Old school Mac geeks

So how do you old school "mac geeks" feel about the apple name change and this years Macworld. Do you feel Apple is giving up on the great computers they make to make $$$ on the iPod and other other non-computer things? Do you feel the computers will start to slip or fall behind, and apple will focus on the iPod dollars? Will apple lose touch with their base customers? Will all the new "switchers" bring bad thing s to the Mac like viruses, and other problems? You can see what I'm getting at

I don't think Apple will leave their base users, and I certainly do not think Apple will leave their computers behind. Everything they do goes around the computer. the Apple TV will sync with yoru computer, the ipod will sync with your computer the iphone will sync with your computer etc. Their main product has been and most likely always will be Mac computers. If not then I really hope they keep their software available for sale on windows. (I can not live with out final cut and shake)

What name change? Are they not Apple anymore or are you referring to the Apple Inc?

I think they are just putting it plain and simple what the iPod made them realize: the company has to diversify to grow.

I think that, from what I can see, the market share gains are for real but the source of this are, yes, the iPod (made plenty of Windows people see what all of us Mac users knew for years, how cool Apple was) but the move to Intel processors calmed possible switchers and brought them into known territory.

The only thing I am still afraid of from that Intel move is if developers stop making Mac versions of their software, claiming you can always use my product on the Windows side, why would I bother making a native Mac version?

I'm talking about how they dropped the computer from their name.

I guess I'm an old school mac geek ... So I'll toss in my 2¢'s worth:

All I care about really is that my iMac continues to serve my needs and continues to be a good investment.

Apple inc, on the other hand, can do as they wish IMO. My computer is under warranty and there are hundreds of macs for sale through dozens of different avenues. So the market moves of Apple inc don't really affect my relationship with my iMac C2D.

I guess I view my iMac as an expensive stylish tool. I use the tool but won't get too caught up in the manufacturer or their business ...

Has anybody actually called them Apple Computer in normal conversations? When people ask what computer you got you say you got an Apple and everybody knows what it is. This change doesn't mean anything, its just Apple wanting to show they aren't just a computer company.

And as long as the stock price keeps rising like it did yesterday I could care less what they call themselves

Apple dropping Computer from their name is just so that they can continue to offer great new innovative products in different markets which at first may seem to be unrelated to the 'computer' industry.

Who wants a computer in their living room? I don't - but a media centre or a media hub or I don't know, maybe something called appleTV - now that sounds a bit more like entertainment and a little less like work. Its just word play.

Perhaps the number of switchers is a cause for concern only because the Mac OS is pretty secure - however there has long been an argument on Linux forums which says something along the lines of "Why make a virus for an OS with such a small market share?" The bigger Apple gets the more people using the Mac OS = the more people looking to take advantage of that increased user-base.

FireFox is a good example - early versions were pretty secure - or at least people were not actively looking for ways to compromise it - now it's got a huge user-base people are always trying to compromise it.

Just my opinion. Oh and No - I've never called them Apple Computer Inc in a conversation - just plain old Apple.

Dave

Sachsr1 said:

I'm talking about how they dropped the computer from their name.

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If it wasn't clear in my earlier post, I really couldn't care less about the name change and besides they have very sound and logical reasons for doing so.

the growing user base worries me tht it will no longer be as secure.

PowerBookG4 said:

I don't think Apple will leave their base users, and I certainly do not think Apple will leave their computers behind.

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They've done it before. Granted it was over twenty years ago, but when they transitioned from the Apple // line to the Mac line they pretty much quit supporting their older systems and left a lot of long term users high and dry.

I think it's a real issue, looking at things, you have to think that the biggest R&D expense that they have right now is OS development, and their big cash cow is the iPod. Consumer electronics offer easier development, shorter life spans, and bigger profit margins.

I'm not saying that Apple will drop their computer lines, but I think it possible we could see some big changes in company focus in the coming years.

mr g5 said:

the growing user base worries me tht it will no longer be as secure.

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The fact that the user base is smaller then windows is far from the main reason there are no viruses or spyware for Mac's. Even if they had 100% the unix permissions and administrator authentication would still make it very hard to infect a system

dan828 said:

They've done it before. Granted it was over twenty years ago, but when they transitioned from the Apple // line to the Mac line they pretty much quit supporting their older systems and left a lot of long term users high and dry.

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This is correct they did just leave their old computers behind, but they replaced them with computers. Just like they replaced their old ppc systems with the intel ones we have now (not on the same level but same theory). I don't think they will just get rid of computers all together which is what my statement was before, but I think they may change what the computer is to the company.

I'm just afraid the investors will start to push for the $$ that the iPod, and push for apple to spend less and less on the Macs R&D. It's kind of a weird way of saying the "they got to corporate". That's funny because they are a big corporation already, but they do a great job of supporting their customer base. If they start to grow too fast I'm afraid they'll "forget where they came from".

"Where they came from" is one thing Apple has always been consistent with. Apple has always been an innovator with technology. I don't see where they have lost this ideal.:black:

D3v1L80Y said:

"Where they came from" is one thing Apple has always been consistent with. Apple has always been an innovator with technology. I don't see where they have lost this ideal.:black:

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They haven't lost it... in fact.. they're just getting better at it.