frosty.tumblr.com

“

Apple versus Amazon is like Ali versus Frasier. This is two evenly-matched fighters and the outcome of their battle can only benefit consumers.

This is what I’ve been hoping for: a company with the skill, vision, clarity, and competence to truly compete with Apple. It wasn’t going to be Google. It was never going to be Google. I’m grinning at the thought of how high these two companies can push each other. What a great time to be a geek and to be alive.

”

“Shareability is the degree to which you want someone else to have the same response to a thing that you had. One company that understands this point is Apple. They don’t just make things that you want to have; they make things you want others to have too. Ditto for Nintendo, particularly with the Wii. And the real kicker is that their stuff is particularly easy for other people to experience, because it’s easier to use in the first place. So, it’s an easy decision to share it.”

“

A standalone monitor with the new iMac’s panel would be perfectly reasonably priced at about $1500. From Dell. Apple’s only charging $200 more than that for theirs, and there’s an entire high-end computer stuck to the back of it.

[ … ]

Until we know why the panel is so cheap, I bet we’re going to see a lot of Mac Pro owners buying 27” monitors for $1700 and trying to figure out what to do with the free computer stuck to the back. For new-computer shopping, a lot of people are going to abandon whichever laptop or Mac Pro they were considering and get this instead.

That helps answer the “why” question: Maybe Apple wants to push more buyers away from today’s default system-type choice — laptops — and show them why they should consider getting a fast, spacious desktop instead. And, for the time being, it’s a desktop with absolutely no equivalent in the PC world.

”

“

And you, lucky Android developer, have the pleasure of trying to guess which models are going to sell enough units to make it worth your while to port your application to them.

People gripe about Apple being control freaks, but please try to remember, there’s a method to our anal-retentive madness.

”

“The nature of the personal computer is simply not fully understood by companies like Apple (or anyone else for that matter). Apple makes the arrogant assumption of thinking that it knows what you want and need. It, unfortunately, leaves the “why” out of the equation — as in “why would I want this?” The Macintosh uses an experimental pointing device called a ‘mouse’. There is no evidence that people want to use these things. I dont want one of these new fangled devices.”

“Look at Sony, or Microsoft, or Google, or anyone. They still don’t get it. They’re still out there talking about chips, or features, or whatever. Or now they’re all hot for design. But they think design means making pretty objects. It doesn’t. It means making a system of pieces that all work together seamlessly. It’s not about calling attention to the technology. It’s about making the technology invisible. That’s design.”

“

Apple doesn’t do everything right (see: App Store), but they’ve sure got this process down in a way Microsoft simply seems either unable to do because of the complex installed base or unwilling to do because the company is a lumbering ape. With Apple, there’s one version of the OS which upgrades versions going back several years.

And Apple certainly nailed the timing on releasing a cheap OS upgrade during an economic slump. Microsoft, meanwhile, is telling most of its users they should probably go ahead and buy a new machine.

”

“We don’t believe in coming to market like Apple - high margin, high quality, high price. We believe in high volume and low price”

“

I know I’ve said it at least once before on some prior incarnation of my blog, but it bears repeating in light of my last post: I don’t consider myself blindly brand-loyal to the Mac.

I know, right? Co-founder of an indie Mac software company?

I find Mac OS X to be the least frustrating of the currently available options, but the buck certainly doesn’t stop there. We have miles and miles to go in terms of making computing better. I want my socks blown off, and I don’t care whether it’s Apple, Microsoft, Google, or the open source movement that does it, as long as someone does.

At this exact moment in time, Apple seems to be more on that trajectory than the rest. But they weren’t so much 15 years ago, and who knows if they will be 15 years from now.

My advice to everyone who is interested and can spare the (often substantial) time is: Keep your data in standard, interoperable formats as much as possible, and try out different, unfamiliar operating systems occasionally. It’s easiest to notice the weird negative things, but it’s myopic to assume there’s nothing good to be found. If nothing else, you can learn what doesn’t work for you, and why.

”