VIDEO GAMES

[TheAnswerIs42]

Oh, that game was awesome. I remember we got an updated version of Oregon Trail on our home computer when I was a teenager, but it just wasn't the same without the terrible graphics of the Apple IIe at elementary school. (I was in Ohio. I'm fairly sure the Apple elementary school thing is universal.)

Also, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJaN_F4tCrs.

[Dead Cat]

We had macs from kindergarten through high school. I know that we had a secondary computer lab in elementary school where they kept the old computers that required humongous floppy disks, but most of the time we used the newer ones. By the time I was in high school, I had a deep hatred for macs (it may have been partially related to the fact that there were a bunch of desktops and laptops on the server and made things tend to not work, but I digress). Fortunately, the library and a few other rooms around the school had some pcs, so I would tend toward those.
I guess Apple really likes the idea of taking over schools to expose the kids, but they backfired with me.

[Whistler]

Utah girl, had Macs. I loved playing Oregon Trail. I loved KidPix too! I loved it a lot.

We actually still had Oregon Trail 1 (the CD-ROM version) until last month when we discovered that it no longer works on our computers. Off to DI it went. :'(

It's still.... available! http://www.abandonia.com/en/games/23786 ... ,+The.html

[Marduk]

Yep. All you need is an adequate emulator.

[thebigcheese]

I guess Apple really likes the idea of taking over schools to expose the kids, but they backfired with me.

Same here. I really hated the Macs at school, and I grew up with a strong distaste for them...so I'm still a PC user. I know that modern Macs are much better, but the memory still lingers.

[Dragon Lady]

We never had macs in school. But I still played Oregon Trail! My first exposure to an Apple was at BYU-I and I hated it with a passion and swore I'd never touch another one. That is, until I moved to BYU and got a job that required me to use a mac. And then finished that job and got another one that required mac knowledge. I never looked back. I despise PCs instead.

[Whistler]

I find that despising PCs or Macs is kind of... unproductive. They have different strengths, why is it such a big deal?

[Katya]

I find that despising PCs or Macs is kind of... unproductive. They have different strengths, why is it such a big deal?

Tribalism. PICK A SIDE.

[Laser Jock]

I find that despising PCs or Macs is kind of... unproductive. They have different strengths, why is it such a big deal?

Tribalism. PICK A SIDE.

Or you can smugly respond that you use Linux and watch the other person have no clue how to respond when a third option is presented. (True story: someone asked me once which I preferred, I said that I actually used Linux, and it was beautiful to watch her not know what to say.)

[Dragon Lady]

I find that despising PCs or Macs is kind of... unproductive. They have different strengths, why is it such a big deal?

I don't mind if other people use PCs. But they have no strengths for me. Except being able to control the volume per app. That's awesome. I'll give Windows that. But really, use Windows all you want. Unless you expect me to troubleshoot for you. Or Yellow (though he's a lot nicer about troubleshooting PCs than I am). Then it's just much better to get a Mac. But if you're not in that category, feel free. I'll just snub my nose at you, but we can still be friends.

[Katya]

I find that despising PCs or Macs is kind of... unproductive. They have different strengths, why is it such a big deal?

I don't mind if other people use PCs. But they have no strengths for me. Except being able to control the volume per app. That's awesome. I'll give Windows that. But really, use Windows all you want. Unless you expect me to troubleshoot for you. Or Yellow (though he's a lot nicer about troubleshooting PCs than I am). Then it's just much better to get a Mac. But if you're not in that category, feel free. I'll just snub my nose at you, but we can still be friends.

Things do not stay where I put them on a Mac. It's like having someone come rearrange your desk while you're at lunch.

[Dragon Lady]

I find that despising PCs or Macs is kind of... unproductive. They have different strengths, why is it such a big deal?

I don't mind if other people use PCs. But they have no strengths for me. Except being able to control the volume per app. That's awesome. I'll give Windows that. But really, use Windows all you want. Unless you expect me to troubleshoot for you. Or Yellow (though he's a lot nicer about troubleshooting PCs than I am). Then it's just much better to get a Mac. But if you're not in that category, feel free. I'll just snub my nose at you, but we can still be friends.

Things do not stay where I put them on a Mac. It's like having someone come rearrange your desk while you're at lunch.

That's… weird. Maybe you have a computer gremlin?

[Katya]

Things do not stay where I put them on a Mac. It's like having someone come rearrange your desk while you're at lunch.

That's… weird. Maybe you have a computer gremlin?

No, I mean the way files used to rearrange themselves in the order of how recently you'd used them. Drove me nuts.

[Marduk]

LJ, you're still using a PC though, and that's the reason why PC's are so much better. Because there is no monopoly like there is for Mac. If you have a Mac, you have a monitor made by Apple, a keyboard made by Apple, a mouse, hard drive, disk drives, video cards, motherboards, processors, etc. all made by Apple. If you have PC, you have much more diversity of choice. As far as OS's, I actually don't mind the Apple one, it is just far worse when it comes to adaptability to games, which is the main thing (or at least, the main difficult thing) I demand of my PC. If you just need word processing and internet browsing, it really doesn't matter what you get.

[Dragon Lady]

Things do not stay where I put them on a Mac. It's like having someone come rearrange your desk while you're at lunch.

That's… weird. Maybe you have a computer gremlin?

No, I mean the way files used to rearrange themselves in the order of how recently you'd used them. Drove me nuts.

I think that's probably a user preference. I have mine sorted alphabetically. Makes so much more sense that way. I've never had a problem with them rearranging themselves. Unless I make a new file that goes somewhere in the middle of the alphabet. But I expect that. Checking the desktop options, you can have them arranged by Name, Date Modified, Date Created, Size, Kind, or Label.

[Katya]

No, I mean the way files used to rearrange themselves in the order of how recently you'd used them. Drove me nuts.

I think that's probably a user preference. I have mine sorted alphabetically. Makes so much more sense that way. I've never had a problem with them rearranging themselves. Unless I make a new file that goes somewhere in the middle of the alphabet. But I expect that. Checking the desktop options, you can have them arranged by Name, Date Modified, Date Created, Size, Kind, or Label.

Mmm, I'm thinking of open files, but I'm also probably thinking of an older OS. And it could be that there was a way to change how they were arranged, even then.

[Dragon Lady]

No, I mean the way files used to rearrange themselves in the order of how recently you'd used them. Drove me nuts.

I think that's probably a user preference. I have mine sorted alphabetically. Makes so much more sense that way. I've never had a problem with them rearranging themselves. Unless I make a new file that goes somewhere in the middle of the alphabet. But I expect that. Checking the desktop options, you can have them arranged by Name, Date Modified, Date Created, Size, Kind, or Label.

Mmm, I'm thinking of open files, but I'm also probably thinking of an older OS. And it could be that there was a way to change how they were arranged, even then.

Maybe you were using OS 9? Because that doesn't even sound familiar to me. But I didn't get on the Mac bandwagon until OS X.

[thebigcheese]

LJ, you're still using a PC though, and that's the reason why PC's are so much better. Because there is no monopoly like there is for Mac. If you have a Mac, you have a monitor made by Apple, a keyboard made by Apple, a mouse, hard drive, disk drives, video cards, motherboards, processors, etc. all made by Apple. If you have PC, you have much more diversity of choice.

This is one of my biggest beefs with Apple. I used to hate Verizon for the same reason (you were locked into using their phones), but I've heard that they have since changed their policies.

[Waldorf and Sauron]

Because there is no monopoly like there is for Mac. If you have a Mac, you have a monitor made by Apple, a keyboard made by Apple, a mouse, hard drive, disk drives, video cards, motherboards, processors, etc. all made by Apple.

Technically, not true. If you buy a mac, you have mostly parts picked and assembled by Apple. Apple buys components from the same components as Dell, HP, etc, and they are assembled by FoxConn in China—which also assembles computers for Dell, HP and Sony.

So my macbook Pro has a NVIDIA video card, Intel processor and audio, Matshita DVD-r drive, a Western Digital hard drive (installed by me), etc. etc. Many components are designed and manufactured by/for Apple, but it's a minority.

Also, macs are compatible with essentially any keyboard, mouse, and monitor you can get. For instance, the mac mini doesn't come with keyboard, mouse, or monitor, and you're expected to get them separately.

Now, it is true that in terms of many internal components such as processor, logic board, and video card, you have to stick with apple-supported parts. And unless you have a Mac Pro, upgrading some of those parts can be a pain. Also, Apple doesn't support every video card—but it does offer plenty of good ones.

And, of course, the fact that apple restricts which parts it supports is actually one of the big draws of the OS—because unlike Windows, which tries to support every single component anyone might ever put out on the market, Apple's developers can concentrate on making a relatively small number of components work really well together.

[Laser Jock]

LJ, you're still using a PC though, and that's the reason why PC's are so much better. Because there is no monopoly like there is for Mac. If you have a Mac, you have a monitor made by Apple, a keyboard made by Apple, a mouse, hard drive, disk drives, video cards, motherboards, processors, etc. all made by Apple. If you have PC, you have much more diversity of choice. As far as OS's, I actually don't mind the Apple one, it is just far worse when it comes to adaptability to games, which is the main thing (or at least, the main difficult thing) I demand of my PC. If you just need word processing and internet browsing, it really doesn't matter what you get.

For what it's worth, I've also used Linux on a Mac (though you're right that my main Linux machines are not Macs). Although I do agree that non-Mac computers offer more hardware diversity, I don't see how that matters with respect to operating systems...Macs can also run Linux or Windows just fine. (At least, assuming a semi-modern Mac with an Intel processor; before then, Windows wouldn't run on them, though Linux still could.)

Come to think of it, I don't think I agree with how you're defining "PC." Most people do define it as "a computer that isn't a Mac," it's true, but those people generally assume that that means Windows. A few pedants like to remind people that PC stands for "personal computer" and thus includes anything between a mainframe and a phone. But I've never heard someone who was aware of Linux say that a Linux machine was still a PC, while something using Apple hardware wasn't.

What if I assembled the machine myself and it has never had Windows on it? Or what if we're talking about a server running HP-UX or Solaris? Why should "PC" be defined as "any computer using hardware that wasn't rebranded by Apple"? True, Macs have a distinct hardware style, but HP, Dell, Toshiba, and so on also have their own hardware styles. The operating system is what really sets Macs apart from the other mainstream choice, Windows, in a way that HP doesn't set itself apart from Toshiba. Thus, other operating systems would also be in their own classes, and shouldn't be lumped together under the "PC" label.