What John C. Dvorak Thinks of Mac Users
 

:p

Just thought you'd want to know what this writer named John C. Dvorak thinks about us Mac users. He is suggesting that many of today's newspaper and magazine tech writers know little about computers because they are Mac users.
The full article is here:

http://www.pcmag.com/print_article2/...=162797,00.asp

Dvorak is a drooling moron in print. I used to think he was just a drooling moron in general, but he's great on the TWiT podcast. I don't know why all of his articles and editorials have always been so retarded.

I can't even tell what his position is on this.

On the TWiT podcast I don't know how many times he's said to someone asking about various virus/malware problems, "Oh, just get a Mac and be done with it all." Same for people with blue-screen problems.

Wow, what a twit. I guess half my universities CS department has been 'dupped' by this 'subtle' bias. Oh, and those of use who use Macs all the time in CS.

And another thing, it's horrible that Macintosh made a more easily accessed, astetically pleasing interface. They should make it ugly and complicated, that way media companies will stop using it and they can all get aquainted with Windows and start espousing it's many virtues.

I could go on...and on and on...I think we all could. But I really wish people would either get the facts straight or shut up.

CAlvarez, I must agree with you on this one.

What is his view in this story? Maybe I'm not reading the article correctly, but he seems a little inconsistent with that he talks about.

Does anyone even like John Dvorak?

I can tell you that he and Leo Laporte constantly talk about how great Macs are on the TWiT podcast (worth listening to). However, Dvorak doesn't think much of the fanboys and fanatics who think Apple can do no wrong and Macs are perfect. I can agree with him on that.

I still can't figure out his point in that article. I've never been able to follow his writing.

I believe Jerry Pournelle did. :D

I wouldn't worry too much about what he's got to say, sounds like he's just a bit bitter that the worm has turned.

I only bothered reading the first page, but from what I gather he's whining about Apple getting all the media attention and Microsoft not getting the recognition it deserves for its innovations.

Also how the tech media isn't what it used to be now that the Microsoft FUD proponents have converted to or been replaced by Mac users.

How can anyone DARE call themselves computer experts when they don't worship Windows - blasphemy!!!!! Hehe.

Quite a turn around really, go back a few years and you could pretty much swap "Apple" and "Microsoft" in his ravings. So, hmm, it's OK for the tech media to be Microsoft-loving, and Apple-bashing - but not the other way round? Seems a bit hippocritical if you ask me.

Guess the boot is on the other foot, and Mr. Dvorak isn't looking too comfy.

Watch him squirm!!!

hahahahahaha!!!!!!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!

Anyway, I've just spent far more time on that than his opinion is worth.
Don't make the same mistake!

Rob.

I've read some of his articles and found them to be generally weird makes him, in my humble opinion, a confused fool s_ _t. :) He also claimed that Steve Jobs' MacIntel decision was what he'd been saying long ago.

He also mentioned that the best thing Microsoft has done is copy off of Mac OS as much as possible, or something to that effect.

And what is with the ending were he mentions the Xbox 360?

Oh Man! I just read the title of this one and new it would be idiotic.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1860817,00.asp

Now, I can see in 20-30 years, newspapers being replaced by something more efficient.

But movies? Come on! How many Americans can afford a projector and a sound system and a screen?

I wonder if he ever really reads his articles. Maybe he just types it and publishes it....

Thoughts?

Well, in that case, then maybe he's making some sense. The reporters need to be balanced and have exposure to both sides.

I know that, and in reality the happy medium is probably closer to the truth, sure - the iPod gets a hell of a lot of media attention but not so much the Mac itself.

I think he just feels possibly under threat somehow, as the balance shifts it must feel like his world is coming to an end - even though this is not necessarily the case.

Dvorak's job is to piss people off. He also wrote a recent article talking about how Windows was a protection scam because Microsoft is more interested in selling you anti-malware software instead of fixing security problems. Does that make him pro-Apple or anti-Microsoft? No, it means he's doing his job. He used to be a columnist at MacUser and the name of the column was "The Devil's Advocate."

Paying attention to him is a waste of time. If you're getting all bent out of shape about his latest article...then you have helped Dvorak get his job done once again.

Boy, all these responses to this article are interesting. I think I like this last one the most though. CAlvarez pointed out that he's heard this same guy being pro apple before.

But, I think playing devils advocate isn't such a bad thing. It IS important to look at the flaws in both Microsoft and Apple (and linux, and straight up Unix, etc.). Macs are great machines, but they do have their flaws. If the press were to run away with "Mac can do no wrong" thought, then they might not give enough press times to problems when they pop up. If no one reports them, how are they going to ever be fixed? Eventually not being honest with yourself will just shot you in the foot.

I hope D-Douge-rak Dies of a Herpes Infestation and rots in hell....and wish a long and painful death on him and his whole entire family.

with that said, have a nice day!
:D

IMHO, most technical writers don't know all that much about how computers actually work. I read reviews of utilities and applications all the time I whole heartily disagree with. I remember this magazine back in the day called boot. It was one of the best. They got bought out and changed their names and now they give 10s all the time. Which is ridiculous.

I do think however that some mac users are elitists and get tunnel vision. I run mac os x, linux, and windows and home. All of my machines are networked with a print server. My ibook is wireless. I have no problems at all networking, file sharing, and using my systems.

Windows is not a bad OS if you know what you are doing. Most exploits out there (malware/spyware/etc) do not target macs because they have a low share of the market compared to PCs.

I hope that apple just drops their hardware production and makes a solid OS that will run windows applications on x86 based hardware. I would probably dump windows and run fully mac os x and linux at home. However, I do play video games, and well we all know that PCs have the best technology for gaming, and have the most support and development for video games.

To me, macs and pcs are apples and oranges. You cannot really compare the two. They are a preference thing IMHO. I love mac osx, but I don't like the price tag on apple hardware. Thats my personal opinion though.

This is one of the most oft-quoted misconceptions in the MS propaganda archives! If there were only 1 Mac to each thousand Windows machines, there would have to be hundreds of Mac viruses! There are prizes available for proof of a Mac virus. Not only that, but the virus writer would get much more fame for writing the first Mac virus!

This would not only be a great mistake, but place Apple in the position of being just another competitor with Windows. Ask IBM how well the sales of OS/2 is going and why isn't Linux, being a free and superior OS, more popular?

Other than cheap Taiwan, build it yourself hardware, Apple's price range is comparable or cheaper than any other computer manufacturer. This statement is very old and outdated.

I've never seen the price on Apple hardware, since Apple only sells complete systems with everything the user needs to get started. I've never seen a comparable system from any Wintel vendor; they all have to be pieced together (IE, add software which is included with Apple systems).

Two preferrable Dvoraks...
 

I have far more respect for Dr August Dvorak, the inventor of the American Simplified Keyboard, and of course Antonin Dvorák, the Bohemian composer.

:D

vegas-

I will have to disagree. Malware/spyware is a money making scheme right now. People are getting paid to develope it because its technically not a virus and not illegal. Plus in the EULA a lot of times it will say that the app you are installing does spy activities. There are mac viruses out there and there are root kits for mac osx. So, why would people who create spyware make it for a small market share? There is no money in it. If you got paid to write a piece of software and got paid on the basis of how many users you could get into, why would you write it for a smaller market share? I think its asinine that people are being able to this, but its happening. Now, writing a virus is technically illegal and you can serve jail time for it. Just ask the guy who wrote the love letter virus and got caught.

The reason why microsoft got so big is because its easy to use and it was cheap. Compared to other things. Linux, has too high of a learning curve, but linux/unix runs the internet. I read somewhere not too long ago that Apache along with linux/unix runs approx 70% of the internet. Can't say that I verified that information, but I remember reading it.

As for PC vs Mac hardware. I built a machine with OEM parts that cost me under 1000 dollars (found OEM parts for total of like 700ish) which will out perform any mac computer, besides a dual G5. I streamlined it and built it how I wanted to, and I was able to shop around for the best deals. With apple computers you just can't do that. I also was able to get a vanila 6800 agp video card and used a firmware hack to upgrade it to a 6800 GT, and it added several hundred point to my 3dmark score. Its technically not even a hack. The 1st generation vanilla 6800 cards were the exact same as the GTs, they just had some of the pipelines on the card disabled via firmware. So, I just re-enabled them.

Mac OS X, lowers the learning curve with the easy to use GUI, and the stability of unix. Also, the repair permissions utility is downright genious. If any of you have ever worked in a linux enviroment permissions can be a HUGE pain. I wish my linux distros would implement repair permission utilties. If apple can make a OS that will run stable on pretty much any config of x86 hardware and keep it up to date I feel they can give MS a run for their money. Which no one has been able to do. It will also give the opportunity for many computer users to load mac os x on their machines reguardless of what they have hardware wise or what they are used to.

I see it this way because if macintosh computers were truly that much greater, and superior in every aspect, extremely easy to use, and did not cost any more than a PC, they would have the high market share.

If you don't agree with me, we can simply agree to disagree at this point.

Very few American consumers have the ability to see past initial cost and calculate the total value and total cost of ownership.

Mac is actually easier to use. Because fewer people use it, one is bound to assume that Macs are more difficult to use than Windows.

"A man should always think of the source of water as he drinks it"

If man does that, he will puke everytime he drinks recycled water. :)

Man… I hate discussions about why Mac is so much less than Windows with obvious Windows extremists! They always quote the fictions created by salespeople that make more commission on cheap PCs than the Macs. I will just cover a few obvious fictions here…

No! No! No!!! There are no Mac OS X viruses! PERIOD! The supposed "root kits" are not and never could be viruses. In order to be a virus a program has to incorporate itself into other code and replicate! These supposed "root kits" did neither! They were also developed and released by an anti-virus program company apparently attempting to increase sales to Mac users.

Given this logic, no-one would ever write viruses! That idiot in Minnesota didn't write the love letter virus. He was a high school student that added his name to the code and re-released it.

Not true. MS got big by literally forcing their competition out of business after stealing their technologies.

Did you also read that Apple is the largest distributor of UNIX worldwide?

As far a "build it yourself" for under $1000, I can get a great Mac for under $1000 too and not have to pay Mr. Gates for an OS. I put a flashed ATI 9800 card in my Mac too for much less than the Mac card costs. Yes. It did speed my Mac too. :)

I see them as apples and oranges. I meet people all the time that are on one side of the spectrum. Either mac or PC, but I am in the middle. I could care less about elitism. I know how to use both, I repair both, I configure both, I support both. I like both.

IMHO, people need to realize that both are good machines when used properly. When someone buys a dual G5 to surf the internet and do email, I think its dumb, and a waste.

As for my sub 1000 dollar gaming rig I built, I guarantee it will eat any sub 1000 dollar mac for breakfast. My 6800 alone kills any mac video card out there. Unless you want to count the DDL nvidia card for macintosh, but that card is 600 dollars by itself. Where as on the PC side, and SLI card is much cheaper and has the same specs. Its things like that I just don't under stand.

Anyways, I am not trying to start an argument, just a discussion. If someone out there can really convince me that macs are a billion times better than x86 machines, then I will change my mind. Until then, I am sticking in the middle and looking at pros and cons of each

needs a scan
 

This guy needs a spyware, maleware, and virus scan urgently...

Tlarkin, you make good points that are correct. There is room for both, and a reason for each.

I'm an old hacker who started by building a computer from scratch components (2200 individually soldered parts). I grew into the business, never went to school (I'm a high school drop-out). I have built, hacked, and fixed a lot of machines in my life. I'm done. I just want a machine that works, out of the box, every time I need it. My job now is much more business/consulting oriented, and playing with hardware just gets in the way. I have no desire to ever build a computer again.

For me, the Mac is a perfect solution. The power/stability of Unix, ready to use simplicity. I *can* drop to a command line and do anything I need on a network, but I can spend all day in a GUI doing business stuff.

For a hobbyist/hacker, a home built with Linux is powerful and fun. I went through that phase. It's certainly not a good solution for someone who wants to USE a computer more than work on it. And it can't be compared in value to a Mac in any way. Yes, it is "faster" when put to the test, but will the average user notice? What does the average user need beyond maybe a G4-800 or a Pentium 1.2GHz? My mom has a dome iMac G4/800 and can't picture what a "faster" machine would do for her.

Value is the fulfillment of a need for a certain price. Macs fulfill the need to have a simple, working, stable machine, at a certain cost. A home built with Linux fills a different need, at a lower dollar cost (but with a labor cost added). It's not a better value for those who just want a working machine to accomplish certain needs.

Amen to that, CAlvarez. Well said.

Very nice Cal, I am with you.