Houston U. Students find PCs easier to use...

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Yep. The dudes and dudettes of Houston State University find PCs easier to use.



Also, I love the line about due to low demand, fewer students choose to sign up for Mac accounts.







Is this a campus of geniuuses?
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 30
    chuckerchucker Posts: 5,089member
    Quote:

    In order to access the Apple Macintosh computers on the SHSU campus, students must acquire a "Mac Account" through Computer Services.



    A "Mac Account"? So, in other words, the IT department is too stupid to set up a proper cross-platform network? LDAP? OpenDirectory? ActiveDirectory? Hello?
  • Reply 2 of 30
    omfg this is horseshit!!



    Quote:

    The fact remains that most students have no use for the flashy visuals and complicated graphics programs that Apple's Macintoshes are so famous for carrying. They may be more appealing to the eye, but Macintosh computers have yet to produce any real educational or basic functional value for the majority of college students.



    oh! those flashy visuals make my computer SO hard to use! the dock becomes larger when my mouse pointer goes nearby the icons! TEH HORROR!



    Quote:

    Based on the number of Macs versus the number of PCs on campus, students seem to experience much more difficulty in operating the Apple system as opposed to other more standard systems.



    "We definitely receive at least two to three calls a day for help with the Macs," Kaleb Cuevas, sophomore psychology major and Computer Services employee, said. "It's usually because of something like the operating system messing up. But it's often because of user error too."



    "because of something like the operating system messing up." nice, we're all professionals here.



    Quote:

    According to Cuevas, PCs could be described as more business based than the Mac, with an emphasis on typing-based programs such as Word. With the majority of college students' assignments focusing on word-based projects and papers, the PC logically provides a much better means of producing their work.



    yeah, because, you know, there is no Word for mac so basically if you have a mac and you want to write a paper, you're screwed.



    i won't bother to read the rest of it. sorry for the grouchiness.
  • Reply 3 of 30
    aiolosaiolos Posts: 228member
    What a retarded article, I left a "nice" comment on him.
  • Reply 4 of 30
    How much $$$ did MS pay H.U. to run the story?
  • Reply 5 of 30
    Darn, this is in the Houstonian. Macs are in trouble. The glut of positive press from small players like the New York Times and the WSJ doesn't have a chance at keeping-up the public's favorable opinion of Apple.
  • Reply 6 of 30
    Hmmm...



    That's funny. Sacramento State University is slowly replacing Dells with all iMacs. College students don't like Macs my ass...
  • Reply 7 of 30
    wircwirc Posts: 302member
    Seems to me that the only problems people are having are the ones with interfacing with the All-Powerful Dominion of Gates. A typlical response: "I can't read the attachment you just sent me. Why is your stupid computer so stupid? And what the hell is a PNG?" And so often, they remain convinced that something has to be wrong. Sigh... I'm just going to go back to my room with a Hoegarden and watch Exposé in slow motion.
  • Reply 8 of 30
    auroraaurora Posts: 1,142member
    The decline of America is clear here, Im sure most of these fools voted for Bush twice.
  • Reply 9 of 30
    placeboplacebo Posts: 5,767member
    You must remember that for the grand majority of use, Windows is easier to use than the Mac simply because it's a more linear operating system. Things like not having wizards and being able to have a program open without any windows open: these are things that people are generally confused by.
  • Reply 10 of 30
    hypoluxahypoluxa Posts: 694member
    that was the most hysterical article Ive ever read!... I almost can't believe it is for real!
  • Reply 11 of 30
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Aurora


    The decline of America is clear here, Im sure most of these fools voted for Bush twice.



    ROTFL!
  • Reply 12 of 30
    backtomacbacktomac Posts: 4,579member
    The issue at HSU probably stems from a lack of knowledge about macs.



    If I were the head of marketing at Apple I would develope a demo days program that would target universities around the country. People could come and try the different products. I would have an expert around to show users the capabilities of Macs. I would demo Parallels and boot camp. Sort of like a traveling Apple store. There could be a drawing for a free iPods to help ensure a good turn out.
  • Reply 13 of 30
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by backtomac


    The issue at HSU probably stems from a lack of knowledge about macs.



    If I were the head of marketing at Apple I would develope a demo days program that would target universities around the country. People could come and try the different products. I would have an expert around to show users the capabilities of Macs. I would demo Parallels and boot camp. Sort of like a traveling Apple store. There could be a drawing for a free iPods to help ensure a good turn out.



    You are aware that Apple does that reguarly?



    Last two times they did it at my university they gave out free iPods.
  • Reply 14 of 30
    backtomacbacktomac Posts: 4,579member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by gregmightdothat


    You are aware that Apple does that reguarly?



    Last two times they did it at my university they gave out free iPods.



    Nope, shit I'm just out of touch. I better crawl back into my cave, winter is approaching.
  • Reply 15 of 30
    Perhaps they should visit Houston U!
  • Reply 16 of 30
    I have a feeling that that article was written by a young Paul Thurrott.
  • Reply 17 of 30
    Okay, I got my Mac Mini less than a year ago and have had no problem doing the "simple" things that they talk about in the article. I've even taught myself to use Pages and Keynote because I didn't want to spend the $$$ on Office for Mac. It's not that hard and I'm far less frustrated with my Mac than I ever was with my PC's because of hardware/software problems. These people just need to get a clue.
  • Reply 18 of 30
    wircwirc Posts: 302member
    I'll say it again, the problems these people are having stem from an inability to interact with a Microsoft-dominated culture. The lack of competition has led to the whole ecosystem of printers and exchange servers all but excluding the Mac. Similarly, if these people have even heard of OpenOffice.org products, then they'd know about all the difficulties Microsoft creates in it's attempts to have control of the market.
  • Reply 19 of 30
    bborofkabborofka Posts: 230member
    Ok, this article is a pile and it's easy for us to sit here and laugh at it. Logical fallacies galore. But it's really not about the students finding PCs easier to use, it's about the IT dept. finding Macs more difficult to support.



    Like it or not, this is the same attitude across IT departments everywhere. Can you blame them? The Mac benefit is not apparent to those who are looking for the most cost-effective way in establishing a workstation/server setup and the easiest way to support them. Yes, there is still stigma lingering and stereotypes from the past, as this article proves. But Windows prevails not because of any superiority over the Mac platform. It prevails because it works, it's familiar, and it's cheap.



    Unless Microsoft seriously shoots itself in the foot (which it just might be doing with Vista), or Apple more aggressively pursues enterprise (which it seriously needs to do... Xserve/OS X Server isn't just going to sell itself to the masses), things will stay like this for a while. Hopefully more and more college students will continue to buy Macs and the "halo-effect" grows, and things might change.
  • Reply 20 of 30
    chuckerchucker Posts: 5,089member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bborofka


    Like it or not, this is the same attitude across IT departments everywhere. Can you blame them?



    Yes, you can.
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