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Analogies to Help Pundits
Comprehend the Difference Between Macs and
Windows
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Welcome to the Lite Side, where we're about to do our civic duty
in providing analogies to help you understand the difference between
the Mac OS and Windows.
I thought these things were old-school, tired analogies, but after
recent events in Sarasota, Florida, it's became apparent that certain
pundits (who shall remain nameless) need these analogies repeated
because they have no direct experience with Macs.
I wrote one of these hoary old analogies myself, If
Cars Were Like Operating Systems, about two years ago. I urge our
friends in Florida to copy it into an email and send it to the Powers
That Be to help them comprehend why we like Macs.
Anyway, I thought I'd toss a few more analogies into the mix to
help you understand why we "fanatics" are frustrated with your
fumbling of this fundamental issue.
Aimed at Pundits: Having a pundit tell a teacher to switch to
Windows when the teacher is a Mac specialist is like...
having a pundit tell a surgeon to use a pair of baby scissors
to cut open a chest in preparation for heart surgery because baby
scissors are cheaper than scalpels.
having a pundit tell a mechanic to install an engine that
doesn't fit in your car because those engines are cheaper and
exist on the majority of cars on the road. (It's a
no-brainer!)
having a pundit tell a farmer to use a hoe to prepare his
field because hoes are cheaper, and not many people own
tractors.
having a pundit tell a contractor to install all plastic pipe
in a house because it is cheaper than the copper pipe you were
thinking of using.
having a pundit tell a jockey that riding a donkey would be
better than riding a thoroughbred because donkeys are
cheaper.
Old Standards
Macs are like BMWs. They don't have a large market share, but
those people who own them like them a lot.
Windows is like McDonald's. Popular does not always mean best.
New Ones
Windows is like a housing development where all the houses are
variants of about four basic designs. One day, a Mac user tries to
build a geodesic dome in the neighborhood, but he is denied a
building permit from the city despite the fact that domes are more
earthquake resistant, energy efficient, and when all the interior
parts are installed, not much more expensive than a regular house
with the same features.
Buying Windows is like buying tires that don't quite fit your car.
They're cheap, but sooner or later they're going to cause you to
crash.
Windows is like going to the grocery store for food and finding
everything on the shelf is some variant of bologna. You'd like to get
some steak, but it's too expensive, and you have to mail order it or
go out of town to get it. You know people who can eat steak, and
you're jealous. You decide to ask for steak, but you're told by the
police waiting to escort you home that you're only allowed to buy
bologna even though you would pay for steak yourself if you were
allowed to have it.
Macs are like rap music. Not everyone likes it, but there's a
definite niche market for it. Some people try to mimic it but don't
do it very well. Other kinds of music are being influenced by it but
are not allowed to admit that rap has an influence. Everything bad
that happens is blamed on it.
Windows users are like that guy you meet at a party who dominates
every conversation and speaks in a no-nonsense, folksy way (sort of
like Bill O'Reilly) so no matter what he says it seems to make
perfect sense. He tells you that if you were smart, you would support
drilling in Alaska because there's big money to be made, and your
idea of using wind power is nice but just not practical for the
majority of people.
Windows is like the English system of measurement. Everyone you
know uses it, no one knows it really well (what's a rod?), and those
people who suggest we should switch to metrics (Mac OS) because it is
better are considered to be unrealistic and naive.
Windows is like pop music. Everyone would rather listen to
something else, but it's the only thing playing on the radio. Some
people claim to like it, and we all respect their opinion, because
it's politically incorrect and not nice to make fun of stupid
people.
"Architects cannot learn to design grand cathedrals if they are
taught all their drawing courses using only an Etch-a-Sketch because
the company struck a deal with the university." (One of a series of
security related analogies from this excellent
page detailing analogies by Dr. Gene Spafford.)
Another from the same site: "...you buy a car and say that you
don't care if it is made of cardboard or has any brakes, so long as
it is cheap."
Send along your favorite analogy comparing Macs to Windows, and
we'll post 'em here. You know the drill: If you send it, I can post
it, and if you don't want your name and/or email attached, you have
to say so.
P.S. It's time for your weekly reminder to send a note to Rich
Brooks in Sarasota, asking when is he going to actually (a) use a Mac
and (b) visit a classroom using Macs and try to "improve" it.
iPods that never passed beta or focus groups, 09.13.
"What most Apple fans don't realize is that there were a few iPod variants that never made it out of beta testing and the focus group stage."
Mac of the Day: 15" iMac G4/800 MHz, Jan. 2002 - The iMac is redesigned with a flat panel display and G4 CPU.
Group of the Day: G4 List is for those using Power Mac G4s or G4 upgrades.
January 7 in LEM history: 97: Mac OS 7.6 - 99: What color iMac do you want? - 00: S900 chronicles - 02: Who let the iMac out? - Expo keynote - iMac G4 - 14" iBook 600 - iCab fastest low-end browser - Addressing battery problems - 03: 12" PowerBook G4 - 17" PowerBook G4 - Changes in Jaguar - 04: Waiting for the tipping point - 05: Headless Mac an upgrade path for low end users - 08: Could OS X DRM drive users to Linux? - Netscape dead, but its children live on
How Netbooks Impact Microsoft and Apple, Tim Nash, Taking Back the Market, 01.07.
Netbooks are keeping Windows XP alive, which may slow adoption of Windows 7, and perceived value keeps the Mac market share growing at the expense of Windows.
The Ill-Fated Apple III, Jason Walsh, Apple Before the Mac, 01.07.
"...not only was the Apple III mind crunchingly expensive, it was made with none of the passion of the Apple II or Macintosh."
Apple III Chaos: Apple's First Failure, Joshua Coventry, Cortland, 01.07.
Apple had known nothing but success with its Apple II product line, but when it tried to enter the business world with the Apple III, the learned the cost of failure.
2 Apple Failures: Apple III and Lisa, Tom Hormby, Orchard, 01.07.
Apple's two not-so-great product lines between the Apple II line and the Macintosh.
17" Unibody MacBook Pro, 01.06.
Thinner and lighter than ever, the unibody model tops out with 8 GB of RAM and a 2.93 GHz clock speed.
Apple's Half-Baked Support for DisplayPort, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz, 01.06.
The DisplayPort specification supports audio, so why does Apple use USB to route sound to the LED Cinema Display?
No, an Overgrown iPod touch Is Not a Netbook, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 01.06.
BlackBerry pretends its Storm is a netbook, but a netbook needs to be big enough for a typable keyboard.
Apple IIe Nostalgia: A Reunion 15 Years in the Making, Tommy Thomas, Welcome to Macintosh, 01.06.
Sometimes nostalgia is all you remembered, like when you get to recreate your first computing experience from the Apple II era.
VisiCalc and the Rise of the Apple II, Tom Hormby, Orchard, 01.06.
"VisiCalc was first released for the Apple II, which quickly became an invaluable tool for businesspeople - at least until IBM moved into the 'personal computing' market in 1981."
Apples from Other Orchards: Apple II Clones, Joshua Coventry, Cortland, 01.06.
Before the IBM PC spawned compatibles, companies around the world cloned the Apple II - some with more success than others.
Origin of the Apple I and Apple II Computers, Tom Hormby, Orchard, 01.05.
From the first behemoth computers to the Apple II+, the computer that drove the personal computer revolution.
Apple Has Always Been a Niche Player, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 01.05.
"Despite the myths, Apple has never been a dominant player in the personal computer industry."
Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 01.06.
Used 1.83 GHz, $900; 2.16, $1,090; 2.33, $1,295; new 2.4 Penryn, $1,350 after rebate; 2.5, $1,485 a/r; 2.6, $1,649; new 2.4 Unibody, $1,824 a/r.
Best Mac OS X 10.5 'Leopard' Deals, 01.06.
Mac OS X 10.5, single user, $104 shipped; 5 users, $148 shipped; 10.5 Server, 10 users, $363 shipped; unlimited users, $752 shipped.
Best Mac OS X 10.4 'Tiger' Deals, 01.02.
DVD upgrade from 10.3, $75; full version, $129; family pack, $200; 10-user Server, $350; unlimited users, $400.
