Seeing as how this blog is getting dangerously close to being neglected again, I guess I should comment on the recent Mac news floating around the ‘net.
As some of you may or may not know, I recently became the proud owner of a 12″ Apple Powerbook, of which I’m quite fond. I can totally understand where the Mac geeks are coming from on this one. Wonderful, beautiful interface, on top of a powerhouse, unix-based OS. Dig it. I’m also beginning to understand why all the media-types have been digging Apple for so long: Apple just gets it. Music, video, photos, whatever. Apple’s got your back, and they do it well.
So, with the flurry of news surrounding a $500 headless Mac, as well as a possible home/office suite to replace the aging Appleworks, I think I’m beginning to see another dimension. The average home user (AHU; my own little acronym) will once again be a target for Apple. This is a good thing, provided Apple handles it right. The PC reached appliance status about 3 years ago, but the AHU can barely set the water temperature or choose the delicate cycle. Windows has gotten pretty damn simple, and Microsoft almost had it, until the spyware problem blew up in their face. Now, the AHU is expected to be a security expert.
Apple can easily get around these issues, while providing their wonderful, media-rich, easy-to-use suite of applications at the same time. With an inexpensive entry-level machine, good marketing, and wide availability, they can easily put themselves in large numbers of homes very quickly. If they can handling the “switching” issue right, we could see a resurgence in Apple desktop computers like never before. Come on guys, I’m rootin’ for ya!