Cult of the Mac
ok .. i confess .. i've been browsing the apple site for a couple months now, and have even built a couple sample systems .. i even go the apple store here in soho, wade through the people, guffaw at all the alternative look-a-likes, sigh heavily, then leave .. (why does everyone look like a bored hipster oddly named grunge band artist?)
ok ok, i agree that the aqua ue covering darwin riding some large feline makes for a very pretty FreeBSD with NeXTstep underpinnings - [now being propagenda'd as Cocoa (predictable that openDarwin seems to be pitifully behind in the same trend as GnuStep/OpenStep - i guess x86 h/w sales cut into Job's profit stream)] .. and while i do like the freedom from the x86 bandwagon and base instruction set that AMD is dutifully following (while making it's own sparc gap transformer) .. there's something troubling about this company i can't quite put my finger on. while it's not as pricy as our h/w - it is still somewhat aimed at the "buy a piece of art" crowd .. and it seems that the sales pervasion has crept in pretty deeply .. i can't count the number of mac owners who gleefully confess "it just works" or encourage me to look at this or that (toolbar pop-up, windowing abstraction)
are we all that easily distracted now that we think the most important piece of computing h/w is the cool-ness factor of the interface? don't get me wrong - i'm all for saving time and brain cells for organization .. i just think there's still got to be a better way, and i'm not convinced yet that apple will help get me there .. still there is something appealing on a basic level to the apple package that i might want to buy into .. maybe i'll just start with the new ipod
are we all that easily distracted now that we think the most important piece of computing h/w is the cool-ness factor of the interface?
If it were just coolness, you might have a point - although I'd be interested in your opinion of the business models of Porsche and BMW: it's just transportation, isn't it? But it isn't. And it isn't just hardware. It's the complete system; it's the consistency and seamless integration. Whether it be the way WiFi "just works", or the fact that almost all of the apps are scriptable, or that I can rip a CD into iTunes and drag a track into iMovie to use as background music....
See the rant on my blog about software whose designers don't follow the Hippocratic Oath or Asimov's Laws of Robotics.
Posted by Geoff Arnold on July 21, 2004 at 03:04 PM EDT #
actually it's more than just the coolness that troubles me, but that's a much longer rant .. and don't get me wrong - i like apple and think they've developed some quality products .. but think about this:
why are we so enamored with the fact that "it just works"? .. this means that we've had to live with systems that didn't really work quite right for many years now and have always had to "make do" with broken things .. true - apple delivers some fine quality to the the user experience along with many innovative ideas and they've got good developers working on a small set of hardware .. but isn't this the way that it should have worked all along? and isn't it sad that we all find this amazing now? if we focus on the glitz and appeal of a product we become blinder to it's faults .. apple is wise to focus on the experience much like BMW and Porsche - until something better comes along and you realize that your experience is subjective and subjectivity matters .. personally i like junky cars, electric concept cars, skateboards, bikes, old trains, and walking for transportation .. but that's just me and my quirky love for the earthy experience
i'm all for developer responsibility and have been intrigued by the rash of comparisons of IT to the medical profession .. couldn't agree more that there needs to be more ethical codes of responsibility in development and programming .. but there is still something missing - apple is in a phase where they can capitilize on the revolution in a well-integrated and stylized manner [wise move] .. i don't necessarily see them making the inroads on the R&D, rather there's a subtle plastique molding that they seem to be wrapping around other people's ideas that becomes our soma
Posted by .je on July 22, 2004 at 12:27 AM EDT #
Posted by Vic Winkler on July 22, 2004 at 10:53 AM EDT #
why are we so enamored with the fact that "it just works"?
You know, when I showed my blog about autocorrection woes to my wife (a clinical psychologist), her reaction was, "but that's the way we non-computer people feel about 90% of what you guys produce".
As for your feling that apple is in a phase where they can capitilize on the revolution in a well-integrated and stylized manner [wise move] .. i don't necessarily see them making the inroads on the R&D, rather there's a subtle plastique molding that they seem to be wrapping around other people's ideas that becomes our soma, well, Apple is a business. You seem to want them to act in an altruistic fashion, but such things are not rewarded by capitalism. So if they can use "soma" to kill two birds with one stone, more power to them. Style is not an illegimate idea: the businesses of Porsche and BMW are not based on fiction. Or do you hanker after a hyper-rational world in which there are no subjective choices? Is there no room for art? That would be dreary.
Posted by Geoff Arnold on July 22, 2004 at 11:24 AM EDT #
Posted by .je on July 22, 2004 at 04:07 PM EDT #
Posted by kev on July 30, 2004 at 09:52 PM EDT #
Posted by pil on July 30, 2004 at 10:06 PM EDT #
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breaks...
Posted by Unknown on July 30, 2004 at 10:07 PM EDT #