Why Mac Market Share Matters
Quote:
Originally posted (in Future Hardware) by Bigc
I don't give a sh!t what Apple's market share is, as long as they're profitable and making good quality equipment. I'll keep buying.
Originally posted (in Future Hardware) by Bigc
I don't give a sh!t what Apple's market share is, as long as they're profitable and making good quality equipment. I'll keep buying.
As has been said before, the reason for Mac people to be concerned about Mac market share is because more market share means better software support and web site support for all Mac users, including those of us who already use Macs.
I recently received a warranty replacement for a Buslink internal CD-RW drive that had gone bad, a drive I'd purchased back in December. The drive was marketed solely for PC use, but www.xlr8yourmac.com had done a write-up on how the original drive I'd purchased was supported under OS X and iTunes.
The replacement drive, a small upgrade over the original (52x32x52 vs. 52x24x52) was not, however, completely supported when I installed it. OS X and iTunes only recognized the drive as a read-only drive. Toast did support the drive fully, but I really wanted complete system-wide support. Buslink's one-and-only Mac tech support guy suggested that I try updating the drive's firmware. Of course (and here's where Mac market share is the problem) the firmware updater exists only as a Windows app.
Virtual PC couldn't help me because (A) VPC sees an emulated CD drive through an emulated interface, so it can't talk directly to the hardware in the way needed for doing a firmware update, and (B) VPC only saw my Superdrive anyway -- it didn't recognize my second drive at all.
So what to do? I had to pull the drive out of my Mac, install it in a PC, run the updater, pull the drive out, and then reinstall it in my Mac.
In another situation, I needed to update firmware on my father's DSL modem. Once again, the only updater software was Windows software. VPC was able to help, but it meant a very tricky and time-consuming process of installing VPC on my father's Mac in Florida directed over Timbuktu, using my Mac in NH. Since the problem I was trying to solve was a problem with flaky Timbuktu connections, this operation was a bit problematical. I could barely keep a Timbuktu connection going long enough to transfer the VPC installer itself. A 1 GB VPC file (stuffed down to about 450 MB) was hopeless.
After trying first to use my own Mac as an FTP server (foiled by my ISP blocking FTP ports), and then using the shell command "split" to break a stuffed VPC file into two pieces small enough to fit in some public FTP space of mine, one piece at a time, uploading one piece, downloading it to my father's machine, deleting the first piece from the FTP server, uploading the second piece, downloading that piece, then cat-ting the pieces back together, I finally got VPC running 1500 miles from here so I could finally run the damned firmware updater some ten hours after I started the task.
If Macs had bigger market share, I wouldn't have had to go through any of the above nonsense. I'd have been able to go Company Web Site -> Support -> Downloads and click on a link that said "Mac" and get on with the job at hand with a whole lot less grief.
Yes, even as things stand now you can do a whole lot with a Mac and with available Mac software. If that weren't true, I wouldn't have a dual G5 on order right now, and wouldn't being feverishly hoping for a Paris 12" PowerBook update on Tuesday. But that 5-10% of the time that you can't do what you want to do on a Mac (or, what, 75% if you're into gaming?) can sometimes be very important.
Increased market share is the only cure for this Mac ailment. The more Mac users there are, the more software developers, hardware developers, and web site operators will feel the need to support Mac users. The more they'll feel a bite out of their bottom lines if they fail to do so. The sad truth right now is that many companies can happily ignore the Mac and not suffer much, if at all, for doing so. For some small ventures, the cost of supporting Macs with current Mac market share where it is could easily be higher than the potential profit from doing so.
Comments
We will always be the ugly duckling. Macs will always be a mere supplement to the Windows world.
Originally posted by Steve
. . . Apple's market-share will never grow. . .
New developers are coming on board OS X all the time. AutoCad has been PC only for a long time but announced it will have major products for OS X. I don't think these people share your pessimism. This surge of interest in the Mac would not be happening if people in the business felt Apple was going nowhere.
Otherwise, find some friends nearby. why you had to use your dad's machine to run VPC is beyond me.
Tat is why given Apple's market share now, we can NOT expect thier prices to match Dell.
Originally posted by Splinemodel
dude. . . don't whine when it's your fault. You bought a product that the company declared was not mac-compatible. In that case you should be prepared to go the extra mile to get it to work.
"Dude"... don't be so quick to call someone else a whiner.
I was prepared to go the extra mile, and did. No whining. That doesn't mean I can't imagine and wish for things being better, as they would be with bigger Mac market share. Someone else said he didn't care about Mac market share. I offered a couple of reasons, among many possible reasons, to care.
Otherwise, find some friends nearby. why you had to use your dad's machine to run VPC is beyond me.
To solve my drive problem, I didn't even have to borrow a friend's PC. I have one in my basement. Doesn't mean I wouldn't have rather left my already-installed CD-RW drive installed and run a Mac-based firmware updater instead.
As for updating my father's DSL modem: He's 1500 miles from me, and I was working by remote control. I either solved the problem using VPC, waited God knows how long for my incredibly non-techy father to make other arrangements, or spent a few hundred dollars and a couple of days to fly down to Florida. Pain in the ass though it was, I think remotely installing VPC was the best of the unappealing options available.
Again, it would have been much nicer if the ActionTec folks who made his DSL modem thought it worthwhile to make a Mac-native firmware updater for their product. The don't say their DSL modem's are for PC only use, nor does my father's ISP say that his internet service is PC only. If Macs had more market share, it would be much more likely for ActionTec to provide users with their own native updater app.
Originally posted by Splinemodel
dude. . . don't whine when it's your fault. You bought a product that the company declared was not mac-compatible. In that case you should be prepared to go the extra mile to get it to work.
Otherwise, find some friends nearby. why you had to use your dad's machine to run VPC is beyond me.
Exactly what I was thinking but you said it nicer then I was going to
Originally posted by shetline
"Dude"... don't be so quick to call someone else a whiner.
I was prepared to go the extra mile, and did. No whining. That doesn't mean I can't imagine and wish for things being better, as they would be with bigger Mac market share. Someone else said he didn't care about Mac market share. I offered a couple of reasons, among many possible reasons, to care.
Otherwise, find some friends nearby. why you had to use your dad's machine to run VPC is beyond me.
As for updating my father's DSL modem: He's 1500 miles from me, and I was working by remote control. I either solved the problem using VPC, waited God knows how long for my incredibly non-techy father to make other arrangements, or spent a few hundred dollars and a couple of days to fly down to Florida. Pain in the ass though it was, I think remotely installing VPC was the best of the unappealing options available.
Again, it would have been much nicer if the ActionTec folks who made his DSL modem thought it worthwhile to make a Mac-native firmware updater for their product. The don't say their DSL modem's are for PC only use, nor does my father's ISP say that his internet service is PC only. If Macs had more market share, it would be much more likely for ActionTec to provide users with their own native updater app.
I'm not quite sure why you would buy something that doesn't support macs when there are many companies that DO support macs. Also I'm curious about who your ISP is? I have a cable modem and it's firmware is updated automatically by my ISP. DSL could do the same couldn't it?
PS - I'd say your whining in disguise.
Originally posted by ast3r3x
I'm not quite sure why you would buy something that doesn't support macs when there are many companies that DO support macs.
Maybe they're out there, but I certainly haven't seen very many internal optical drives marketed for the Mac -- none except pre-installed Apple options, in fact. Every after-market optical drive that I've seen that is clearly labeled for Mac is a more expensive external drive, not something you can easily walk into your local CompUSA and pick up for $60.
Even checking a couple of web sites for companies that sell Mac optical drives, Que! and LaCie, the only firmware updater I saw was PC software. Despite the fact the LaCie sells there USB 2.0 52x32x52 CD-RW drive for both Mac and Windows, only Windows users get support from the company for updating the firmware on this drive.
Also I'm curious about who your ISP is? I have a cable modem and it's firmware is updated automatically by my ISP. DSL could do the same couldn't it?
It's not my ISP, it's my Dad's, someone called Strato.net. The tech specs on the DSL modem show no capability for a WAN-side update.
PS - I'd say your whining in disguise.
The only thing worse than sneering smugness is sneering smugness from someone who doesn't know what he's talking about. You seem to have a very narrow, simple-minded attitude about what is or isn't a valid complaint about circumstances that would improved with increased Mac market share. You didn't bother to consider the issue between internal and external drives. You didn't bother to consider that it would be better for Mac people to not have to narrow their range of choice so much. You didn't bother to think about the fact that in many areas, when it comes to DSL, your only choice is to get it or not, with no choice about who your local provider will be and what additional services they offer.
In fact, you were so quick to want to sneer about something, anything, that you didn't even bother to read what I wrote closely enough to understand that is was my father's ISP, not my own, that mattered.
All of your "well, why didn't you buy this instead?" or "why didn't you get his ISP to do it?" is quite beside the point.
If any firmware updater is provided for CD drive at all, you can bet there will be one (and probably only one) that runs on Windows. A Mac version is much, much less likely. The Windows user doesn't have to limit his drive choices to a narrower range of choices in hopes of getting decent support.
[B]Maybe they're out there, but I certainly haven't seen very many internal optical drives marketed for the Mac -- none except pre-installed Apple options, in fact. Every after-market optical drive that I've seen that is clearly labeled for Mac is a more expensive external drive, not something you can easily walk into your local CompUSA and pick up for $60.
Even checking a couple of web sites for companies that sell Mac optical drives, Que! and LaCie, the only firmware updater I saw was PC software. Despite the fact the LaCie sells there USB 2.0 52x32x52 CD-RW drive for both Mac and Windows, only Windows users get support from the company for updating the firmware on this drive.
Also I'm curious about who your ISP is? I have a cable modem and it's firmware is updated automatically by my ISP. DSL could do the same couldn't it?
It's not my ISP, it's my Dad's, someone called Strato.net. The tech specs on the DSL modem show no capability for a WAN-side update.
PS - I'd say your whining in disguise.
The only thing worse than sneering smugness is sneering smugness from someone who doesn't know what he's talking about. You seem to have a very narrow, simple-minded attitude about what is or isn't a valid complaint about circumstances that would improved with increased Mac market share. You didn't bother to consider the issue between internal and external drives. You didn't bother to consider that it would be better for Mac people to not have to narrow their range of choice so much. You didn't bother to think about the fact that in many areas, when it comes to DSL, your only choice is to get it or not, with no choice about who your local provider will be and what additional services they offer.
In fact, you were so quick to want to sneer about something, anything, that you didn't even bother to read what I wrote closely enough to understand that is was my father's ISP, not my own, that mattered.
All of your "well, why didn't you buy this instead?" or "why didn't you get his ISP to do it?" is quite beside the point.
If any firmware updater is provided for CD drive at all, you can bet there will be one (and probably only one) that runs on Windows. A Mac version is much, much less likely. The Windows user doesn't have to limit his drive choices to a narrower range of choices in hopes of getting decent support.
Why? Market share.
1st - You use a mac, your stuff is more expensive because your a minority...live with it.
2nd - Sorry for my mistake saying you ISP instead of your fathers. Clearly I didn't care what you said at all and was just trying to pick something out to make fun of you for (sarcasm.) Why get so defensive over a tiny detail, and I was just asking a question...decafe!
All of your "well, why didn't you buy this instead?" or "why didn't you get his ISP to do it?" is quite beside the point.
3rd - Not besides the point at all. You don't buy stuff that isn't mac compatible (not counting the modem) and then complain...sorry I mean "give reasons to care" about Mac market share.
4th - Ok this isn't a real point, but why did your dad's modem firmware need updating? (just asking don't freak out)
5th - What is wrong with an external drive, is there a reason you can't use one? (again just asking)
PS - I still think your whining in disguise...nothing against you though. Just coming off as "look at all this trouble I had to go through, if mac market share was higher I wouldn't have had to go through this trouble." When it could have (for the most part) been bypassed by purchasing an official mac compatible drive.
Originally posted by ast3r3x
. . . 1st - You use a mac, your stuff is more expensive because your a minority...live with it.
. . . 5th - What is wrong with an external drive, is there a reason you can't use one? . . .
I'll add my 2 cents. I see no reason a Mac user shouldn't be able to buy reasonably price parts and get more selection in the process. I have an old beige G3 desktop, built in 1997. I got the cheapest internal CD-RW that would work in it to replace the CD ROM drive. The only lesson to be learned might be to demand an exact replacement if a problem arises. External drives cost more. Why spend much on an obsolete computer that I don't intend to keep very long?
Originally posted by ast3r3x
Wooaaa...calm down psycho.
First of all, you say I'm whining. Now it's "calm down psycho" and "just asking don't freak out". Perhaps I've simply missed the point that acting like a condescending twit is your favored form of light-hearted, friendly banter.
I apologize in advance if the above is too "freaking out" for you. I'll try not to go frighteningly over the edge by doing something unnerving and terrifying like using sarcasm.
...Oh, my God! It's too late!
Originally posted by snoopy
I'll add my 2 cents. I see no reason a Mac user shouldn't be able to buy reasonably price parts and get more selection in the process. I have an old beige G3 desktop, built in 1997. I got the cheapest internal CD-RW that would work in it to replace the CD ROM drive. The only lesson to be learned might be to demand an exact replacement if a problem arises. External drives cost more. Why spend much on an obsolete computer that I don't intend to keep very long?
It would be nice but you have to figure that they put about the same amount of time into the mac version only to have not as many people buy it as the PC side. I wish I had the option too but what are you going to do...unless you buy a hybrid or an external which I think is a better option (especially for recent macs as you can't put another internal in.) You could use your external with your new computer too.
Originally posted by shetline
First of all, you say I'm whining. Now it's "calm down psycho" and "just asking don't freak out". Perhaps I've simply missed the point that acting like a condescending twit is your favored form of light-hearted, friendly banter.
I apologize in advance if the above is too "freaking out" for you. I'll try not to go frighteningly over the edge by doing something unnerving and terrifying like using sarcasm.
...Oh, my God! It's too late!
psycho reacting so strongly to statements made by me...yes psycho. Mostly just kidding about that so no offense
But you didn't really answer the questions I asked in my post. Could you please so I understand better?
Originally posted by ast3r3x
It would be nice but you have to figure that they put about the same amount of time into the mac version only to have not as many people buy it as the PC side. I wish I had the option too but what are you going to do...unless you buy a hybrid or an external which I think is a better option (especially for recent macs as you can't put another internal in.) You could use your external with your new computer too. . .
When I shopped for a CD-RW I found no internal drive "for the Mac." By using xlr8yourmac.com I found generic models that would work, and got one that sold for $50, a close out price. Just buying the FireWire PCI card for an external drive would have cost me that much. Not all generic CD drives will boot a Mac, which is one of the problems.
Originally posted by snoopy
When I shopped for a CD-RW I found no internal drive "for the Mac." By using xlr8yourmac.com I found generic models that would work, and got one that sold for $50, a close out price. Just buying the FireWire PCI card for an external drive would have cost me that much. Not all generic CD drives will boot a Mac, which is one of the problems.
That is fine, I have no problem with doing that but don't complain when you want to update the firmware then and there are only windows exe's
Originally posted by Steve
. . . Apple's market-share will never grow. . .
Macs will always be a mere supplement to the Windows world.
Back to market share. Did someone once say, "market share follows mind share?" If not, they should have. Market share does not usually change quickly. What people are thinking today determines what they will buy tomorrow. Here is a link to the kind of thinking we are seeing more and more often.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/03/...nection_1.html
Quote of concluding paragraph: "Of course, a small, successful integration project on a small network in one CTO?s home hardly merits a mass OS migration at a Fortune 500 company, but my experience with the Mac at home forced me to re-examine my preconceptions. I?m grounded in reality, so I?m not expecting to replace all the Windows XP desktops and the Windows 2000 file/print servers at InfoWorld any time soon. Still, the next time I?m facing a mass desktop and network OS migration decision, Mac OS X will be on the list."
Apple's user base is around 25-30 million of which 7 million are reported to be using OS X. This is a fairly sizeable number of users and providing attractive new products continue to roll off the drawing boards in Cupertino, this number should continue to expand. Despite the doomsayers, Apple has been, and will continue to be around for a long time.
Long live Apple!
Originally posted by spindler
I'll add something to the original poster's. I need a modem for my B&W G3-350. It would be like $10 for a PCI modem for a PC, but I can't find any available for the Mac, so I either buy a used, maybe unreliable modem or spend $100 for a new external modem when I would prefer an internal. Iw would be nice if you could just buy a cheap modem for the Mac. Of course I know this is because most Macs come with modems so there's not a lot of demand, but still. These little things do add up.
Get an external. You could try an internal, but here's why not (assuming they're the popular software modem type):
* They're software modems. They probably wouldn't work anyway.
* They're software modems. They're slow and unreliable.
* They're software modems. Memory and CPU hogs.
* They're software modems. They require special drivers - a pain.
* They're software modems. A marketing consipracy. They're not reallly modems, just phone-line interfaces.
* They're software modems. They generally don't work with Linux.
* Did I mention they're software modems?