Will Linux finish off the Mac? (ZDNet) [LWN.net]

Will Linux finish off the Mac? (ZDNet)

Posted Oct 12, 2004 14:24 UTC (Tue) by hppnq (guest, #14462) [Link]

And don't people buy Apple hardware because, well, it is Apple hardware?!

Will Linux finish off the Mac? (ZDNet)

Posted Oct 12, 2004 15:35 UTC (Tue) by philips (guest, #937) [Link]

Yes. When I was buying my iBook - compatibility with Linux was major point. International
support - second one.

And the major point was that usually Apple's hardware doesn't require much support.

It is just good hardware.

I don't like this ZDNet guy - Berlind. He is bit affected by Microsoftish vision: the winners, the
losers, one true way to do everything. One size fits all. Every journalist covering PC market every
year deliver one more artice on topic "why Apple is dead and tomorrow will be gone." This article
from Berlind falls into this category: reiterate old myths of computer evaluation, benchmark
everything and make conclusions you need. Most importantly is to make very narrow evaluation,
and then make very wide implications - "Apple has no future", "Apple is dead", "Linux will win in
long term", "M$ Windows sucks", etc. In one word - B.S.

Apple is slow. Yes. But it is enough for me. 1GHz notebook - is more than enough for me. MS
Office is good example of CPU hog - it does nothing and it still slow. Regardless of CPU - 1GHZ
G4 to Dual 2.5GHz G5. CPU stopped being bottleneck.

Apple is not compatible with x86. Most of the time people say this, but really mean "not
supported by M$". I'm lucky enough to have no dependencies on M$.

Apple is expensive. But still, my friend have paid more money for his Fujitsu-Siemens notebook
including support (three problems in one year! - my iBook is just working) And add here wasted
time. Apple make this of good quality. Sure sometimes even Apple has problems.

I've being using Linux for more than four years and have learned one thing: choice is the true
way. Linux is not "M$ killer", nor "Apple killer". Linux is just here for everyone to do job better
and easier - and to easy share your experience with others. It will never rival Apple on desktop
nor Apple on server, since Linux - community effort - will never be so tightly integrated and
easily managed as Mac OS. Loose integration is major feature of Linux - it is advantage of Linux.
In Linux you may replace any component with your own one. In Mac OS if you will ever need to
replace something - most likely you will find that it is next to impossible, due to tight
integration. Compared to M$, both MacOSX and Linux are open OSs, based (mostly) on open
standards. M$ uses tight integration not as a way to improve user experience - in contrast to
Apple - but as a way to lock in customers. This is the difference.

Everyone now have a choice. 1st - stay in M$ lock-in. 2nd - spend more money and get luxury of
ignorance with Apple. 3rd - recall your childish LEGO experience and go hack Linux!!! ;-)

Choice. And balanced point of view. That's what will save IT industry.

Will Linux finish off the Mac? (ZDNet)

Posted Oct 12, 2004 15:39 UTC (Tue) by allesfresser (subscriber, #216) [Link]

I'm going to assume that the "childish LEGO experience" is a positive association... building neat stuff from small components. It's an excellent description of the creative process of hacking--especially the delight of it. Very nice.

Will Linux finish off the Mac? (ZDNet)

Posted Oct 12, 2004 19:22 UTC (Tue) by philips (guest, #937) [Link]

I always tried to tech people that Linux is something that can be disassembled. And learned how it works.

More you work with system - more problems you need to solve. It is vitally important to learn how to solve problems.
On Mac OS you have to call support - there is no other choice.
On Windows... well you stuck: or with your problem, or with legendary M$ tech support. With Linux you can take things apart - and then try to put them back together. Yes, you can call Red Hat or some other company which sells support - but sometimes you can solve problems by yourself.

On overall, M$ is ignorant. Apple - responsive.
Biggest challenge here is to teach people that they do not need someone else to help them - they can help themselves. I'm not Linux zealot - but might be held responsible for couple of types who became zealots. When you look at them you feel that they can fly ;-) - unbelievable feeling of freedom. People who have being slaves of M$ support provider, suddenly realized that computer are not always crashing, that you do not need to reinstall OS on monthly basis, that things just work. You can always look inside: system is open, inside out. Problem? Just fire terminal, type in couple of commands - and you are done. Still, it is important to have someone who can prepare commands and explain what they do.

Well, engineers are always easier to deal with. Thou, some blonde long-legged female secretaries are not that simple, and can get some details even better then I do - especially in handling and printing TeX documents ;-)

P.S. Oh, yeah - most important is to not to tell "technical detail" - people are afraid of this words.

Will Linux finish off the Mac? (ZDNet)

Posted Oct 12, 2004 20:11 UTC (Tue) by hppnq (guest, #14462) [Link]

I admire Apple, I think they've got great taste. But it will never get me that feeling I had when I managed to install Slackware (from floppies) on my very first PC, right out of the box, not really knowing much about computers.

Years later, even though I spent most of my waking time with all sorts of Unix systems, every now and then I am still truly amazed when I see the sheer power of Open Source and Linux right here on my desktop. It's still the same excitement, whether it's compiling the new kernel, reading LWN or programming my own stuff. Linux is just so much fun!

Will Linux finish off the Mac? (ZDNet)

Posted Oct 13, 2004 13:17 UTC (Wed) by thompsot (guest, #12368) [Link]

Agreed, and not to mention that Apple is very good at capturing a percentage of the market based purely on style. They are always pushing the envelope with styling and design, so just as there are people who will always buy the next cool-looking car, there will always be people who will by the next cool-looking Mac.

Will Linux finish off the Mac? (ZDNet)

Posted Oct 12, 2004 20:20 UTC (Tue) by freemars (subscriber, #4235) [Link]

Add Final Cut (video editing) to that list. In reality, any application where you have highly paid people using the computer 40 or more hours/week. The higher initial cost of the hardware is trivial compared to keeping your professional happy and productive. Oops, did I just invoke a TCO arguement?

And any place where style is valued as much as raw horsepower is never going to abandon Mac hardware. The article underestimates the value of eye candy.

Will Linux finish off the Mac? (ZDNet)

Posted Oct 12, 2004 15:04 UTC (Tue) by mmarq (guest, #2332) [Link]

" The premium cost of Apple hardware hurts and OS X only runs on Apple hardware. "

Only while they not see the wisdom of changing to a services centered approach. I belive, real Apple fans dont want to switch, period. But if Apple changes to a network-style like Linspire, Xandros, Mandrakeclub... i dont see why they should continue to make a premium out of their hardware !... they would be better offering server disk space, downloads (music & movies) as well as software and rock solid "in-house tested" drivers, VoIP and IM gateways, support and documentation... to all the network subscrivers... and this without having to build a really Web-Services centered service for their applications,... that can only create more intense lock-ins,... and dooms.

The same goes for Linux offerings...

When LANs center on Gigabit Ethernet, and wireless on more than 100Mbs, LAN or Inter-LANs and some WAN videoconference, whitebording and telephony will not only be possible but almost compulsory...

...* and the message is * that Apple will be much better palying in the Open Source camp than with Microsoft, because with Microsoft you will never know when they will bomb you with not quite compatible protocols and APIs...

I can't even see a valid reason for why COCOA/Carbon be impossible to work on top of what X.org is trying to build... The same can be said of a unified Open Source driver model framework for the different kernel approches be it Micro or Monolithic...

Linux/OpenSource is not the enemy of Apple. That is a FUD that only makes people in Redmond smile.

Linux won't finish off the Mac any more than Windows did.

Posted Oct 13, 2004 11:20 UTC (Wed) by tearinghairout (guest, #18931) [Link]

As a long time Windows user and also Linux user for about 6 years, I recently bought an Apple PowerBook, and I am incredibly impressed with it.
It just works.
It is small, light, looks good. I boot it up and it automatically picks up my wireless network. I surf the net for a while, then I shut the lid and instantly it has suspended. I re-open the lid and within about half a second (and I don't think I am exagerating here) it is ready to go again. For me, it has really epitomised the whole "internet appliance" idea.

Lets face, the Apple machines appeal to a bunch of people who don't care about OS wars, don't have an allegiance to any sort of licencing ideology, don't want to be part of the masses, but want a nice machine that just works and does what it was purchased for.
There will always be such people, they will always have a disposable income, and Apple can only benefit from the availability of code released under a friendly licence and the idea that "it is okay to not use Windows" that greater Linux adoption will inevitably lead to.