10 years ago Michael Dell said Apple should close shop

[Waccoon]

Apple's stock price didn't change much with the introduction of the colorful iMacs and OSX, though.  It's the iPod that did it, transforming Apple from a computer company into a media company.

[Invisix]

@DonnyEMU

Of course it would run, OS X is based heavily on Unix. The thing about hardware is this... hardware will run on *any* OS as long as drivers for that OS are coded. Also OS X has alot of drivers for hardware built in.

Linux/Unix is very stable on x86/x86-64 systems, thus OS X should be just as stable as well. However you gotta remember something, Apple Computer is a systems company, not an OS only company, so of course they are going to intentionally make their main OS' kernel 100% compatible for a specific chipset that's in their systems.

As for "oddball" hardware... that's a very smart thing for Apple to not generally support them; that's called great Quality Control, and ensures a tight smooth running computer.

[TheMud]

@DonnyEMU

Did you actually read the link you posted ? And understood it word by word ?

[Retro_71]

Dell = **** Computers....
Don't like them and never will no matter what anyone says.

[whabang]

redrumloa wrote:
I think Mr Dell should shut down shop and give the money back to the shareholders :roflmao:

Stop that! I'm too lazy to get myself a new job! ;-)

[monami]

as far as i'm concerned it was probably that comment that got jobs off his arse to do something. mac was always a grandads computer and was at the beggining unupgradable (imho) needing you to buy a new box every couple of years and only keeping with the appearence of upgradability so people didn't go buy a pc. i'm sure the mac has had it's share of slamming over the years from amiga users so nuff said!
also the success of the mac is down to completely selling out and using the linux opperating system.
i doubt the ipod is as successfull out of america... and i'm sure in part apple where in a consortium to get places like all of mp3 shut down when profits wain.
i'd like to see a european computer/ os come out but i wonder if behind the scenes there is a vested interest in keeping the computing world all american? 8-)

[bloodline]

monami wrote:
as far as i'm concerned it was probably that comment that got jobs off his arse to do something. mac was always a grandads computer and was at the beggining unupgradable (imho) needing you to buy a new box every couple of years and only keeping with the appearence of upgradability so people didn't go buy a pc.

Not too dissimilar to the Amiga then... :crazy:

i'm sure the mac has had it's share of slamming over the years from amiga users so nuff said!
also the success of the mac is down to completely selling out and using the linux opperating system.

MacOSX is actually built from NeXTStep (built on a hybrid FreeBSD Mach3.0 Kernel).

i doubt the ipod is as successfull out of america... and i'm sure in part apple where in a consortium to get places like all of mp3 shut down when profits wain.

As I sit here on on the Tube in London... every third person has an iPod...

i'd like to see a european computer/ os come out but i wonder if behind the scenes there is a vested interest in keeping the computing world all american? 8-)

Apart from RiscOS... there hasn't been a modern mainstream European OS... And I'm really not keen on RiscOS :-)

-Edit- Oh well... Linux was originally European... And AROS is pan global :-)

[redrumloa]

Waccoon wrote:
Apple's stock price didn't change much with the introduction of the colorful iMacs and OSX, though.  It's the iPod that did it, transforming Apple from a computer company into a media company.

True, it was the iPod that turned the company around. However there has been the Halo Effect driving sales to the Mac. Now the Mac itself is a main driver for PPS appreciation.  Investors are expecting an eventually slowing of iPod sales, though slowing has not happened yet.

[hamtronix]

redrumloa wrote:

Waccoon wrote:
Apple's stock price didn't change much with the introduction of the colorful iMacs and OSX, though.  It's the iPod that did it, transforming Apple from a computer company into a media company.

I wish the Ipod thing would go away so every crappy electronic device would no longer have an 'I' or other character in front of its name.

[monami]

@ bloodline

i bet there were 10 times the amount of mp3 sold players to 1 ipod at least. not including the psp, ds/ sp, gp2x... they do count as mp3 players but then they aren't pocket size of course.
my sisters husband had an ipod. and broke it in a week. i guess you shouldn't go running with it. have apple caught up to flash memory yet? (i actually told him not to use it for jogging. he seemed to think it should be capable of reasonable use.)

as far as american influence on the computing world i wish for a different philosophy. there is more to buisness than money! i don't like gates or jobs or this dell guy or there infighting? (it's the first i've heard of him.) i prefer linux so far.

as far as risc os goes... i have 3 risc os 3 machines and when i get a chance they're off to ebay. the bbc name and education stuck with acorn in a way that was hard to shake off. they weren't gaming machines.

[Firedawg]

Looking at both companies they pose different strategies in the computer/server markets.  I believe that Mr. Dell got "Schooled" to the finer points of innovation, creativity, and market awareness.  I like Apple computers(I own one and a few PC's), I believe Dell produces good products although due to their quick growth of the past few years their customer satisfaction ratings has taken a hit because of their inability to provide a timely after sale customer service, were Apple's has improved.  The old adage still holds true today, if you have nothing good to say, say nothing at all.

MIke

[Terse]

I loved Dell's comment when I heard it... What a riot!
This was before Engadget'S "CE-Oh no he didn't!" segments.

Jobs is the KING of CE-Oh no he didn't!

Remember the jump to RISC PPC?
Jobs "The current 68K and x86 architecture will not be able to adapt to RISC, and have at best 2 generations - or 5 years of life left."

Remember the jump from Apple to NeXT?
Jobs: "The platform that Apple now uses has at best 2 generations - or 5 years of life left."

Remember the jump from PPC to x86?
Jobs: "Intel (x86) offers us a stronger processor roadmap."

Oddly, this latest time he didn’t say “what we’ve abandoned has at best 5 years of life left in it.”  Maybe he finally learned his lesson?  

Could it be that Michael Dell really did go to Microsoft and threaten them to prevent Xbox 360 from running an PPC version (with Rosetta-like realtime translation for x86 apps) of Windows XP?

[KThunder]

making predictions about the world of tech and computing in general is risky. at the time dells comments about apples tech worth were right on the money. but people have never bought mac because they are the most technologically advanced or capable or inexpensive. they buy them because they are macs.
some people will buy almost anything apple. and thats fine we do the same thing with commodore stuff.

[sdyates]

Apple came very close to closing shop, and Nintendo was not far away before they came out with the Wii.

Glad Apple did not die... I now have two of them and am happy.

[Kronos]

Terse wrote:

Remember the jump from Apple to NeXT?
Jobs: "The platform that Apple now uses has at best 2 generations - or 5 years of life left."

If Apple had stayed with their "classic" OS it would be dead now .... instead Apple rebranded NeXTStep and became stronger than ever.

He was also right on the death of the 68k.... how long has it been since a 680x0 has been on par with other desktop-CPUs ?

So he was only wrong bout x86, but how much do today RISC-hidden-behind-a-CISC-interface zombies have to do with the 486s popular back when he made that prediction ?

[uncharted]

sdyates wrote:
Apple came very close to closing shop, and Nintendo was not far away before they came out with the Wii.

Rubbish.  Nintendo were not anywhere close to 'closing up shop'. The DS was already a hot seller and before that the Gameboy Advance was printing them money.