Jens_T's Profile

  • Nov 28, 2007
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Latest comments made by: Jens_T

  • Forgot to mention iTunes. Come on, does anyone believe that Linux-users would actually [i]pay[/i] for DRM-encumbered music in a proprietary format?
    Jens_T had this to say on Jan 07, 2006 Posts: 11
    When Will Apple Notice Linux?
  • This is all very nice and dandy (on an academic level) but nobody has yet offered any compelling reason [i]why[/i] Apple should port their technologies over to Linux in the first place. What would be in it for them to justify the added costs of human resources and logistics? Money? Hardly, given the mindset of the large majority of the shlasdot-crowd that software should be free as in beer. (This mindset is not unknown among Mac-users by the way. Remember all the bitching and moaning when Apple started to charge money for QuicktimePro?) Respect? That's nothing you can take to the Bank (just ask Micro$oft). Brand Awareness? Couldn't get any higher as it is right now. Linux-users are, as opposed to the average Windows-user, quite well informed. They already know about Apple. Some of them even post on Apple-centric newssites ;-) Anything I have left out?
    Jens_T had this to say on Jan 07, 2006 Posts: 11
    When Will Apple Notice Linux?
  • James, all sarcasm aside, I fail to see how providing technologies that are missing from Linux to the the Penguin crowd would entice them to go out and buy a Mac. Really, most of the stories of the Linus-to-Mac-switchers center around on being fed up with the GUI-mess [i]and the abysmal multimedia support[/i] on Linux. If iTunes, Quicktime et al [i]suddenly worked[/i] on their beige boxes, [i]why[/i] would they switch? It's the [i]absence[/i] of those features that drives people to the Mac.
    Jens_T had this to say on Jan 06, 2006 Posts: 11
    When Will Apple Notice Linux?
  • Sometimes I think these kinds of articles are just written to fill some still empty HD-space before somebody else puts the Paris Hilton video on it! Sure, Apple could put out Linux-versions of some of their technologies. I could also sew a button to my cheek and hang a towel from it. The question in both cases would be: why? Much of the recent success of OS X in *NIX-circles comes from the fact that OS X has all the geeky underpinnings with all this nice multimedia shiny on top. This influx from the propellerhat-crowd can only strenghten the Mac-platform in the long run. It's good for Apple and it's good for the Mac-community as a whole when guys like Jamie Zawinski bring their expertise and start coding in XCode. So why exactly should Apple put out Quicktime for Linux and send these guys back to their Debian? The more Linux users switch to OS X the better.
    Jens_T had this to say on Jan 06, 2006 Posts: 11
    When Will Apple Notice Linux?
  • Then again, the "greatest commercial ever" didn't feature a tangible product either ...
    Jens_T had this to say on Nov 18, 2005 Posts: 11
    Apple Advertising Philosophy Undergoing a Sea Change?
  • DTM is a great application, I just want Apple to build that functionality into the OS. Yeah, sure! The best way to get tons of bad press and another developer mad at you. Remember Konfabulator/Dashboard? Or Watson/Sherlock?
    Jens_T had this to say on Oct 10, 2005 Posts: 11
    How Could OS X Be Improved?
  • It doesn’t matter. Apple could do everything MS did with browsers and it would be okay. Users might not like it, but it would not be illegal or an abuse of monopoly power as it was with Windows. And the proof for this unfounded assumption is ... where? OS X requires you to set the default browser from inside Safari, how’s that for being tied deeply to the OS? That's pretty good, considering that with two clicks you can use Camino and never have to worry about Safari again. Actually, you could just delete Safari and use whatever other browser you want. Try that with IE. WMA works for Macs. It does? Go to http://www.npgmusicclub.com and try to purchase "Musicology" for your Mac. Good luck!
    Jens_T had this to say on Aug 22, 2005 Posts: 11
    Plays-For-Sure... but only on Windows.
  • The difference is the same reason why it’s okay for Apple to add a browser to its OS, but not okay for MS to do it. What a complete BS-argument! MS didn't just "add a browser to the OS", it tied it deeply into the OS, while breaking things on purpose for other developers (just ask Netscape). On the other hand, Apple does indeed offer a default browser, but the underlying tech (WebKit) is accesible to others (Firefox, Camino, etc.). As for the iPod-issue: As soon as MS offers a working version of WMA for Macs, talk to us again!
    Jens_T had this to say on Aug 20, 2005 Posts: 11
    Plays-For-Sure... but only on Windows.
  • HP sells computers compelling enough that people actually purchase them, as does Dell. Hence it is reasonable to believe that Apple should be able to produce computers with hardware compelling enough that people will choose them over competing models. Ahem ... Dell sells computers with margins somewhere in the single digit area. They can only compensate for this by sheer volume. Do you really think it is feasable for Apple with their current market share (halo-effect or not) to go that route?
    Jens_T had this to say on Aug 02, 2005 Posts: 11
    Macintosh: Intel Inside! Now Improved With Delicious DRM
  • The content potential is nearly unlimited for a video iPod, everything from DVD’s to network programming sucked off (one way or another) your Tivo This is exactly where the problem lies: content. What do I watch on my shiny iPod video? My home movies? Uncle Hubert's skiing trip? Because people keep forgetting that there is still no legal way to put a DVD collection onto the video pod (or any other device - heck, not even onto my internal HD). Considering the lenght that Apple went to satisfy the RIAA by implementing DRM into iTunes, I think that Apple will avoid anything that might look like actually encouraging users to do something illegal. And as long as the only content I can get is some Brittney music video from ITMS, I doubt that such a device will catch on beyond the microscopic über-geek market.
    Jens_T had this to say on Aug 01, 2005 Posts: 11
    The Video iPod: Watchman 2005?
  • Although the prospect you lay out is most heartwarming for any serious Mac-zealot like me, there are IMHO several things wrong with your reasoning, the most serious error being the idea that Intel might actually develop a custom chip exclusevly for Apple. If I remember correctly, Apple got a (more or less) competitive price for the relatively few PPC-chips they ordered from IBM and Moto because they actually owned part of the design, back from the old AIM-days. This price-advantadge doesn't exists in their new relationship with Intel and will have to be compensated by the fact that they can order already designed off-the-shelf components at volume discounts (by agreeing to go exclusively with Intel-chips). Now, even IF Intel was willing to do it, how much would Apple have to pay for a custom-designed chip that (for a foreseeable time) NOBODY ELSE would use? Probably enough to send the next G6 PowerMac back into the $5000 price segment. And that's where Aplle doesn't want to be these days, right?
    Jens_T had this to say on Aug 01, 2005 Posts: 11
    PowerMac on Intel, the Beast Cuts Loose