Re: [NTLK] Safari Pad - Apple's Tablet Computer

Stefan wrote:

>> Mac OS X has actually extended the already long life of older Mac
>> systems.
>
> That's only part of the truth: You could use them
> with OS 9 as well and much faster.

Yes, of course. But speed isn't everything. With Mac OS 9 I can't
connect to wireless networks with a higher encryption than WEP. With
Mac OS 9 the only browsers which are barely capable to keep up to the
current state of the Web are Mozilla and iCab. Mozilla is a true RAM
and resource eater, and it's generally sluggish. And what about email
clients with multiple account support, and IMAP support?

There are trade-offs to make, and with some of my Macs I sacrificed
Mac OS 9 snappiness to obtain more overall functionality, and more
modern software (still supported in some cases) which can work on 9-10
year old Macs. That's not bad, in my book.

I have a lot of pre-Mac OS X software, and I have tailored some of my
vintage Macs to allow me to keep working even in the unlikely case
that all my newest Macs are lost in a fire, flood or other
disasters :) (See for example this post in my blog: <http://tinyurl.com/5300ce
> )

Thankfully I work with text mainly, so I don't need the latest and the
newest. My main machine is still a 1 GHz PowerBook G4.

> My hypothesis on that affair:
> We have been conditioned to want the newest all the time.
> And that's the hype the whole technology industry
> depends on: faster, newer, more lovely.

Heh -- don't look at me, though. I have a MP2000, MP2100 and an eMate.
I also have a Cambridge Z88. And 19 Macs -- the newest of which was
produced in 2003. Also, the point of my blog (sadly not updated as
frequently as I'd love to) is to show that vintage Macs can still be
quite useful today. So I think that we're on the same page about
that. :)

Cheers,
Rick

...................................
System Folder - The Platinum Days
<http://systemfolder.wordpress.com>

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Received on Thu Apr 23 18:42:08 2009