kennylucius's Profile

I agree with you--buying online or from the Apple Store seems to hurt those mainstream stores where Apple could appear to be less "elitist", more accessible. Nevertheless, I would never buy one from our local CompUSA. I can't, in good conscience, reward their bad behavior. The Apple section is always deserted, the display Macs locked up or shut down, and if you should ask someone for help, you'll most likely be advised to buy a PC. I bought my PowerBook through Creative Computers (aka MacMall). They offered a free printer with purchase, but they never honored the rebate. I have read that such dishonesty is very common in those types of outlets. Our dollars are votes. Vote for the store that serves you best, and leave the others to learn their lesson or give up. I think that is one of the reasons for the existence of the Apple Store--to show 'em how it's done, and offer Mac users a place to buy a Mac without dealing with all those undesirables.

Gregory, You've made some very good points, however I am not convinced. I think Apple cares a great deal about Adobe and Microsoft. If either one of them stopped Mac development, it would kill Jobs' big plan (or a least slow it down a lot). Microsoft has already made some noise about Mac sales, and Adobe clearly prefers Windows. If Apple were to "play dirty" by giving away competing products, relations would crumble. You've mentioned Safari, Mail, and Preview. Mail doesn't entirely compete with Entourage (not yet) because Entourage offers a lot more than just email service, and Mail was actually a part of NeXTstep, so no one would make an issue of it being included. Safari is definitely a kick in Microsoft's butt, but there are circumstances: IE sucks, and some think M$ intended to halt development on it before Safari came out. Also, web browsers seem to be considered part of the OS on Windows, so why not Mac? M$ would never make an issue of that particular program. Preview: you've got me there. I know that Reader really sucks on Mac, so maybe Apple felt they needed to do something about it. As for your comments on DVDs, I think you're right. You've changed my mind on that one. I guess Apple needed the money. I disagree about Keynote. Until Apple is ready to replace Office as a whole, they shouldn't mess with M$ too much. You're right only serious marketers would buy Keynote separately, but I don't think bundling Keynote would accomplish anything except provoking M$. No one is going to buy a Mac just to get Keynote for free. Anyone who needs slideshows will intend to buy Office for their Mac anyway, so Keynote offers no incentive. It also doesn't fit with the "digital hub" concept like the iApps. If I sound like I place too much importance on M$, it's because I believe that Office is essential to Apple's continued success. I sincerely hope Apple creates a replacement for Office, and if they do, I won't be expecting them to give it away.

It's credit! Why make a big deal out of credit? People are putting it on their credit card, so they are already using credit, so why advertise AppleCredit so prominently? Most of the people who would apply for credit at Apple to purchase an iPod are people who would not qualify for credit--too young, no credit card. BTW, why would it be illegal?