You know I've finally figured out what it is that bothers me about MacIntosh computers, the one thing that just annoys me. The thing about Macs is not that they're just bad computers, they're completely acceptable pieces of machinery, I have nothing against someone for simply having and using a Mac, I also have nothing against Macs themselves, some of the prettiest computers I've ever known have been Macs.
No, what bothers me isn't the machine itself, it's the mentality that bothers me, and I mean downright turns my stomach, we're talking seething rage here. I can understand how Apple's ad campaigns are geared towards selling the Mac as a stable and reliable personal computer, which is understandable, people need assurance, but what really burns my biscuits is how they not only sell this idea of stability but also push the idea that Macs have more stability than any other computer out there. They force their propaganda into our faces with all the fervor of a Nazi recruitment video, making the Mac out to be some sort of aryan race of desktop computers. How many IBM ads have you seen that make Mac users out to be idiots? Not many I'd think, I know I haven't. And now, how many Mac ads have you seen that make PC users out to be idiots? A lot would be my guess, as most if not all of Apple's ad campaigns over at least the past 2 years have been built around this one concept.
Just tonight I heard a radio ad, for a Mac dealer, saying how Mac users are like dog owners and PC users are like cat owners, saying that if you want someone reliable that will always greet you when you get home, like a dog, something stable, then a Mac is the computer for you. And as for PC users they said, and I quote, "if you prefer a cat, that when you get home is, well, somewhere within a five mile radius, then you'd probably prefer a PC. What are the differences between cats and dogs? Well, we'll leave that and other impoderables up to the PC users of the world." Do they honestly want us to believe that PC users are good at nothing but wasting time?
Another example of this attrociously insulting advertising mentality is the switch ads, which to my delight have been parodied more times than I can count, and are all quite amusing. Though, the true masterpieces are the original ads themselves. As you've all seen them I'm sure, this will sound very familiar. Each ad featured a person standing in front of a plain background, talking about their horrific experiences with PCs and how they had lost homework assignments or important business documents due to Windows crashes and such, and how, switching to a Mac has been so easy, and everything has been so user friendly. Well the ads did sadly leave out a couple important things, and they fit mainly into the same category, drawbacks. Yes, believe it or not even Macs have drawbacks. For instance, there is the lack of support, most software designers no longer support Macs as far as software goes, especially in the area of games, which is the largest selling section of the software industry nowadays. Also, the ads failed to point out another thing that I think is rather important, and that is that; as a new Mac user you will be joining the legions of happy, assured Mac users that are too stupid to know how to save work periodically in case of a crash. And believe it or not, even Macs can crash. As well, correct me if I'm mistaken, but isn't an idiot that switches from a PC to a Mac, still an idiot? Won't they still make the same stupid mistakes regardless of what system they choose to use, be it PC, Mac, or Etch-A-Sketch?
Now, you could argue, that, "John, it's just advertising, don't take it so seriously, if it bothers you, then don't pay attention to it." A valid point, thanks for making it. But sadly, in this particular case, it's not that easy. You see, if it was simply a matter of out of sight out of mind, then I could just go about my PC using ways and leave it at that.
But, as Mac would have it, their propaganda has succeeded, and it has sunk deep indeed, to the point where, most, if not all Mac users have spent so long believeing the ads that it is virtually impossible to tell them otherwise. Nothing short of a near fatal hard-drive crash will snap them out of their mindset that Macs are flawless. Now I'll be one of the first to admit that PCs are not by far the most reliable of resources but nine times out of ten, I can count on my PC working for me, but I will acknowledge that one time out of ten when it doesn't, such as two incidents i had which is simply call the Big Format of 2002 and The Crash. But Mac users on the other hand, act like that one time never happened for them, even after pointing out that they're one shy in the count when they only come up with 9. Like I said, it's not the computers, it's the mentality, and the fact that it's gone rampant and keeps getting propagated by Apple and perpetuated by the Mac users.
A recent development has caused me a great amount of amusement in that Mac users have been suddenly forced to face their own short-sightedness with Macintosh announcing it will begin using Intel Processors. The irony of this is that Intel was once propegated as an evil entity that opposed all that is Mac, and now they will be forced to accept it as an inevitable internal working of their precious machines. Though I'm sure that most Mac users will regard it as an irremovable and corrupting evil, much like a parasite, feeding off the glory that is Mac. I even have a friend who is a Mac user who lamented on the decision by Apple and when asked why he was complaining about Apple making a smart move, replied: "I have nothing against the use of intel hardware, but now I've got to unlearn all the propaganda."
Like I said, though, I have nothing against Mac users or their computers, it's the mentality.
You can take it as you will, and in the words of Groucho Marx, "These are my opinions. If you don't like them, I have others."