Posted 05/16/2009 at 08:34:49pm

Apple is really getting desperate.  They have no actual advantage over PCs yet cost more, so in order to avoid going bankrupt due to laco of sales, they propagate the myths that PCs are crash-prone and always getting viruses.  I've been using XP ever since it came out on three PCs at home and two at work, and I have never been hit by as virus, and haven't had crashes either. 

Apple is making a purely emotional appeal:  PC users are portrayed as stodgy, inept, bumbling, old-fashioned, uptight, arrogant, out of style and unrealistically clinging to an obsolete platform; while Mac users are intelligent, cool, hip, fashionable, nice people and are open to new and better things.

I was thinking these commercials were insulting to PC users, but I have re-thought it.  What kind of people are most likely to be swayed by the kind of inane emotional appeal used in these commercials?  Those more interested in their own image and style rather than substance.  The commercials, aimed at potential Mac users, are actually more of an insult to the Mac users themselves!

Posted 09/08/2008 at 06:20:03pm

Remember to back up your data before doing this, in case a power outage or sudden hardware issue occurs when the partition is being changed.

Posted 08/01/2008 at 05:28:48pm

That first photo is, from left to right, Snow White, Boba Fett, and Move Your Hand, Dammit!

Posted 08/01/2008 at 05:24:00pm

Huh?

Posted 07/28/2008 at 07:03:11pm

First off, I'd like to thank the staff at MaximumPC for building an exceptionally beautiful DM this year.

Every year, the DM gets more extravagant, and each year, I have to argue with myself to just let go and enjoy the sheer abandon with which its builders spend someone else's money to build "the ultimate" rather than my natural tendency to think "Gee, they could have saved a thousand bucks there with no noticeable performance difference" or "when will they ever even use that piece of equipment?"  It's not easy, but how else will I enjoy it?

However, I have to say something about the nickel plating. Five thousand dollars to nickel-plate the case?  What's up with that?  For that kind of money, couldn't you have gotten it plated in gold or platinum?

It's a rhetorical question, though.  I'm sure nickel is much more durable.  But you could have at least said it was platinum-plated, and most of us would have believed you.

Ah, that's right--"Minimum BS".  Well, I guess even that has its downside once in a while.

 Party on.

Posted 08/21/2007 at 05:02:24pm

RCW, you are exactly correct about backing up data before you lose it! However, this article isn't wrong-headed, because even when backups are made, data recovery will still be needed. Here are some examples of such cases: 1. You try to restore the backups and find they are corrupt (happens more often than you'd think) 2. Important new data has come in since the last backup was done. 3. Attempting to back up the data is what caused the data loss in the first place. (This one happens a lot more than you'd think, too! I've spoken with many people who accidentally trashed the drive they were trying to back up because they didn't know what they were doing, for example they ghosted the blank backup drive over their main drive.) 4. The backups are not available. Disgruntled employees have been known to hide, steal or destroy backups. Also, the backup media can be damaged. 5. The data is time-sensitive and data recovery might take less time than restoring backed-up data. (Though not usually the case, sometimes this does occur.) These are the first ones I could think of, there are probably others. I agree with you 100% that people should back up their data regularly, but that won't always prevent the need for data recovery!

Posted 08/09/2007 at 05:45:06pm

I have been wanting to go Linux for some time. Unfortunately, pretty much every program I like is Windows-only. Linux is improving very fast, though. I estimate that in two or three years, there will be some distros that are as easy to run as Windows. When that time comes, people will swarm to Linux. Screw M$ with their $200-400 pricing for Vista!

Posted 07/11/2007 at 04:21:38pm

This is a reply to micahmatt who wrote on Mon, 2007-05-21 15:52: "Maybe if Microsoft were to invent a product that actually works, they could keep up with Linux and not be compelled to call the law into the picture..." The thing is, Microsoft already had a product that works. Windows XP. Windows Server 2003 works well also. Why would anyone want to upgrade to Vista? Other than DirectX 10, it doesn't have anything I can see to make it better than XP. It's just a ton of bloatware (especially the aero GUI) that has features you could already get done better with third-party apps. Linux may or may not be highly functional, I've played around with Ubuntu and it has a beautiful GUI, is very intuitive and seems to work fine but IMO is not at all ready for the mainstream. I needed help to find and install the drivers for my video card, and I tried to figure out how to install software on my own but was unable to. I'm used to doing things myself even if they're a little difficult, so I suspect the average home user who needs someone to hold their hand while they click "Next... Next... Finish" to install software in Windows will projectile vomit for hours when they see what's involved in Linux. BUT, considering how far Linux has come in the last two years I fully expect there to be versions within another two years that are as easy if not easier than Windows itself. In other words, I expect that Vista will be the last home/small business OS released by Microsoft. And it's not a moment too soon. Unfortunately, there's the possibility that MS will bankrupt the companies that produce the best and easiest Linux distros, or at least gain injunctions against them. I hope that doesn't happen...

Posted 05/29/2007 at 03:23:48pm

I give this idea a 3. And that's on a 1-10 scale.