quadgirl
Sep 1, 12:54 PM
Most of the posts in this thread are about the 23" screen. Yes, I think it will happen to allow the imac to play 1080i/1080p HD.
But, how about the processors? Apple needs to have a Core 2 (Conroe not Merom) inside the imac. The imac is not a conventionally size desktop (not as much room inside as a tower) but Apple can not continue to use a laptop processor in the imac. If they do, then how will the Conroe be used in Apple's line up? In a Mac tower? I don't think so. Surely, a 23" iMac could house the Conroe suitably?
So I would say that the 23" iMac would kill 2 birds - Conroe and HD for the home user. :)
But, how about the processors? Apple needs to have a Core 2 (Conroe not Merom) inside the imac. The imac is not a conventionally size desktop (not as much room inside as a tower) but Apple can not continue to use a laptop processor in the imac. If they do, then how will the Conroe be used in Apple's line up? In a Mac tower? I don't think so. Surely, a 23" iMac could house the Conroe suitably?
So I would say that the 23" iMac would kill 2 birds - Conroe and HD for the home user. :)
xer98
Apr 3, 02:38 PM
A couple of weeks after the product. Most companies have to do it in the other order. Absolutely elegant (keep Coyote as your voice pure pleasure) you should also push some of your adds towards older folks. The interface is brilliant for older folks who do not understand computers. I am buying an iPad2 for my 75 years old mother.
awraisch
Sep 5, 09:05 AM
store back up . . .no update?
vga4life
Apr 3, 01:08 PM
Cranking up the hype machine when the product is out of stock every where is classic Apple.
Annoying.
Annoying.
Mr Ikasu
Jan 7, 06:45 PM
Lunja, people actually use media buttons? :eek: I wonder, do other people here want this? I specifically don't want it. I like the way my wireless kb looks now.
Definitely agreed here. My Apple KB is great in that it doesn't take up much space compared to the bloated offering from the likes of Mircrosoft and Logitech.
Ah well not long to wait now. What I like is that unlike previous years there is very little indication of what we will actually see. Loads of rumours but nothing very solid apart from iTV which is a given.
Definitely agreed here. My Apple KB is great in that it doesn't take up much space compared to the bloated offering from the likes of Mircrosoft and Logitech.
Ah well not long to wait now. What I like is that unlike previous years there is very little indication of what we will actually see. Loads of rumours but nothing very solid apart from iTV which is a given.
hyperpasta
Jul 18, 02:03 PM
Rentals are stupid...what if something comes up and I can't watch my movie within the alotted time? I'm just screwed, then?
Actually, other online movie rental services serve up "frozen" movies. You can keep a frozen movie for a month without it expiring. To watch it, you must "thaw" the movie. Then it expires a week later. In this way, you can download a movie when convenient and watch when convenient... not much pressure at all. Simply thaw the movie when you're ready to watch.
The only way I see this being announced at WWDC is if it ties in with Leopard's rumored BitTorrent feature. However, this doesn't make much sense, since what will Tiger/Panther/Windows users do to get movies?
Actually, other online movie rental services serve up "frozen" movies. You can keep a frozen movie for a month without it expiring. To watch it, you must "thaw" the movie. Then it expires a week later. In this way, you can download a movie when convenient and watch when convenient... not much pressure at all. Simply thaw the movie when you're ready to watch.
The only way I see this being announced at WWDC is if it ties in with Leopard's rumored BitTorrent feature. However, this doesn't make much sense, since what will Tiger/Panther/Windows users do to get movies?
relimw
Sep 6, 10:45 AM
Please explain to me who would buy a mini and why?
I just don't get it when a imac is close in price with a monitor.
What am I missing?
I have two minis, one of which is running headless, one is running with one of my extra monitors. Why would I want to buy yet another monitor? Besides which, if you're using them as a "poor man's build farm" you don't need superdrives.
I just don't get it when a imac is close in price with a monitor.
What am I missing?
I have two minis, one of which is running headless, one is running with one of my extra monitors. Why would I want to buy yet another monitor? Besides which, if you're using them as a "poor man's build farm" you don't need superdrives.
Musubi
Feb 27, 03:20 PM
The sucky part about the 22" LCD was that it had a really high defect rate.
I recall paying the same price for mine as the Mac Pro currently costs. Sheesh!
Yeesh... don't remind me. The inverter board in mine started doing the blink on blink off starting around late 2003. It was really intermittent at first and happened maybe once a month. Then in the thing really went crazy and was off more than it was on. Back then, the company that sold parts rarely had the board for the 22" model (the inverter board went bad in my 17" Studio Display in 2003 and they had tons of those in stock) and I really needed a monitor so I just ended up buying the 20" Cinema Display (Aluminum). I bought the 22" along with my G4 Cube back in July 2000; the Cube was $1800 and the display around $2200... ouch!!!
Stupid me. I should've put that money into Apple stock! If I had put the $7k I blew on my Dual 800/22" into Apple shares I could afford a Ferrari right now :(
The amount of money I've spent on Apple products since I first started buying them in 1992-1993 (previously, had been a CP/M, DOS, OS/2 and unix gearhead) is hitting close to six figures now. :eek: If all that had been invested..... But back in 97, I did purchase several thousand bucks worth of AAPL when it was around $16 per share (pre split price basis) and accumulated a bunch between 1998-2000. Sold a quarter of my holdings after the internet bubble burst and let the rest ride even through the market doldrums that existed between 2001-2003 (didn't even considering dumping them back in 2003 when the stock had lost almost 80% of its value from its 2000 high as that for sure would have been locking in those paper losses). Those are now my core shares sitting in a Roth-IRA for retirement. Bought more between 2007 to mid-2010 (iPhone and iPad spurred those new positions) and seeing nice returns on that.
Just to bring this back on topic, the following pic was back in 2006 when I had just gotten the Mac Pro and I connected my QS G4 to the 22" ACD. It miraculously worked without having the case of the blinkies (that lasted for nearly two weeks before it went crazy again).
I recall paying the same price for mine as the Mac Pro currently costs. Sheesh!
Yeesh... don't remind me. The inverter board in mine started doing the blink on blink off starting around late 2003. It was really intermittent at first and happened maybe once a month. Then in the thing really went crazy and was off more than it was on. Back then, the company that sold parts rarely had the board for the 22" model (the inverter board went bad in my 17" Studio Display in 2003 and they had tons of those in stock) and I really needed a monitor so I just ended up buying the 20" Cinema Display (Aluminum). I bought the 22" along with my G4 Cube back in July 2000; the Cube was $1800 and the display around $2200... ouch!!!
Stupid me. I should've put that money into Apple stock! If I had put the $7k I blew on my Dual 800/22" into Apple shares I could afford a Ferrari right now :(
The amount of money I've spent on Apple products since I first started buying them in 1992-1993 (previously, had been a CP/M, DOS, OS/2 and unix gearhead) is hitting close to six figures now. :eek: If all that had been invested..... But back in 97, I did purchase several thousand bucks worth of AAPL when it was around $16 per share (pre split price basis) and accumulated a bunch between 1998-2000. Sold a quarter of my holdings after the internet bubble burst and let the rest ride even through the market doldrums that existed between 2001-2003 (didn't even considering dumping them back in 2003 when the stock had lost almost 80% of its value from its 2000 high as that for sure would have been locking in those paper losses). Those are now my core shares sitting in a Roth-IRA for retirement. Bought more between 2007 to mid-2010 (iPhone and iPad spurred those new positions) and seeing nice returns on that.
Just to bring this back on topic, the following pic was back in 2006 when I had just gotten the Mac Pro and I connected my QS G4 to the 22" ACD. It miraculously worked without having the case of the blinkies (that lasted for nearly two weeks before it went crazy again).
dago
Mar 31, 02:59 AM
Apple has never mentioned the new "Scene Kit" before:
Introduced in Mac OS X v10.7, the Scene Kit framework enables your application to import, manipulate, and render three-dimensional assets. It supports 3D assets imported via COLLADA, an XML-based schema that facilitates the transport of 3D assets between applications. Architecturally, a scene is composed of the 3D entities of cameras, lights, and meshes. Scene Kit lets you access attributes of scene objects—for example, geometry, bounding volume, and material—and is consistent with the APIs of other graphical frameworks, such as Core Animation and Image Kit.
Scene Kit is intended for developers who quickly need to integrate 3D rendering into their applications. It doesn’t require that you have advanced graphical programming skills.
Introduced in Mac OS X v10.7, the Scene Kit framework enables your application to import, manipulate, and render three-dimensional assets. It supports 3D assets imported via COLLADA, an XML-based schema that facilitates the transport of 3D assets between applications. Architecturally, a scene is composed of the 3D entities of cameras, lights, and meshes. Scene Kit lets you access attributes of scene objects—for example, geometry, bounding volume, and material—and is consistent with the APIs of other graphical frameworks, such as Core Animation and Image Kit.
Scene Kit is intended for developers who quickly need to integrate 3D rendering into their applications. It doesn’t require that you have advanced graphical programming skills.
Apple OC
Mar 20, 06:49 PM
seems like they may be targeting Gaddafi now ...
http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/03/20/libya.civil.war/index.html?hpt=T1&iref=BN1
http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/03/20/libya.civil.war/index.html?hpt=T1&iref=BN1
twoodcc
Nov 9, 05:12 PM
We just had a monster record day, 430k points!
We now average 258k per day, slightly above our current rank.
very nice! we should move into #58 in less than a week hopefully
We now average 258k per day, slightly above our current rank.
very nice! we should move into #58 in less than a week hopefully
Kulman
Mar 22, 05:04 PM
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8F190 Safari/6533.18.5)
Uh, without the iPod Classic, there would be no iPhone, iPod Nano, iPad, or iTouch. Don't knock down what brought you up!
Where's the Zune now??? Dead
Uh, without the iPod Classic, there would be no iPhone, iPod Nano, iPad, or iTouch. Don't knock down what brought you up!
Where's the Zune now??? Dead
whooleytoo
Jul 18, 06:41 AM
OK, I'm just going to do the maths...
Let's see, divide by 1024.....carry the one....add 6...average speed of an unladen swallow...take the inverse and...
The answer is: Very BIG!!
:p
With those math skills let me guess.. you work for NASA? Or British rail? Or counting votes in US elections? (Or in the Irish government.. "one for you, two for me, one for you.." ;) )
How big are the music videos? I can't download them, so I can't determine the size, but if you knew the size of a music video, and you know its duration is roughly 5 minutes, you can extrapolate from that the approximate size of a 1:30 movie (i.e. multiply file size by 18). Multiply by 8 to convert to bits, then if you have (say) a 1Mbps connection, the math is easy peasy.
Let's see, divide by 1024.....carry the one....add 6...average speed of an unladen swallow...take the inverse and...
The answer is: Very BIG!!
:p
With those math skills let me guess.. you work for NASA? Or British rail? Or counting votes in US elections? (Or in the Irish government.. "one for you, two for me, one for you.." ;) )
How big are the music videos? I can't download them, so I can't determine the size, but if you knew the size of a music video, and you know its duration is roughly 5 minutes, you can extrapolate from that the approximate size of a 1:30 movie (i.e. multiply file size by 18). Multiply by 8 to convert to bits, then if you have (say) a 1Mbps connection, the math is easy peasy.
a104375
May 2, 04:41 PM
The bigger question is, should Apple dumb OS X Lion down to allow the iOS people to have an easier transition, just seems like it undermines the quality of the product especially for the people who already know and like OS X SL the way it is.
Perhaps when you first start up the computer they can have a "Do you want iOS mode or Fanboy mode?"
Perhaps when you first start up the computer they can have a "Do you want iOS mode or Fanboy mode?"
TangoCharlie
Aug 25, 06:17 AM
Um, the Mini does have four USB-ports, and a FireWire-port.
OOps, you're quite right!!
http://images.apple.com/uk/macmini/images/indexports20060229.jpg
http://images.apple.com/uk/macmini/images/indexports20060229.jpg
:o
OOps, you're quite right!!
http://images.apple.com/uk/macmini/images/indexports20060229.jpg
http://images.apple.com/uk/macmini/images/indexports20060229.jpg
:o
macnews
Jul 20, 02:33 AM
*Most critical applications will be converted by September*
Interesting...
I found this to be most interesting. I think we could actually see some Adobe apps by Septemeber. Adobe has been going on an 18-24 month cycle and based when CS2 was released Sept/Oct would be 18 months and 24 would be April when Adobe has said basically "no later than".
Interesting...
I found this to be most interesting. I think we could actually see some Adobe apps by Septemeber. Adobe has been going on an 18-24 month cycle and based when CS2 was released Sept/Oct would be 18 months and 24 would be April when Adobe has said basically "no later than".
spencers
Jan 6, 04:33 PM
On a side note, the previous owner of my E30 that I posted on page 1 just called and offered to buy it back, and offered to do a trade + cash for his much newer e9033i (if I understood him correctly). I need to take the e30 out AutoXing first to decide...still, will give him first dibs once I decide to depart with this classic car. I think I would have to get rid of it for an E30 M3 though ;-)
That's a heck of a decision! I'd sell it back though. If he built that car, there's a huge bond he's now missing. There's always a mint E30 M3 out there somewhere. ;)
The engines will, no problem. It's all the expensive bits around them that can't!
That's all that matters, no? I'm not gonna be going around Fred Flintstone-ing my bimmer...
That's a heck of a decision! I'd sell it back though. If he built that car, there's a huge bond he's now missing. There's always a mint E30 M3 out there somewhere. ;)
The engines will, no problem. It's all the expensive bits around them that can't!
That's all that matters, no? I'm not gonna be going around Fred Flintstone-ing my bimmer...
rKunda
Sep 20, 11:19 PM
I also still don't get how CR can give it the highest overall rating and not recommend it.
IMO, it's down to their perception of their rep. and pride. They can't just come out and say "we were wrong" so they have to dig in.
IMO, it's down to their perception of their rep. and pride. They can't just come out and say "we were wrong" so they have to dig in.
blahblah100
Apr 26, 01:15 PM
anyone else getting a little bit fed up of apples lawsuits?
Only if it's Apple being sued. Remember, when Apple sues, they are just protecting their intellectual property. Only when another company sues Apple is it frivolous and annoying and a case of where the plaintiffs are just trying to ride Apple's coattails. :rolleyes:
If you read the forums, it's very clear: lawsuits are only valid if Apple is the plaintiff.
Only if it's Apple being sued. Remember, when Apple sues, they are just protecting their intellectual property. Only when another company sues Apple is it frivolous and annoying and a case of where the plaintiffs are just trying to ride Apple's coattails. :rolleyes:
If you read the forums, it's very clear: lawsuits are only valid if Apple is the plaintiff.
Psychic Shopper
Jul 18, 11:18 AM
I must have watched 20 different video clips from the Daily Show on You Tube, streaming in almost real time. Why would I want to buy that content on the Itunes store?
macthetiger85
Apr 26, 04:35 PM
Windows and Amazon are not a generic names. If Microsoft would have named it "Operating System" then that would be generic. If Amazon were named "Online Store" then that would be generic. I'm sure Amazon could have named App Store something else, but then again, it's such a known term now that instantly helps customers identify what they are looking at.
I like Apple products, but they're beginning to be one of the most anal companies out there.
Actually windows is generic - a windows OS is an operating system with a GUI that uses a desktop and windows (such as finder, word processors etc) developed by XEROX and first mass produced for the Apple Lisa. The generic term for that type of OS among others was windows OS - then Microsoft came out with a windowing OS and called it Windows and trademarked it. Microsoft is actually arguing against Apple exactly what they did years ago. Back on topic though - it doesn't matter - Amazon is using it while Apple has already filed for the mark. The courts will settle this and if it goes to Apple, Amazon will pay big and have to change their name. Would have been simpler to just change their name to begin with.
I like Apple products, but they're beginning to be one of the most anal companies out there.
Actually windows is generic - a windows OS is an operating system with a GUI that uses a desktop and windows (such as finder, word processors etc) developed by XEROX and first mass produced for the Apple Lisa. The generic term for that type of OS among others was windows OS - then Microsoft came out with a windowing OS and called it Windows and trademarked it. Microsoft is actually arguing against Apple exactly what they did years ago. Back on topic though - it doesn't matter - Amazon is using it while Apple has already filed for the mark. The courts will settle this and if it goes to Apple, Amazon will pay big and have to change their name. Would have been simpler to just change their name to begin with.
arkitect
Mar 24, 12:51 PM
You weren't born gay, you chose to be gay.
Oh FFS!!! :rolleyes:
How many times more are we going to have to argue this?
It is not a choice.
I no more chose to be gay than you chose to be straight.
Christ! Sometimes this forum reminds me of a Whack the Mole game� hit one on the head and another pops up.
Same stuff over and over�
Oh FFS!!! :rolleyes:
How many times more are we going to have to argue this?
It is not a choice.
I no more chose to be gay than you chose to be straight.
Christ! Sometimes this forum reminds me of a Whack the Mole game� hit one on the head and another pops up.
Same stuff over and over�
Blue Velvet
Jan 1, 05:22 PM
The Apple Product Cycle
An obscure component manufacturer somewhere in the Pacific Rim announces a major order for some bleeding-edge piece of technology that could conceivably become part of an expensive, digital-lifestyle-enhancing nerd toy.
Some hardware geek, the sort who actually reads press releases from obscure Pacific Rim component manufacturers, posts a link to the press release in a Mac Internet forum.
The Mac rumor sites spring into action. Liberally quoting �reliable� sources inside Cupertino, irrelevant �experts,� and each other, they quickly transform baseless speculation into widely accepted fact.
Eager Mac-heads fan the flames by flooding the Mac discussion forums with more groundless conjecture. Threads pop up around feature wish lists, favorite colors, and likely retail price points. In a matter of days, a third-hand, unsubstantiated rumor blossoms into a hand-held device that can do everything except find a girlfriend for a fat, smelly nerd.
Apple issues it customary �we don�t comment on possible future products� statement in response to inquiries about the hypothetical new product. Mac fanatics are convinced that they're onto something.
The haters enter the fray to introduce fear, uncertainty and doubt. How expensive will the product be? Will it support Windows file formats? Will it work with my ten-year-old Quadra 840AV running Mac OS 8.1?
As Macworld or the Worldwide Developer�s Conference draws near, the chatter builds to a fever pitch. Rumor sites jockey for position, posting a new unverifiable, contradictory rumor every hour or so. eBay is flooded with six-month-old, slightly used gadgets as college students, underemployed web designers and independent musicians struggle to clear credit card space.
On the morning of Steve Jobs�s keynote presentation, the online Apple store grinds to a halt as Mac-heads set their browsers to refresh every 15 seconds.
Steve Jobs spends the first half-hour of his keynote crowing about how many iPods shipped during the previous six months and how many �native applications� have been developed for OS X. Attempting to appear as though it�s just an afterthought, he finally introduces the new Apple product. The product has sleek, clean lines, a diminutive form factor, and less than half of the useful features that everyone was expecting. Jobs announces that the product is available �immediately.�
Five minutes later, the new product appears on the online Apple store. Orders have an estimated ship date that is four weeks away.
The online Apple store takes 50,000 orders in the first 24 hours.
Apple�s stock surges as Wall Street analysts proclaim the new device will be �Apple�s savior� and the key to turning around the decades-long decline in Apple�s share of the global PC market.
The haters offer their assessment. The forums are ablaze with vitriolic rage. Haters pan the device for being less powerful than a Cray X1 while zealots counter that it is both smaller and lighter than a Buick Regal. The virtual slap-fight goes on and on, until obscure technical nuances like, �Will it play multiplexed Ogg Vorbis streams?� become matters of life and death.
The editors of popular Mac magazines hail the new device as the next great step toward our utopian digital future. Wired News runs exclusive interviews with the Apple design team. Fortune publishes another glowing fluff piece about Steve Jobs, proclaiming him to be the great visionary behind all technological innovation. Newsweek declares the device the new �must have� item for any self-respecting urban technophile. All of this is written before anybody outside of Cupertino has held the new device in his or her hand.
Business Week publishes an article stating that unless Apple immediately releases a Windows version of the new product its market share will continue to shrink and Apple will be out of business within six months. Mac zealots howl with fury and crash Business Week�s email server with their angry rebuttals.
In the wee hours of the morning on the initial ship date, as the Mac heads lay snug in their beds or take MDMA and dance to bad music, Apple delays everybody�s ship date by four weeks.
Rage reigns in the Mac forums. Lifelong Mac users who would never consider purchasing anything made by Microsoft or Dell, regardless of how shabbily Apple treats them, vent their anguish and frustration. Failing utterly to see the irony of the situation, they prattle on until their panties are twisted in knots.
The rumor sites abound with half-baked theories blaming the shipping delay on everything from heat dissipation problems to SARS. The most obvious explanation, that Apple lied about the initial shipment dates, is ignored in favor of more elaborate and unlikely scenarios.
Apple�s stock plummets as Wall Street analysts fret about the company�s supply chain problems. The same analysts who were raising their targets on Apple three weeks earlier appear on CNBC and predict that Apple could file for bankruptcy as soon as the week after next.
A week before the revised ship date rolls around, small quantities of the new product begin to appear in Apple�s retail stores. Chaos ensues as crazed Mac-heads queue up hours before the stores open, hoping to get their hands on one of the prized gizmos. The bedwetting in Mac Internet forums reaches tidal proportions as people post empty threats to cancel their online orders. The devices begin to appear on eBay and get bid up to absurd premiums over MSRP.
Pointless outrage slowly turns to pointless optimism. Driven insane by the lack of instant gratification, would-be customers profess their willingness to gun down the Tooth Fairy, Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny if it would hasten the arrival of the FedEx delivery person.
Nerd porn threads appear in the Mac forums. Some lunatic with too much time and money on his hands disassembles the new device down to the bare, soldered components and posts pictures.
The obligatory �I�m waiting for Rev. B� discussion appears in the Mac forums. People who�ve been burned by first-generation Apple products open up their old wounds and bleed their tales of woe. Unsympathetic technophiles fire back with, �if you can�t handle the heat, stay out of the kitchen. *****.� Everyone has this stupid argument for the twenty-third time.
Apple issues a press release to announce that they have now taken orders for over 100,000 of the new devices and shipped at least eight or nine dozen. Backorders and waiting lists stretch into months.
Movie stars, professional athletes and rappers begin accessorizing with Apple�s new gadget. Shaquille O�Neal appears on the cover of ESPN The Magazine using one. Mac fans unconditionally forgive him for Kazaam.
Wall Street analysts appear on CNBC wearing big smiles and bright spring colors to announce that Apple's new device will drive Apple's sales to unprecedented levels and might be the key to turning around the decades-long decline in Apple�s share of the global PC market. Apple's share price surges. People who understand the root cause of the dot com bubble shake their heads in silent disgust.
Trade publications and business magazines begin to refer to the market for Apple's new product as a "space."
A minor, rarely occurring flaw in the device begins to be discussed in the Apple support forums. Whiny, artistic types post lengthy diatribes about how this terrible design flaw has made the device unusable and scarred them emotionally. Electronic petitions are created demanding that Apple replace the devices for free, plus pay for counseling to help traumatized users overcome their emotional distress.
Taken completely by surprise at the success of Apple's new gadget, executives from Dell or Sony or Microsoft appear on CNBC and offer vague suggestions that they are beginning development of a new product to compete with Apple. In its next issue, PC Week magazine publishes an article declaring that Apple's dominance of the [insert gadget here] space is in jeopardy.
Weeks before most users are able to hold Apple's new gadget in their hands, "What features would you like in the next version?" discussions take place on Mac mailing lists. Mac-heads cook up droves of far-fetched, often bizarre ideas. A cursory reading makes it readily apparent why Apple executives pay no attention to their fanatical customers.
Apple releases the first software update for the new device through its Software Update control panel. Several hours later, it pulls the updater. A small number of people who applied the update experience crashes, data loss, headaches and ennui. The Apple support forums are filled with outraged posts. A day or so later, Apple releases a revised installer without comment, then quietly removes the angry posts from its support forums.
Somebody starts a thread on a Mac chat board that asks whether anyone knows of a way to use the new device with some other nerd toy in a way that makes no sense whatsoever. Out of the blue, somebody writes a hack that facilitates the unholy combination and offers it as $39 shareware. Seven of the nine people who actually try to use the hack download it off of BitTorrent and use a pirate serial number. Advocates point to this as an example of how independent Mac software development is thriving.
Dell or Sony or Microsoft releases a competing device which costs $100 less and is based on completely incompatible, Windows-only technology. Business Week declares Apple's dominance of the [insert gadget here] space over. Angry Mac zealots make plans to surround Business Week's corporate offices with torches and pitchforks until someone points out that fire and garden tools are so un-digital.
Wall Street analysts appear on CNBC to explain that Apple's device will never be able to compete with the onslaught of cheaper Windows-based competitors. Apple's stock plummets. Idiot technology investors experience a brief moment of deja vu before they return to masturbating to photos of Maria Bartiromo.
Consumers discover that the Windows-based competitor to Apple's device contains a proprietary digital rights management technology that prevents them from using the device to do anything expect except look at family photographs taken in the last 20 minutes.
An obscure component manufacturer somewhere in the Pacific Rim announces a major order for some new bleeding-edge piece of technology that could conceivably become part of some expensive, digital-lifestyle-enhancing nerd toy. The fun begins again...
http://www.misterbg.org/AppleProductCycle/
:D
An obscure component manufacturer somewhere in the Pacific Rim announces a major order for some bleeding-edge piece of technology that could conceivably become part of an expensive, digital-lifestyle-enhancing nerd toy.
Some hardware geek, the sort who actually reads press releases from obscure Pacific Rim component manufacturers, posts a link to the press release in a Mac Internet forum.
The Mac rumor sites spring into action. Liberally quoting �reliable� sources inside Cupertino, irrelevant �experts,� and each other, they quickly transform baseless speculation into widely accepted fact.
Eager Mac-heads fan the flames by flooding the Mac discussion forums with more groundless conjecture. Threads pop up around feature wish lists, favorite colors, and likely retail price points. In a matter of days, a third-hand, unsubstantiated rumor blossoms into a hand-held device that can do everything except find a girlfriend for a fat, smelly nerd.
Apple issues it customary �we don�t comment on possible future products� statement in response to inquiries about the hypothetical new product. Mac fanatics are convinced that they're onto something.
The haters enter the fray to introduce fear, uncertainty and doubt. How expensive will the product be? Will it support Windows file formats? Will it work with my ten-year-old Quadra 840AV running Mac OS 8.1?
As Macworld or the Worldwide Developer�s Conference draws near, the chatter builds to a fever pitch. Rumor sites jockey for position, posting a new unverifiable, contradictory rumor every hour or so. eBay is flooded with six-month-old, slightly used gadgets as college students, underemployed web designers and independent musicians struggle to clear credit card space.
On the morning of Steve Jobs�s keynote presentation, the online Apple store grinds to a halt as Mac-heads set their browsers to refresh every 15 seconds.
Steve Jobs spends the first half-hour of his keynote crowing about how many iPods shipped during the previous six months and how many �native applications� have been developed for OS X. Attempting to appear as though it�s just an afterthought, he finally introduces the new Apple product. The product has sleek, clean lines, a diminutive form factor, and less than half of the useful features that everyone was expecting. Jobs announces that the product is available �immediately.�
Five minutes later, the new product appears on the online Apple store. Orders have an estimated ship date that is four weeks away.
The online Apple store takes 50,000 orders in the first 24 hours.
Apple�s stock surges as Wall Street analysts proclaim the new device will be �Apple�s savior� and the key to turning around the decades-long decline in Apple�s share of the global PC market.
The haters offer their assessment. The forums are ablaze with vitriolic rage. Haters pan the device for being less powerful than a Cray X1 while zealots counter that it is both smaller and lighter than a Buick Regal. The virtual slap-fight goes on and on, until obscure technical nuances like, �Will it play multiplexed Ogg Vorbis streams?� become matters of life and death.
The editors of popular Mac magazines hail the new device as the next great step toward our utopian digital future. Wired News runs exclusive interviews with the Apple design team. Fortune publishes another glowing fluff piece about Steve Jobs, proclaiming him to be the great visionary behind all technological innovation. Newsweek declares the device the new �must have� item for any self-respecting urban technophile. All of this is written before anybody outside of Cupertino has held the new device in his or her hand.
Business Week publishes an article stating that unless Apple immediately releases a Windows version of the new product its market share will continue to shrink and Apple will be out of business within six months. Mac zealots howl with fury and crash Business Week�s email server with their angry rebuttals.
In the wee hours of the morning on the initial ship date, as the Mac heads lay snug in their beds or take MDMA and dance to bad music, Apple delays everybody�s ship date by four weeks.
Rage reigns in the Mac forums. Lifelong Mac users who would never consider purchasing anything made by Microsoft or Dell, regardless of how shabbily Apple treats them, vent their anguish and frustration. Failing utterly to see the irony of the situation, they prattle on until their panties are twisted in knots.
The rumor sites abound with half-baked theories blaming the shipping delay on everything from heat dissipation problems to SARS. The most obvious explanation, that Apple lied about the initial shipment dates, is ignored in favor of more elaborate and unlikely scenarios.
Apple�s stock plummets as Wall Street analysts fret about the company�s supply chain problems. The same analysts who were raising their targets on Apple three weeks earlier appear on CNBC and predict that Apple could file for bankruptcy as soon as the week after next.
A week before the revised ship date rolls around, small quantities of the new product begin to appear in Apple�s retail stores. Chaos ensues as crazed Mac-heads queue up hours before the stores open, hoping to get their hands on one of the prized gizmos. The bedwetting in Mac Internet forums reaches tidal proportions as people post empty threats to cancel their online orders. The devices begin to appear on eBay and get bid up to absurd premiums over MSRP.
Pointless outrage slowly turns to pointless optimism. Driven insane by the lack of instant gratification, would-be customers profess their willingness to gun down the Tooth Fairy, Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny if it would hasten the arrival of the FedEx delivery person.
Nerd porn threads appear in the Mac forums. Some lunatic with too much time and money on his hands disassembles the new device down to the bare, soldered components and posts pictures.
The obligatory �I�m waiting for Rev. B� discussion appears in the Mac forums. People who�ve been burned by first-generation Apple products open up their old wounds and bleed their tales of woe. Unsympathetic technophiles fire back with, �if you can�t handle the heat, stay out of the kitchen. *****.� Everyone has this stupid argument for the twenty-third time.
Apple issues a press release to announce that they have now taken orders for over 100,000 of the new devices and shipped at least eight or nine dozen. Backorders and waiting lists stretch into months.
Movie stars, professional athletes and rappers begin accessorizing with Apple�s new gadget. Shaquille O�Neal appears on the cover of ESPN The Magazine using one. Mac fans unconditionally forgive him for Kazaam.
Wall Street analysts appear on CNBC wearing big smiles and bright spring colors to announce that Apple's new device will drive Apple's sales to unprecedented levels and might be the key to turning around the decades-long decline in Apple�s share of the global PC market. Apple's share price surges. People who understand the root cause of the dot com bubble shake their heads in silent disgust.
Trade publications and business magazines begin to refer to the market for Apple's new product as a "space."
A minor, rarely occurring flaw in the device begins to be discussed in the Apple support forums. Whiny, artistic types post lengthy diatribes about how this terrible design flaw has made the device unusable and scarred them emotionally. Electronic petitions are created demanding that Apple replace the devices for free, plus pay for counseling to help traumatized users overcome their emotional distress.
Taken completely by surprise at the success of Apple's new gadget, executives from Dell or Sony or Microsoft appear on CNBC and offer vague suggestions that they are beginning development of a new product to compete with Apple. In its next issue, PC Week magazine publishes an article declaring that Apple's dominance of the [insert gadget here] space is in jeopardy.
Weeks before most users are able to hold Apple's new gadget in their hands, "What features would you like in the next version?" discussions take place on Mac mailing lists. Mac-heads cook up droves of far-fetched, often bizarre ideas. A cursory reading makes it readily apparent why Apple executives pay no attention to their fanatical customers.
Apple releases the first software update for the new device through its Software Update control panel. Several hours later, it pulls the updater. A small number of people who applied the update experience crashes, data loss, headaches and ennui. The Apple support forums are filled with outraged posts. A day or so later, Apple releases a revised installer without comment, then quietly removes the angry posts from its support forums.
Somebody starts a thread on a Mac chat board that asks whether anyone knows of a way to use the new device with some other nerd toy in a way that makes no sense whatsoever. Out of the blue, somebody writes a hack that facilitates the unholy combination and offers it as $39 shareware. Seven of the nine people who actually try to use the hack download it off of BitTorrent and use a pirate serial number. Advocates point to this as an example of how independent Mac software development is thriving.
Dell or Sony or Microsoft releases a competing device which costs $100 less and is based on completely incompatible, Windows-only technology. Business Week declares Apple's dominance of the [insert gadget here] space over. Angry Mac zealots make plans to surround Business Week's corporate offices with torches and pitchforks until someone points out that fire and garden tools are so un-digital.
Wall Street analysts appear on CNBC to explain that Apple's device will never be able to compete with the onslaught of cheaper Windows-based competitors. Apple's stock plummets. Idiot technology investors experience a brief moment of deja vu before they return to masturbating to photos of Maria Bartiromo.
Consumers discover that the Windows-based competitor to Apple's device contains a proprietary digital rights management technology that prevents them from using the device to do anything expect except look at family photographs taken in the last 20 minutes.
An obscure component manufacturer somewhere in the Pacific Rim announces a major order for some new bleeding-edge piece of technology that could conceivably become part of some expensive, digital-lifestyle-enhancing nerd toy. The fun begins again...
http://www.misterbg.org/AppleProductCycle/
:D
bobsentell
May 2, 04:53 PM
I wonder if this means MacOS will end up with iOS-style "multi-tasking."