Why are Mac users snobs?

[rekabis]

Snobbishness?

Between Mac Users and PC Users? Noooo… you must be joking…

A Mac user being snobbish at a PC user would be like having a Rolls-Royce owner being snobbish at a Buick owner… a 1985 rust-bucket LeSabre owner, that is. Belching black smoke from the muffler-less tailpipe and leaking oil all over the place, no less.

I think it comes down to a preference (and a certain fierce pride) of choosing Quality over common commodity, Excellence over mere functionality, Performance over penny-pinching frustration.

Sure, Macs still cost a bit more than their equivalents in the PC world (and by no more than 15-20%, to boot). But look what you get… a system so well designed and thought out that there is a significant difference between how Mac and PC users handle bugs and crashes: Because problems on a Mac are so rare, Mac users will *bleep* and complain about every tiny issue; whereas PC users encounter so many of them on a daily basis that they just ignore them, and will only throw a fit once the entire computer ceases to function.

And don’t even get me started on Vista… *that* sorry excuse for an Operating System is shaping up to be another Windows Millennium… that is, widely reviled and almost universally ignored. Vista could be Microsoft’s biggest blunder, mainly because it is forcing many people to seriously consider a Mac.

Sure, Linux is finally coming into its own. But it is still too much of a hobbyist’s system that requires technical knowledge and plenty of tweaks, especially to the majority of computer users who want a computer that “just works”. And the Mac delivers that, in spades.

[___]

...see below

[Symbonite]

Snobbishness?

especially to the majority of computer users who want a computer that “just works”. And the Mac delivers that, in spades.

And so your saying just works like internet and Email? pretty pricey to do those functions.

Until they find out they cant use the majority of the programs out there because they are not a MAC friendly software.

the past week I heard at least 10 different people say that they are totally frustrated with their macs that they went and bought a PC that does all their needs for half the price. Vista and all.

[Embiggen]

[

Until they find out they cant use the majority of the programs out there because they are not a MAC friendly software.

the past week I heard at least 10 different people say that they are totally frustrated with their macs that they went and bought a PC that does all their needs for half the price. Vista and all.

Well, they obviously failed to research their purchase properly. Not being able to run the majority of software isn't necessarily a problem. Most programs a typical consumer requires have a perfect analog on the Mac. I have greater needs than the average consumer, and I only need Windows for games. For the obscure Windows-only software, it's trivially easy to set up your Mac to run it (in one of several different ways).

My girlfriend is one such person. She has one program that she absolutely must be able to run via Windows, so we set up her computer (iMac) to do just that. The best thing of all is that it functions just like a regular, albeit ugly, Mac program. It runs in its own window, can be minimized to the dock, etc. There's no huge window containing the entire Windows workspace, just the program(s) you want (unless you choose to have the huge window there).

Sure, they may be slightly more expensive, but (for me at least) it's worth it. I have all of my computing needs taken care of by a single computer. I have the Mac side for Mac specific applications like Aperture and Final Cut and for general use, while I have Windows to fall back on for Windows exclusive games.

[rekabis]

Snobbishness?

especially to the majority of computer users who want a computer that “just works”. And the Mac delivers that, in spades.

And so your saying just works like internet and Email? pretty pricey to do those functions.

Until they find out they cant use the majority of the programs out there because they are not a MAC friendly software.

the past week I heard at least 10 different people say that they are totally frustrated with their macs that they went and bought a PC that does all their needs for half the price. Vista and all.

Then these new Mac users have been given some VERY BAD ADVICE, or worse, were guided into their purchase of a new mac BY AN INCOMPETENT ADVISER.

As Embiggen mentioned, for nearly every piece of Windows software out there, there is a Mac equivalent; it just might not offer the exact same functionality or be made by the same company. The only class of software which is really “just for PC” are games, and even there inroads are being made to Macs. In the last five years, the amount of games being made for the Mac has gone up by a factor of 10 compared to Windows-only games.

And even for those programs that you just cannot leave behind, there is Parallels Desktop for the Mac. This allows you to run these mission-critical programs (such as Simply Accounting, a Windows-only enterprise-class accounting program for which there really is no Mac equivalent) in a Mac environment while doing *everything* else using Mac programs.

So Symbonite, I offer you a challenge: name me any piece of Windows software, aside from Games and “widget-class software”, and I will find for you a Mac equivalent that is nearly as (or, in many cases, even more than) useful as the Windows version you are holding up.

Trust me, you will be pretty hard-pressed to find something that really does not have a Mac equivalent.

(Why no widget-class software? Because widget-class software tends to exist to provide extra functionality to some aspect of the operating system itself, which would probably make it irrelevant on a Mac…)

[Symbonite]

Snobbishness?

especially to the majority of computer users who want a computer that “just works”. And the Mac delivers that, in spades.

And so your saying just works like internet and Email? pretty pricey to do those functions.

Until they find out they cant use the majority of the programs out there because they are not a MAC friendly software.

the past week I heard at least 10 different people say that they are totally frustrated with their macs that they went and bought a PC that does all their needs for half the price. Vista and all.

Then these new Mac users have been given some VERY BAD ADVICE, or worse, were guided into their purchase of a new mac BY AN INCOMPETENT ADVISER.

As Embiggen mentioned, for nearly every piece of Windows software out there, there is a Mac equivalent; it just might not offer the exact same functionality or be made by the same company. The only class of software which is really “just for PC” are games, and even there inroads are being made to Macs. In the last five years, the amount of games being made for the Mac has gone up by a factor of 10 compared to Windows-only games.

And even for those programs that you just cannot leave behind, there is Parallels Desktop for the Mac. This allows you to run these mission-critical programs (such as Simply Accounting, a Windows-only enterprise-class accounting program for which there really is no Mac equivalent) in a Mac environment while doing *everything* else using Mac programs.

So Symbonite, I offer you a challenge: name me any piece of Windows software, aside from Games and “widget-class software”, and I will find for you a Mac equivalent that is nearly as (or, in many cases, even more than) useful as the Windows version you are holding up.

Trust me, you will be pretty hard-pressed to find something that really does not have a Mac equivalent.

(Why no widget-class software? Because widget-class software tends to exist to provide extra functionality to some aspect of the operating system itself, which would probably make it irrelevant on a Mac…)

As for the first part, thats what it is. Maybe not bad advice but maybe they were listening to the slacker guy on the commercials saying "hey they macs work right out of the box" or "hey our power cords..Pop come right out" thats the funniest one of them all but whatever. Or they simply hear other people yap about how they are gonna get a mac. I dont really know how they got into the macs or why that was their decision. All I hear from them is that they are Frustrated with them and switched back.

And as for the second. Why the challenge? Why would again I buy something that is more expensive that has the Mac Equivalent when I can have the same thing on a Windows Machine for a lot less money? Its like saying Hey these 2 oranges are the same color and taste but you must buy this one for more because its from a "certain" company.

Plus my original post is really Why Mac Owners are snobs. And is it because paying for more for you Piece of plastic makes you feel better?

[dogbreath]

So again the typical MAC user response to the lack of software available for MACS is to buy a Microsoft Operating System license and then the software they NEED to use and rig Microsoft windows to run on a MAC.

Your rhetoric is getting old and I don’t think many are buying it. But you keep bashing Microsoft if that somehow makes you feel superior.

[Etrinity]

From my experience, quite a few Mac people are very protective of the brand, like any good cult member should. It's just that some get too "protective" (read: MS bashing.)

I don't mind using a Mac, but like a lot of other people out there I would have to install Windows on the machine in the end.

I've tried dual-booting for about a year but I always just kept going back to Windoze more and more to the point that I just give up using the other one (Gentoo Linux). At this point I'm running windows only as there was little sense to keep switching. I know that if I did get a Mac, I'd end up justing using it for Windows far too much. For my last PC, I did think of getting a Mac but ended up going for a PC because of this. It also didn't help that I can build my own PC for roughly half that of the similarly-specced Mac.

In the end, Macs are limited much like linux as both only each retain roughly a 4% market share. (http://www.w3schools.com/browsers/browsers_os.asp) I'm not sure how accurate their stats are, but I would wager they're not that off.

Until Macs obtain a much higher market share, they will always be one of the underdogs. And, like any underdog, it has a loyal fanbase that can go a little bit over the top in protecting it. (Like some linux people )

Personal info: I've used various flavours of linux, unix, windoze, and macs. Macs have extremely clean interfaces, *nix can be powerful albeit a bit too technical, and windoze is a mess because it's used by far too many people.

What is really needed is a *nix OS (deployable on any hardware) with a 100% Mac interface (minimal terminals) and published by MS.

[SpaceAddict]

Well one thing they have the best ads...

[dogbreath]

Well one thing they have the best ads...

LOL... I love the Mac ads also

[Embiggen]

So again the typical MAC user response to the lack of software available for MACS is to buy a Microsoft Operating System license and then the software they NEED to use and rig Microsoft windows to run on a MAC.

Your rhetoric is getting old and I don’t think many are buying it. But you keep bashing Microsoft if that somehow makes you feel superior.

First, I'll get the pedantry out of the way: it's Mac, not MAC. MAC would be an acronym (for Media Access Control, amongst other things). As for the thrust of your post, I think you need to reread the last couple of posts. A brief recap: a huge percentage of programs either have an exact Mac version (VLC, Office, MSN Clients, etc) or a functionally equivalent Mac version (DVD Shrink --> Mac the Ripper/Handbrake). On the very rare chance that you require a Windows-specific program you _can_ install Windows (suggesting that one use Windows doesn't sound very much like MS bashing to me, does it to you?)

Alternatively, and depending on the program, you can try WINE via Crossover for Mac. I only experimented briefly with this, but it functioned well enough, albeit with a few minor graphical (lighting) glitches, that I was able to play through the entire single player campaign of Half Life 2.

In case you aren't aware, Crossover does not require the purchase or installation of any Microsoft OS (read up on it more if you're so inclined).

Granted, since you don't care enough about the subject to properly educate yourself on the difference between MAC and Mac, I'm sure this information will pass you by unheeded. Perhaps it will be of use to someone though.

[AlanH]

I've never had a need to install Mac software on my P.C..... ever.

[dogbreath]

Embiggen, Thank you for validating the topic of discussion

[zzontar]

I've had my Mac for about four years now, it hasn't crashed once, never had a problem with it... what I like is that when it's in sleep mode it has a cool blue light that looks like it's breathing... never mind bits and bytes and programs, when you have a blue breathing light on your computer, nothing else in life really matters.

[OffRoad]

what I like is that when it's in sleep mode it has a cool blue light that looks like it's breathing

Had to cover that damn light. It doesn't seem too bright but in the dark it would light up half my bedroom! Reminded me of a throbbing headache!

Gotta laugh at this thread though. It's like elementary school all over.

"My computer is better than your computer! Nah nah na-nah nah!"