Microsoft Critique
I’m not saying I entirely agree with it, but Robert Scoble wrote an interesting post this weekend about what’s wrong with Microsoft.
I’ve been talking for about nine months about moving to apple as my main desktop OS. It’s also the main direction my career seems to be moving towards. A lot of people tend to think this means that I’m pro-apple and anti-microsoft. Funny, because most of my mac-cy friends have always thought I was pro-microsoft and anti-apple.
The truth is, both companies are doing things wrong. Scoble’s post talks about microsoft’s oversights, but apple surely has some, too. They’re wrong about their attitude to security updates, as SilentBob will tell you. I also think that in the past they’ve been less than adequately open with prospective developers - that almost put them under in the past, and it looks like they’re doing the same thing with the iPhone.
At the end of the day I’m choosing mac because it offers me the most flexibility. I can open a bash terminal on a mac. Applescript, to be frank, has been a revelation to me. These days, I can even change hard drives or add OEM memory/graphics cards. But the deal clincher? Parallels. I can run windows on a mac, but not vice versa.
I’ll be ordering my mac pro in the next two weeks.
July 9th, 2007 at 11:05 am
I can run windows on a mac, but not vice versa
That’s hardly Microsoft’s fault though. I find Apple quite annoying when they say things like “we can run MS Office too” and “you can run Windows on the Mac” when what they really mean is Microsoft’s appplication development arm have kindly created a version of Office that runs on the Mac (and has nothing to do with Apple or OSX, so you still have to buy it, just like on Windows), and the reason you can’t run OSX on a PC is because Apple use digital rights to force you to run OSX on their hardware.
I still think AppleScript has the potential to be a security nightmare, although they may have already learnt from Windows’ mistakes. It is a lot more user friendly to write an AppleScript than many other alternative scripting languages on other platforms.
I do think that Apple are good at making things simple and obvious, and they develop well designed user interfaces (Windows isn’t bad, as Office 2007’s ribbon and the latest version of WMP has shown, but some things are simply “better” on the Mac), and graphically there’s a lot of attention to detail (you’d expect that when the Mac has historically been used by a lot of graphic designers). The underlying kernel and user rights also has a good history, legacy applications have been developed with the idea of low privilege users to begin with; but I think Apple really need to add modern technologies to their kernel, as many buggy applications are being made available for OSX. I also think that Apple’s own applications need to be more secure: their kernel is pretty good, as is Linux, UNIX and arguably Windows (the new Core version of Windows Server 2008 will be very interesting), but most of their applications over the last couple years have had vulnerabilities, and the more popular they get the more researchers will look into them (e.g. the recent Safari vulnerabilities that were uncovered for the production copy of OSX after fuzzing was performed on the Windows beta).
I don’t have a problem with people using OSX, or Linux, or Windows. All have good and bad points. What I don’t like is when people use an operating system for the wrong reasons. You are one of the few people I know that uses OSX and isn’t smug about it. You’re turning to it for reasons that you can actually explain, and not because of an expensive marketing campaign or because your mate told you to.
They do make some very pretty looking machines though.
July 9th, 2007 at 12:31 pm
That’s hardly Microsoft’s fault though.
Agree.
It is a lot more user friendly to write an AppleScript than many other alternative scripting languages
Agree. Even more significant is the way that dictionaries seem to be automatically included with even 3rd party software.
They do make some very pretty looking machines though.
More important than graphics is the sound: the mac pros that I’ve been have been silent from a distance of more than an inch or so.
July 9th, 2007 at 12:45 pm
You can build PCs that quiet too, it’s virtually identical hardware to what’s in a couple of my PCs (and they’re pretty much silent). But most PC manufacturers simply throw some OEM fans and stock/cheap CPU coolers because that’s what people are used to (in fact, they’re used to much louder machines with very hot processors). Nowadays it’s the graphics card that tends to be the noisiest part, but you can normally solve that with a Zalman VF-900
July 9th, 2007 at 1:29 pm
I’m sure that there are lots of PCs that are that quiet, but I’m also sure that every one of them has a specially designed case. Most cases aren’t that quiet, even with big ol’ zalman fans and heatsinks. Decent quiet power supplies are pretty rare, too. The noise that’s hard to get rid of is vibration noise, and that tends to benefit from a fairly comprehensive design.
I currently use a 120mm zalman fan with passive heatsinks, but their silence is drowned by the very nice but somewhat loud Tagan power supply.
It would probably be a lot better if I put it on a square of carpet. My laminate floors seem to amplify/transport a lot of the low frequency noise and vibration.
My server is far too loud, too - it will probably inherit the zalman stuff, and the hard drive cooling is already 120mm, but it’s got about six 80mm exhaust fans which I can’t help but feel it will need in its tiny cupboard. Even then, the gig switch just above it is noisier.
July 9th, 2007 at 2:09 pm
My main machine has a Zalman Aero Flower cooling the CPU, which mostly runs idle - I have it connected to a Zalman Fanmate plugged into another Fanmate in order to make it run incredibly slowly. I have a 120mm exhaust fan at the side of the case (connected by a Fanmate), above the graphics card with a Zalman VF-900 running with a Fanmate at its lowest setting). I think I still have the 120mm exhaust fan connected with a Fanmate at the back, near the Aero Flower. And I have a 120mm intake fan at the bottom, to help keep the two hard disks cool (was originally 4 plugged in), although I might have disconnected that now (again, plugged in with a Fanmate). The main hard disk is a fairly quiet Maxtor 250GB DMax 10 that’s kept inside of a SilentDrive enclosure. My PSU is a high efficiency 460W Xilence semi-fanless one, and the fan has never kicked in (it doesn’t have many power connectors though). The Lian Li V1100 case has a variety of sound absorbing materials. You’re right about the laminate floor though, very occasionally I have to move my PC so it doesn’t create a vibrating noise. I miss having carpet in a lounge.
My fileserver is noisy, which is why it lives in my spare bedroom instead of the lounge. I have a 120mm fan attached to one of those Zalman arms, cooling both of the big copper heatsinks above the dual Xeons, and it’s a good and quiet way to keep them cool. The main hard disk, an 80GB Seagate Bara V, is also inside a SilentDrive enclosure. The most noise is generated by the 480W Tagan PSU, I think the bearings have gone in the fan(s), although the 16 hard disks hooked up to the system doesn’t help. It’d probably help if I put the last 8 back into the case at some point, and put the case back on, but I haven’t had a chance to power it down. I’m thinking of disconnecting(/selling?) them until the other array is full. My systems are getting quieter and I’m slowly moving things down, so hopefully when the fileserver inherits my C2D hardware it’ll become a shade quieter and cooler.
I don’t think you need a specially designed case, although it would definitely help, I think you need to pick components that are relatively quiet (such as the Saphire graphics cards with Zalman VF-900 heatsinks instead of the louder stock cooler version you can buy), which isn’t always the best value, and most manufacturers prefer a bigger margin. I haven’t checked recently, but Apple’s systems are traditionally more expensive than systems from Dell, Evesham et al, so they can afford to go for quieter components. People tend to want the Mac for OSX, not for the most powerful graphics card or the fastest processor, and Apple can charge whatever they like for the system that comes with their OS. At least until America and Europe tell them they have to split their hardware sales from their software sales, and unbundle certain applications
PS I’d like to think I can make almost any home PC quiet, although it may involve a couple of expensive heatsinks. If you buy a cheap case you deserve to put up with a bit of noise. You get what you pay for.
July 9th, 2007 at 3:08 pm
I don’t think you need a specially designed case … I think you need to pick components that are relatively quiet
I could rephrase my earlier statement: picking the right case is as important as picking the right heatsink. Fans are noisy in higher registers, but low frequency noises is made or at lease exacerbated by cheap cases.
July 9th, 2007 at 3:38 pm
Nooo, don’t do it, your soul will be lost forever!
To be honest there is a lot of appeal in going Mac, but as pointed out, they have a lot of advantages in terms of controlling so much of the whole business unlike M$. There is always the scope for them to remain victims of their own success just like Microsoft.
As for case noise, my new machine makes less noise than the old machine even though it has a huge X1900 in it. Case design would appear to make a lot of difference and I haven’t even looked at putting additional fans in. I guess I am lucky in that noise rarely bothers me…
July 9th, 2007 at 3:53 pm
the right case is as important as picking the right heatsink
Agreed, this is why I like to build my own systems. I could save some money and buy a ready made system, and save myself any compatability issues, but I’d only end up replacing half of the components with quieter versions. I also haven’t found many places that sell systems in cases with the build quality of a nice Lian Li. I should buy shares in Zalman and Lian Li, I certainly spend enough money on them and recommend their products to everyone.
November 13th, 2008 at 12:42 am
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