• =?UTF-8?Q?Re=3A_AirTag_2_vs_AirTag=3A_Here=E2=80=99s_everything_new?=

    From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Sun Feb 1 11:45:48 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-01-31 13:56, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, Alan <nuh-uh@nope.com> wrote:
    On 2026-01-29 17:14, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, Alan <nuh-uh@nope.com> wrote:
    On 2026-01-29 16:56, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, Alan <nuh-uh@nope.com> wrote:

    It's obvious he is an extreme Apple fanboy (being paid?) and a
    lunatic who goes on the offensive as soon as a person mentions an >>>>>>> alternative to an Apple anything.Even if no claims of which is
    better other than choice. That's a snit technique. Totally bogus. >>>>>>>> The guy is a certified lunatic.
    LOL!

    ROTFLMAO!!!
    So can you hide an air tag in a wallet?
    In a purse?

    No. But then when this first came up, you misidentified the product you >>>> were talking about...

    ...didn't you?

    :-)

    Nope.
    Nice try.
    All my comparisons are vs Apple Airtag 1 as the Airtag 2 was just released. >> How utterly astonishing that you "misread" what I was saying.

    Let me quote your entry into this topic:

    'Even though I have both an Android and iPhone, I use "Spotminders tags"'

    Not "Spotminders Tracking Cards".

    "TAGS"

    Spotminders MAKES a "tag".

    So wonder of wonders, when you called it a "tag", I assumed you meant
    what you wrote.

    Nice try, though.


    Yawwn....
    Playing the semantic game again.
    You know exactly what I meant.

    When you first posted? How could I have POSSIBLY known?


    Why can't you simply accept that Apple devices aren't always superior to the buyer?

    Why can't you simply accept that you made a post that any reasonable
    person would have assumed was about Spotminders TAG product.

    Do you work for Apple?




    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Sun Feb 1 11:56:02 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-01-31 15:10, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    On 1/29/26 18:23, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-29, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    ...

    FWIW, what I find curious is the "both use the Apple Find My Network": >>>>
    does this mean that Spotminder is freeloading their product off of
    someone else's services/infrastructure?


    Nope.
    Spotminders is MFI certified my Apple.
    Next.
    <https://www.spotminders.com/products/spotminders-tracking-cards>

    Okay, so that's how they've done it.

    Yes.
    And Apple approves so.......


    ...
    Yea, and where are you going to find a battery when your luggage is in pengo pengo?

    Pack a spare battery just in case you forgot to check pre-trip. BTDT.

    An option.
    But then there is battery swelling to deal with.
    Probably rare but still it happens.
    People don't maintain their electronics anymore.

    And how do you replace the battery in a Spotminders Tracking Card?

    Is it magically immune from battery swelling?



    But odds of it going dead while on a trip is pretty low, as Apple has an
    automatic "low battery" push notice, and IME the Airtag's battery life
    is easily a few weeks longer, enough to get home from a typical one week
    long trip. All in all, it is quite low maintenance.


    So does Spotminders, plus they send an email based upon when your purchased letting you it's time to charge.

    That's a marketing thing which will become increasingly inaccurate even assuming you get more than one such email for a particular purchase


    As usual you play with minutia while avoiding the obvious.

    Nah, the obvious is that the Spotminders' much shorter battery life
    pragmatically requires that they be regularly removed from where they're
    deployed to be recharged, and since its battery life claim is the usual
    marking caveat of "up to", the effective timeline requires ~4x/year.

    Yawn.
    Warranty is lifetime.
    Stick on a wireless charger and it's good for another 6 months or so.
    Easy peasy.
    And no danger of leaking, at least not to the level of a CR2032 which
    can swell and leak.

    Again: you're claiming magical properties for Spotminders batteries.




    YMMV on one's personal cost of convenience tolerance is, but since the
    Airtag's annual operation cost is <$1/yr, its probably well within most
    American's budget.

    Spotminders is cheaper.
    Aslo you need to purchase another device if you want to put an Airtag on a keyring
    so that will cost you more for the much touted key ring advantage of the Airtag.

    Obvious things like:

    Super slim. looks like an ordinary credit card...

    Sure, but that's only a meaningful differentiator if one needs a credit
    card form factor, such as for a gentleman's wallet. The rest of the use
    cases don't matter.

    Purse.
    Ask your wife about hidden pockets in purses.
    Passport is another popular spot.
    Luggage, can easily be hidden in the lining, unlike an Airtag.
    Car, easily hidden, maybe in a headliner, stuck on the center console lid etc.
    Unlike an Airtag.

    Do you work for Spotminders?

    Because most of that was complete bullshit.


    Easy to hide in plain sight unlike an Apple Airtag.

    And what does "hide in plain sight" really mean here? I can't see
    hanging a credit card off of the car keys in my pocket as being less
    bulky -- or unsightly -- as a "fat coin" form factor.

    Actually if you park in a commercial or even an HOA garage card keys are popular
    and people hang them on their key ring. However Spotminders does make a Smarttag
    which is designed for a key ring and unlike Apple it has a hole in it so you don't have to buy an extra piece.

    So Spotminders makes different devices.
    Apple makes one size fits all.


    Many more advantages ...

    Such as?

    Warranty.
    Sound is louder than Apple.
    Construction gets higher marks as being superior.

    From Spotminders, you mean.

    If you buy on sale, price is less.

    Here is a special on the SmartTag, 5 for $87:00
    I got the credit card version 4 for $88.00

    Apple can't beat that other than maybe them liquidating
    their AirTag V1 since they just introduced Airtag v2.


    <https://www.spotminders.com/products/spotminders-smart-tag>


    however what I find interesting is how Anal, not you hh, jumped all
    over my initial post where all I said was i use Spotminders rather than Airtag.

    I glanced through them - just what was so wrong?

    Just because I mentioned a competitor's product he went bonkers.

    You mentioned the wrong product and I pointed out that that product had essentially no advantages over the Apple product.

    And I'm not an Apple hater in any way.
    As stated I have an Apple Watch and iPhone and have had many versions
    over the years.
    They are excellent devices.

    But Alan can't handle that.
    Apple is his entire life and world.


    LOL!

    Going back, I see the following points:

    * you were corrected on two factual errors (battery is replaceable,
    waterproof ratings are the same);

    Yes.
    From a website that was incorrect.
    Neither was really a consideration for me at the time though.
    I don't typically take my purse/wallet into the water when I am at the beach.

    You made the points, doofus.



    * the claim of "Low-grade plastic" is (% remains) unsubstantiated;

    Serial number is engraved on Spotminders rather than a sticker.
    That says quality to me, but yea marketing stuff.

    * the claim of "no risk of battery swelling" needs an explanation why;

    There is no separate battery like a CR 2032.
    It's an internal lithium polymer battery (I think?).
    Another advantage is the card is eco friendly, which I'm sure you will like. No CR 2032 batteries to dispose of.

    Just the whole card when it's battery gives out...


    It's kind of funny seeing an Apple fanboy like Alan promoting replaceable parts like batteries when most Apple devices are the exact opposite.

    Like I've said, he will argue about anything to make Apple look good.

    Consistency doesn't matter.

    * he agreed that a credit card sized product has it's place (but often
    isn't a differentiator);

    * his point that a "lifetime guarantee" is a valid risk for relatively
    new companies;

    Pure speculation.
    Lifetime warranty vs 1 year warranty.
    Easy peasy.

    How long has Spotminders been in business?

    Oh, and:

    'All Spotminders products are covered by a lifetime warranty against manufacturing defects.'

    So when the battery in your Track Card will no longer hold a charge,
    you're throwing away the entire card and buying another.



    * he concluded that you're paying extra for a worse product when form
    factor isn't needed.

    He is wrong.
    I've explained this many times already.

    You've handwaved away the fact that you opened talking about the wrong Spotminders product.



    The biggest thing that I saw wrong from the above was that Alan used an
    overly high price for the Airtag for ROI comparisons, so instead of the
    Spotminder's breakeven point being at ~4.5 years, its out at ~19 years.

    There you go into the minutia rabbit hole again.



    FWIW, in addition to luggage we've frequently deployed Airtags in purses
    & similar small bags ... but the places that I've never even thought
    about deploying them are inside my wallet (which is where a CC form
    factor would apply) or within a moneybelt/passport carrier.


    Everyone is different.
    I stated MY needs and initially I never stated an Apple vs Spotminders comparison.
    Alan was the one who went bonkers on that one.
    You misstated the product you were talking about...

    ...and I addressed what you said, rather than what you THOUGHT you said.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From -hh@recscuba_google@huntzinger.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 2 13:28:44 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 1/31/26 18:10, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    On 1/29/26 18:23, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-29, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    ...
    Yea, and where are you going to find a battery when your luggage is in pengo pengo?

    Pack a spare battery just in case you forgot to check pre-trip. BTDT.

    An option.
    But then there is battery swelling to deal with.

    Risks are never zero, but you're misapplying the swelling risks of rechargeable lithium batteries to a non-rechargeable lithium battery chemistry, since the former has many cycles and the latter only ever has
    one (1) cycle. Main factor increasing the chemical off-gassing risk is
    an environment where temperatures exceed 45C (115F), but this applies
    for both battery types.


    Probably rare but still it happens.
    People don't maintain their electronics anymore.

    The risk is far higher in your Spotminder than from the disposable
    CR2032 in an Airtag...

    ...and since the CR2032 is a disposable, it forces maintenance to occur.


    But odds of it going dead while on a trip is pretty low, as Apple has an
    automatic "low battery" push notice, and IME the Airtag's battery life
    is easily a few weeks longer, enough to get home from a typical one week
    long trip. All in all, it is quite low maintenance.

    So does Spotminders, plus they send an email based upon when your purchased letting you it's time to charge.

    How does the email know what the actual current voltage is?
    And if one owns more than one, which one?


    As usual you play with minutia while avoiding the obvious.

    Nah, the obvious is that the Spotminders' much shorter battery life
    pragmatically requires that they be regularly removed from where they're
    deployed to be recharged, and since its battery life claim is the usual
    marking caveat of "up to", the effective timeline requires ~4x/year.

    Yawn.
    Warranty is lifetime.

    That might mean something from a mature, established company, but
    Spotminders was only founded two years ago (2/28/24): they're too recent
    to have a demonstrated track record of honoring their warranty claims.



    Stick on a wireless charger and it's good for another 6 months or so.
    Easy peasy.

    Even easier is maintenance that's 2x-3x longer interval cycle.


    And no danger of leaking, at least not to the level of a CR2032 which
    can swell and leak.

    Got incidence rate data to cite for that claim?
    Because on a first principles basis, rechargeables are higher risk.

    "'IrCOd say it happens in about 10 percent of laptops I deal with,' Belton said. 'IrCOve seen it in phones, but more rarely.;"

    <https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/04/18/lithium-ion-battery-swelling-why/>

    Overall, it appears that the risk ramps up after 2-3 years in service.

    YMMV on one's personal cost of convenience tolerance is, but since the
    Airtag's annual operation cost is <$1/yr, its probably well within most
    American's budget.

    Spotminders is cheaper.

    For only the recharge cost part. Even if it is free (which it isn't),
    it still takes ~19 years of to break even vs the Spotminder's higher
    MSRP. Longer still if we include the cost of each of these electric
    recharges (power cost + cost of charger) and present value of money.

    Aslo you need to purchase another device if you want to put an Airtag on a keyring
    so that will cost you more for the much touted key ring advantage of the Airtag.

    Sure, but they're cheap: I've paid $8 for a four pack at Amazon, which
    is $2 each. Adding this shortens the 19 year ROI time by two (2) years
    so Spotminder doesn't become as cheap as the Airtag to own & maintain
    until "merely" 17 years with this...

    ...and that's assuming that its rechargeable battery lasts for 17 years.


    Obvious things like:

    Super slim. looks like an ordinary credit card...

    Sure, but that's only a meaningful differentiator if one needs a credit
    card form factor, such as for a gentleman's wallet. The rest of the use
    cases don't matter.

    Purse.
    Ask your wife about hidden pockets in purses.

    She's not complained about the Airtag's form factor for years now, so
    just when is she going to finally start?


    Passport is another popular spot.

    You've clearly not done any significant amount of international travel,
    for you'd otherwise know that Agents frown on anything other than a
    "naked" passport. Even when its literally just one paperclip (BTDT).

    Plus more recently, the scanning machines aren't always friendly to "not
    just the passport" too...USA, EU, Japan, Australia, just to name a few.

    This limits a tracker to be with the passport holder, not the passport,
    which affords many more 'how to affix' options.

    Luggage, can easily be hidden in the lining, unlike an Airtag.

    Nah. In fact, one can save the $2 of a key ring holder and just toss a
    tag into a luggage pocket, shoe, toiletry kit, etc, etc.

    FYI, if you're concerned about rain/water in luggage, splurge for 3-o and
    put it in a sandwich bag. And if you have any of those small disposable anti-desiccant pouches from a recent electronics purchase, instead of
    throwing them in the garbage, toss an anti-dessicant into the bag too.

    Car, easily hidden, maybe in a headliner, stuck on the center console lid etc.
    Unlike an Airtag.

    They're equally easy/hard to hide, but since there's also the functional
    need to regularly remove the Spotminder for battery recharge service,
    the Spotminder needs to be removed for charging much more frequently
    (eg, every 4 months), so they can't be buried/hidden too deeply, or else
    they discharge, get forgotten/lost and become useless.

    Easy to hide in plain sight unlike an Apple Airtag.

    And what does "hide in plain sight" really mean here? I can't see
    hanging a credit card off of the car keys in my pocket as being less
    bulky -- or unsightly -- as a "fat coin" form factor.

    Actually if you park in a commercial or even an HOA garage card keys are popular
    and people hang them on their key ring. However Spotminders does make a Smarttag
    which is designed for a key ring and unlike Apple it has a hole in it so you don't have to buy an extra piece.

    An "extra piece" which costs all of $2 on Amazon.


    So Spotminders makes different devices.
    Apple makes one size fits all.

    Just "one size", but at ~half the MSRP price, though. Seems like a fair enough trade-off, especially for the plethora of use cases where the difference in form factors isn't a differentiator.


    Many more advantages ...

    Such as?

    Warranty.

    Unproven warranty.

    Sound is louder than Apple.

    Versus the original generation of Airtag, or the 2nd generation?

    In any case, what I've found is that one needs to use the Bluetooth
    location UI to first get close (same room) to be able to hear it, and if
    it is packaged within something (eg, suitcase) that can muffle it quite
    a bit. That's why my I now name the device with which item the Tag is
    being used in, and my travel inventory list (which encompasses far more
    than just tags) also notes where within said item .. eg "top pocket".

    Construction gets higher marks as being superior.

    By who?


    If you buy on sale, price is less.

    Here is a special on the SmartTag, 5 for $87:00
    I got the credit card version 4 for $88.00

    So? Airtags go on sale too; IIRC, I paid $69 for a 4 pack a couple of
    years ago (& got free engraving too). Plus the 2025 Black Friday sale
    was a 4-pack for $63:

    <https://appleinsider.com/articles/25/11/28/best-black-friday-airtag-deals-4-pack-drops-to-6299-single-tag-hits-1797>

    That's $15.75/each: lower than your $17.40/ea and $22/ea sales prices.


    however what I find interesting is how Anal, not you hh, jumped all
    over my initial post where all I said was i use Spotminders rather than Airtag.

    I glanced through them - just what was so wrong?

    Just because I mentioned a competitor's product he went bonkers.

    Nah, you merely got called out for incorrect statements.
    (And bogus/nebulous claims too)


    Going back, I see the following points:

    * you were corrected on two factual errors (battery is replaceable,
    waterproof ratings are the same);

    Yes.

    From a website that was incorrect.
    Neither was really a consideration for me at the time though.
    I don't typically take my purse/wallet into the water when I am at the beach.

    Airtags have never had non-user-replacable batteries. Perhaps you were thinking of Tile, as their original version was that way. This may be
    showing that as a customer, you didn't do your homework before buying.


    * the claim of "Low-grade plastic" is (% remains) unsubstantiated;

    Serial number is engraved on Spotminders rather than a sticker.
    That says quality to me, but yea marketing stuff.

    Serial#? What does this have to do with plastic grade claim?

    * the claim of "no risk of battery swelling" needs an explanation why;

    There is no separate battery like a CR 2032.

    So? A non-user-replaceable battery means a more finite lifespan, right?


    It's an internal lithium polymer battery (I think?).
    Another advantage is the card is eco friendly, which I'm sure you will like. No CR 2032 batteries to dispose of.

    Incorrect, because both products' use lithium-based batteries, so both
    require environmentally appropriate disposal, not household trash.

    The CR2032 is easily removed, so it can be chucked into the local
    recycling center 'battery bucket'. In contrast, the Spotminder has to
    go into 'electronics for recycling' bin, which is less common.


    * he agreed that a credit card sized product has it's place (but often
    isn't a differentiator);

    * his point that a "lifetime guarantee" is a valid risk for relatively
    new companies;

    Pure speculation.
    Lifetime warranty vs 1 year warranty.
    Easy peasy.

    Merely words on a website. To determine the risks, has Spotminder put
    up a Bond with a third party to guarantee resources for a 5, 10 (or
    longer) life?

    Likewise, "lifetime" guarantees are invariably quite nebulous in their weasel-wording: just how was the 'lifetime' term legally defined here?

    Follow the documentation trail, especially when there is none to follow.


    * he concluded that you're paying extra for a worse product when form
    factor isn't needed.

    He is wrong.

    You're welcome to your personal opinion, as he has his. Readers are who decides which poster has made more compelling/convincing statements.

    I've explained this many times already.

    Nah, you've *tried* to explain, but haven't been convincing ... or on
    several points, even correct.


    The biggest thing that I saw wrong from the above was that Alan used an
    overly high price for the Airtag for ROI comparisons, so instead of the
    Spotminder's breakeven point being at ~4.5 years, its out at ~19 years.

    There you go into the minutia rabbit hole again.

    YMMV, but most people don't snub a ~70% cost reduction.

    FWIW, in addition to luggage we've frequently deployed Airtags in purses
    & similar small bags ... but the places that I've never even thought
    about deploying them are inside my wallet (which is where a CC form
    factor would apply) or within a moneybelt/passport carrier.

    Everyone is different.
    I stated MY needs and initially I never stated an Apple vs Spotminders comparison.


    Except that a comparison is implicit, as the post was on a thread whose subject line is: "AirTag 2 vs AirTag: HererCOs everything new".


    Alan was the one who went bonkers on that one.

    Oh, so reactions to you making false statements is your excuse?


    -hh
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 2 13:45:58 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-01-30 07:55, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 1/29/26 8:41 PM, Alan wrote:

    The problem with the iPhone is that it's an Apple
    product.

    So despite your claims about Apple users, this is really
    about your irrational reaction to a particular company.

    Got it.

    My claims about Apple users are bullshit, yeah. I mean,
    there are extreme examples that could caricature Mac users,
    but that doesn't hold up to the statistics of people using
    Macs. It's fair to say that Apple makes me pretty deranged
    and yet they behave pretty deranged, so, ya know.

    No. I do NOT know.

    I've worked with people who use Macs and iPhones (and iPads)
    for decades, and they're no more "deranged" than any other
    group.

    I was talking about Apple corporate.

    And in what way are THEY "deranged".

    Watch out for circular argument here.


    Objectively, Apple isn't interested in competition, that's purely a
    facade. They need Microsoft to be what it is, so they can be the
    quirky alternative for quirky alternative people. As such, their
    hardware and software both languish under mediocre development.

    You clearly don't know what "objectively" means.

    Apple produces products and those products compete with other personal
    digital devices in the market place.

    Apple's hardware is clearly leading the way in certain areas...

    ...and you've never been able to articulate a single issue with their software.




    We should want to punish Apple any way possible.

    Why? What have they done to deserve (and I can absolutely
    believe you'd use this word): "punishment"?

    Well, let's think about it from a perspective we'd at least
    agree is worth considering - Apple through their Mac product
    line does serve a real need in computing.

    That's an unsupported assertion.

    Apple's Mac product line serves the real needs of its users so
    well, they almost never EVER want to use anything else ever
    again.

    Yeah so ask yourself why, you yourself have talked up
    repeatedly buying Macs, you probably have the slightest
    insight.

    Again: not really English.


    Again: you are admitting not really being able to read English.

    No. I'm stating that you wrote a sentence that makes no sense.

    Let's remove the somewhat parenthetical clause from the middle of the sentence, and look at what you wrote:

    "Yeah so ask yourself why you probably have the slightest insight.

    In what world does that sentence make sense?



    "Real need in computing" here means that there is more than a
    niche market for macOS and software designed for it.

    Circular argument.

    macOS and software designed for it encompass the vast majority of
    things that people want to do with personal computers.


    OK but why are they choosing the Mac?

    That's a very good question.

    How about: because they've found it works well for them.

    Is it just what was placed
    in front of them? Usually, it's a very intentional choice, in fact,
    and I'm recognizing that but since I'm expecting Apple to up its
    game in response,

    Why would Apple "up its game" in response to people being ferociously
    loyal to their products.

    I'm serious:

    I've used, sold, supported both Macs and PCs for more than 30 years.

    And in all that time, I've encountered less half a dozen people who
    tried a Mac and wanted to go back to a PC.

    My current work is computer and network support, and while I TECHNICALLY
    have clients with Macs for whom I provide support, the truth is that
    they almost never need assistance.

    you leap into attacking me and avoiding addressing

    I've never attacked YOU. I've attacked your bizarre arguments.

    Apple's deranged behavior.

    In what way is it "deranged"?

    You're loyal, to be sure, but more to
    Apple's derangement itself, as if you work for them.


    I myself almost liked it, I admit, the Unix components made it
    something of value, but the Apple GUI is just too tragic.

    In some way you'll never actually articulate...


    It's just inferior software, I know it when I see it.

    But can't explain it.

    Got it.



    But for those who really benefit from using Macs, there isn't
    an alternative, and it seems that Apple could do more to offer
    them something of a competitive deal on a system.

    Apple's role as a manufacturer and seller of...

    ...well, anything...

    ...is to produce products that people are willing to purchase, and
    to make a profit while doing so.

    Or do you not understand how a market economy works?


    If you want to see Apple in the context of the market economy,
    well, that opens up a whole can of worms, they're bourgeois,
    mediocre, very typical of how people with too much money will find
    ways to spend it and yet get next to nothing for their efforts,
    because they're too much of gigantic dorks to know the right shit to
    buy.

    Lots of "ad hominem" ("they're bourgeois"?), and vague argument there.


    You're welcome, fanboy.


    There are people who simply get better results using
    Apple's equipment for a PC, their software to run it.

    Not even an understandable sentence...

    You're not trying very hard, then. But that's OK, I know your
    only goal here is to compete with me.

    You think far too highly of yourself.


    It's funny you'd say that though given how you seem to perceive
    yourself, but OK.

    Learn proper English punctuation.



    As such, the price gouging on hardware sales does trouble
    me, as a regulator.

    You're NOT a "regulator".

    I could make Apple repay its customers for overcharging them
    over a long period of time. But I know better than to overuse
    authority.

    Your megalomania is showing again.


    Your ignorance might be, if you really think I'm a megalomaniac.

    LOL!



    I don't know that it crosses the line into requiring
    government oversight and yet it certainly does ask that
    question.

    Only in your (self-admitted) deranged mind.

    They probably would end up getting away with it because it's
    like some proprietary luxuries, unfortunately, you pay to play
    and these right- brained Mac users are gonna have to play by
    Apple's rules, even as it makes them look like sheep. I can't
    just wave my hand and set their prices, though they push their
    luck about it frankly.

    And here you go again with your circular argument.


    The point is, if I were crazy, I could do anything I wanted to
    Apple, but I'm not crazy,

    No. Because you lack the POWER to do so.

    I'm willing to work with them, but the
    bully pulpit still exists, particularly here on Usenet, so I'm not
    going to pretend to admire Apple.

    You're "willing to work with them"...

    ...on what?



    If they're continuing to make the base unit have 256 GB
    storage, but the next step up is $200 extra, at what point
    is that not just transparent gouging?

    Because offering people products they freely purchase isn't
    gouging of any kind.

    It is gouging because if they want a non-joke of a computer they
    have to pay so much extra that they're doing more than their
    fair share to support the product line. It's ridiculous.

    Circular.


    It'll never be circular when half of a 512 GB SSD is $200. You have
    not addressed that basic fact.

    It doesn't need address.

    Apple offers products for sale.

    People freely buy them.



    Why is 256 still an option?

    Because it still works fine for many users.

    And it's reasonable to cost $200 to double it?

    If people are willing to pay it? Yes, absolutely.


    Spoken like an Apple employee.

    Spoken like someone who understands free market capitalism.



    How friggin' cheap is the company that isn't cheap to buy
    from?!

    How is that relevant?

    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's
    weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware,
    but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed from a
    false premise.


    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?



    and you end up having a point because I have more judgment than
    to meddle in their pricing scheme, obvious though it is to be
    gouging in real truth, self-evident observation, but the Apple
    fanboys will come up with whatever stoned theory why it makes
    sense to pay $200 for half of a 512 GB SSD.

    More belittling.

    Got it.


    Unlike you constantly do to me? What a joke.

    I belittle your ARGUMENTS...

    ...because they DESERVE IT.



    - but fortunately Samsung comes to the rescue, as they
    have for some time.

    In what way? Are their smartphones notably less expensive
    than the equivalent iPhones?

    Not less expensive but as good without being iPhones.

    So it's about your hatred, not articulable, objective facts.

    Got it.

    Basically yeah, I hate Apple with a severe passion, almost to
    the point of obsession.

    Oh, well past that point.


    I do other things with my time than debate computers on Usenet.

    Yet you reply to almost every post of mine instantly.



    It has led me to even exaggerate including personal attacks on
    Mac users, but I try to also actually address the real matters
    at work, and Apple is guilty of a lot.

    Apple is "guilty" of making products that people want to purchase
    and stick with in the face of less expensive alternatives...

    ...and you have to pretend that must mean they are "stoned" or in
    some other way, less than your "brilliant" self...

    ...rather than admit that they are rational, reasonable people
    making rational, reasonable choices.


    $200 for half of a 512 GB SSD.

    $200 to upgrade from 256GB to 512GB.

    Yes.

    So...

    ...what?



    No serious person has owned an iPhone since the early
    2010s.

    And you finish with a "no true Scotsman" fallacy!

    It's obviously hyperbole.

    Is it now?

    So then you admit many "serious person[s]" own iPhones and
    choose to continue to use iPhones when it comes time to buy a
    new smartphone...

    ...right?

    As I mentioned, I bought one for another person. That I would
    do, she wanted that particular model. I had some extra money to
    spend at the time, and it seemed cool. But if it were for me,
    it would not be an iPhone.

    Which literally has NOTHING to do with my text which preceded it.


    You wanted me to admit serious people could choose an iPhone, I gave
    an example of it that I was directly involved with. If that
    "literally has NOTHING to do with" what you said, maybe you need a
    break from this shit.
    You having bought a phone for ONE person is hardly an admission about
    people who buy iPhones in general.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 2 13:46:47 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-01-31 13:42, pothead wrote:
    And you lost the argument from your first reply to me, above.
    Tell me how I put an Apple Airtag in a wallet?
    It's also easily hidden in a purse or a car.


    Will you admit that when you first posted, you didn't make it clear you
    were talking about a different product?

    Yes or no.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 2 13:52:15 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-01-31 14:19, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, Alan <nuh-uh@nope.com> wrote:
    On 2026-01-29 17:51, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, Alan <nuh-uh@nope.com> wrote:
    On 2026-01-29 17:14, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, Alan <nuh-uh@nope.com> wrote:
    On 2026-01-29 16:56, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, Alan <nuh-uh@nope.com> wrote:

    It's obvious he is an extreme Apple fanboy (being paid?) and a >>>>>>>>> lunatic who goes on the offensive as soon as a person mentions an >>>>>>>>> alternative to an Apple anything.Even if no claims of which is >>>>>>>>> better other than choice. That's a snit technique. Totally bogus. >>>>>>>>>> The guy is a certified lunatic.
    LOL!

    ROTFLMAO!!!
    So can you hide an air tag in a wallet?
    In a purse?

    No. But then when this first came up, you misidentified the product you >>>>>> were talking about...

    ...didn't you?

    :-)

    Nope.
    Nice try.

    All my comparisons are vs Apple Airtag 1 as the Airtag 2 was just released.


    How utterly astonishing that you "misread" what I was saying.

    Let me quote your entry into this topic:

    Projection fail, once again.
    You really do sound like snit.
    Are you snit?


    Which is why you had to snip your OWN WORDS:

    'Even though I have both an Android and iPhone, I use "Spotminders tags"
    because they work great, at least for me.'

    Do you agree those were your words?

    Of course I agree.

    Do you have at least that much integrity?

    Do you agree that Spotminders DOES sell tags as well as their "Tracking
    Cards"?

    I described what I use Spotminders for many times which anyone reading would realize that I use the cards regardless of what I call them.

    Not with what you first posted.

    Let me quote it for you:

    'Even though I have both an Android and iPhone, I use "Spotminders TAGS" because they work great, at least for me.'

    You even surrounded "Spotminders tags" with quotes, which any normal
    person would assume you were using as specific name for a product...

    ...because they make such a product



    How do you hide a tag in a wallet for example?

    I've never said you could.


    You're grasping at straws here Alan.


    Do you have at least that much integrity?

    I do.
    You don't though.

    And yet right here where your admission that you first referenced what
    anyone would have assumed was a different product than you now claim you
    meant all along...

    ...there is no admission that you got it wrong.


    But since you brought up the topic of tags, Spotminders offers both the cards AND tag devices.

    Does Apple?


    Nope. Irrelevant to the fact that you referenced the wrong product when
    this conversation began...

    ...and aren't big enough to admit it.

    Yet another win for Spotminders.

    Hmmmmm...sounds like you're the one being paid.

    Posting their bogus points of comparison as if they're fact (among other things)
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Wed Feb 4 18:34:14 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/2/26 4:45 PM, Alan wrote:

    Objectively, Apple isn't interested in competition, that's purely a
    facade.-a They need Microsoft to be what it is, so they can be the
    quirky alternative for quirky alternative people.-a As such, their
    hardware and software both languish under mediocre development.

    You clearly don't know what "objectively" means.


    Oh sure Apple boy, you tell me what objectivity is, I'll be all ears for
    that, heh.


    Apple produces products and those products compete with other personal digital devices in the market place.

    Apple's hardware is clearly leading the way in certain areas...

    ...and you've never been able to articulate a single issue with their software.


    To the extent they haven't gone out of business yet, you have a point.


    We should want to punish Apple any way possible.

    Why? What have they done to deserve (and I can absolutely
    believe you'd use this word): "punishment"?

    Well, let's think about it from a perspective we'd at least
    agree is worth considering - Apple through their Mac product
    line does serve a real need in computing.

    That's an unsupported assertion.

    Apple's Mac product line serves the real needs of its users so
    well, they almost never EVER want to use anything else ever
    again.

    Yeah so ask yourself why, you yourself have talked up
    repeatedly buying Macs, you probably have the slightest
    insight.

    Again: not really English.

    Again:-a you are admitting not really being able to read English.

    No. I'm stating that you wrote a sentence that makes no sense.

    Let's remove the somewhat parenthetical clause from the middle of the sentence, and look at what you wrote:

    "Yeah so ask yourself why you probably have the slightest insight.

    In what world does that sentence make sense?


    Uh dude, that is simple mental retardation. I didn't write that.
    You're literally gluing two completely separate phrases into one. Were
    you serious about that? If so, you need to see if you can pass a
    cognitive test like Trump.


    "Real need in computing" here means that there is more than a
    niche market for macOS and software designed for it.

    Circular argument.

    macOS and software designed for it encompass the vast majority of
    things that people want to do with personal computers.

    OK but why are they choosing the Mac?

    That's a very good question.

    How about: because they've found it works well for them.

    Is it just what was placed
    in front of them?-a Usually, it's a very intentional choice, in fact,
    and I'm recognizing that but since I'm expecting Apple to up its
    game in response,

    Why would Apple "up its game" in response to people being ferociously
    loyal to their products.

    I'm serious:

    I've used, sold, supported both Macs and PCs for more than 30 years.

    And in all that time, I've encountered less half a dozen people who
    tried a Mac and wanted to go back to a PC.

    My current work is computer and network support, and while I TECHNICALLY have clients with Macs for whom I provide support, the truth is that
    they almost never need assistance.


    It's good to know that their needs are met.


    There are people who simply get better results using
    Apple's equipment for a PC, their software to run it.

    Not even an understandable sentence...

    You're not trying very hard, then.-a But that's OK, I know your
    only goal here is to compete with me.

    You think far too highly of yourself.

    It's funny you'd say that though given how you seem to perceive
    yourself, but OK.

    Learn proper English punctuation.


    Get a brain.


    As such, the price gouging on hardware sales does trouble
    me, as a regulator.

    You're NOT a "regulator".

    I could make Apple repay its customers for overcharging them
    over a long period of time.-a But I know better than to overuse
    authority.

    Your megalomania is showing again.

    Your ignorance might be, if you really think I'm a megalomaniac.

    LOL!


    Laugh all you want, but you will see it in certain terms soon.


    If they're continuing to make the base unit have 256 GB
    storage, but the next step up is $200 extra, at what point
    is that not just transparent gouging?

    Because offering people products they freely purchase isn't
    gouging of any kind.

    It is gouging because if they want a non-joke of a computer they
    have to pay so much extra that they're doing more than their
    fair share to support the product line.-a It's ridiculous.

    Circular.

    It'll never be circular when half of a 512 GB SSD is $200.-a You have
    not addressed that basic fact.

    It doesn't need address.

    Apple offers products for sale.

    People freely buy them.


    Then answer me why my $190 mini PC has a 512 GB SSD *along with the rest
    of its parts*, how are they so much better able than Apple to get parts?
    What a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so you're
    getting your slice of the pie. It's obvious.


    Why is 256 still an option?

    Because it still works fine for many users.

    And it's reasonable to cost $200 to double it?

    If people are willing to pay it? Yes, absolutely.

    Spoken like an Apple employee.

    Spoken like someone who understands free market capitalism.


    Uh huh except for the little fact that this favors those with more
    means, they can pay for the privilege of having pretty Apple hardware in
    their house to keep up with the Joneses, how nice for them. If you're
    OK with supporting such a racket, it's your money I guess.


    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's
    weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware,
    but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed from a
    false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?


    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew what they were
    actually paying for.


    I hate Apple with a severe passion, almost to
    the point of obsession.

    Oh, well past that point.

    I do other things with my time than debate computers on Usenet.

    Yet you reply to almost every post of mine instantly.


    It varies, in this particular case I hadn't even been on the computer
    enough in the last couple days to catch up on Usenet, but that is
    unusual for me, sure.


    It has led me to even exaggerate including personal attacks on
    Mac users, but I try to also actually address the real matters
    at work, and Apple is guilty of a lot.

    Apple is "guilty" of making products that people want to purchase
    and stick with in the face of less expensive alternatives...

    ...and you have to pretend that must mean they are "stoned" or in
    some other way, less than your "brilliant" self...

    ...rather than admit that they are rational, reasonable people
    making rational, reasonable choices.

    $200 for half of a 512 GB SSD.

    $200 to upgrade from 256GB to 512GB.

    Yes.

    So...

    ...what?


    You wanna know "so what"?! Are you kidding me? The wholesale cost of
    the SSD doesn't match with this "upgrade" price, not even remotely, it's
    why 512 GB should be the base model, but no, Apple is years behind the
    times on this. When I built my computer that died prematurely last
    year, in 2021, I had a 1 TB NVMe WD Blue drive, for a little over $100
    as a part. Is Apple's gear, relative to it being five years later, so
    much better, or has the value of money inflated so much, or what the
    HELL gives? Why is it $200 when you're already paying for a 256 GB
    drive you no longer get?! How can you defend these clowns, seriously?
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Wed Feb 4 15:46:02 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-04 15:34, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/2/26 4:45 PM, Alan wrote:

    Objectively, Apple isn't interested in competition, that's purely a
    facade.-a They need Microsoft to be what it is, so they can be the
    quirky alternative for quirky alternative people.-a As such, their
    hardware and software both languish under mediocre development.

    You clearly don't know what "objectively" means.


    Oh sure Apple boy, you tell me what objectivity is, I'll be all ears for that, heh.

    Show objective support for ANYTHING you've ever said about Apple.



    Apple produces products and those products compete with other personal
    digital devices in the market place.

    Apple's hardware is clearly leading the way in certain areas...

    ...and you've never been able to articulate a single issue with their
    software.


    To the extent they haven't gone out of business yet, you have a point.

    Non sequitur.



    We should want to punish Apple any way possible.

    Why? What have they done to deserve (and I can absolutely
    believe you'd use this word): "punishment"?

    Well, let's think about it from a perspective we'd at least
    agree is worth considering - Apple through their Mac product
    line does serve a real need in computing.

    That's an unsupported assertion.

    Apple's Mac product line serves the real needs of its users so
    well, they almost never EVER want to use anything else ever
    again.

    Yeah so ask yourself why, you yourself have talked up
    repeatedly buying Macs, you probably have the slightest
    insight.

    Again: not really English.

    Again:-a you are admitting not really being able to read English.

    No. I'm stating that you wrote a sentence that makes no sense.

    Let's remove the somewhat parenthetical clause from the middle of the
    sentence, and look at what you wrote:

    "Yeah so ask yourself why you probably have the slightest insight.

    In what world does that sentence make sense?


    Uh dude, that is simple mental retardation.-a I didn't write that. You're literally gluing two completely separate phrases into one.-a Were you serious about that?-a If so, you need to see if you can pass a cognitive test like Trump.


    I removed a separate clause, that was separated by commas from the rest,
    which shouldn't have affected the grammar and sense of what remained.

    Watch:

    'I removed a separate clause which shouldn't have affected the grammar
    and sense of what remained.'

    See?



    "Real need in computing" here means that there is more than a
    niche market for macOS and software designed for it.

    Circular argument.

    macOS and software designed for it encompass the vast majority of
    things that people want to do with personal computers.

    OK but why are they choosing the Mac?

    That's a very good question.

    How about: because they've found it works well for them.

    No answer.

    Got it.


    Is it just what was placed
    in front of them?-a Usually, it's a very intentional choice, in fact,
    and I'm recognizing that but since I'm expecting Apple to up its
    game in response,

    Why would Apple "up its game" in response to people being ferociously
    loyal to their products.

    I'm serious:

    I've used, sold, supported both Macs and PCs for more than 30 years.

    And in all that time, I've encountered less half a dozen people who
    tried a Mac and wanted to go back to a PC.

    My current work is computer and network support, and while I
    TECHNICALLY have clients with Macs for whom I provide support, the
    truth is that they almost never need assistance.


    It's good to know that their needs are met.

    Indeed. And my last 20 years of experience shows that people who use
    Macs for equivalent tasks compared to those who use Windows have their
    needs met much more completely and effectively.



    There are people who simply get better results using
    Apple's equipment for a PC, their software to run it.

    Not even an understandable sentence...

    You're not trying very hard, then.-a But that's OK, I know your
    only goal here is to compete with me.

    You think far too highly of yourself.

    It's funny you'd say that though given how you seem to perceive
    yourself, but OK.

    Learn proper English punctuation.


    Get a brain.

    Irony.



    As such, the price gouging on hardware sales does trouble
    me, as a regulator.

    You're NOT a "regulator".

    I could make Apple repay its customers for overcharging them
    over a long period of time.-a But I know better than to overuse
    authority.

    Your megalomania is showing again.

    Your ignorance might be, if you really think I'm a megalomaniac.

    LOL!


    Laugh all you want, but you will see it in certain terms soon.

    Thanks, I will!

    LOL!



    If they're continuing to make the base unit have 256 GB
    storage, but the next step up is $200 extra, at what point
    is that not just transparent gouging?

    Because offering people products they freely purchase isn't
    gouging of any kind.

    It is gouging because if they want a non-joke of a computer they
    have to pay so much extra that they're doing more than their
    fair share to support the product line.-a It's ridiculous.

    Circular.

    It'll never be circular when half of a 512 GB SSD is $200.-a You have
    not addressed that basic fact.

    It doesn't need address.

    Apple offers products for sale.

    People freely buy them.


    Then answer me why my $190 mini PC has a 512 GB SSD *along with the rest
    of its parts*, how are they so much better able than Apple to get parts?

    Because people don't buy PARTS. They buy a SYSTEM.

    -aWhat a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so you're
    getting your slice of the pie.-a It's obvious.

    Nope. Sorry. The closest I ever came to "work[ing] for Apple" was when I
    was selling Macs at an Apple dealer...

    nearly 30 YEARS ago.



    Why is 256 still an option?

    Because it still works fine for many users.

    And it's reasonable to cost $200 to double it?

    If people are willing to pay it? Yes, absolutely.

    Spoken like an Apple employee.

    Spoken like someone who understands free market capitalism.


    Uh huh except for the little fact that this favors those with more
    means, they can pay for the privilege of having pretty Apple hardware in their house to keep up with the Joneses, how nice for them.-a If you're
    OK with supporting such a racket, it's your money I guess.

    The PEOPLE who BUY the Apple devices feel like they're getting good
    value for their money.

    Period.



    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's
    weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware,
    but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed from a
    false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?


    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew what they were
    actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to figure out
    this kind of thing.



    I hate Apple with a severe passion, almost to
    the point of obsession.

    Oh, well past that point.

    I do other things with my time than debate computers on Usenet.

    Yet you reply to almost every post of mine instantly.


    It varies, in this particular case I hadn't even been on the computer
    enough in the last couple days to catch up on Usenet, but that is
    unusual for me, sure.

    Riiiiiiiight.

    My bet: you felt a need to prove you didn't reply instantly all the
    time, and so deliberately refrained until some had passed.



    It has led me to even exaggerate including personal attacks on
    Mac users, but I try to also actually address the real matters
    at work, and Apple is guilty of a lot.

    Apple is "guilty" of making products that people want to purchase
    and stick with in the face of less expensive alternatives...

    ...and you have to pretend that must mean they are "stoned" or in
    some other way, less than your "brilliant" self...

    ...rather than admit that they are rational, reasonable people
    making rational, reasonable choices.

    $200 for half of a 512 GB SSD.

    $200 to upgrade from 256GB to 512GB.

    Yes.

    So...

    ...what?


    You wanna know "so what"?!

    Yes.

    -a Are you kidding me?-a The wholesale cost of
    the SSD doesn't match with this "upgrade" price, not even remotely, it's
    why 512 GB should be the base model, but no, Apple is years behind the
    times on this.-a When I built my computer that died prematurely last
    year, in 2021, I had a 1 TB NVMe WD Blue drive, for a little over $100
    as a part.-a Is Apple's gear, relative to it being five years later, so
    much better, or has the value of money inflated so much, or what the
    HELL gives?-a Why is it $200 when you're already paying for a 256 GB
    drive you no longer get?!-a How can you defend these clowns, seriously?


    PEOPLE buy SYSTEMS. The only thing that matters is the value of the...

    ...SYSTEM AS A WHOLE...

    ...as determined by...

    ...the PEOPLE WHO USE THEM.

    The question you should really be asking is:

    Why people are willing to spend so much more if all that matters is the initial cost?
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Wed Feb 4 15:53:31 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-04 15:50, pothead wrote:
    You wanna know "so what"?! Are you kidding me? The wholesale cost of
    the SSD doesn't match with this "upgrade" price, not even remotely, it's
    why 512 GB should be the base model, but no, Apple is years behind the
    times on this. When I built my computer that died prematurely last
    year, in 2021, I had a 1 TB NVMe WD Blue drive, for a little over $100
    as a part. Is Apple's gear, relative to it being five years later, so
    much better, or has the value of money inflated so much, or what the
    HELL gives? Why is it $200 when you're already paying for a 256 GB
    drive you no longer get?! How can you defend these clowns, seriously?

    Don't waste your time with the Alan troll. He is 100% certifiably insane.
    I posted a single reply to his thread regarding using Spotminders rather than Apple Airtags and he went bonkers. It was like I insulted his mamma or something.
    Then he started the usual focusing on minutia like high horse does. So in one post
    I incorrectly called the Spotminders credit card sized tracker a "tag" and currently
    Spotminders recently did release tag type devices, which once again are superior
    to Apple's Airtag.

    You mean "bonkers", like...

    ...needing to bring this up in every other thread and talk about me...

    ...when I'm supposedly in your killfile?


    Big deal.

    It was obvious what I was referring to in the thread, like size, hide in a purse, wallet
    passport, etc. A tag isn't a good choice for that.

    Not in your original post it wasn't obvious.

    Why must you lie?


    Alan is the ultimate Apple zealot and like those with TDS he simply cannot, and
    will not accept anything the competition or other side has to offer.

    Actually I'm surprised he hasn't tried to argue that the Apple Airtag comes in
    a better box EfOe
    That's the level he argues at.

    And the most interesting part is that I am in no way an Apple hater.
    I use iPhones, Apple watches and have for years.

    They guy is simply a religious wack job.

    Place him in the Bozo Bin like I have.
    Don't waste your time.

    You mean like...

    ...inserting yourself into a thread just to take cheap shots at someone?

    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From -hh@recscuba_google@huntzinger.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Wed Feb 4 19:41:37 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/4/26 18:53, Alan wrote:
    On 2026-02-04 15:50, pothead wrote:
    [...]
    Big deal.

    It was obvious what I was referring to in the thread, like size, hide
    in a purse, wallet passport, etc. A tag isn't a good choice for that.

    Not in your original post it wasn't obvious.

    Why must you lie?

    Alan is the ultimate Apple zealot and like those with TDS he simply
    cannot, and
    will not accept anything the competition or other side has to offer.

    Actually I'm surprised he hasn't tried to argue that the Apple Airtag
    comes in a better box EfOe
    That's the level he argues at.


    Hmmm...I was merely starting to wonder why pothead is 'hiding' from my
    reply back to them in this thread which I made a couple of days ago.


    And the most interesting part is that I am in no way an Apple hater.
    I use iPhones, Apple watches and have for years.

    They guy is simply a religious wack job.

    Place him in the Bozo Bin like I have.
    Don't waste your time.

    You mean like...

    ...inserting yourself into a thread just to take cheap shots at someone?

    Let's see .. ah, here it is. Apologies for the length, but it is after
    all, a point-by-point rebuttal of each of pothead's claims:

    [quote / editorial reformatting for line-wrap]

    On 1/31/26 18:10, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    On 1/29/26 18:23, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-29, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    ...
    Yea, and where are you going to find a battery when your
    luggage is in pengo pengo?

    Pack a spare battery just in case you forgot to check
    pre-trip. BTDT.

    An option.
    But then there is battery swelling to deal with.

    Risks are never zero, but you're misapplying the swelling risks of rechargeable lithium batteries to a non-rechargeable lithium battery chemistry, since the former has many cycles and the latter only ever has
    one (1) cycle. Main factor increasing the chemical off-gassing risk is
    an environment where temperatures exceed 45C (115F), but this applies
    for both battery types.


    Probably rare but still it happens.
    People don't maintain their electronics anymore.

    The risk is far higher in your Spotminder than from the disposable
    CR2032 in an Airtag...

    ...and since the CR2032 is a disposable, it forces maintenance to occur.


    But odds of it going dead while on a trip is pretty low, as Apple
    has an automatic "low battery" push notice, and IME the Airtag's
    battery life is easily a few weeks longer, enough to get home
    from a typical one week long trip. All in all, it is quite low
    maintenance.

    So does Spotminders, plus they send an email based upon when your
    purchased letting you it's time to charge.

    How does the email know what the actual current voltage is?
    And if one owns more than one, which one?


    As usual you play with minutia while avoiding the obvious.

    Nah, the obvious is that the Spotminders' much shorter battery life
    pragmatically requires that they be regularly removed from where
    they're deployed to be recharged, and since its battery life claim
    is the usual marking caveat of "up to", the effective timeline
    requires ~4x/year.

    Yawn.
    Warranty is lifetime.

    That might mean something from a mature, established company, but
    Spotminders was only founded two years ago (2/28/24): they're too recent
    to have a demonstrated track record of honoring their warranty claims.


    Stick on a wireless charger and it's good for another 6 months or so.
    Easy peasy.

    Even easier is maintenance that's 2x-3x longer interval cycle.


    And no danger of leaking, at least not to the level of a CR2032 which
    can swell and leak.

    Got incidence rate data to cite for that claim?
    Because on a first principles basis, rechargeables are higher risk.

    "'IrCOd say it happens in about 10 percent of laptops I deal with,' Belton said. 'IrCOve seen it in phones, but more rarely.;"

    <https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/04/18/lithium-ion-battery-swelling-why/>

    Overall, it appears that the risk ramps up after 2-3 years in service.

    YMMV on one's personal cost of convenience tolerance is, but since
    the Airtag's annual operation cost is <$1/yr, its probably well
    within most American's budget.

    Spotminders is cheaper.

    For only the recharge cost part. Even if it is free (which it isn't),
    it still takes ~19 years of to break even vs the Spotminder's higher
    MSRP. Longer still if we include the cost of each of these electric
    recharges (power cost + cost of charger) and present value of money.

    Aslo you need to purchase another device if you want to put an Airtag
    on a keyring so that will cost you more for the much touted key ring advantage of the Airtag.

    Sure, but they're cheap: I've paid $8 for a four pack at Amazon, which
    is $2 each. Adding this shortens the 19 year ROI time by two (2) years
    so Spotminder doesn't become as cheap as the Airtag to own & maintain
    until "merely" 17 years with this...

    ...and that's assuming that its rechargeable battery lasts for 17 years.


    Obvious things like:

    Super slim. looks like an ordinary credit card...

    Sure, but that's only a meaningful differentiator if one needs
    a credit card form factor, such as for a gentleman's wallet.
    The rest of the use cases don't matter.

    Purse.
    Ask your wife about hidden pockets in purses.

    She's not complained about the Airtag's form factor for years now, so
    just when is she going to finally start?


    Passport is another popular spot.

    You've clearly not done any significant amount of international travel,
    for you'd otherwise know that Agents frown on anything other than a
    "naked" passport. Even when its literally just one paperclip (BTDT).

    Plus more recently, the scanning machines aren't always friendly to "not
    just the passport" too...USA, EU, Japan, Australia, just to name a few.

    This limits a tracker to be with the passport holder, not the passport,
    which affords many more 'how to affix' options.

    Luggage, can easily be hidden in the lining, unlike an Airtag.

    Nah. In fact, one can save the $2 of a key ring holder and just toss a
    tag into a luggage pocket, shoe, toiletry kit, etc, etc.

    FYI, if you're concerned about rain/water in luggage, splurge for 3-o and
    put it in a sandwich bag. And if you have any of those small disposable anti-desiccant pouches from a recent electronics purchase, instead of
    throwing them in the garbage, toss an anti-dessicant into the bag too.

    Car, easily hidden, maybe in a headliner, stuck on the center console
    lid etc.
    Unlike an Airtag.

    They're equally easy/hard to hide, but since there's also the functional
    need to regularly remove the Spotminder for battery recharge service,
    the Spotminder needs to be removed for charging much more frequently
    (eg, every 4 months), so they can't be buried/hidden too deeply, or else
    they discharge, get forgotten/lost and become useless.

    Easy to hide in plain sight unlike an Apple Airtag.

    And what does "hide in plain sight" really mean here? I can't see
    hanging a credit card off of the car keys in my pocket as being less
    bulky -- or unsightly -- as a "fat coin" form factor.

    Actually if you park in a commercial or even an HOA garage card keys
    are popular and people hang them on their key ring. However
    Spotminders does make a Smarttag which is designed for a key ring
    and unlike Apple it has a hole in it so you don't have to buy an
    extra piece.

    An "extra piece" which costs all of $2 on Amazon.


    So Spotminders makes different devices.
    Apple makes one size fits all.

    Just "one size", but at ~half the MSRP price, though. Seems like a fair enough trade-off, especially for the plethora of use cases where the difference in form factors isn't a differentiator.


    Many more advantages ...

    Such as?

    Warranty.

    Unproven warranty.

    Sound is louder than Apple.

    Versus the original generation of Airtag, or the 2nd generation?

    In any case, what I've found is that one needs to use the Bluetooth
    location UI to first get close (same room) to be able to hear it, and if
    it is packaged within something (eg, suitcase) that can muffle it quite
    a bit. That's why my I now name the device with which item the Tag is
    being used in, and my travel inventory list (which encompasses far more
    than just tags) also notes where within said item .. eg "top pocket".

    Construction gets higher marks as being superior.

    By who?


    If you buy on sale, price is less.

    Here is a special on the SmartTag, 5 for $87:00
    I got the credit card version 4 for $88.00

    So? Airtags go on sale too; IIRC, I paid $69 for a 4 pack a couple of
    years ago (& got free engraving too). Plus the 2025 Black Friday sale
    was a 4-pack for $63:

    <https://appleinsider.com/articles/25/11/28/best-black-friday-airtag-deals-4-pack-drops-to-6299-single-tag-hits-1797>

    That's $15.75/each: lower than your $17.40/ea and $22/ea sales prices.


    however what I find interesting is how Anal, not you hh, jumped
    all over my initial post where all I said was i use Spotminders
    rather than Airtag.

    I glanced through them - just what was so wrong?

    Just because I mentioned a competitor's product he went bonkers.

    Nah, you merely got called out for incorrect statements.
    (And bogus/nebulous claims too)


    Going back, I see the following points:

    * you were corrected on two factual errors (battery is replaceable,
    waterproof ratings are the same);

    Yes.
    From a website that was incorrect.
    Neither was really a consideration for me at the time though.
    I don't typically take my purse/wallet into the water when I am at
    the beach.

    Airtags have never had non-user-replacable batteries. Perhaps you were thinking of Tile, as their original version was that way. This may be
    showing that as a customer, you didn't do your homework before buying.


    * the claim of "Low-grade plastic" is (% remains) unsubstantiated;

    Serial number is engraved on Spotminders rather than a sticker.
    That says quality to me, but yea marketing stuff.

    Serial#? What does this have to do with plastic grade claim?

    * the claim of "no risk of battery swelling" needs an explanation
    why;

    There is no separate battery like a CR 2032.

    So? A non-user-replaceable battery means a more finite lifespan, right?


    It's an internal lithium polymer battery (I think?). Another
    advantage is the card is eco friendly, which I'm sure you will like.
    No CR 2032 batteries to dispose of.

    Incorrect, because both products' use lithium-based batteries, so both
    require environmentally appropriate disposal, not household trash.

    The CR2032 is easily removed, so it can be chucked into the local
    recycling center 'battery bucket'. In contrast, the Spotminder has to
    go into 'electronics for recycling' bin, which is less common.


    * he agreed that a credit card sized product has it's place
    (but often isn't a differentiator);

    * his point that a "lifetime guarantee" is a valid risk for
    relatively new companies;

    Pure speculation.
    Lifetime warranty vs 1 year warranty.
    Easy peasy.

    Merely words on a website. To determine the risks, has Spotminder put
    up a Bond with a third party to guarantee resources for a 5, 10 (or
    longer) life?

    Likewise, "lifetime" guarantees are invariably quite nebulous in their weasel-wording: just how was the 'lifetime' term legally defined here?

    Follow the documentation trail, especially when there is none to follow.


    * he concluded that you're paying extra for a worse product when form
    factor isn't needed.

    He is wrong.

    You're welcome to your personal opinion, as he has his. Readers are who decides which poster has made more compelling/convincing statements.

    I've explained this many times already.

    Nah, you've *tried* to explain, but haven't been convincing ... or on
    several points, even correct.


    The biggest thing that I saw wrong from the above was that Alan used
    an overly high price for the Airtag for ROI comparisons, so instead
    of the Spotminder's breakeven point being at ~4.5 years, its out at
    ~19 years.

    There you go into the minutia rabbit hole again.

    YMMV, but most people don't snub a ~70% cost reduction.

    FWIW, in addition to luggage we've frequently deployed Airtags in
    purses & similar small bags ... but the places that I've never even
    thought about deploying them are inside my wallet (which is where
    a CC form factor would apply) or within a moneybelt/passport carrier.

    Everyone is different.
    I stated MY needs and initially I never stated an Apple vs Spotminders comparison.


    Except that a comparison is implicit, as the post was on a thread whose subject line is: "AirTag 2 vs AirTag: HererCOs everything new".


    Alan was the one who went bonkers on that one.

    Oh, so reactions to you making false statements is your excuse?


    -hh

    [/quote]

    -hh
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Wed Feb 4 21:21:25 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/4/26 6:46 PM, Alan wrote:

    We should want to punish Apple any way possible.

    Why? What have they done to deserve (and I can absolutely
    believe you'd use this word): "punishment"?

    Well, let's think about it from a perspective we'd at least
    agree is worth considering - Apple through their Mac product
    line does serve a real need in computing.

    That's an unsupported assertion.

    Apple's Mac product line serves the real needs of its users so
    well, they almost never EVER want to use anything else ever
    again.

    Yeah so ask yourself why, you yourself have talked up
    repeatedly buying Macs, you probably have the slightest
    insight.

    Again: not really English.

    Again:-a you are admitting not really being able to read English.

    No. I'm stating that you wrote a sentence that makes no sense.

    Let's remove the somewhat parenthetical clause from the middle of the
    sentence, and look at what you wrote:

    "Yeah so ask yourself why you probably have the slightest insight.

    In what world does that sentence make sense?

    Uh dude, that is simple mental retardation.-a I didn't write that.
    You're literally gluing two completely separate phrases into one.
    Were you serious about that?-a If so, you need to see if you can pass a
    cognitive test like Trump.

    I removed a separate clause, that was separated by commas from the rest, which shouldn't have affected the grammar and sense of what remained.

    Watch:

    'I removed a separate clause which shouldn't have affected the grammar
    and sense of what remained.'

    See?


    Wow, I think the other poster who questioned whether you were on the
    spectrum might have been right.


    If they're continuing to make the base unit have 256 GB
    storage, but the next step up is $200 extra, at what point
    is that not just transparent gouging?

    Because offering people products they freely purchase isn't
    gouging of any kind.

    It is gouging because if they want a non-joke of a computer they
    have to pay so much extra that they're doing more than their
    fair share to support the product line.-a It's ridiculous.

    Circular.

    It'll never be circular when half of a 512 GB SSD is $200.-a You have
    not addressed that basic fact.

    It doesn't need address.

    Apple offers products for sale.

    People freely buy them.

    Then answer me why my $190 mini PC has a 512 GB SSD *along with the
    rest of its parts*, how are they so much better able than Apple to get
    parts?

    Because people don't buy PARTS. They buy a SYSTEM.


    I didn't buy the mini as parts, myself, for once, and it turned out I
    really preferred the concept, disaster turned into something kind of beneficial, but nevertheless, its whole retail price on Amazon was less
    than Apple is charging for half of your modestly sized SSD.

    You have not addressed that. Because no one can. Apple charges
    whatever they want, you pay it because you're loyal, but damn is it
    expensive.


    -a-aWhat a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so you're
    getting your slice of the pie.-a It's obvious.

    Nope. Sorry. The closest I ever came to "work[ing] for Apple" was when I
    was selling Macs at an Apple dealer...

    nearly 30 YEARS ago.


    I want to believe you, but it would really almost be worse, to be such a
    fan that you do this backbreaking work for them without being
    compensated. When I first came to the advocacy newsgroups, I was
    promoting Windows 7, for example, I have my past as a Linux skeptic, but
    I also promoted what was then called OpenOffice, I was critical of MS in
    ways that showed insight and willingness to acknowledge its flaws.

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.


    Why is 256 still an option?

    Because it still works fine for many users.

    And it's reasonable to cost $200 to double it?

    If people are willing to pay it? Yes, absolutely.

    Spoken like an Apple employee.

    Spoken like someone who understands free market capitalism.

    Uh huh except for the little fact that this favors those with more
    means, they can pay for the privilege of having pretty Apple hardware
    in their house to keep up with the Joneses, how nice for them.-a If
    you're OK with supporting such a racket, it's your money I guess.

    The PEOPLE who BUY the Apple devices feel like they're getting good
    value for their money.

    Period.


    They can do what they want, there are worse luxuries people spend on to
    be sure, far worse at that - however, you do have to ask, wouldn't
    investing in a Mac be a lot like in a luxury vehicle? It seems like a
    good comparison, because they are examples of functional products in categories that enough people own to be considered ubiquitous, but at
    the same time in the higher end in cost of ownership of the categories.
    And your point would essentially be fair, that they chose freely to
    spend the money on these products, but what is really better about them?

    Obviously, the person buying it believes there is something better about
    it, but to me it seems marginal. There's nothing a Hyundai is missing
    that actually matters in a car. But it's half the sticker price of a Lexus.

    You see the comparison, therefore, between Apple's hardware offerings
    and a luxury car, at worst for my argument you could point out that
    higher-end PCs are also expensive, but I would simply retort that they
    have higher specs.

    Apple sucks, dude. Face reality.


    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's
    weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware,
    but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed from a
    false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?

    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the question
    is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew what they were
    actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to figure out
    this kind of thing.


    I don't assume any such thing, actually. It might come relatively
    easily to me, but common sense should tell a potential customer visiting Apple's site that their Mac line is overpriced. And comparing it to PCs
    they will definitely find products that offer betters specs at
    comparable quality. This is why Mac users are a cult, they stand out as
    being exceedingly loyal to a company that gouges them.


    I hate Apple with a severe passion, almost to
    the point of obsession.

    Oh, well past that point.

    I do other things with my time than debate computers on Usenet.

    Yet you reply to almost every post of mine instantly.

    It varies, in this particular case I hadn't even been on the computer
    enough in the last couple days to catch up on Usenet, but that is
    unusual for me, sure.

    Riiiiiiiight.

    My bet: you felt a need to prove you didn't reply instantly all the
    time, and so deliberately refrained until some had passed.


    You would not win the bet, I was really not feeling great, I was
    spending time resting, and when I was on the computer I found it very
    tiring. I simply never even checked for new messages in COLA during the period of time. You can not believe me, but that only enables me not to believe your denials about working for Apple. So have it your way.


    It has led me to even exaggerate including personal attacks on
    Mac users, but I try to also actually address the real matters
    at work, and Apple is guilty of a lot.

    Apple is "guilty" of making products that people want to purchase
    and stick with in the face of less expensive alternatives...

    ...and you have to pretend that must mean they are "stoned" or in
    some other way, less than your "brilliant" self...

    ...rather than admit that they are rational, reasonable people
    making rational, reasonable choices.

    $200 for half of a 512 GB SSD.

    $200 to upgrade from 256GB to 512GB.

    Yes.

    So...

    ...what?

    You wanna know "so what"?!

    Yes.

    -a Are you kidding me?-a The wholesale cost of the SSD doesn't match
    with this "upgrade" price, not even remotely, it's why 512 GB should
    be the base model, but no, Apple is years behind the times on this.
    When I built my computer that died prematurely last year, in 2021, I
    had a 1 TB NVMe WD Blue drive, for a little over $100 as a part.-a Is
    Apple's gear, relative to it being five years later, so much better,
    or has the value of money inflated so much, or what the HELL gives?
    Why is it $200 when you're already paying for a 256 GB drive you no
    longer get?!-a How can you defend these clowns, seriously?

    PEOPLE buy SYSTEMS. The only thing that matters is the value of the...

    ...SYSTEM AS A WHOLE...

    ...as determined by...

    ...the PEOPLE WHO USE THEM.

    The question you should really be asking is:

    Why people are willing to spend so much more if all that matters is the initial cost?


    You don't think I'd see that as simple deflection? Come on, we're not
    talking about "all that matters is the initial cost", we're talking
    about Apple's way of coercing excessive payment for what should be
    standard hardware, the SSD issue being the most ridiculously blatant
    example, the half of a 512 GB drive for $200, that is so utterly stupid
    and greedy it boggles the mind, and you are totally OK with it.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Wed Feb 4 18:44:48 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-04 18:21, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/4/26 6:46 PM, Alan wrote:

    We should want to punish Apple any way possible.

    Why? What have they done to deserve (and I can absolutely
    believe you'd use this word): "punishment"?

    Well, let's think about it from a perspective we'd at least
    agree is worth considering - Apple through their Mac product >>>>>>>>> line does serve a real need in computing.

    That's an unsupported assertion.

    Apple's Mac product line serves the real needs of its users so >>>>>>>> well, they almost never EVER want to use anything else ever
    again.

    Yeah so ask yourself why, you yourself have talked up
    repeatedly buying Macs, you probably have the slightest
    insight.

    Again: not really English.

    Again:-a you are admitting not really being able to read English.

    No. I'm stating that you wrote a sentence that makes no sense.

    Let's remove the somewhat parenthetical clause from the middle of
    the sentence, and look at what you wrote:

    "Yeah so ask yourself why you probably have the slightest insight.

    In what world does that sentence make sense?

    Uh dude, that is simple mental retardation.-a I didn't write that.
    You're literally gluing two completely separate phrases into one.
    Were you serious about that?-a If so, you need to see if you can pass
    a cognitive test like Trump.

    I removed a separate clause, that was separated by commas from the
    rest, which shouldn't have affected the grammar and sense of what
    remained.

    Watch:

    'I removed a separate clause which shouldn't have affected the grammar
    and sense of what remained.'

    See?


    Wow, I think the other poster who questioned whether you were on the spectrum might have been right.

    You don't understand English grammar.

    Got it.



    If they're continuing to make the base unit have 256 GB
    storage, but the next step up is $200 extra, at what point
    is that not just transparent gouging?

    Because offering people products they freely purchase isn't
    gouging of any kind.

    It is gouging because if they want a non-joke of a computer they >>>>>>> have to pay so much extra that they're doing more than their
    fair share to support the product line.-a It's ridiculous.

    Circular.

    It'll never be circular when half of a 512 GB SSD is $200.-a You have >>>>> not addressed that basic fact.

    It doesn't need address.

    Apple offers products for sale.

    People freely buy them.

    Then answer me why my $190 mini PC has a 512 GB SSD *along with the
    rest of its parts*, how are they so much better able than Apple to
    get parts?

    Because people don't buy PARTS. They buy a SYSTEM.


    I didn't buy the mini as parts, myself, for once, and it turned out I
    really preferred the concept, disaster turned into something kind of beneficial, but nevertheless, its whole retail price on Amazon was less
    than Apple is charging for half of your modestly sized SSD.

    You have not addressed that.-a Because no one can.-a Apple charges
    whatever they want, you pay it because you're loyal, but damn is it expensive.

    You miss the point.

    Yes. Macs are more expensive. But their value is the system as a whole.



    -a-aWhat a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so you're
    getting your slice of the pie.-a It's obvious.

    Nope. Sorry. The closest I ever came to "work[ing] for Apple" was when
    I was selling Macs at an Apple dealer...

    nearly 30 YEARS ago.


    I want to believe you, but it would really almost be worse, to be such a
    fan that you do this backbreaking work for them without being
    compensated.-a When I first came to the advocacy newsgroups, I was
    promoting Windows 7, for example, I have my past as a Linux skeptic, but
    I also promoted what was then called OpenOffice, I was critical of MS in ways that showed insight and willingness to acknowledge its flaws.

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.

    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.



    Why is 256 still an option?

    Because it still works fine for many users.

    And it's reasonable to cost $200 to double it?

    If people are willing to pay it? Yes, absolutely.

    Spoken like an Apple employee.

    Spoken like someone who understands free market capitalism.

    Uh huh except for the little fact that this favors those with more
    means, they can pay for the privilege of having pretty Apple hardware
    in their house to keep up with the Joneses, how nice for them.-a If
    you're OK with supporting such a racket, it's your money I guess.

    The PEOPLE who BUY the Apple devices feel like they're getting good
    value for their money.

    Period.


    They can do what they want, there are worse luxuries people spend on to
    be sure, far worse at that - however, you do have to ask, wouldn't
    investing in a Mac be a lot like in a luxury vehicle?-a It seems like a
    good comparison, because they are examples of functional products in categories that enough people own to be considered ubiquitous, but at
    the same time in the higher end in cost of ownership of the categories.
    And your point would essentially be fair, that they chose freely to
    spend the money on these products, but what is really better about them?

    Obviously, the person buying it believes there is something better about
    it, but to me it seems marginal.-a There's nothing a Hyundai is missing
    that actually matters in a car.-a But it's half the sticker price of a Lexus.

    You see the comparison, therefore, between Apple's hardware offerings
    and a luxury car, at worst for my argument you could point out that higher-end PCs are also expensive, but I would simply retort that they
    have higher specs.

    Apple sucks, dude.-a Face reality.

    Nope. You are utterly missing the point.



    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's
    weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware,
    but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed from a >>>>>> false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?

    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the question
    is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew what they were
    actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to figure
    out this kind of thing.


    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.

    It might come relatively
    easily to me, but common sense should tell a potential customer visiting Apple's site that their Mac line is overpriced.-a And comparing it to PCs they will definitely find products that offer betters specs at
    comparable quality.-a This is why Mac users are a cult, they stand out as being exceedingly loyal to a company that gouges them.

    But you ASSUME that the only things that matter are the hardware specs.

    They are NOT the only things that matter.



    I hate Apple with a severe passion, almost to
    the point of obsession.

    Oh, well past that point.

    I do other things with my time than debate computers on Usenet.

    Yet you reply to almost every post of mine instantly.

    It varies, in this particular case I hadn't even been on the computer
    enough in the last couple days to catch up on Usenet, but that is
    unusual for me, sure.

    Riiiiiiiight.

    My bet: you felt a need to prove you didn't reply instantly all the
    time, and so deliberately refrained until some had passed.


    You would not win the bet, I was really not feeling great, I was
    spending time resting, and when I was on the computer I found it very tiring.-a I simply never even checked for new messages in COLA during the period of time.-a You can not believe me, but that only enables me not to believe your denials about working for Apple.-a So have it your way.

    Sure. I will.



    It has led me to even exaggerate including personal attacks on
    Mac users, but I try to also actually address the real matters
    at work, and Apple is guilty of a lot.

    Apple is "guilty" of making products that people want to purchase
    and stick with in the face of less expensive alternatives...

    ...and you have to pretend that must mean they are "stoned" or in
    some other way, less than your "brilliant" self...

    ...rather than admit that they are rational, reasonable people
    making rational, reasonable choices.

    $200 for half of a 512 GB SSD.

    $200 to upgrade from 256GB to 512GB.

    Yes.

    So...

    ...what?

    You wanna know "so what"?!

    Yes.

    -a Are you kidding me?-a The wholesale cost of the SSD doesn't match
    with this "upgrade" price, not even remotely, it's why 512 GB should
    be the base model, but no, Apple is years behind the times on this.
    When I built my computer that died prematurely last year, in 2021, I
    had a 1 TB NVMe WD Blue drive, for a little over $100 as a part.-a Is
    Apple's gear, relative to it being five years later, so much better,
    or has the value of money inflated so much, or what the HELL gives?
    Why is it $200 when you're already paying for a 256 GB drive you no
    longer get?!-a How can you defend these clowns, seriously?

    PEOPLE buy SYSTEMS. The only thing that matters is the value of the...

    ...SYSTEM AS A WHOLE...

    ...as determined by...

    ...the PEOPLE WHO USE THEM.

    The question you should really be asking is:

    Why people are willing to spend so much more if all that matters is
    the initial cost?


    You don't think I'd see that as simple deflection?-a Come on, we're not talking about "all that matters is the initial cost", we're talking
    about Apple's way of coercing excessive payment for what should be
    standard hardware, the SSD issue being the most ridiculously blatant example, the half of a 512 GB drive for $200, that is so utterly stupid
    and greedy it boggles the mind, and you are totally OK with it.
    Apple doesn't "coerce" any payments, doofus.

    The offer products that are more than merely their hardware.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Thu Feb 5 04:46:09 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/4/26 9:44 PM, Alan wrote:

    -a-aWhat a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so you're >>>> getting your slice of the pie.-a It's obvious.

    Nope. Sorry. The closest I ever came to "work[ing] for Apple" was
    when I was selling Macs at an Apple dealer...

    nearly 30 YEARS ago.

    I want to believe you, but it would really almost be worse, to be such
    a fan that you do this backbreaking work for them without being
    compensated.-a When I first came to the advocacy newsgroups, I was
    promoting Windows 7, for example, I have my past as a Linux skeptic,
    but I also promoted what was then called OpenOffice, I was critical of
    MS in ways that showed insight and willingness to acknowledge its flaws.

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.

    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.


    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging issue,
    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how much it's
    talked about you stick to your guns, because you literally are an Apple employee, paid to post here.


    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's
    weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware, >>>>>>>> but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed from a >>>>>>> false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?

    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the
    question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew what
    they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to figure
    out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.


    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through this? 'Cause
    I am not. Lots of people hate Apple for very similar reasons to mine.


    It might come relatively easily to me, but common sense should tell a
    potential customer visiting Apple's site that their Mac line is
    overpriced.-a And comparing it to PCs they will definitely find
    products that offer betters specs at comparable quality.-a This is why
    Mac users are a cult, they stand out as being exceedingly loyal to a
    company that gouges them.

    But you ASSUME that the only things that matter are the hardware specs.

    They are NOT the only things that matter.


    They matter in price. What is Apple giving you otherwise, their crap software? AppleCare if you pay extra? Nonstandard interface ports that
    they claim are better 'cause they say so? What a joke. What a total
    cult. And you're the ringleader.


    I hate Apple with a severe passion, almost to
    the point of obsession.

    Oh, well past that point.

    I do other things with my time than debate computers on Usenet.

    Yet you reply to almost every post of mine instantly.

    It varies, in this particular case I hadn't even been on the
    computer enough in the last couple days to catch up on Usenet, but
    that is unusual for me, sure.

    Riiiiiiiight.

    My bet: you felt a need to prove you didn't reply instantly all the
    time, and so deliberately refrained until some had passed.

    You would not win the bet, I was really not feeling great, I was
    spending time resting, and when I was on the computer I found it very
    tiring.-a I simply never even checked for new messages in COLA during
    the period of time.-a You can not believe me, but that only enables me
    not to believe your denials about working for Apple.-a So have it your
    way.

    Sure. I will.


    So you're delusional, OK.


    It has led me to even exaggerate including personal attacks on >>>>>>>> Mac users, but I try to also actually address the real matters >>>>>>>> at work, and Apple is guilty of a lot.

    Apple is "guilty" of making products that people want to purchase >>>>>>> and stick with in the face of less expensive alternatives...

    ...and you have to pretend that must mean they are "stoned" or in >>>>>>> some other way, less than your "brilliant" self...

    ...rather than admit that they are rational, reasonable people
    making rational, reasonable choices.

    $200 for half of a 512 GB SSD.

    $200 to upgrade from 256GB to 512GB.

    Yes.

    So...

    ...what?

    You wanna know "so what"?!

    Yes.

    -a Are you kidding me?-a The wholesale cost of the SSD doesn't match
    with this "upgrade" price, not even remotely, it's why 512 GB should
    be the base model, but no, Apple is years behind the times on this.
    When I built my computer that died prematurely last year, in 2021, I
    had a 1 TB NVMe WD Blue drive, for a little over $100 as a part.-a Is >>>> Apple's gear, relative to it being five years later, so much better,
    or has the value of money inflated so much, or what the HELL gives?
    Why is it $200 when you're already paying for a 256 GB drive you no
    longer get?!-a How can you defend these clowns, seriously?

    PEOPLE buy SYSTEMS. The only thing that matters is the value of the...

    ...SYSTEM AS A WHOLE...

    ...as determined by...

    ...the PEOPLE WHO USE THEM.

    The question you should really be asking is:

    Why people are willing to spend so much more if all that matters is
    the initial cost?

    You don't think I'd see that as simple deflection?-a Come on, we're not
    talking about "all that matters is the initial cost", we're talking
    about Apple's way of coercing excessive payment for what should be
    standard hardware, the SSD issue being the most ridiculously blatant
    example, the half of a 512 GB drive for $200, that is so utterly
    stupid and greedy it boggles the mind, and you are totally OK with it.

    Apple doesn't "coerce" any payments, doofus.

    The offer products that are more than merely their hardware.


    Yeah and the funny part is that it gets *worse* when you start talking
    about macOS and the vast majority of its native software, it's sad. The
    best Mac app is Microsoft Office! Imagine! I hate that shit when it's
    on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I saw it in 2010. But most
    of the small apps I downloaded/registered/whatever for then-OS X were
    just pathetic crapware, made by brain-damaged nerds. Luckily, neither
    Windows nor macOS are necessary, since GNU/Linux gives me the same
    sleekness of macOS while improving on Windows' robustness overall, a
    win-win.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 11:22:11 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-02 10:28, -hh wrote:
    On 1/31/26 18:10, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    On 1/29/26 18:23, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-29, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    ...
    Yea, and where are you going to find a battery when your luggage is
    in pengo pengo?

    Pack a spare battery just in case you forgot to check pre-trip.-a BTDT.

    An option.
    But then there is battery swelling to deal with.

    Risks are never zero, but you're misapplying the swelling risks of rechargeable lithium batteries to a non-rechargeable lithium battery chemistry, since the former has many cycles and the latter only ever has
    one (1) cycle.-a Main factor increasing the chemical off-gassing risk is
    an environment where temperatures exceed 45C (115F), but this applies
    for both battery types.
    And will you look at that, H: it's been an entire week and PH hasn't had
    a thing to say.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 11:38:48 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-05 01:46, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/4/26 9:44 PM, Alan wrote:

    -a-aWhat a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so you're >>>>> getting your slice of the pie.-a It's obvious.

    Nope. Sorry. The closest I ever came to "work[ing] for Apple" was
    when I was selling Macs at an Apple dealer...

    nearly 30 YEARS ago.

    I want to believe you, but it would really almost be worse, to be
    such a fan that you do this backbreaking work for them without being
    compensated.-a When I first came to the advocacy newsgroups, I was
    promoting Windows 7, for example, I have my past as a Linux skeptic,
    but I also promoted what was then called OpenOffice, I was critical
    of MS in ways that showed insight and willingness to acknowledge its
    flaws.

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.

    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.


    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging issue,

    WHAT "overcharging issue" would that be: the alleged 13V "spike"...

    ...which applies whether or not your SSD is soldered or socketed?

    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how much it's talked about you stick to your guns, because you literally are an Apple employee, paid to post here.

    No. I am not.



    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's >>>>>>>>> weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware, >>>>>>>>> but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed from >>>>>>>> a false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?

    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the
    question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew what
    they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to figure
    out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.


    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through this?-a 'Cause
    I am not.-a Lots of people hate Apple for very similar reasons to mine.

    "Hate"? Dude... ...HATING a company because they sell their products at
    prices people are willing to pay is messed up.

    You should seek out a mental health professional.



    It might come relatively easily to me, but common sense should tell a
    potential customer visiting Apple's site that their Mac line is
    overpriced.-a And comparing it to PCs they will definitely find
    products that offer betters specs at comparable quality.-a This is why
    Mac users are a cult, they stand out as being exceedingly loyal to a
    company that gouges them.

    But you ASSUME that the only things that matter are the hardware specs.

    They are NOT the only things that matter.


    They matter in price.-a What is Apple giving you otherwise, their crap software?

    You saying it's "crap" doesn't make it so?

    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that
    they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What a total cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple Desktop
    Bus)?



    I hate Apple with a severe passion, almost to
    the point of obsession.

    Oh, well past that point.

    I do other things with my time than debate computers on Usenet.

    Yet you reply to almost every post of mine instantly.

    It varies, in this particular case I hadn't even been on the
    computer enough in the last couple days to catch up on Usenet, but
    that is unusual for me, sure.

    Riiiiiiiight.

    My bet: you felt a need to prove you didn't reply instantly all the
    time, and so deliberately refrained until some had passed.

    You would not win the bet, I was really not feeling great, I was
    spending time resting, and when I was on the computer I found it very
    tiring.-a I simply never even checked for new messages in COLA during
    the period of time.-a You can not believe me, but that only enables me
    not to believe your denials about working for Apple.-a So have it your
    way.

    Sure. I will.


    So you're delusional, OK.

    The irony in that sentence is off the scale.



    It has led me to even exaggerate including personal attacks on >>>>>>>>> Mac users, but I try to also actually address the real matters >>>>>>>>> at work, and Apple is guilty of a lot.

    Apple is "guilty" of making products that people want to purchase >>>>>>>> and stick with in the face of less expensive alternatives...

    ...and you have to pretend that must mean they are "stoned" or in >>>>>>>> some other way, less than your "brilliant" self...

    ...rather than admit that they are rational, reasonable people >>>>>>>> making rational, reasonable choices.

    $200 for half of a 512 GB SSD.

    $200 to upgrade from 256GB to 512GB.

    Yes.

    So...

    ...what?

    You wanna know "so what"?!

    Yes.

    -a Are you kidding me?-a The wholesale cost of the SSD doesn't match >>>>> with this "upgrade" price, not even remotely, it's why 512 GB
    should be the base model, but no, Apple is years behind the times
    on this. When I built my computer that died prematurely last year,
    in 2021, I had a 1 TB NVMe WD Blue drive, for a little over $100 as >>>>> a part.-a Is Apple's gear, relative to it being five years later, so >>>>> much better, or has the value of money inflated so much, or what
    the HELL gives? Why is it $200 when you're already paying for a 256 >>>>> GB drive you no longer get?!-a How can you defend these clowns,
    seriously?

    PEOPLE buy SYSTEMS. The only thing that matters is the value of the... >>>>
    ...SYSTEM AS A WHOLE...

    ...as determined by...

    ...the PEOPLE WHO USE THEM.

    The question you should really be asking is:

    Why people are willing to spend so much more if all that matters is
    the initial cost?

    You don't think I'd see that as simple deflection?-a Come on, we're
    not talking about "all that matters is the initial cost", we're
    talking about Apple's way of coercing excessive payment for what
    should be standard hardware, the SSD issue being the most
    ridiculously blatant example, the half of a 512 GB drive for $200,
    that is so utterly stupid and greedy it boggles the mind, and you are
    totally OK with it.

    Apple doesn't "coerce" any payments, doofus.

    The offer products that are more than merely their hardware.


    Yeah and the funny part is that it gets *worse* when you start talking
    about macOS and the vast majority of its native software, it's sad.

    How so? Be specific.

    -a The
    best Mac app is Microsoft Office!-a Imagine!-a I hate that shit when it's
    on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I saw it in 2010.-a But most
    of the small apps I downloaded/registered/whatever for then-OS X were
    just pathetic crapware, made by brain-damaged nerds.-a Luckily, neither Windows nor macOS are necessary, since GNU/Linux gives me the same
    sleekness of macOS while improving on Windows' robustness overall, a win-win.
    You've yet to actually articulate a problem that ANY macOS software in particular has.

    What's some piece of software that YOU ACTUALLY USE that is better than
    the macOS equivalent?
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 14:53:45 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/9/26 2:38 PM, Alan wrote:

    -a-aWhat a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so
    you're getting your slice of the pie.-a It's obvious.

    Nope. Sorry. The closest I ever came to "work[ing] for Apple" was
    when I was selling Macs at an Apple dealer...

    nearly 30 YEARS ago.

    I want to believe you, but it would really almost be worse, to be
    such a fan that you do this backbreaking work for them without being
    compensated.-a When I first came to the advocacy newsgroups, I was
    promoting Windows 7, for example, I have my past as a Linux skeptic,
    but I also promoted what was then called OpenOffice, I was critical
    of MS in ways that showed insight and willingness to acknowledge its
    flaws.

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.

    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.

    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging issue,

    WHAT "overcharging issue" would that be: the alleged 13V "spike"...

    ...which applies whether or not your SSD is soldered or socketed?


    Cost, not electricity, as the rest of my sentence you split said.


    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how much it's
    talked about you stick to your guns, because you literally are an
    Apple employee, paid to post here.

    No. I am not.


    OK.


    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's >>>>>>>>>> weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware, >>>>>>>>>> but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed from >>>>>>>>> a false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?

    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the
    question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew what >>>>>> they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to figure >>>>> out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.

    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through this?
    'Cause I am not.-a Lots of people hate Apple for very similar reasons
    to mine.

    "Hate"? Dude... ...HATING a company because they sell their products at prices people are willing to pay is messed up.

    You should seek out a mental health professional.


    No. Because I see right through what Apple is doing. You are a nice
    guy, more or less, but you are a privileged, (presumably) white person
    with the means to afford Apple's stuff. As such, you are a cash cow to
    them. A willing victim of their price gouging. Your money to spend,
    sure, you may think it's worth it, I don't dispute that, but it's still completely ridiculous that half of a 512 GB SSD is $200.


    It might come relatively easily to me, but common sense should tell
    a potential customer visiting Apple's site that their Mac line is
    overpriced.-a And comparing it to PCs they will definitely find
    products that offer betters specs at comparable quality.-a This is
    why Mac users are a cult, they stand out as being exceedingly loyal
    to a company that gouges them.

    But you ASSUME that the only things that matter are the hardware specs.

    They are NOT the only things that matter.

    They matter in price.-a What is Apple giving you otherwise, their crap
    software?

    You saying it's "crap" doesn't make it so?


    It is crap, by any objective standard. Right-brained people like it,
    though, and I don't begrudge that.


    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that they
    claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What a total
    cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple Desktop Bus)?


    You know, I actually have to concede something here. The EU forced them
    to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade to make them
    compatible with other manufacturers' chargers. So, in that respect, I actually think Apple was superior, albeit for the function of charging
    the device, not using it.


    -a The best Mac app is Microsoft Office!-a Imagine!-a I hate that shit
    when it's on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I saw it in
    2010.-a But most of the small apps I downloaded/registered/whatever for
    then-OS X were just pathetic crapware, made by brain-damaged nerds.
    Luckily, neither Windows nor macOS are necessary, since GNU/Linux
    gives me the same sleekness of macOS while improving on Windows'
    robustness overall, a win-win.

    You've yet to actually articulate a problem that ANY macOS software in particular has.

    What's some piece of software that YOU ACTUALLY USE that is better than
    the macOS equivalent?


    Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I prefer
    the average app developed for the Unix platform to the average macOS app.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 12:53:56 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-09 11:53, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/9/26 2:38 PM, Alan wrote:

    -a-aWhat a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so
    you're getting your slice of the pie.-a It's obvious.

    Nope. Sorry. The closest I ever came to "work[ing] for Apple" was >>>>>> when I was selling Macs at an Apple dealer...

    nearly 30 YEARS ago.

    I want to believe you, but it would really almost be worse, to be
    such a fan that you do this backbreaking work for them without
    being compensated.-a When I first came to the advocacy newsgroups, I >>>>> was promoting Windows 7, for example, I have my past as a Linux
    skeptic, but I also promoted what was then called OpenOffice, I was >>>>> critical of MS in ways that showed insight and willingness to
    acknowledge its flaws.

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.

    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.

    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging issue,

    WHAT "overcharging issue" would that be: the alleged 13V "spike"...

    ...which applies whether or not your SSD is soldered or socketed?


    Cost, not electricity, as the rest of my sentence you split said.


    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how much
    it's talked about you stick to your guns, because you literally are
    an Apple employee, paid to post here.

    No. I am not.


    OK.

    Charging what people are willing to pay is NOT "overcharging"...

    ...UNLESS THEY HAVE NO OPTION BUT TO PAY.

    Since Apple isn't the only maker of personal computers, people are
    willingly choosing to buy what Apple offers...

    ...precisely because it isn't about the components.

    It is about buying a whole system that they find works well for them.



    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's >>>>>>>>>>> weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware, >>>>>>>>>>> but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed >>>>>>>>>> from a false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?

    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the
    question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew
    what they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to
    figure out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.

    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through this?
    'Cause I am not.-a Lots of people hate Apple for very similar reasons
    to mine.

    "Hate"? Dude... ...HATING a company because they sell their products
    at prices people are willing to pay is messed up.

    You should seek out a mental health professional.


    No.-a Because I see right through what Apple is doing.-a You are a nice
    guy, more or less, but you are a privileged, (presumably) white person
    with the means to afford Apple's stuff.-a As such, you are a cash cow to them.-a A willing victim of their price gouging.-a Your money to spend, sure, you may think it's worth it, I don't dispute that, but it's still completely ridiculous that half of a 512 GB SSD is $200.

    And out come the personal insults...



    It might come relatively easily to me, but common sense should tell >>>>> a potential customer visiting Apple's site that their Mac line is
    overpriced.-a And comparing it to PCs they will definitely find
    products that offer betters specs at comparable quality.-a This is
    why Mac users are a cult, they stand out as being exceedingly loyal >>>>> to a company that gouges them.

    But you ASSUME that the only things that matter are the hardware specs. >>>>
    They are NOT the only things that matter.

    They matter in price.-a What is Apple giving you otherwise, their crap
    software?

    You saying it's "crap" doesn't make it so?


    It is crap, by any objective standard.-a Right-brained people like it, though, and I don't begrudge that.

    If that were true, you could explain how.

    You never have.



    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that they
    claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What a total
    cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple
    Desktop Bus)?


    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU forced them
    to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade to make them
    compatible with other manufacturers' chargers.-a So, in that respect, I actually think Apple was superior, albeit for the function of charging
    the device, not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced Macs with
    SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced Macs that
    used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its introduction.

    Etc.



    -a The best Mac app is Microsoft Office!-a Imagine!-a I hate that shit
    when it's on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I saw it in
    2010.-a But most of the small apps I downloaded/registered/whatever
    for then-OS X were just pathetic crapware, made by brain-damaged
    nerds. Luckily, neither Windows nor macOS are necessary, since GNU/
    Linux gives me the same sleekness of macOS while improving on
    Windows' robustness overall, a win-win.

    You've yet to actually articulate a problem that ANY macOS software in
    particular has.

    What's some piece of software that YOU ACTUALLY USE that is better
    than the macOS equivalent?


    Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I prefer
    the average app developed for the Unix platform to the average macOS app.
    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better than the
    macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From -hh@recscuba_google@huntzinger.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 16:19:37 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/9/26 14:22, Alan wrote:
    On 2026-02-02 10:28, -hh wrote:
    On 1/31/26 18:10, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    On 1/29/26 18:23, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-29, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    ...
    Yea, and where are you going to find a battery when your luggage is >>>>> in pengo pengo?

    Pack a spare battery just in case you forgot to check pre-trip.-a BTDT. >>>
    An option.
    But then there is battery swelling to deal with.

    Risks are never zero, but you're misapplying the swelling risks of
    rechargeable lithium batteries to a non-rechargeable lithium battery
    chemistry, since the former has many cycles and the latter only ever
    has one (1) cycle.-a Main factor increasing the chemical off-gassing
    risk is an environment where temperatures exceed 45C (115F), but this
    applies for both battery types.

    And will you look at that, H: it's been an entire week and PH hasn't had
    a thing to say.

    Gosh, how about that!

    Maybe Pothole is still busy trying to locate the skanky smell in their
    car, which on another thread they were trying to blame on NYC's mayor
    for the trash collection delays after their recent big snowstorm...

    ...while forgetting checking weather records is easy. For there's not
    been a day since the storm where the temperature has gotten above 40F to
    start to de-thaw. And Manhattan yesterday was once again well below
    average, at a Lo/High of +3F/+17F (-16C/-8C).


    -hh
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 18:56:34 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/9/26 3:53 PM, Alan wrote:

    -a-aWhat a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so >>>>>>>> you're getting your slice of the pie.-a It's obvious.

    Nope. Sorry. The closest I ever came to "work[ing] for Apple" was >>>>>>> when I was selling Macs at an Apple dealer...

    nearly 30 YEARS ago.

    I want to believe you, but it would really almost be worse, to be >>>>>> such a fan that you do this backbreaking work for them without
    being compensated.-a When I first came to the advocacy newsgroups, >>>>>> I was promoting Windows 7, for example, I have my past as a Linux >>>>>> skeptic, but I also promoted what was then called OpenOffice, I
    was critical of MS in ways that showed insight and willingness to >>>>>> acknowledge its flaws.

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.

    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.

    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging issue,

    WHAT "overcharging issue" would that be: the alleged 13V "spike"...

    ...which applies whether or not your SSD is soldered or socketed?

    Cost, not electricity, as the rest of my sentence you split said.

    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how much
    it's talked about you stick to your guns, because you literally are
    an Apple employee, paid to post here.

    No. I am not.

    OK.

    Charging what people are willing to pay is NOT "overcharging"...

    ...UNLESS THEY HAVE NO OPTION BUT TO PAY.

    Since Apple isn't the only maker of personal computers, people are
    willingly choosing to buy what Apple offers...

    ...precisely because it isn't about the components.

    It is about buying a whole system that they find works well for them.


    That's provably false. The cost of upgrading the SSD/etc. makes the
    "whole system's" price outrageous. 256 GB even being offered is part of
    the scheme - it's fair to say it's enough for some people, sure, but a
    lot of people are gonna say "well, I can't get by with that, but I must
    have a Mac, so I'll just bite the bullet and pay $200 extra". That's
    the *definition* of price gouging.


    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's >>>>>>>>>>>> weird how they don't focus more on having competitive hardware, >>>>>>>>>>>> but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed >>>>>>>>>>> from a false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?

    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the
    question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew >>>>>>>> what they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to
    figure out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.

    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through this?
    'Cause I am not.-a Lots of people hate Apple for very similar reasons >>>> to mine.

    "Hate"? Dude... ...HATING a company because they sell their products
    at prices people are willing to pay is messed up.

    You should seek out a mental health professional.

    No.-a Because I see right through what Apple is doing.-a You are a nice
    guy, more or less, but you are a privileged, (presumably) white person
    with the means to afford Apple's stuff.-a As such, you are a cash cow
    to them.-a A willing victim of their price gouging.-a Your money to
    spend, sure, you may think it's worth it, I don't dispute that, but
    it's still completely ridiculous that half of a 512 GB SSD is $200.

    And out come the personal insults...


    Maybe, but you didn't refute the point.


    It might come relatively easily to me, but common sense should
    tell a potential customer visiting Apple's site that their Mac
    line is overpriced.-a And comparing it to PCs they will definitely >>>>>> find products that offer betters specs at comparable quality.
    This is why Mac users are a cult, they stand out as being
    exceedingly loyal to a company that gouges them.

    But you ASSUME that the only things that matter are the hardware
    specs.

    They are NOT the only things that matter.

    They matter in price.-a What is Apple giving you otherwise, their
    crap software?

    You saying it's "crap" doesn't make it so?

    It is crap, by any objective standard.-a Right-brained people like it,
    though, and I don't begrudge that.

    If that were true, you could explain how.

    You never have.


    The way the interface functions is quirky, like right-brained people's
    minds.


    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that they
    claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What a total
    cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple
    Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU forced
    them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade to make them
    compatible with other manufacturers' chargers.-a So, in that respect, I
    actually think Apple was superior, albeit for the function of charging
    the device, not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced Macs with
    SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced Macs that
    used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its introduction.

    Etc.


    I would mostly not challenge those points. I would point out that the proprietary nature of some of these features supports the idea that
    Apple trends nonstandard, though.


    -a The best Mac app is Microsoft Office!-a Imagine!-a I hate that shit >>>> when it's on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I saw it in
    2010.-a But most of the small apps I downloaded/registered/whatever
    for then-OS X were just pathetic crapware, made by brain-damaged
    nerds. Luckily, neither Windows nor macOS are necessary, since GNU/
    Linux gives me the same sleekness of macOS while improving on
    Windows' robustness overall, a win-win.

    You've yet to actually articulate a problem that ANY macOS software
    in particular has.

    What's some piece of software that YOU ACTUALLY USE that is better
    than the macOS equivalent?


    Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I prefer
    the average app developed for the Unix platform to the average macOS app.

    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better than the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.


    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point. It's
    not a surrender.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 16:04:04 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-09 15:56, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/9/26 3:53 PM, Alan wrote:

    -a-aWhat a load of bullshit, dude, you just work for Apple, so >>>>>>>>> you're getting your slice of the pie.-a It's obvious.

    Nope. Sorry. The closest I ever came to "work[ing] for Apple" >>>>>>>> was when I was selling Macs at an Apple dealer...

    nearly 30 YEARS ago.

    I want to believe you, but it would really almost be worse, to be >>>>>>> such a fan that you do this backbreaking work for them without
    being compensated.-a When I first came to the advocacy newsgroups, >>>>>>> I was promoting Windows 7, for example, I have my past as a Linux >>>>>>> skeptic, but I also promoted what was then called OpenOffice, I >>>>>>> was critical of MS in ways that showed insight and willingness to >>>>>>> acknowledge its flaws.

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.

    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.

    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging issue,

    WHAT "overcharging issue" would that be: the alleged 13V "spike"...

    ...which applies whether or not your SSD is soldered or socketed?

    Cost, not electricity, as the rest of my sentence you split said.

    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how much
    it's talked about you stick to your guns, because you literally are >>>>> an Apple employee, paid to post here.

    No. I am not.

    OK.

    Charging what people are willing to pay is NOT "overcharging"...

    ...UNLESS THEY HAVE NO OPTION BUT TO PAY.

    Since Apple isn't the only maker of personal computers, people are
    willingly choosing to buy what Apple offers...

    ...precisely because it isn't about the components.

    It is about buying a whole system that they find works well for them.


    That's provably false.-a The cost of upgrading the SSD/etc. makes the
    "whole system's" price outrageous.-a 256 GB even being offered is part of the scheme - it's fair to say it's enough for some people, sure, but a
    lot of people are gonna say "well, I can't get by with that, but I must
    have a Mac, so I'll just bite the bullet and pay $200 extra".-a That's
    the *definition* of price gouging.

    If it's "provably false"...you really should have said something that
    proves it.

    "Outrageous" is an adjective and proves nothing.

    If all their revenue for the Mac line is hardware sales, it's >>>>>>>>>>>>> weird how they don't focus more on having competitive >>>>>>>>>>>>> hardware,
    but that's Apple,

    Their hardware sells well.

    Mac sales figures continue to trend upward, so you proceed >>>>>>>>>>>> from a false premise.

    Shitty OEM PCs sell well, too.

    OK? So?

    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the >>>>>>>>> question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew >>>>>>>>> what they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to
    figure out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.

    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through this?
    'Cause I am not.-a Lots of people hate Apple for very similar
    reasons to mine.

    "Hate"? Dude... ...HATING a company because they sell their products
    at prices people are willing to pay is messed up.

    You should seek out a mental health professional.

    No.-a Because I see right through what Apple is doing.-a You are a nice >>> guy, more or less, but you are a privileged, (presumably) white
    person with the means to afford Apple's stuff.-a As such, you are a
    cash cow to them.-a A willing victim of their price gouging.-a Your
    money to spend, sure, you may think it's worth it, I don't dispute
    that, but it's still completely ridiculous that half of a 512 GB SSD
    is $200.

    And out come the personal insults...


    Maybe, but you didn't refute the point.

    Because there were no points of substance to refute.



    It might come relatively easily to me, but common sense should
    tell a potential customer visiting Apple's site that their Mac
    line is overpriced.-a And comparing it to PCs they will definitely >>>>>>> find products that offer betters specs at comparable quality.
    This is why Mac users are a cult, they stand out as being
    exceedingly loyal to a company that gouges them.

    But you ASSUME that the only things that matter are the hardware
    specs.

    They are NOT the only things that matter.

    They matter in price.-a What is Apple giving you otherwise, their
    crap software?

    You saying it's "crap" doesn't make it so?

    It is crap, by any objective standard.-a Right-brained people like it,
    though, and I don't begrudge that.

    If that were true, you could explain how.

    You never have.


    The way the interface functions is quirky, like right-brained people's minds.

    And you switch from one adjective to another...

    ...while not actually offering anything of any substance.



    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that they >>>>> claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What a total
    cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple
    Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU forced
    them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade to make them
    compatible with other manufacturers' chargers.-a So, in that respect,
    I actually think Apple was superior, albeit for the function of
    charging the device, not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal computer
    standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced Macs with
    SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced Macs that
    used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its introduction.

    Etc.


    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out that the proprietary nature of some of these features supports the idea that
    Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.




    -a The best Mac app is Microsoft Office!-a Imagine!-a I hate that shit >>>>> when it's on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I saw it in
    2010.-a But most of the small apps I downloaded/registered/whatever >>>>> for then-OS X were just pathetic crapware, made by brain-damaged
    nerds. Luckily, neither Windows nor macOS are necessary, since GNU/ >>>>> Linux gives me the same sleekness of macOS while improving on
    Windows' robustness overall, a win-win.

    You've yet to actually articulate a problem that ANY macOS software
    in particular has.

    What's some piece of software that YOU ACTUALLY USE that is better
    than the macOS equivalent?


    Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I
    prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the average
    macOS app.

    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better than
    the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.


    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point.-a It's
    not a surrender.
    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 19:17:01 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/9/26 7:04 PM, Alan wrote:

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.

    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.

    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging issue, >>>>>
    WHAT "overcharging issue" would that be: the alleged 13V "spike"...

    ...which applies whether or not your SSD is soldered or socketed?

    Cost, not electricity, as the rest of my sentence you split said.

    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how much >>>>>> it's talked about you stick to your guns, because you literally
    are an Apple employee, paid to post here.

    No. I am not.

    OK.

    Charging what people are willing to pay is NOT "overcharging"...

    ...UNLESS THEY HAVE NO OPTION BUT TO PAY.

    Since Apple isn't the only maker of personal computers, people are
    willingly choosing to buy what Apple offers...

    ...precisely because it isn't about the components.

    It is about buying a whole system that they find works well for them.

    That's provably false.-a The cost of upgrading the SSD/etc. makes the
    "whole system's" price outrageous.-a 256 GB even being offered is part
    of the scheme - it's fair to say it's enough for some people, sure,
    but a lot of people are gonna say "well, I can't get by with that, but
    I must have a Mac, so I'll just bite the bullet and pay $200 extra".
    That's the *definition* of price gouging.

    If it's "provably false"...you really should have said something that
    proves it.

    "Outrageous" is an adjective and proves nothing.


    OK, then, tell me straight out, answer the question for once, why is the upgrade $200? What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that cost?


    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the >>>>>>>>>> question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew >>>>>>>>>> what they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to >>>>>>>>> figure out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.

    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through this?
    'Cause I am not.-a Lots of people hate Apple for very similar
    reasons to mine.

    "Hate"? Dude... ...HATING a company because they sell their
    products at prices people are willing to pay is messed up.

    You should seek out a mental health professional.

    No.-a Because I see right through what Apple is doing.-a You are a
    nice guy, more or less, but you are a privileged, (presumably) white
    person with the means to afford Apple's stuff.-a As such, you are a
    cash cow to them.-a A willing victim of their price gouging.-a Your
    money to spend, sure, you may think it's worth it, I don't dispute
    that, but it's still completely ridiculous that half of a 512 GB SSD
    is $200.

    And out come the personal insults...

    Maybe, but you didn't refute the point.

    Because there were no points of substance to refute.


    Again, explain why the SSD upgrade is so expensive.


    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that they >>>>>> claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What a total >>>>>> cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple
    Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU forced
    them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade to make them
    compatible with other manufacturers' chargers.-a So, in that respect, >>>> I actually think Apple was superior, albeit for the function of
    charging the device, not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal
    computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced Macs
    with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced Macs that
    used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its introduction.

    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out that the
    proprietary nature of some of these features supports the idea that
    Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.


    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards. In practice,
    they were Apple proprietary.


    -a The best Mac app is Microsoft Office!-a Imagine!-a I hate that >>>>>> shit when it's on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I saw
    it in 2010.-a But most of the small apps I downloaded/registered/ >>>>>> whatever for then-OS X were just pathetic crapware, made by brain- >>>>>> damaged nerds. Luckily, neither Windows nor macOS are necessary,
    since GNU/ Linux gives me the same sleekness of macOS while
    improving on Windows' robustness overall, a win-win.

    You've yet to actually articulate a problem that ANY macOS software >>>>> in particular has.

    What's some piece of software that YOU ACTUALLY USE that is better
    than the macOS equivalent?

    Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I
    prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the
    average macOS app.

    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better than
    the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point.-a It's
    not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.


    Audacious. It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 16:36:51 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-09 16:17, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/9/26 7:04 PM, Alan wrote:

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple.

    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.

    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging issue, >>>>>>
    WHAT "overcharging issue" would that be: the alleged 13V "spike"... >>>>>>
    ...which applies whether or not your SSD is soldered or socketed?

    Cost, not electricity, as the rest of my sentence you split said.

    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how much >>>>>>> it's talked about you stick to your guns, because you literally >>>>>>> are an Apple employee, paid to post here.

    No. I am not.

    OK.

    Charging what people are willing to pay is NOT "overcharging"...

    ...UNLESS THEY HAVE NO OPTION BUT TO PAY.

    Since Apple isn't the only maker of personal computers, people are
    willingly choosing to buy what Apple offers...

    ...precisely because it isn't about the components.

    It is about buying a whole system that they find works well for them.

    That's provably false.-a The cost of upgrading the SSD/etc. makes the
    "whole system's" price outrageous.-a 256 GB even being offered is part
    of the scheme - it's fair to say it's enough for some people, sure,
    but a lot of people are gonna say "well, I can't get by with that,
    but I must have a Mac, so I'll just bite the bullet and pay $200
    extra". That's the *definition* of price gouging.

    If it's "provably false"...you really should have said something that
    proves it.

    "Outrageous" is an adjective and proves nothing.


    OK, then, tell me straight out, answer the question for once, why is the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that cost?

    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am being
    offered?"



    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the >>>>>>>>>>> question is whether this really makes sense if consumers knew >>>>>>>>>>> what they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to >>>>>>>>>> figure out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.

    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through this? >>>>>>> 'Cause I am not.-a Lots of people hate Apple for very similar
    reasons to mine.

    "Hate"? Dude... ...HATING a company because they sell their
    products at prices people are willing to pay is messed up.

    You should seek out a mental health professional.

    No.-a Because I see right through what Apple is doing.-a You are a
    nice guy, more or less, but you are a privileged, (presumably)
    white person with the means to afford Apple's stuff.-a As such, you >>>>> are a cash cow to them.-a A willing victim of their price gouging. >>>>> Your money to spend, sure, you may think it's worth it, I don't
    dispute that, but it's still completely ridiculous that half of a
    512 GB SSD is $200.

    And out come the personal insults...

    Maybe, but you didn't refute the point.

    Because there were no points of substance to refute.


    Again, explain why the SSD upgrade is so expensive.

    Because they can.

    But people are willing to pay for it.



    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that
    they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What a >>>>>>> total cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple
    Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU forced >>>>> them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade to make them >>>>> compatible with other manufacturers' chargers.-a So, in that
    respect, I actually think Apple was superior, albeit for the
    function of charging the device, not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal
    computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced Macs
    with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced Macs
    that used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its introduction. >>>>
    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out that
    the proprietary nature of some of these features supports the idea
    that Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.


    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In practice,
    they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously, objectively
    better than the standards that happened to chosen for IBM-style PCs.



    -a The best Mac app is Microsoft Office!-a Imagine!-a I hate that >>>>>>> shit when it's on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I saw >>>>>>> it in 2010.-a But most of the small apps I downloaded/registered/ >>>>>>> whatever for then-OS X were just pathetic crapware, made by
    brain- damaged nerds. Luckily, neither Windows nor macOS are
    necessary, since GNU/ Linux gives me the same sleekness of macOS >>>>>>> while improving on Windows' robustness overall, a win-win.

    You've yet to actually articulate a problem that ANY macOS
    software in particular has.

    What's some piece of software that YOU ACTUALLY USE that is better >>>>>> than the macOS equivalent?

    Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I
    prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the
    average macOS app.

    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better than
    the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point.-a It's
    not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.


    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO.


    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!

    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 19:47:57 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/9/26 7:36 PM, Alan wrote:

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple. >>>>>>>>>
    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.

    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging issue, >>>>>>>
    WHAT "overcharging issue" would that be: the alleged 13V "spike"... >>>>>>>
    ...which applies whether or not your SSD is soldered or socketed? >>>>>>
    Cost, not electricity, as the rest of my sentence you split said.

    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how
    much it's talked about you stick to your guns, because you
    literally are an Apple employee, paid to post here.

    No. I am not.

    OK.

    Charging what people are willing to pay is NOT "overcharging"...

    ...UNLESS THEY HAVE NO OPTION BUT TO PAY.

    Since Apple isn't the only maker of personal computers, people are
    willingly choosing to buy what Apple offers...

    ...precisely because it isn't about the components.

    It is about buying a whole system that they find works well for them. >>>>
    That's provably false.-a The cost of upgrading the SSD/etc. makes the >>>> "whole system's" price outrageous.-a 256 GB even being offered is
    part of the scheme - it's fair to say it's enough for some people,
    sure, but a lot of people are gonna say "well, I can't get by with
    that, but I must have a Mac, so I'll just bite the bullet and pay
    $200 extra". That's the *definition* of price gouging.

    If it's "provably false"...you really should have said something that
    proves it.

    "Outrageous" is an adjective and proves nothing.

    OK, then, tell me straight out, answer the question for once, why is
    the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that cost?

    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am being offered?"


    What is rational about giving away $200 to a corporation?


    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, the >>>>>>>>>>>> question is whether this really makes sense if consumers >>>>>>>>>>>> knew what they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to >>>>>>>>>>> figure out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.

    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through this? >>>>>>>> 'Cause I am not.-a Lots of people hate Apple for very similar >>>>>>>> reasons to mine.

    "Hate"? Dude... ...HATING a company because they sell their
    products at prices people are willing to pay is messed up.

    You should seek out a mental health professional.

    No.-a Because I see right through what Apple is doing.-a You are a >>>>>> nice guy, more or less, but you are a privileged, (presumably)
    white person with the means to afford Apple's stuff.-a As such, you >>>>>> are a cash cow to them.-a A willing victim of their price gouging. >>>>>> Your money to spend, sure, you may think it's worth it, I don't
    dispute that, but it's still completely ridiculous that half of a >>>>>> 512 GB SSD is $200.

    And out come the personal insults...

    Maybe, but you didn't refute the point.

    Because there were no points of substance to refute.

    Again, explain why the SSD upgrade is so expensive.

    Because they can.


    Right.


    But people are willing to pay for it.


    Bourgeois and/or desperate people.


    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that >>>>>>>> they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What a >>>>>>>> total cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple >>>>>>> Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU
    forced them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade to
    make them compatible with other manufacturers' chargers.-a So, in >>>>>> that respect, I actually think Apple was superior, albeit for the >>>>>> function of charging the device, not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal
    computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced Macs
    with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced Macs
    that used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its introduction. >>>>>
    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out that
    the proprietary nature of some of these features supports the idea
    that Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.

    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In practice,
    they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously, objectively
    better than the standards that happened to chosen for IBM-style PCs.


    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting Thunderbolt?


    -a The best Mac app is Microsoft Office!-a Imagine!-a I hate that >>>>>>>> shit when it's on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I saw >>>>>>>> it in 2010.-a But most of the small apps I downloaded/registered/ >>>>>>>> whatever for then-OS X were just pathetic crapware, made by
    brain- damaged nerds. Luckily, neither Windows nor macOS are
    necessary, since GNU/ Linux gives me the same sleekness of macOS >>>>>>>> while improving on Windows' robustness overall, a win-win.

    You've yet to actually articulate a problem that ANY macOS
    software in particular has.

    What's some piece of software that YOU ACTUALLY USE that is
    better than the macOS equivalent?

    Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I
    prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the
    average macOS app.

    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better than >>>>> the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point.
    It's not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.

    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO.

    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!


    Ah, but you had to use the terminal. So now every goofy nerd using a
    Mac is familiar with that, as you, the exception who actually knows
    shit, are? Heh.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 17:33:10 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-09 16:47, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/9/26 7:36 PM, Alan wrote:

    You don't seem to have anything negative to say about Apple. >>>>>>>>>>
    I have lots of negative things to say.

    You're just not paying attention.

    That's obviously a lie, you won't admit the SSD overcharging >>>>>>>>> issue,

    WHAT "overcharging issue" would that be: the alleged 13V "spike"... >>>>>>>>
    ...which applies whether or not your SSD is soldered or socketed? >>>>>>>
    Cost, not electricity, as the rest of my sentence you split said. >>>>>>>
    something that is transparently price gouging, no matter how >>>>>>>>> much it's talked about you stick to your guns, because you
    literally are an Apple employee, paid to post here.

    No. I am not.

    OK.

    Charging what people are willing to pay is NOT "overcharging"...

    ...UNLESS THEY HAVE NO OPTION BUT TO PAY.

    Since Apple isn't the only maker of personal computers, people are >>>>>> willingly choosing to buy what Apple offers...

    ...precisely because it isn't about the components.

    It is about buying a whole system that they find works well for them. >>>>>
    That's provably false.-a The cost of upgrading the SSD/etc. makes
    the "whole system's" price outrageous.-a 256 GB even being offered
    is part of the scheme - it's fair to say it's enough for some
    people, sure, but a lot of people are gonna say "well, I can't get
    by with that, but I must have a Mac, so I'll just bite the bullet
    and pay $200 extra". That's the *definition* of price gouging.

    If it's "provably false"...you really should have said something
    that proves it.

    "Outrageous" is an adjective and proves nothing.

    OK, then, tell me straight out, answer the question for once, why is
    the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that cost?

    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am being
    offered?"


    What is rational about giving away $200 to a corporation?

    That you get an ENTIRE system that works better (for YOU) than the alternative.



    How do you not see the point, we know Apple sells a lot, >>>>>>>>>>>>> the question is whether this really makes sense if
    consumers knew what they were actually paying for.

    And once again, you assume that only you are smart enough to >>>>>>>>>>>> figure out this kind of thing.

    I don't assume any such thing, actually.

    That is LITERALLY what you assumed.

    "If consumers knew" assumes that they do NOT.

    So that means I think *I* am the only one who sees through
    this? 'Cause I am not.-a Lots of people hate Apple for very >>>>>>>>> similar reasons to mine.

    "Hate"? Dude... ...HATING a company because they sell their
    products at prices people are willing to pay is messed up.

    You should seek out a mental health professional.

    No.-a Because I see right through what Apple is doing.-a You are a >>>>>>> nice guy, more or less, but you are a privileged, (presumably)
    white person with the means to afford Apple's stuff.-a As such, >>>>>>> you are a cash cow to them.-a A willing victim of their price
    gouging. Your money to spend, sure, you may think it's worth it, >>>>>>> I don't dispute that, but it's still completely ridiculous that >>>>>>> half of a 512 GB SSD is $200.

    And out come the personal insults...

    Maybe, but you didn't refute the point.

    Because there were no points of substance to refute.

    Again, explain why the SSD upgrade is so expensive.

    Because they can.


    Right.


    But people are willing to pay for it.


    Bourgeois and/or desperate people.

    And the ad hominems begin again!



    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that >>>>>>>>> they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What a >>>>>>>>> total cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple >>>>>>>> Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU
    forced them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade to >>>>>>> make them compatible with other manufacturers' chargers.-a So, in >>>>>>> that respect, I actually think Apple was superior, albeit for the >>>>>>> function of charging the device, not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal
    computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced Macs >>>>>> with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to one port. >>>>>>
    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced Macs
    that used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac. >>>>>>
    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its
    introduction.

    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out that >>>>> the proprietary nature of some of these features supports the idea
    that Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.

    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In practice,
    they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously, objectively
    better than the standards that happened to chosen for IBM-style PCs.


    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open standards
    (caveat ADB).



    -a The best Mac app is Microsoft Office!-a Imagine!-a I hate that >>>>>>>>> shit when it's on Winblows, but I dug the Mac version when I >>>>>>>>> saw it in 2010.-a But most of the small apps I downloaded/
    registered/ whatever for then-OS X were just pathetic crapware, >>>>>>>>> made by brain- damaged nerds. Luckily, neither Windows nor
    macOS are necessary, since GNU/ Linux gives me the same
    sleekness of macOS while improving on Windows' robustness
    overall, a win-win.

    You've yet to actually articulate a problem that ANY macOS
    software in particular has.

    What's some piece of software that YOU ACTUALLY USE that is
    better than the macOS equivalent?

    Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I >>>>>>> prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the
    average macOS app.

    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better
    than the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point.
    It's not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.

    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO.

    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!


    Ah, but you had to use the terminal.-a So now every goofy nerd using a
    Mac is familiar with that, as you, the exception who actually knows
    shit, are?-a Heh.
    So what?

    The issue was how the software WORKS.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 20:45:26 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/9/26 8:33 PM, Alan wrote:

    why is
    the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that cost?

    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am being
    offered?"

    What is rational about giving away $200 to a corporation?

    That you get an ENTIRE system that works better (for YOU) than the alternative.


    But the $200 isn't for the entire system. It's specifically to change
    from 256 GB to 512 GB. Your answer is avoiding the point, that it's
    more than any conceivable estimate, profit included, would warrant.


    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that >>>>>>>>>> they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What >>>>>>>>>> a total cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB (Apple >>>>>>>>> Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU >>>>>>>> forced them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade to >>>>>>>> make them compatible with other manufacturers' chargers.-a So, in >>>>>>>> that respect, I actually think Apple was superior, albeit for >>>>>>>> the function of charging the device, not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal
    computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced Macs >>>>>>> with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to one port. >>>>>>>
    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced Macs >>>>>>> that used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac. >>>>>>>
    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its
    introduction.

    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out that >>>>>> the proprietary nature of some of these features supports the idea >>>>>> that Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.

    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In
    practice, they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously, objectively
    better than the standards that happened to chosen for IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open standards
    (caveat ADB).


    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it gets super obscure.


    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better
    than the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point.
    It's not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.

    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO.

    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!

    Ah, but you had to use the terminal.-a So now every goofy nerd using a
    Mac is familiar with that, as you, the exception who actually knows
    shit, are?-a Heh.

    So what?

    The issue was how the software WORKS.


    I don't dispute that you can do some significant things with macOS as a
    Unix flavor. But it would be cumbersome, to me, when I could just use
    Linux to begin with.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 17:54:52 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-09 17:45, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/9/26 8:33 PM, Alan wrote:

    why is the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that cost? >>>>
    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am being
    offered?"

    What is rational about giving away $200 to a corporation?

    That you get an ENTIRE system that works better (for YOU) than the
    alternative.


    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically to change
    from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the point, that it's
    more than any conceivable estimate, profit included, would warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?"



    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports that >>>>>>>>>>> they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a joke.-a What >>>>>>>>>>> a total cult.-a And you're the ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB
    (Apple Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU >>>>>>>>> forced them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade >>>>>>>>> to make them compatible with other manufacturers' chargers. >>>>>>>>> So, in that respect, I actually think Apple was superior,
    albeit for the function of charging the device, not using it. >>>>>>>>
    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal >>>>>>>> computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced
    Macs with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to >>>>>>>> one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced Macs >>>>>>>> that used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac. >>>>>>>>
    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its
    introduction.

    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out
    that the proprietary nature of some of these features supports
    the idea that Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.

    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In
    practice, they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously,
    objectively better than the standards that happened to chosen for
    IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open standards
    (caveat ADB).


    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it gets super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure".

    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.

    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, and Sony
    made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.



    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better >>>>>>>> than the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point. >>>>>>> It's not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.

    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO.

    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!

    Ah, but you had to use the terminal.-a So now every goofy nerd using a
    Mac is familiar with that, as you, the exception who actually knows
    shit, are?-a Heh.

    So what?

    The issue was how the software WORKS.


    I don't dispute that you can do some significant things with macOS as a
    Unix flavor.-a But it would be cumbersome, to me, when I could just use Linux to begin with.
    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better than any
    macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 22:17:27 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/9/26 8:54 PM, Alan wrote:

    why is the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that cost? >>>>>
    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am
    being offered?"

    What is rational about giving away $200 to a corporation?

    That you get an ENTIRE system that works better (for YOU) than the
    alternative.

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically to change
    from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the point, that it's
    more than any conceivable estimate, profit included, would warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?"


    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.


    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports >>>>>>>>>>>> that they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a >>>>>>>>>>>> joke.-a What a total cult.-a And you're the ringleader. >>>>>>>>>>>
    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB >>>>>>>>>>> (Apple Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU >>>>>>>>>> forced them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade >>>>>>>>>> to make them compatible with other manufacturers' chargers. >>>>>>>>>> So, in that respect, I actually think Apple was superior, >>>>>>>>>> albeit for the function of charging the device, not using it. >>>>>>>>>
    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal >>>>>>>>> computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced >>>>>>>>> Macs with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to >>>>>>>>> one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced >>>>>>>>> Macs that used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original iMac. >>>>>>>>>
    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its
    introduction.

    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out >>>>>>>> that the proprietary nature of some of these features supports >>>>>>>> the idea that Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.

    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In
    practice, they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously,
    objectively better than the standards that happened to chosen for
    IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting
    Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open standards
    (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it gets super
    obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure".

    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.


    For Apple.


    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, and Sony
    made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.


    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those brands'
    junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone. So, I will take your
    word and concede.


    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better >>>>>>>>> than the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point. >>>>>>>> It's not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.

    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO.

    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!

    Ah, but you had to use the terminal.-a So now every goofy nerd using
    a Mac is familiar with that, as you, the exception who actually
    knows shit, are?-a Heh.

    So what?

    The issue was how the software WORKS.

    I don't dispute that you can do some significant things with macOS as
    a Unix flavor.-a But it would be cumbersome, to me, when I could just
    use Linux to begin with.

    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better than any
    macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)


    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac doesn't make
    it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 19:23:02 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-09 19:17, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/9/26 8:54 PM, Alan wrote:

    why is the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that >>>>>>> cost?

    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am
    being offered?"

    What is rational about giving away $200 to a corporation?

    That you get an ENTIRE system that works better (for YOU) than the
    alternative.

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically to
    change from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the point,
    that it's more than any conceivable estimate, profit included, would
    warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?"


    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.

    And once again, you resort to denigration of those who disagree with you.



    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports >>>>>>>>>>>>> that they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a >>>>>>>>>>>>> joke.-a What a total cult.-a And you're the ringleader. >>>>>>>>>>>>
    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB >>>>>>>>>>>> (Apple Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU >>>>>>>>>>> forced them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a downgrade >>>>>>>>>>> to make them compatible with other manufacturers' chargers. >>>>>>>>>>> So, in that respect, I actually think Apple was superior, >>>>>>>>>>> albeit for the function of charging the device, not using it. >>>>>>>>>>
    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal >>>>>>>>>> computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced >>>>>>>>>> Macs with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to >>>>>>>>>> one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced >>>>>>>>>> Macs that used a far superior open standard called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original >>>>>>>>>> iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time. >>>>>>>>>>
    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its
    introduction.

    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out >>>>>>>>> that the proprietary nature of some of these features supports >>>>>>>>> the idea that Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.

    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In
    practice, they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously,
    objectively better than the standards that happened to chosen for >>>>>> IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting
    Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open standards
    (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it gets
    super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure".

    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.


    For Apple.

    For anyone who chose to use it.

    ISA required configuration jumpers: NuBus was self-configuring.

    IS was 16-bit and up to 16MB/s: NuBus was 32-bit and up to 40MB/s.

    Must I really go on?



    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, and
    Sony made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.


    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those brands'
    junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone.-a So, I will take your word and concede.

    It didn't stop you from running your "mouth" about things you now
    concede you knew fuck-all about in the first place.



    So asked to name an application you actually use that's better >>>>>>>>>> than the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the point. >>>>>>>>> It's not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.

    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO.

    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!

    Ah, but you had to use the terminal.-a So now every goofy nerd using >>>>> a Mac is familiar with that, as you, the exception who actually
    knows shit, are?-a Heh.

    So what?

    The issue was how the software WORKS.

    I don't dispute that you can do some significant things with macOS as
    a Unix flavor.-a But it would be cumbersome, to me, when I could just
    use Linux to begin with.

    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better than any
    macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)


    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac doesn't make
    it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.
    Your basic argument is (and I'll quote you here):

    "Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I prefer
    the average app developed for the Unix platform to the average macOS app."

    I've just shown you that macOS works as well as Linux for the app YOU
    chose to highlight.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 22:40:49 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/9/26 10:23 PM, Alan wrote:

    why is the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that >>>>>>>> cost?

    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am
    being offered?"

    What is rational about giving away $200 to a corporation?

    That you get an ENTIRE system that works better (for YOU) than the
    alternative.

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically to
    change from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the point,
    that it's more than any conceivable estimate, profit included, would
    warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?"

    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.

    And once again, you resort to denigration of those who disagree with you.


    Not so. They do agree with me, they're just willing to pay it because
    they want a Mac that much. They have no choice. Price gouging.


    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports >>>>>>>>>>>>>> that they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a >>>>>>>>>>>>>> joke.-a What a total cult.-a And you're the ringleader. >>>>>>>>>>>>>
    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB >>>>>>>>>>>>> (Apple Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The EU >>>>>>>>>>>> forced them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a
    downgrade to make them compatible with other manufacturers' >>>>>>>>>>>> chargers. So, in that respect, I actually think Apple was >>>>>>>>>>>> superior, albeit for the function of charging the device, >>>>>>>>>>>> not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the personal >>>>>>>>>>> computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced >>>>>>>>>>> Macs with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached to >>>>>>>>>>> one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced >>>>>>>>>>> Macs that used a far superior open standard called NuBus. >>>>>>>>>>>
    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original >>>>>>>>>>> iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time. >>>>>>>>>>>
    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its >>>>>>>>>>> introduction.

    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out >>>>>>>>>> that the proprietary nature of some of these features supports >>>>>>>>>> the idea that Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.

    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In
    practice, they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously,
    objectively better than the standards that happened to chosen for >>>>>>> IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting
    Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open standards
    (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it gets
    super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure".

    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.

    For Apple.

    For anyone who chose to use it.

    ISA required configuration jumpers: NuBus was self-configuring.

    IS was 16-bit and up to 16MB/s: NuBus was 32-bit and up to 40MB/s.

    Must I really go on?


    You could name another major manufacturer which actually used it.


    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, and
    Sony made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.

    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those brands'
    junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone.-a So, I will take
    your word and concede.

    It didn't stop you from running your "mouth" about things you now
    concede you knew fuck-all about in the first place.


    I actually wasn't all that wrong, if the other manufacturers using it
    were limited to those brands, PC OEMs can be very proprietary in their designs, particularly of laptops.


    So asked to name an application you actually use that's >>>>>>>>>>> better than the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the
    point. It's not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.

    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO.

    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!

    Ah, but you had to use the terminal.-a So now every goofy nerd
    using a Mac is familiar with that, as you, the exception who
    actually knows shit, are?-a Heh.

    So what?

    The issue was how the software WORKS.

    I don't dispute that you can do some significant things with macOS
    as a Unix flavor.-a But it would be cumbersome, to me, when I could
    just use Linux to begin with.

    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better than
    any macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)

    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac doesn't make
    it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.

    Your basic argument is (and I'll quote you here):

    "Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I prefer
    the average app developed for the Unix platform to the average macOS app."

    I've just shown you that macOS works as well as Linux for the app YOU
    chose to highlight.


    And I'm duly impressed, but it wouldn't mean that all such apps are as
    easy to install, at the end of the day I would find using a Mac as a
    Unix system to be ass-backward logic, if I don't want Apple-centric
    software much and do want Unix software, Linux is a far better, easier,
    and flexible/affordable platform.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Mon Feb 9 19:51:31 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-09 19:40, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/9/26 10:23 PM, Alan wrote:

    why is the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates that >>>>>>>>> cost?

    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am >>>>>>>> being offered?"

    What is rational about giving away $200 to a corporation?

    That you get an ENTIRE system that works better (for YOU) than the >>>>>> alternative.

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically to
    change from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the point,
    that it's more than any conceivable estimate, profit included,
    would warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?"

    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.

    And once again, you resort to denigration of those who disagree with you.


    Not so.-a They do agree with me, they're just willing to pay it because
    they want a Mac that much.-a They have no choice.-a Price gouging.

    The absolutely DO have a choice. There are few if any tasks you can do
    on a Mac that you can't do on a Windows PC.

    Ergo, they have a choice.



    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface ports >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> that they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a What a >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> joke.-a What a total cult.-a And you're the ringleader. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB >>>>>>>>>>>>>> (Apple Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a The >>>>>>>>>>>>> EU forced them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was a >>>>>>>>>>>>> downgrade to make them compatible with other manufacturers' >>>>>>>>>>>>> chargers. So, in that respect, I actually think Apple was >>>>>>>>>>>>> superior, albeit for the function of charging the device, >>>>>>>>>>>>> not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the
    personal computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple introduced >>>>>>>>>>>> Macs with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to be attached >>>>>>>>>>>> to one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple introduced >>>>>>>>>>>> Macs that used a far superior open standard called NuBus. >>>>>>>>>>>>
    USB: an open standard first widely available on the original >>>>>>>>>>>> iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the time. >>>>>>>>>>>>
    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its >>>>>>>>>>>> introduction.

    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point out >>>>>>>>>>> that the proprietary nature of some of these features
    supports the idea that Apple trends nonstandard, though.

    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.

    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In >>>>>>>>> practice, they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously,
    objectively better than the standards that happened to chosen >>>>>>>> for IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting
    Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open standards >>>>>> (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it gets
    super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure".

    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.

    For Apple.

    For anyone who chose to use it.

    ISA required configuration jumpers: NuBus was self-configuring.

    IS was 16-bit and up to 16MB/s: NuBus was 32-bit and up to 40MB/s.

    Must I really go on?


    You could name another major manufacturer which actually used it.

    How would that change that:

    1. It was a standard and NOT proprietary, and

    2. That it was superior to ISA?



    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, and
    Sony made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.

    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those brands'
    junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone.-a So, I will take
    your word and concede.

    It didn't stop you from running your "mouth" about things you now
    concede you knew fuck-all about in the first place.


    I actually wasn't all that wrong, if the other manufacturers using it
    were limited to those brands, PC OEMs can be very proprietary in their designs, particularly of laptops.


    You literally just conceded your ignorance.


    So asked to name an application you actually use that's >>>>>>>>>>>> better than the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the >>>>>>>>>>> point. It's not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.

    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows, IMO. >>>>>>>>
    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!

    Ah, but you had to use the terminal.-a So now every goofy nerd
    using a Mac is familiar with that, as you, the exception who
    actually knows shit, are?-a Heh.

    So what?

    The issue was how the software WORKS.

    I don't dispute that you can do some significant things with macOS
    as a Unix flavor.-a But it would be cumbersome, to me, when I could >>>>> just use Linux to begin with.

    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better than
    any macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)

    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac doesn't
    make it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.

    Your basic argument is (and I'll quote you here):

    "Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I
    prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the average
    macOS app."

    I've just shown you that macOS works as well as Linux for the app YOU
    chose to highlight.


    And I'm duly impressed, but it wouldn't mean that all such apps are as
    easy to install, at the end of the day I would find using a Mac as a
    Unix system to be ass-backward logic, if I don't want Apple-centric
    software much and do want Unix software, Linux is a far better, easier,
    and flexible/affordable platform.'
    And yet when challenged to provide your best example...

    ...you utterly failed.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Ringo Raintree@canthaveanemail@fii.org to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Tue Feb 10 04:42:14 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    Alan <nuh-uh@nope.com> wrote in news:10mea03$3bbaq$1@dont-email.me:

    On 2026-02-09 19:40, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/9/26 10:23 PM, Alan wrote:

    why is the upgrade $200?-a What about a 512 GB SSD obviates >>>>>>>>>> that cost?

    Nothing has to.

    PEOPLE BUY SYSTEMS!

    The question they ask (the rational people) is:

    "Do I get a whole SYSTEM that works for me at the price I'm am >>>>>>>>> being offered?"

    What is rational about giving away $200 to a corporation?

    That you get an ENTIRE system that works better (for YOU) than
    the alternative.

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically to
    change from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the
    point, that it's more than any conceivable estimate, profit
    included, would warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?"

    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.

    And once again, you resort to denigration of those who disagree with
    you.


    Not so.-a They do agree with me, they're just willing to pay it
    because they want a Mac that much.-a They have no choice.-a Price
    gouging.

    The absolutely DO have a choice. There are few if any tasks you can do
    on a Mac that you can't do on a Windows PC.

    Ergo, they have a choice.



    AppleCare if you pay extra?-a Nonstandard interface >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ports that they claim are better 'cause they say so?-a >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> What a joke.-a What a total cult.-a And you're the >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ringleader.

    What "non-standard" ports has Apple ever used, since ADB >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> (Apple Desktop Bus)?

    You know, I actually have to concede something here.-a >>>>>>>>>>>>>> The EU forced them to make iPhone jacks USB-C, which was >>>>>>>>>>>>>> a downgrade to make them compatible with other
    manufacturers' chargers. So, in that respect, I actually >>>>>>>>>>>>>> think Apple was superior, albeit for the function of >>>>>>>>>>>>>> charging the device, not using it.

    Apple introduced most of the ports that advanced the >>>>>>>>>>>>> personal computer standard.

    When IBM-style PCs had only parallel ports, Apple
    introduced Macs with SCSI that allowed up to 7 devices to >>>>>>>>>>>>> be attached to one port.

    When the IBM-style PC was using ISA slots, Apple
    introduced Macs that used a far superior open standard >>>>>>>>>>>>> called NuBus.

    USB: an open standard first widely available on the
    original iMac.

    Firewire: an open standard far faster than USB at the >>>>>>>>>>>>> time.

    Thunderbolt: an open standard far faster than USB at its >>>>>>>>>>>>> introduction.

    Etc.

    I would mostly not challenge those points.-a I would point >>>>>>>>>>>> out that the proprietary nature of some of these features >>>>>>>>>>>> supports the idea that Apple trends nonstandard, though. >>>>>>>>>>>
    Of those, the only proprietary one was ADB.

    Everything else was an open standard.

    So your second sentence proceeds from a false premise.

    Heh, no, dude, they pretended they were open standards.-a In >>>>>>>>>> practice, they were Apple proprietary.

    No...dude:

    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously,
    objectively better than the standards that happened to chosen >>>>>>>>> for IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting
    Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open
    standards (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it gets
    super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure".

    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.

    For Apple.

    For anyone who chose to use it.

    ISA required configuration jumpers: NuBus was self-configuring.

    IS was 16-bit and up to 16MB/s: NuBus was 32-bit and up to 40MB/s.

    Must I really go on?


    You could name another major manufacturer which actually used it.

    How would that change that:

    1. It was a standard and NOT proprietary, and

    2. That it was superior to ISA?



    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, and
    Sony made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.

    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those
    brands' junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone.-a So, I
    will take your word and concede.

    It didn't stop you from running your "mouth" about things you now
    concede you knew fuck-all about in the first place.


    I actually wasn't all that wrong, if the other manufacturers using it
    were limited to those brands, PC OEMs can be very proprietary in
    their designs, particularly of laptops.


    You literally just conceded your ignorance.


    So asked to name an application you actually use that's >>>>>>>>>>>>> better than the macOS equivalent...

    ...you surrendered.

    Got it.

    I don't see why I need to name specific apps to make the >>>>>>>>>>>> point. It's not a surrender.

    Then name an app.

    Just ONE app that you actually use.

    Audacious.-a It's even better than Winamp is on Winblows,
    IMO.

    And available for macOS:

    Terminal: brew install audacious.

    So your argument is that this app is better than itself?

    Next!

    Ah, but you had to use the terminal.-a So now every goofy nerd >>>>>>>> using a Mac is familiar with that, as you, the exception who
    actually knows shit, are?-a Heh.

    So what?

    The issue was how the software WORKS.

    I don't dispute that you can do some significant things with
    macOS as a Unix flavor.-a But it would be cumbersome, to me, when
    I could just use Linux to begin with.

    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better than
    any macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)

    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac doesn't
    make it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.

    Your basic argument is (and I'll quote you here):

    "Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I
    prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the
    average macOS app."

    I've just shown you that macOS works as well as Linux for the app
    YOU chose to highlight.


    And I'm duly impressed, but it wouldn't mean that all such apps are
    as easy to install, at the end of the day I would find using a Mac as
    a Unix system to be ass-backward logic, if I don't want Apple-centric
    software much and do want Unix software, Linux is a far better,
    easier, and flexible/affordable platform.'
    And yet when challenged to provide your best example...

    ...you utterly failed.

    Do you work for Apple Alan?
    If not, you have been totally brainwashed into the Apple cult.
    Let's see your badge lol!
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From -hh@recscuba_google@huntzinger.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Tue Feb 10 09:44:13 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/9/26 16:19, -hh wrote:
    On 2/9/26 14:22, Alan wrote:
    On 2026-02-02 10:28, -hh wrote:
    On 1/31/26 18:10, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-30, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    On 1/29/26 18:23, pothead wrote:
    On 2026-01-29, -hh <recscuba_google@huntzinger.com> wrote:
    ...
    Yea, and where are you going to find a battery when your luggage
    is in pengo pengo?

    Pack a spare battery just in case you forgot to check pre-trip.-a BTDT. >>>>
    An option.
    But then there is battery swelling to deal with.

    Risks are never zero, but you're misapplying the swelling risks of
    rechargeable lithium batteries to a non-rechargeable lithium battery
    chemistry, since the former has many cycles and the latter only ever
    has one (1) cycle.-a Main factor increasing the chemical off-gassing
    risk is an environment where temperatures exceed 45C (115F), but this
    applies for both battery types.

    And will you look at that, H: it's been an entire week and PH hasn't
    had a thing to say.

    Gosh, how about that!

    Maybe Pothole is still busy trying to locate the skanky smell in their
    car, which on another thread they were trying to blame on NYC's mayor
    for the trash collection delays after their recent big snowstorm...

    ...while forgetting checking weather records is easy.-a For there's not
    been a day since the storm where the temperature has gotten above 40F to start to de-thaw.-a And Manhattan yesterday was once again well below average, at a Lo/High of +3F/+17F (-16C/-8C).

    FWIW, I noticed a ChatGPT method of analysis. Applied to this thread,
    it provided:

    [quote]

    1. Psychological profile of the author (rCLpotheadrCY)

    Communication style

    Argumentative but low-investment: frequent dismissals (rCLYawn.rCY, rCLEasy peasy.rCY) instead of engagement with substance.

    Uses assertion and repetition rather than evidence; relies on confidence signaling rather than data.

    Reacts defensively when corrected, reframing factual corrections as
    personal attacks (rCLwent bonkers,rCY rCLminutia rabbit holerCY).

    Cognitive patterns

    Confirmation bias: Selectively accepts claims that support prior
    purchase decisions; discounts counter-evidence as irrelevant or nitpicking.

    Motivated reasoning: Shifts criteria when a claim is challenged (e.g.,
    form factor raA warranty raA eco-friendliness).

    Category confusion: Repeatedly conflates different battery chemistries
    and failure modes while asserting certainty.

    Anecdotal reasoning: Personal convenience and imagined scenarios
    outweigh incidence rates, lifecycle costs, or engineering tradeoffs.

    Emotional drivers

    Mild brand defensiveness and sunk-cost protection.

    Perceived status threat: corrections are interpreted as social dominance rather than technical clarification.
    Escalation through tone rather than facts once cornered.

    Overall

    The author is not irrational, but is argument-resistant. They appear
    more interested in validating a personal choice than in comparing
    products on consistent criteria.

    2. Fact and logic check of key claims

    Battery swelling risk

    rYi Incorrect framing. The author repeatedly implies CR2032 disposables
    pose greater swelling/leak risk than sealed rechargeables.
    rLoN+A Correct correction: Rechargeable lithium-ion/polymer cells have
    higher swelling incidence over time due to cycling and calendar aging.
    rYi rCLNo separate battery = no swelling riskrCY is false.
    Maintenance
    rYi Claim that rechargeables require less maintenance is logically backwards. rLoN+A Replaceable coin cells force maintenance at long intervals; rechargeables require frequent access and recharging.

    Warranty

    rYi rCLLifetime warrantyrCY treated as a concrete guarantee without evidence. rLoN+A Skepticism is justified: company age (~2 years), undefined rCLlifetime,rCY no bonding or escrow.
    rYi Comparing rCLlifetimerCY vs rCL1-yearrCY without enforcement history is not
    meaningful.

    Cost analysis

    rYi Dismissal of ROI as rCLminutiarCY ignores a ~70% lifecycle cost delta. rLoN+A Airtag pricing and break-even calculations are internally consistent and conservative.

    Eco-friendliness

    rYi Claim that sealed rechargeable is more eco-friendly is unsubstantiated. rLoN+A Replaceable batteries are easier to recycle; sealed electronics increase e-waste complexity.

    Form factor use cases

    rLoN+A Credit-card form factor is valid for wallets/purses.
    rYi Overgeneralization that it is superior for luggage, cars, or passports. rLoN+A Passport objection is accurate; many border agencies discourage attachments or inserts.

    Construction quality

    rYi rCLHigher marksrCY cited with no source.
    rYi Engraved serial number rea material quality.


    [/quote]

    Hmmm...and just to be fair:

    [quote]

    Comparative profile: pothead vs -hh

    pothead

    Primary mode: Preference-driven advocacy

    Argument style: Assertion, repetition, and dismissal (rCLYawn,rCY rCLEasy peasyrCY) rather than evidence

    Reasoning pattern: Motivated reasoning and confirmation bias; shifts
    criteria when challenged

    Use of facts: Selective and often imprecise; conflates battery
    chemistries and failure modes
    Response to correction: Defensive; reframes factual rebuttals as
    personal or emotional overreaction

    Goal: Validation of personal purchase choice rather than technical
    resolution

    Net effect: Persuasive only to readers who already share the same
    preferences; weak on verifiable claims.

    -hh

    Primary mode: Technical and economic analysis

    Argument style: Detailed, methodical, occasionally pedantic
    Reasoning pattern: First-principles engineering, lifecycle cost
    modeling, risk analysis

    Use of facts: Cites pricing history, chemistry differences, company age,
    and warranty realism

    Response to disagreement: Corrective rather than emotive; continues
    engagement after persuasion likelihood drops

    Goal: Establish comparative merit based on evidence, not personal taste

    Net effect: Strong on accuracy and internal consistency; may feel
    exhausting or overly granular to casual readers.

    Dynamic between them

    The conflict is less about trackers and more about epistemology:

    pothead argues from lived convenience and identity.

    -hh argues from data, risk, and long-term cost.

    They are effectively talking past each other, with different definitions
    of what rCLmatters.rCY

    [/quote]


    -hh
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Tue Feb 10 10:33:44 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-09 23:43, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/9/26 10:51 PM, Alan wrote:

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically to >>>>>>> change from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the point, >>>>>>> that it's more than any conceivable estimate, profit included,
    would warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?"

    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.

    And once again, you resort to denigration of those who disagree with
    you.

    Not so.-a They do agree with me, they're just willing to pay it
    because they want a Mac that much.-a They have no choice.-a Price gouging. >>
    The absolutely DO have a choice. There are few if any tasks you can do
    on a Mac that you can't do on a Windows PC.

    Ergo, they have a choice.


    That's a good try, but we're talking about people who loathe Microsoft Windows.-a They prefer Apple, for some reason.-a They need more than 256 GB.-a Let's get that money!

    Stop just making shit up. Unlike you (apparently), most people don't
    "loath" or "hate" operating systems.

    As my brother said once: "they're just beige toasters".

    Meaning, these are tools that people use and they (for the vast
    majority) make rational choices about what tools work for THEM.

    And when they decide to buy a Mac (which will, in all likelihood, be
    more expensive than the Windows PC or Linux PC they could have
    purchased), they do so understanding that the extra money is worth it...

    ...to THEM.

    They know they have a choice to buy less expensive personal computing equipment and they freely CHOOSE.



    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously, >>>>>>>>>> objectively better than the standards that happened to chosen >>>>>>>>>> for IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting >>>>>>>>> Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open
    standards (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it gets >>>>>>> super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure".

    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.

    For Apple.

    For anyone who chose to use it.

    ISA required configuration jumpers: NuBus was self-configuring.

    IS was 16-bit and up to 16MB/s: NuBus was 32-bit and up to 40MB/s.

    Must I really go on?

    You could name another major manufacturer which actually used it.

    How would that change that:

    1. It was a standard and NOT proprietary, and

    2. That it was superior to ISA?



    If a standard is only adopted by one company, how is it different from proprietary, practically speaking?

    Answer my question.



    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, and >>>>>> Sony made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.

    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those
    brands' junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone.-a So, I
    will take your word and concede.

    It didn't stop you from running your "mouth" about things you now
    concede you knew fuck-all about in the first place.

    I actually wasn't all that wrong, if the other manufacturers using it
    were limited to those brands, PC OEMs can be very proprietary in
    their designs, particularly of laptops.

    You literally just conceded your ignorance.


    I was ignorant, yes, but still on the right track.-a These were features
    not unique to Apple's products, but nevertheless proprietary relative to
    the larger industry.


    There is no such thing as "proprietary relative to the larger industry."

    That's a thing you just made up.


    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better than >>>>>> any macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)

    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac doesn't
    make it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.

    Your basic argument is (and I'll quote you here):

    "Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I
    prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the
    average macOS app."

    I've just shown you that macOS works as well as Linux for the app
    YOU chose to highlight.

    And I'm duly impressed, but it wouldn't mean that all such apps are
    as easy to install, at the end of the day I would find using a Mac as
    a Unix system to be ass-backward logic, if I don't want Apple-centric
    software much and do want Unix software, Linux is a far better,
    easier, and flexible/affordable platform.'

    And yet when challenged to provide your best example...

    ...you utterly failed.


    But the point is that I don't need macOS to run Unix apps.-a Linux gives
    me that freely not only in the OS being free, but being free to install
    on any hardware.-a Fuck Apple's "walled garden".
    The point was that you claimed that the software for macOS was inferior...

    ...and you've completely failed to show that.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Tue Feb 10 14:23:39 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/10/26 1:33 PM, Alan wrote:

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically to >>>>>>>> change from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the
    point, that it's more than any conceivable estimate, profit
    included, would warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?"

    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.

    And once again, you resort to denigration of those who disagree
    with you.

    Not so.-a They do agree with me, they're just willing to pay it
    because they want a Mac that much.-a They have no choice.-a Price
    gouging.

    The absolutely DO have a choice. There are few if any tasks you can
    do on a Mac that you can't do on a Windows PC.

    Ergo, they have a choice.

    That's a good try, but we're talking about people who loathe Microsoft
    Windows.-a They prefer Apple, for some reason.-a They need more than 256
    GB.-a Let's get that money!

    Stop just making shit up. Unlike you (apparently), most people don't
    "loath" or "hate" operating systems.

    As my brother said once: "they're just beige toasters".

    Meaning, these are tools that people use and they (for the vast
    majority) make rational choices about what tools work for THEM.

    And when they decide to buy a Mac (which will, in all likelihood, be
    more expensive than the Windows PC or Linux PC they could have
    purchased), they do so understanding that the extra money is worth it...

    ...to THEM.

    They know they have a choice to buy less expensive personal computing equipment and they freely CHOOSE.


    Nope. Apple is price gouging.


    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously, >>>>>>>>>>> objectively better than the standards that happened to chosen >>>>>>>>>>> for IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting >>>>>>>>>> Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open
    standards (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it gets >>>>>>>> super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure".

    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.

    For Apple.

    For anyone who chose to use it.

    ISA required configuration jumpers: NuBus was self-configuring.

    IS was 16-bit and up to 16MB/s: NuBus was 32-bit and up to 40MB/s.

    Must I really go on?

    You could name another major manufacturer which actually used it.

    How would that change that:

    1. It was a standard and NOT proprietary, and

    2. That it was superior to ISA?

    If a standard is only adopted by one company, how is it different from
    proprietary, practically speaking?

    Answer my question.


    It might be a standard, but it's apparently one that only Apple really utilized. It's obviously superior tech, to answer the second question.


    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration,
    and Sony made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.

    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those
    brands' junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone.-a So, I >>>>>> will take your word and concede.

    It didn't stop you from running your "mouth" about things you now
    concede you knew fuck-all about in the first place.

    I actually wasn't all that wrong, if the other manufacturers using
    it were limited to those brands, PC OEMs can be very proprietary in
    their designs, particularly of laptops.

    You literally just conceded your ignorance.

    I was ignorant, yes, but still on the right track.-a These were
    features not unique to Apple's products, but nevertheless proprietary
    relative to the larger industry.

    There is no such thing as "proprietary relative to the larger industry."

    That's a thing you just made up.


    It meant that in each instance of the Thunderbolt being put to use, it
    was a proprietary use, for that product. It wasn't something that
    everyone had, like USB.


    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better
    than any macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)

    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac doesn't >>>>>> make it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.

    Your basic argument is (and I'll quote you here):

    "Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I
    prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the
    average macOS app."

    I've just shown you that macOS works as well as Linux for the app
    YOU chose to highlight.

    And I'm duly impressed, but it wouldn't mean that all such apps are
    as easy to install, at the end of the day I would find using a Mac
    as a Unix system to be ass-backward logic, if I don't want Apple-
    centric software much and do want Unix software, Linux is a far
    better, easier, and flexible/affordable platform.'

    And yet when challenged to provide your best example...

    ...you utterly failed.

    But the point is that I don't need macOS to run Unix apps.-a Linux
    gives me that freely not only in the OS being free, but being free to
    install on any hardware.-a Fuck Apple's "walled garden".

    The point was that you claimed that the software for macOS was inferior...

    ...and you've completely failed to show that.


    Audacious running under macOS isn't an example of a Mac app, but an
    example of using a Unix app under macOS. The actual Mac apps are
    inferior to it, though.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Tue Feb 10 12:03:30 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-10 11:23, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/10/26 1:33 PM, Alan wrote:

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically to >>>>>>>>> change from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the >>>>>>>>> point, that it's more than any conceivable estimate, profit >>>>>>>>> included, would warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?" >>>>>>>
    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.

    And once again, you resort to denigration of those who disagree
    with you.

    Not so.-a They do agree with me, they're just willing to pay it
    because they want a Mac that much.-a They have no choice.-a Price
    gouging.

    The absolutely DO have a choice. There are few if any tasks you can
    do on a Mac that you can't do on a Windows PC.

    Ergo, they have a choice.

    That's a good try, but we're talking about people who loathe
    Microsoft Windows.-a They prefer Apple, for some reason.-a They need
    more than 256 GB.-a Let's get that money!

    Stop just making shit up. Unlike you (apparently), most people don't
    "loath" or "hate" operating systems.

    As my brother said once: "they're just beige toasters".

    Meaning, these are tools that people use and they (for the vast
    majority) make rational choices about what tools work for THEM.

    And when they decide to buy a Mac (which will, in all likelihood, be
    more expensive than the Windows PC or Linux PC they could have
    purchased), they do so understanding that the extra money is worth it...

    ...to THEM.

    They know they have a choice to buy less expensive personal computing
    equipment and they freely CHOOSE.


    Nope.-a Apple is price gouging.

    Your premise for that is that the people who buy Apple products have no choice...

    ...and they clearly do.



    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously, >>>>>>>>>>>> objectively better than the standards that happened to >>>>>>>>>>>> chosen for IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting >>>>>>>>>>> Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open
    standards (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it >>>>>>>>> gets super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure". >>>>>>>>
    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.

    For Apple.

    For anyone who chose to use it.

    ISA required configuration jumpers: NuBus was self-configuring.

    IS was 16-bit and up to 16MB/s: NuBus was 32-bit and up to 40MB/s. >>>>>>
    Must I really go on?

    You could name another major manufacturer which actually used it.

    How would that change that:

    1. It was a standard and NOT proprietary, and

    2. That it was superior to ISA?

    If a standard is only adopted by one company, how is it different
    from proprietary, practically speaking?

    Answer my question.


    It might be a standard, but it's apparently one that only Apple really utilized.-a It's obviously superior tech, to answer the second question.

    So it is not proprietary and you for some reason feel Apple should have
    chosen an inferior standard?



    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, >>>>>>>> and Sony made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.

    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those
    brands' junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone.-a So, I >>>>>>> will take your word and concede.

    It didn't stop you from running your "mouth" about things you now >>>>>> concede you knew fuck-all about in the first place.

    I actually wasn't all that wrong, if the other manufacturers using
    it were limited to those brands, PC OEMs can be very proprietary in >>>>> their designs, particularly of laptops.

    You literally just conceded your ignorance.

    I was ignorant, yes, but still on the right track.-a These were
    features not unique to Apple's products, but nevertheless proprietary
    relative to the larger industry.

    There is no such thing as "proprietary relative to the larger industry."

    That's a thing you just made up.


    It meant that in each instance of the Thunderbolt being put to use, it
    was a proprietary use, for that product.-a It wasn't something that
    everyone had, like USB.

    By that definition, EVERY use of EVERY interface on EVERY product is "proprietary"...

    ...including USB.



    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better >>>>>>>> than any macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)

    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac doesn't >>>>>>> make it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.

    Your basic argument is (and I'll quote you here):

    "Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I
    prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the
    average macOS app."

    I've just shown you that macOS works as well as Linux for the app >>>>>> YOU chose to highlight.

    And I'm duly impressed, but it wouldn't mean that all such apps are >>>>> as easy to install, at the end of the day I would find using a Mac
    as a Unix system to be ass-backward logic, if I don't want Apple-
    centric software much and do want Unix software, Linux is a far
    better, easier, and flexible/affordable platform.'

    And yet when challenged to provide your best example...

    ...you utterly failed.

    But the point is that I don't need macOS to run Unix apps.-a Linux
    gives me that freely not only in the OS being free, but being free to
    install on any hardware.-a Fuck Apple's "walled garden".

    The point was that you claimed that the software for macOS was
    inferior...

    ...and you've completely failed to show that.


    Audacious running under macOS isn't an example of a Mac app, but an
    example of using a Unix app under macOS.-a The actual Mac apps are
    inferior to it, though.
    An app running on macOS is precisely a "Mac app".
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Joel W. Crump@joelcrump@gmail.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Tue Feb 10 15:23:54 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2/10/26 3:03 PM, Alan wrote:

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically >>>>>>>>>> to change from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the >>>>>>>>>> point, that it's more than any conceivable estimate, profit >>>>>>>>>> included, would warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?" >>>>>>>>
    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.

    And once again, you resort to denigration of those who disagree >>>>>>> with you.

    Not so.-a They do agree with me, they're just willing to pay it
    because they want a Mac that much.-a They have no choice.-a Price >>>>>> gouging.

    The absolutely DO have a choice. There are few if any tasks you can >>>>> do on a Mac that you can't do on a Windows PC.

    Ergo, they have a choice.

    That's a good try, but we're talking about people who loathe
    Microsoft Windows.-a They prefer Apple, for some reason.-a They need
    more than 256 GB.-a Let's get that money!

    Stop just making shit up. Unlike you (apparently), most people don't
    "loath" or "hate" operating systems.

    As my brother said once: "they're just beige toasters".

    Meaning, these are tools that people use and they (for the vast
    majority) make rational choices about what tools work for THEM.

    And when they decide to buy a Mac (which will, in all likelihood, be
    more expensive than the Windows PC or Linux PC they could have
    purchased), they do so understanding that the extra money is worth it... >>>
    ...to THEM.

    They know they have a choice to buy less expensive personal computing
    equipment and they freely CHOOSE.

    Nope.-a Apple is price gouging.

    Your premise for that is that the people who buy Apple products have no choice...

    ...and they clearly do.


    Avoid the $200 question, again, OK.


    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously, >>>>>>>>>>>>> objectively better than the standards that happened to >>>>>>>>>>>>> chosen for IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting >>>>>>>>>>>> Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open >>>>>>>>>>> standards (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it >>>>>>>>>> gets super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure". >>>>>>>>>
    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.

    For Apple.

    For anyone who chose to use it.

    ISA required configuration jumpers: NuBus was self-configuring.

    IS was 16-bit and up to 16MB/s: NuBus was 32-bit and up to 40MB/s. >>>>>>>
    Must I really go on?

    You could name another major manufacturer which actually used it.

    How would that change that:

    1. It was a standard and NOT proprietary, and

    2. That it was superior to ISA?

    If a standard is only adopted by one company, how is it different
    from proprietary, practically speaking?

    Answer my question.

    It might be a standard, but it's apparently one that only Apple really
    utilized.-a It's obviously superior tech, to answer the second question.

    So it is not proprietary and you for some reason feel Apple should have chosen an inferior standard?


    They should do whatever they want.


    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, >>>>>>>>> and Sony made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.

    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those
    brands' junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone.-a So, >>>>>>>> I will take your word and concede.

    It didn't stop you from running your "mouth" about things you now >>>>>>> concede you knew fuck-all about in the first place.

    I actually wasn't all that wrong, if the other manufacturers using >>>>>> it were limited to those brands, PC OEMs can be very proprietary
    in their designs, particularly of laptops.

    You literally just conceded your ignorance.

    I was ignorant, yes, but still on the right track.-a These were
    features not unique to Apple's products, but nevertheless
    proprietary relative to the larger industry.

    There is no such thing as "proprietary relative to the larger industry." >>>
    That's a thing you just made up.

    It meant that in each instance of the Thunderbolt being put to use, it
    was a proprietary use, for that product.-a It wasn't something that
    everyone had, like USB.

    By that definition, EVERY use of EVERY interface on EVERY product is "proprietary"...

    ...including USB.


    Nope. USB has ubiquity.


    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better >>>>>>>>> than any macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)

    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac
    doesn't make it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.

    Your basic argument is (and I'll quote you here):

    "Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I >>>>>>> prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the
    average macOS app."

    I've just shown you that macOS works as well as Linux for the app >>>>>>> YOU chose to highlight.

    And I'm duly impressed, but it wouldn't mean that all such apps
    are as easy to install, at the end of the day I would find using a >>>>>> Mac as a Unix system to be ass-backward logic, if I don't want
    Apple- centric software much and do want Unix software, Linux is a >>>>>> far better, easier, and flexible/affordable platform.'

    And yet when challenged to provide your best example...

    ...you utterly failed.

    But the point is that I don't need macOS to run Unix apps.-a Linux
    gives me that freely not only in the OS being free, but being free
    to install on any hardware.-a Fuck Apple's "walled garden".

    The point was that you claimed that the software for macOS was
    inferior...

    ...and you've completely failed to show that.

    Audacious running under macOS isn't an example of a Mac app, but an
    example of using a Unix app under macOS.-a The actual Mac apps are
    inferior to it, though.

    An app running on macOS is precisely a "Mac app".


    False. If it's a Unix app, it isn't what *typical* Mac users would have
    any idea about.
    --
    Joel W. Crump
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Alan@nuh-uh@nope.com to comp.os.linux.advocacy,comp.sys.mac.advocacy,alt.computer.workshop on Tue Feb 10 15:36:23 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

    On 2026-02-10 12:23, Joel W. Crump wrote:
    On 2/10/26 3:03 PM, Alan wrote:

    But the $200 isn't for the entire system.-a It's specifically >>>>>>>>>>> to change from 256 GB to 512 GB.-a Your answer is avoiding the >>>>>>>>>>> point, that it's more than any conceivable estimate, profit >>>>>>>>>>> included, would warrant.

    That's exactly the POINT.

    The question a rational person asks is:

    "Is the whole system (with 512GB) worth it to me at that cost?" >>>>>>>>>
    The answer a rational person has is "no", though.

    And once again, you resort to denigration of those who disagree >>>>>>>> with you.

    Not so.-a They do agree with me, they're just willing to pay it >>>>>>> because they want a Mac that much.-a They have no choice.-a Price >>>>>>> gouging.

    The absolutely DO have a choice. There are few if any tasks you
    can do on a Mac that you can't do on a Windows PC.

    Ergo, they have a choice.

    That's a good try, but we're talking about people who loathe
    Microsoft Windows.-a They prefer Apple, for some reason.-a They need >>>>> more than 256 GB.-a Let's get that money!

    Stop just making shit up. Unlike you (apparently), most people don't
    "loath" or "hate" operating systems.

    As my brother said once: "they're just beige toasters".

    Meaning, these are tools that people use and they (for the vast
    majority) make rational choices about what tools work for THEM.

    And when they decide to buy a Mac (which will, in all likelihood, be
    more expensive than the Windows PC or Linux PC they could have
    purchased), they do so understanding that the extra money is worth
    it...

    ...to THEM.

    They know they have a choice to buy less expensive personal
    computing equipment and they freely CHOOSE.

    Nope.-a Apple is price gouging.

    Your premise for that is that the people who buy Apple products have
    no choice...

    ...and they clearly do.


    Avoid the $200 question, again, OK.

    I've addressed it over and over, but if you want to ask an actual
    question again, please go ahead.



    They were open standards. And ALL of them were obviously, >>>>>>>>>>>>>> objectively better than the standards that happened to >>>>>>>>>>>>>> chosen for IBM-style PCs.

    Do you see any real numbers of other manufacturers adopting >>>>>>>>>>>>> Thunderbolt?

    How is that relevant to the fact that they are all open >>>>>>>>>>>> standards (caveat ADB).

    USB qualifies, obviously, FireWire maybe, but from there it >>>>>>>>>>> gets super obscure.

    Nope. You not knowing about things doesn't make them "obscure". >>>>>>>>>>
    NuBus was a huge step over ISA.

    For Apple.

    For anyone who chose to use it.

    ISA required configuration jumpers: NuBus was self-configuring. >>>>>>>>
    IS was 16-bit and up to 16MB/s: NuBus was 32-bit and up to 40MB/s. >>>>>>>>
    Must I really go on?

    You could name another major manufacturer which actually used it. >>>>>>
    How would that change that:

    1. It was a standard and NOT proprietary, and

    2. That it was superior to ISA?

    If a standard is only adopted by one company, how is it different
    from proprietary, practically speaking?

    Answer my question.

    It might be a standard, but it's apparently one that only Apple
    really utilized.-a It's obviously superior tech, to answer the second
    question.

    So it is not proprietary and you for some reason feel Apple should
    have chosen an inferior standard?


    They should do whatever they want.

    But if they choose a better standard, you'll call it "proprietary"...

    ...even though it is not.

    Got it.



    Thunderbolt was developed by Intel and Apple in collaboration, >>>>>>>>>> and Sony made use of it as well as Apple...

    ...and Acer...

    ...and HP...

    ...Lenovo...

    ...Asus...

    ...and, of course, Intel's own PCs.

    And that's just the initial version of Thunderbolt.

    Well, I admit, I didn't really know a lot about all of those >>>>>>>>> brands' junk products, since I'm not an OEM-Windows drone.-a So, >>>>>>>>> I will take your word and concede.

    It didn't stop you from running your "mouth" about things you >>>>>>>> now concede you knew fuck-all about in the first place.

    I actually wasn't all that wrong, if the other manufacturers
    using it were limited to those brands, PC OEMs can be very
    proprietary in their designs, particularly of laptops.

    You literally just conceded your ignorance.

    I was ignorant, yes, but still on the right track.-a These were
    features not unique to Apple's products, but nevertheless
    proprietary relative to the larger industry.

    There is no such thing as "proprietary relative to the larger
    industry."

    That's a thing you just made up.

    It meant that in each instance of the Thunderbolt being put to use,
    it was a proprietary use, for that product.-a It wasn't something that
    everyone had, like USB.

    By that definition, EVERY use of EVERY interface on EVERY product is
    "proprietary"...

    ...including USB.


    Nope.-a USB has ubiquity.

    It does NOW.

    Did it "have ubiquity" when Apple chose it for the iMac?

    No.



    You were challenged to produce an app you used that is better >>>>>>>>>> than any macOS equivalent.

    So far, you've utterly failed.

    But that comes very naturally to you, doesn't it?

    :-)

    I didn't fail, though, because running Audacious on a Mac
    doesn't make it a "macOS" app, it's still a Unix app.

    Your basic argument is (and I'll quote you here):

    "Linux is a better system to run Unix software than macOS, and I >>>>>>>> prefer the average app developed for the Unix platform to the >>>>>>>> average macOS app."

    I've just shown you that macOS works as well as Linux for the >>>>>>>> app YOU chose to highlight.

    And I'm duly impressed, but it wouldn't mean that all such apps >>>>>>> are as easy to install, at the end of the day I would find using >>>>>>> a Mac as a Unix system to be ass-backward logic, if I don't want >>>>>>> Apple- centric software much and do want Unix software, Linux is >>>>>>> a far better, easier, and flexible/affordable platform.'

    And yet when challenged to provide your best example...

    ...you utterly failed.

    But the point is that I don't need macOS to run Unix apps.-a Linux
    gives me that freely not only in the OS being free, but being free
    to install on any hardware.-a Fuck Apple's "walled garden".

    The point was that you claimed that the software for macOS was
    inferior...

    ...and you've completely failed to show that.

    Audacious running under macOS isn't an example of a Mac app, but an
    example of using a Unix app under macOS.-a The actual Mac apps are
    inferior to it, though.

    An app running on macOS is precisely a "Mac app".


    False.-a If it's a Unix app, it isn't what *typical* Mac users would have any idea about.
    It's an app you can run on macOS.

    "No true Scotsman" fallacy.
    --- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2