From: John Ruschmeyer (jruschme_at_comcast.net)
Date: Thu Feb 05 2004 - 14:19:29 PST
> From: Chris Edwards
> Sent: Thursday, February 05, 2004 4:40 PM
> To: newtontalk_at_newtontalk.net
> Subject: Re: [NTLK] Bad guys use PCs
>
>
> I can buy a top spec Lada car, put wide wheels and go faster bits on it
> for about $300 but it is crap, sure windoze stuf is cheap, you get what
> you pay for, the only thing to fail on a mac so far(7 years) is a
> couple of hard drives and the catch on the iBOOK, in the last year my
> friends have had power supplies, modems, etc, etc as time is money I
> think macs are cheaper in the long run, that is before you get into
> viruses
Personally, I think the Lada comparison is a bit of a broad generalization.
There are both good and bad PC makers and PC parts.
As for me, I like the commodity aspect of the x86 architecture because it is
possible to get in "on the cheap" and then move up. My PCs are mostly
castoffs or built from castoff parts. Why? Because I don't really need the
latest (my fastest box is a PIII 450) and don't care enough about industrial
design (it's in an early Gateway 2000 ATX case). If something breaks, I
don't mind swapping it out because I can.
Personally, I'd love to have my primary platform be a Mac (I do have a beige
G3/266 running Jaguar), but find myself very hard pressed to justify the
entry cost of even a minimal system. That said, if someone wants to give me
a stripped B&W (the minimal system which can officially run Panther), please
feel free (I'll even pay postage). Beyond that, there is the issue that when
something does break, it is most likely an Apple-specific part.
As for Apple reliability, they have had their share of duds, too. I'm not
talking about things like the PowerBook 5300, but more modern issues such as
early iMac analog boards (which die in a manner reminiscent of the Mac
Plus), Wallstreet hinge failures, iBook screen cable (and the entire video
subsystem) failures, and PowerBook 12" displays which develop spots.
As for viruses, the Windows platform may be more prolific, but that doesn't
excuse the fact that most virus infections require the user to have taken
some action.
I'll agree that you get what you pay for, but how much of that cost is
status and glitz.
<<<John>>>
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