Is Microsoft losing battle against Mac?

It's not that big a chore as you make it sound. Also, the fact that many people call Windows 'bloated' is because of the fact that they like to visit shady sites and download all kinds of software for which they really have no need for. Why doesn't Apple have the same problems? Oh wait, a lot of stuff isn't compatible and needs special Mac versions.

True, Apple has a much more polished interface and seems to be easier, but Windows for me any day. And it's not because I can't afford a Mac, my home did have one and though I loved it, I preferred my PC when I went on an experimentation spree or just normal day to day work. Maybe that's because I had used Windows before that extensively, but whatever.

 

sure Apple might not be interested in dominating the market, but this thread was asking if Microsoft were losing against them, so to what you say, no they are not. Sure Apple have the customers that will always stick by macs and will never go for a windows machine, so Apple will never lose them and will always have returning customers. but Microsoft is more widely available.

Apple own the Personal Music Player industry hands down, but computer wise, its a Microsoft town.

 

Personally, I root for the Oregon Ducks in football. Someone else may be rooting for rival Oregon State. Neither is "right" or "wrong". It's the same with PCs and Macs. It's just a matter of personal preference.

 

its already started from my point of view. I know im only one person but i get pissed of with mac users, and i really hate mac users in starbucks with the whole im bettter then you i have a mac look! half of my software wont run on a mac as macs suck and the OS is overpriced its aimed at a public use people like 9-5 salesmen buy it and get into debt.

 

So, you're saying Macs are bad cause they can't download all kinds of bloated software they have no use for?

Huh?

 

My point was that Microsoft market share has dropped somewhat and Mac market share has increased. Microsoft revenue has been dropping for over a year. Apple revenue has increased (to the point they now have more cash than Microsoft).

You can get Macs anywhere.

Desktop only. Nowhere else.

 

Seriously, I don't think the idea of 'overtaking' MS would ever even cross their minds - MS makes its cash out of licensing its software, plus some extra from retailing it (and I doubt they've made that much - if anything - from any hardware they've ever put out). Apple's philosophy is two-fold - make stuff people choose to buy (rather than buying it because it happens to be pre-installed), and create vertically integrated niches (cause I don't wanna use the "ecosystem" word to describe stuff that gets sold). In both instances, yeah, the build/experience quality is supposed to drive a certain consumer loyalty that you either subscribe to or you don't. You can buy a Mercedes, for example, but why not just get a Toyota or a Ford? Some will because it is a Mercedes. Some won't because they can't see the point, either in terms of cost or value.

 

Try reading the entire paragraph and you might just understand.

 

You think I didn't read that but managed to pick apart what you said?

 

I can do the same. Now you look like a retard. Need to read stuff in entirety before you try to look super cool.

 

I agree completely, but the fact of the matter is, most of the Apple products other than the iPod are completely overpriced and hyped up. I've all of Apples products including an iMac.

At the beginning, it was fun. It was a change from the usual design and the interface was easy and pleasing. But as time passed, I found out that I couldn't do 80% of the stuff I actually needed to do with those products. So I paid them an overpriced fat check for stuff that I needed to compromise on. What the hell?

Mobile phones with Symbian platforms and computers with the windows OS are far cheaper, easier to work with and customizable. All Apple has is a kick ass website and glossy products. (But this didn't stop me from pre ordering an iPad )

 

Not having accompanied you to Starbuckers, I can't honestly comment one way or the other on the attitude you are confronted with while supping a coffee by other Mac-using customers. However the fact that "Macs suck" seems a dubious, or at least scantily detailed, reason for their alleged incapacity to run software. I'd be more inclined to think that if software doesn't run on a Mac, it would be the result of the absence of a Mac-compatible version of it having been written by its developer(s), rather than a platform-specific "suckiness" inherent in Mac OS (presumably you're not talking about the hardware).

As for the OS being "overpriced", that is so completely spurious an assertion that it doesn't warrant refuting; suffice it to say that a quick trip down the aisles of your nearest electronics chain store would provide ample proof of the inaccuracy of your claim, unless of course you believe that Windows is "even more overpriced", in which case the argument takes on a very different meaning.

Furthermore, I'm not so sure that it was developed with the intent that it's target market be restricted to salesmen (or even salespeople). That'd be kinda dumb, as well as misplaced were it indeed the case, as none of the 9 Mac users I can think of off the top of my head are salespeople. And I'm reasonably sure that none of them are in debt as a result of their choice of OS. Unless, of course, you attribute their mortgages/home purchases to their desires to provide an appropriate weather shelter for their computers. And maybe you'd be right ...

 

mac users spend more online then windows users thats a fact mac users spend more on home purchases then a windows user and there for are placed in debt due to this simple really feel free to use google it was all over the new papers a few months ago.

Mac-compatible version are not made because its not worth the time and money why would a company of a niche product make a mac version that costs them xxxxx$ to make when they will only make xx$ back from sales?

 

I get it, and can relate. Sorta. I'll also confess that, though I've never owned a PC, I have never used anything but at work (and I'm old, so that's a long time). I got so sick of blue screens and viral deaths that I swore I would never own one at home.

I'm also lazy - I like the fact that I pick up a thing and it works, without having to spend hours getting it 'just right'. "Less options" is sometimes a good thing ... for people like me. Besides, just because you can make a thing to do one thing 1500 different ways, doesn't necessarily make it a better product. And just because you could make something do 1500 different things, doesn't mean it should either (which is why I am stoked about the iPad).

Is MS losing the battle against Mac? If it boils down to a hearts and minds things, maybe, maybe not - there are posters here that aren't won over I think the "battle" needs defining: what are the stakes, so we can rationally calculate the advances/retreats made by either side.

 

The fact that a lot of stuff won't work on a Mac for people doesn't make Mac suck per se, but it does mean it's a lot more inconvenient than it should be. Again, nothing wrong with Mac as such, but Windows is an established platform on which basically everything works out of the box. Many users want a little more from their PC's than being just able to listen to music and edit word documents and in that case I think Windows wins on compatibility. You could say Macs are better made and Windows sucks in terms of design and programming, but fact is stuff works out of the box and that itself makes it a better option for most people than Macs. And yes, Macs are much more expensive. At least in my country, India. Going to a departmental store here doesn't make a difference because they don't sell Macs. But then, that's a country specific issue you will argue.

 

Not that I want to get dragged into an unending debate about this, but I can reasonably (and justifiably) counter with the "consumer studies show Mac buyers have higher disposable incomes, therefore it is logical they would spend more online without it necessarily implying a greater level of personal debt for this same group compared to non-Mac users". And I'll add a "that's a fact", "I've read it before all over the place" just to add a little more weight to my argument. But you'd not agree, so who cares?

An assertion, not a fact, but given the relative market share, not an unreasonable one, with the condition that this doesn't apply to all software, nor to all developers. Microsoft, for example, don't seem to agree that it isn't in their interest to develop for Mac ...

 

They are not even close to losing the battle yet... Microsoft is waaaaaay huger than Apple and it will be for a long time...

 

With vista MSFT dropped the ball (like W ME) , but with W7 they are gaining ground again. While I'm sure there are uses for macs, I don't really know many people except newbs who buy them; no real reason except to have a pretty mac apple for 3 times the price of a regular PC (having to dual boot windows bc of certain programs not running?). Sure, graphic/video guys say great things about macs, but a 64bit W7 platform (not vista haha) with equivalent ram works just as well in my view.

Macs have their place but to be fair, if you just buy a computer for some internet surfing, why not buy a cheap (nice looking) netbook?

 

http://www.olswang.com/j_convergence09/content/default.asp?id=109

it was in all the major newspapers a few months ago.

how about i tell you why i wouldnt user a mac and why i use windows:

windows runs more software, security patches in widows are alot better making the system more safe, also you state you work in a office you know why your company has windows and not mac you cant legaly tweak a mac.

and when i talk about price i talk about the whole setup not just a OS.

 

Except Vista. And Windows XP. And Windows Me (remember that one , and Windows 98, and Windows 95, and Windows 3 ... I seem to recall all of them having big problems at launch specifically because they didn't work out of the box (drivers mostly, except 95, 98, Me and XP v.0 that were all just a little too unfinished and buggy). Windows wins on the number of things it'll connect to, because it has a larger market share, therefore more drivers (when they get released or updated, and are made available for distribution, which is not always concurrent with the release of an OS). I can't really think of something I'd be likely to buy, from a manufacturer I'd want to buy it from, that wouldn't work on a Mac, but I'm sure someone else will come up with one for me. It "wins" on software, because it has more. Then again, I don't know that I want or need to have 100 different choices for an anti-virus or word processor. I'd be happy with 5, if they're actually good. As for hardware, like for like, they're not more expensive. I can't speak for pricing in India, but I'd be kinda surprised if it was different than here - yeah, you won't find a $300 Mac, but a $300 PC isn't the same as a $900 Mac, so you can't really compare them.