[Tfug] BOFH: You think you know a guy...

[Jim March]

At the time that BOFH piece was written (mid-to-late 1990s) the Mac had,
briefly, turned into a steaming pile of doo doo.

Does anybody else remember the OS8.x period?  Esp. around 8.5x?  It was
-=bad=-, m'kay?  Much less stable than Windows 95/98.  No, I'm not kidding -
I supported both professionally back then.  Frequent Apple updates would
slaughter major apps - like, say, MS-Word.  Ordinary screensavers would turn
into Chernobyl material.  Bleah.

Those were grim days, kids.

There's a reason Apple basically scrapped their entire OS direction in favor
of *nix.  It took guts, esp. the part about abandoning more or less all
existing applications.  But by then the developer community was ready to
play along because it was just so obviously necessary.

NOW, yeah, we might as well call OSX a "Linux distro" of sorts...OK,
FreeBSD, whatever.  It's pretty good, NOW.

But there was a time when Apple almost died out over OS issues.

Jim

On 10/1/07, William Stott <WStott at ventanamed.com> wrote:
>
> Uhm, I own multiple Macs. I missed the rest of this thread, but I would
> just leave this for thought:
>
> If your primary purpose is only available in a Windows environment, it
> does not make sense to use anything else. It is painful to see a few of the
> people at my work that ordered a Mac for the 'cool factor' only to put
> Parallels / Windows on their Mac and never use the OS X environment.
>
> On the other hand, if you plan on using a portable array of applications
> that run in a Mac OS X environment, then why not? Cost?  It's a decision you
> have to make on your own. Many people that purchase a system only look at
> what others SAY about operating systems, they rarely find the facts out on
> their own.
>
> Example:
>
> My wife had the need for a computer. Something portable, that could play
> movies for the kids, handle her photos, email, scheduling, and internet
> access for research were the requirements. Cost was a concern (because it
> was coming out of my pocket), and usability was a concern (becuase she is a
> complete beginner with computers). In the above requirements, there is no
> reference to anything specific to windows, so the options were open. I chose
> a Mac for her. Why? Here's why:
>
> 1) Macs do have a user friendly environment (and she does not have prior
> windows experience to transfer so that is not a set back)
> 2) It is true that Macs have a great chance to be compatible with the
> current (and future) USB devices that my wife has. // This was proven after
> we bought it.
> 3) The Mac met all of the above requirements without any need for extra
> software (of course, I installed more, but it was not necessary).
> 4) The video display is great, and although they are limited in video
> options, they also make the choices easy and their hardware is stable.
> 5) Support is a one stop shop...hardware and software are supported at the
> same place (and we have had to use it). Although I would not call the techs
> at the Apple Store 'genius,' they are very helpful once they understand that
> I am not a beginner.
> 7) In the end, we have almost all Macs in the house now (just waiting for
> a good replacement to Media Center **NOTE: Myth was not an option for me
> this time***).
> 8) So, as a family we have --> iPods, iPhones, and Macs. They are so easy
> that the kids can use them (without destroying anything), and I can do
> anything the a windows / linux user can do or would want to...
>
> Say what you want about Macs, I do not mind, and I probably would not
> defend them. They work for me, in business and home, and for my family.
> Plus, I have FreeBSD, SUSE, and Windows running, and I am not missing
> anything that I can see.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Will
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: tfug-bounces at tfug.org on behalf of Rich
> Sent: Mon 10/1/2007 1:07 PM
> To: Tucson Free Unix Group
> Subject: Re: [Tfug] BOFH: You think you know a guy...
>
>
> On Oct 1, 2007, at 12:37 pm, christopher floess wrote:
>
> > Ok, the only problem is that I don't get what's wrong
> > with Macs.
> >
> > I always thought that if I were face with no other choice
> > except windows or mac, I would go with mac.
> >
> > Should I reconsider this?
>
> Absolutely. After all, you wouldn't want to have to do *nothing* to a
> computer to make it work, right? What kind of reputation would we
> have among relatives and neighbors if "He does something in
> computers" were to mean "He knows where the power switch is"?
>
> Anyway, fingerpaints aren't all they're cracked up to be. Do you know
> how much effort it takes to get that stuff out of a Wacom tablet?
>
>
> Joking aside -- at the University where I used to work, a colleague
> found someone using an A3 sized Wacom tablet ($1k+) as a cutting mat.
> No, it *wasn't* a Mac lab.
>
> R.
>
>
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