tadd

elcordobes said:

What happened to “pragmatic, affordable and accessible to regular people”? They want us to keep buying their products on a regular basis, yet they price them too high.

I love OS X and iOS, it’s the cost of the hardware that keeps me upset.

Not all of their hardware is crazy expensive.  But I'm using an 8-core Xeon Mac Pro that I bought in 2008.  I'm pondering a replacement even as I type.  I keep hoping for a new not-all-in-one computer to replace the Mac Pro.  This computer has cost me under $1 per day since I bought it.  I consider that a reasonable price for a computer, especially since it is what it is.  The only reason I want a new box is that this one isn't supported with the latest OS, doesn't do "continuity" or Thunderbolt.  Aside from that it's going quite well.  
So... the question is.. how much is too high?    Cellular service costs $1/day for many people.  Would you spend that much on the hardware to run it?   That's $365 a year.  If my device lasts 3 years, then that's an iPhone X?     iPhone X is a very nice item.  I like it.   My last cellphone lasted 3 years. That was an iPhone 6.  Before that I had a iPhone 4S.  So my "high end" computer and communications with a Mac Pro and high end iPhone costs me, in total, maybe $4/day.   But check this out.  Cable TV with sports channels and 2nd tier Internet costs $3/day.  My TV expenditures, just replacing them when they break, has cost me about $2/day including set top boxes and two TVs.  So, $5 for TV and $4 for iPhone X and Mac Pro?   I'm MUCH happier with my Apple purchases than I am with my TV purchases!     Ok... now look at transportation and housing expenses.  No..... lets not.   You see where I'm going?  Apple is not all that bad, compared to the rest of middle-class life.  

gustav said:

wozwoz said:

Actually, I don't remember any quibbling at the time about dropping legacy ports such as ADB keyboards and GeoPorts. The latter were Apple proprietary ports that Apple was replacing with industry standard connectors that were insanely faster better, in every respect.

Contrast that with today's changes, where Apple is taking high-quality industry standard components (such as the 3.5mm audio connector), and replacing it with proprietary and inferior quality connectors (forcing mini D/A converters in your headphones). That's why Apple supporters are complaining today.

Your memory is failing you. People complained. Especially about the floppy drive, but the serial and adb ports too. So much so, that Apple ended up putting an ADB port on the blue G3 tower. Interesting you described USB-A as insanely faster and better in every respect. USB-C is faster, can be plugged in upside-down (which is the biggest complaint about USB-A connectors), and can carry more power. I call that better.

wozwoz said:

StrangeDays said:

...sorry but consumer media card slots and ethernet jacks aren’t coming back to the pro portable. Thankfully those who need such use cases can easily plug in an adapter. The rest of us will use wifi.

lol - wi-fi is for noobs. Pros use Ethernet.
And even Apple realise it, with the new iMac 'Pro' supporting new 10G Ethernet built-in.
The only reason there is no Ethernet port on the Mac notebooks is because the connector is too large to fit into the ever shrinking frame (much the same reasons Apple shifted from USB to USB-C).

The pros that need ethernet on a portable probably also have a large external monitor, keyboard, mouse or trackpad, etc. connected to a thunderbolt dock. Many of those docks have ethernet built in. But I don't see very many Pros insisting on Ethernet when away from their desk.

That depends on pro-WHAT.  I am a computer-using professional.  I have particular needs for more-than-most in certain aspects of the computer.  From my perspective, any connector I need when I get there is a connector I have to remember to bring.  Ethernet RJ45 and hifi audio 3.5mm are pretty darn handy.  I recognize that Apple sometimes chooses not to have a thing in a quest for the easiest to support, easiest to document, nicest for the market they are targeting.  They also force situations in order to develop markets for whatever.  That certainly worked with USB and the iMac.  I think they have made many right decisions.  I love their products because of that, though once in a while they lose some feature I love in favor of the mass market (Icons that stay where I left them is one such).  I think RJ45 Ethernet connector is something they should not have ditched.  Ditto the 3.5mm stereo output.  The Ethernet I can almost understand because they have other connectors on the laptop and desktop which can perform those duties and which are 'standard'.  I don't get the 3.5mm.  If the 3.5mm connector is so useless as to be no longer with having, why have it on any of their boxes?  In 1997 Apple got rid of the floppy disk and the ADB on the consumer desktop machine.  How long was it before it was gone on all of their products?  One cycle, maybe 2.  Blue G3-350 didn't have a floppy.  Powerbook had a cartridge for the floppy drive, I think.  iBook didn't have one.  I'd like to see Apple be as consistent about the Ethernet and 3.5mm, except they won't, because getting rid of those two connectors doesn't make any sense (to me).   Radio has serious bandwidth limits.  My computer room can have 10 computers conversing at gigabit speeds on Ethernet sharing data for some project I"m working on.  If I did that on WiFi, it'd saturate, plus wipe out the neighbors' WiFi bandwidth.  Plus the Ethernet is very secure compared to WiFi.  WiFi doesn't stop at the walls.  One can have 100 Ethernet channels right next to each other and saturate them all. 

Bluetooth?  hahaha.  Yikes.  I wonder how many stations that will support in a small room.  3.5mm could support ALL of them.  Thinking about 1800 people at the UN General Assembly hall. 

I am amazed that the article didn't mention the FLOPPY DRIVE! !   NO FLOPPY   Scary!!   

See this Comic Strip:
http://www.gocomics.com/foxtrotclassics/2009/10/21/

I think we're talking about a few different things.
The Federal Government Running Things Is Bad crowd are worried that the flunky in the Fed will do dumb things or fascist things and bad things will happen including more fascist things.
The Federal Government Running Things is Good crowd are worried that the corporations will make things expensive and attempt to block new companies from breaking into the industry.  the idea is that new companies breaking into the industry would increase tech and bring down prices, something the existing companies wouldn't want . 

Does that sum it up?  

Absolute control does not always provide best profits.  I would much rather have a profit minded company control part of my access to the Internet, than have the one monolithic government control all of my access to the Internet.  What's to keep the government from deciding we MUST only have news sources that meet their standards?  

The thing that is weird and scary about Internet providers is that at least some of them have a monopoly within our communities.  In my community there is ATT from the telephone side of things and Spectrum (Time Warner/Road Runner) as the CATV provider.  Once upon a time there was only the telephone company and power company.  CATV was added much later.  CATV was given a monopoly in order to convince the company to build out the city.  They were given license to charge residents for CATV in exchange for the company having to make it available to everybody in the community.  At no time did the community say that the rules would not be changing in the future.  Every year, I think, the community has the option to change the rules or even toss out the current CATV provider in favor of another.  The tossed-out provider doesn't even get to keep the equipment they put in.  

So.. much much later the Federal government decides that only they have the sensitivity and intelligence to have ultimate control over how every CATV provider, and any other Internet provider, does business.  Still later the new Federal government decides that control over the companies be turned back over to States, Locals, and the companies themselves, back the way it was.  Why does this mean the end of all things?  
It seems to me that the local government, and the county and state can all intercede if something big and bad happens.  In some municipalities, mine included, there are multiple Internet providers and we get to choose.   At this time Spectrum is getting really bad press from the local geeks, but I don't know if the non-geeks really care. 

Right here, right now, I can get Internet from Verizon, ATT, and Spectrum.  Maybe Singular Wireless as well?  Dunno.  I suspect that Dish Network can do 2-way satellite.  They used to have that as an offering.  

Where is the evidence of danger from having the Fed back off from this?  

What am I missing?