server class or "gamer/modder/overclocker" components. Since Apple went Intel, their build cost is a lot lower than when they made their own motherboards with the POWER architecture: it was higher still with NuBus. They mostly use commodity parts now. That's why the "Hackintosh" crowd is so able to easily cobble up PCs that will load and run Mac OS X at half the price and still use better made components.

I have a neighbor that still uses an Apple II and an Amiga regularly. 25+ and 20 years old respectively. If I had more space I'd probably get an Apple II myself just for amusement value. Every time I get the urge to find one, I wind up building another tube amp though.

 

Sorry but you need some tough love here. Get a new computer. I would not be saying that at 3 years but any computer (mac , linux or PC based ) that is not a closed system is on borrowed time technologically by its 4th birthday.

 

Since the early 90s, I've only had 3 personal computers that didn't last 5 years, a Vista machine that I was happy to get rid of, a netbook that was pretty worthless to begin with, and a notebook that lost the mother board after 2 years. I've had a couple last 9 years. If you just do basic stuff, there's no reason to get the latest and greatest.

Even at work, computers typically last me 4-5 years and I'm a developer.

 

Software aside, I'd take my business class Dell laptop (or a Lenovo or HP) over the prettier Macbook because I can switch drives and batteries out in seconds, and, the keyboard is better. I can't stand Apple keyboards, I haven't used an Apple keyboard that didn't suck since the old Extended ADB one or the earliest G3/G4 laptops.



Courtesy http://straypoetry.com/project/raspberry-pi-inside-a-vintage-mechanical-apple-extended-keyboard



I can use Win 7 or Mac OS X (we have Mountain Lion on our latest Macs) equally well, if I have at least a Microsoft mouse. Usually when I'm on the Mac I'm either in a web browser or Terminal anyway.

 

Also if you are one who wants to upgrade a Mac every three years or so, you can sell your old Mac for a pretty good price. Resale is much better than a PC

 

Not really. Mac OS X is Unix, but it's pretty well concealed. The GUI looks different, but plug in a two button and roller mouse and the right button does pretty much what it does on Windows. Anyone who has a reasonable understanding of how computers actually work should be able to deal with it in half an hour or so.

It is annoying having the window buttons on the top left instead of the right, though, unless you are left handed.

 

The Benz drives nicer, but wait till you have an electrical problem out of warranty.

 

I know of entire movie studios where about 90% of the staff and users only use Macs, and Macs are used to organize and run the day-to-day business (billing, inventory, operations, scheduling, etc.). Disney is high on that list. I can't recall a film I've worked on in the last 10 years that hasn't been mostly mixed and edited on Macs. In some cases, it was written on a Mac as well.

I've used normal 3-button mice on Macs for the past 15 years and never had a problem. I can't use Apple mice -- they suck. The keyboards are fine, though I generally chose Dell monitors because they're cheap, plentiful, and look OK.

 

I agree 100%. iTunes 12 is a step backwards, and I also think Final Cut Pro X is horrible. Apple is falling down on a lot of their software and making bad GUI decisions, in my opinion. And I don't like the look and feel of OSX 10.10, either.

But Windows 8 is still worse, in my experience.

 

I'm not going to buy excess capacity and very certainly not at Apple's excessive prices. I like working on stuff once in a while. Since the price of RAM and hdd space has traditionally come down over time the mid life upgrade makes even more economic sense.

If you had 4 GB of RAM under the Mac OS two revs back and you go to the latest OS, I'm reliably told you should have 8.

 

I haven't seen a real 3 button mouse in years, Suns, Lisp Machines and DEC Vax/VMS used them as did people running Smalltalk, every 'regular mouse' I have seen since 2001 or so has had two buttons and the center roller (which does click when pushed down but is usually used to scroll). Is that what you mean?

Smalltalk users insisted on the buttons being different colors. Somewhere I have one like this but the buttons are painted with nail polish.

 

As I always enjoy reminding people, If you have a Windows 8 Pro machine your license allows "Downgrading" (should be called 'sidegrading') to Win 7 Pro. Further, you may quite legally download Win 7 media (.iso file) although it is a long download. You will have to call Microsoft at the number on screen and they will give you a new install code. I don't know if they let you run both OS on the same machine (i.e., dual boot on two partitions or under a VM).

Win 8 is not a bad OS under the hood: it's just that the interface stinks for desktop use. Win 10 should fix this.

Haven't tried Yosemite yet, but I understand the UI looks ugly. Maybe I'll build a Hackintosh.....or just put a scratch HDD in a work Mac and download it and put it on the drive. Getting a machine away from a user will be the problem.

 

I'm waiting for Windows 9!

Yes, as provided with every Windows machine known to man for about the last decade. I also used Kensington Turbomice throughout the last 20 years, which were 4-button mice with a roller on top, and used them both on Macs and Windows.

Apple has a long record of making very bad mice and pointing devices. The Apple "Hockey Puck" mouse might be the worst thing they ever released:

 

I bought my MAC in 2002. I spent about 5 grand on it including a 21 inch Sony monitor. Running fine with full Adobe Creative Suite, but maxed out with OS 10.4.11. I even run OS9 on rare occasion for some old software that I didn't want to upgrade. The only problem is the internet. I can't upgrade my browsers and some plug-ins, and now the web is really bogged down.

Can't continue this way, so Jan. will be time for a purchase. I guess I got my money out of it over 12 to 13 years. Besides, if I get a MAC mini (instead of an iMac), I may just continue with my original monitor and keyboard for a while as well.

 

After finding that it was impossible to rip a CD to my PC using iTunes and then transfer it to my daughter's IPOD touch, even after a couple of apple Experts attempted to help me with the process, I decided that I was finished with Apple products. With android I need only copy my music files over to a USB drive on the device which is visible from my PC. I wish that Apple made it as easy to transfer music between various devices. But apparently this is too much to ask.

 

Oh, the drama!

Who on earth said it "means nothing"? Maybe it's time to dial down the hyperbole a notch. You still don't have all the facts to make accurate generalised statements about a whole computer eco-system (Win or OSX) on a larger scale. Neither do I.

BTW, I've started using computers, building my own computers and writing software 35 years ago. Does that in your view "mean nothing"? I still wouldn't dream of claiming that MS sucks or PCs suck or Apple sucks or ...

It would be interesting to learn how Apple put them out of business. Cease and desist orders? Drying up the well for parts and knowledge? You're right in that there seems to be little independent Apple support nowadays. Is that because Apple actively fought this competition or did the market just change and customers prefer Apple's support?

Again with the generalisations. All people give up after a week? Esp. in a business environment? I can give you a (of course, not representative) number of software and hardware changes that have happened at my company in the last 20 years that weren't reversed after a week, just because not everyone had mastered the new stuff yet.

Do you mean that if a company buys Macbooks for its staff and not everyone gets it within 14 days, the whole company changes back to Windows laptops? I doubt that.

 

I've never had a problem with this. Ever.
Was the disc copy protected or something? Otherwise, you're talking about very basic functionality. My 8 year old daughter can do this on her iPod and iPad .

 

It appears its time for you to buy a PC!

 

I haven't had a computer running on a paltry 4gb of ram for twenty years. But, Apple sells some models wth 4gb, and they all ship with Yosemite installed.