A few blemishes on the Apple

There was some good news for Apple in the last few days. The MacBook Pro (arguably the worst name ever for a computer), started shipping with faster than promised processors. I still haven't seen a review of the MacBook Pro even from folks like Walt Mossberg who normally get preferential treatment.  I hope someone like David Pogue gets one and reviews it.  His review of the Intel iMac, "Intel Inside. Huh?!," is one of the best that I have seen.  Pogue has this to say.

The best news, though, is yet to come. It comes in two parts: first, the increasing speed as more and more programs are Universalized.

Second, in principle, with the assistance of a driver kit that someone will surely write, Intel-based Macs can be restarted in Microsoft Windows. Everybody wins: Microsoft can sell more copies of Windows, Apple makes the only computers on earth that can run both consumer operating systems at full speed, and the masses don't have to sacrifice the huge library of Windows-only software.

How's that for an outlook?

Mostly I agree with the rosy outlook that Pogue paints except for one point.  I want to know why it is okay for Apple to be the only manufacturer to have computers that "can run both consumer operating systems at full speed?"

Imagine Microsoft fixing Vista so it wouldn't run on Macs.  Bill would be crucified. Now before the Apple apologists start attacking.  The idea that Apple cannot survive without the Digital Millennium Copyright Act protecting its "tenuous" business position just doesn't hold water.  Apple has proved that it can survive on 2% market share.  Their hardware market share is now 4% and growing. Most of Apple's success has come from iPods so the crocodile tears for Apple's inability to survive without a lock to their hardware is completely bogus.  Just the fact that Apple recently shut down sites providing illegal technical information lends credence to the idea that plenty of folks would provide more than enough unauthorized support for Mac OS X in the wilds of non-Apple Intel hardware.

I've been down this road before so there is little to discuss on this other than what will likely be increasingly aggressive Apple tactics to keep OS X tied to their hardware.  This is really a shame since there are some real consumer benefits to having Apple hardware as well as Dell (and other) hardware run multiple operating systems.  I'd personally like both my Apple and Dell hardware to run Linux, MS, and Apple operating systems.

In spite of my thoughts on this, it is good that the MacBook Pro is shipping on schedule.  Maybe it will give people something to talk about besides some obvious challenges that Apple must face if they are really go to be remembered for anything in the 21st century besides the iPod.

First in my mind was the news that in spite of all the wishful thinking from some in the Apple camp, Dell still isn't dead.  In fact they seem to be doing quite well at least according the the WSJ.

For the fiscal year that ended Feb. 3, Dell said it earned $3.57 billion, or $1.46 a share, compared with $3.04 billion, or $1.18 a share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 14% to $55.91 billion.

Of course Dell's growth doesn't have to be bad news for Apple.  Hard on the heels of that announcement comes, "Virus for Mac OS X System Found."  Then we hear that Apple is using one of my least favorite laws, "DMCA," to prevent people from even talking about how OS X could be run on Intel system from manufacturers.

Then comes the news that Amazon dot com is entering the fray in pursuit of unseating the iPod monopoly. 

I really think that all of this fits under the category of tempests in a pretty small teapot.  What worries me more than anything is what I perceive as on the one hand Apple fighting to hold onto the crown jewels, "OS X," and on the other hand letting the crown jewels deteriorate right in front of them.  Now perhaps Apple has been so busy porting stuff to Intel that a few things might have slipped through the cracks, but this has been going on for a long time.

I think my concerns came to head when I had lunch with one of the brightest computer people that I know. He's been a huge Apple friend over the years.  In fact if I slipped and mentioned one of his most recent accomplishments, his identity would immediately be known.  It's been hard to put my finger on what's been bothering me about Apple's software.  I have written about my frustration with the wandering export command and some other things like search, iWeb, and Pages.

None of this was much of a concern until my long time Apple friend put his finger on the problem. The real problem is that Apple no longer follows user interface guidelines which according to my friend means that you often end up in an Apple application in a place that doesn't make any sense for what you want to do or in situation where the supposedly intuitive Apple user interface just doesn't seem intuitive.

My friend's example was iTunes.  He loves what the program does but believes it is poorly designed.  He also talked about iWeb being a total mystery.  I'm not a big iTunes user.  iPhoto however is critical to me. I do know that now when I import a series of photos I'm forced to click on a photo not in the set in order to select one that is in the set.  It doesn't make any sense.  I also found iWeb counter intuitive and actually so different that I don't like to come back to it after putting it away. It reminds me of Keynote, great potential but poorly executed.

Given that Apple is going to force us to buy their hardware in order to get OS X running, I would hope that they take the position that they will produce the absolute best software in the world. I just hope they remember that thinking it is the best and making it the best are two different things.  I believe they've taken their eye off the ball when it comes to software applications. Maybe my first ever Apple customer survey is an indication they're trying to mend their ways.  I hope so.

If Apple can't get back on track with a renewed focus on delivering software, excellency, consistency and true productivity, then they'll end up just being another petty monopolist in a very small pond.

At least with Microsoft and Linux, I get a few choices.  With Apple I have to take what they throw over the wall or do without, at least that is the case if I want to use OS X which I plan to do as long as I can.

 

Comments

[Damian]

Pogue: "... with the assistance of a driver kit that someone will surely write, Intel-based Macs can be restarted in Microsoft Windows."

Yeah, well, no one has yet. And not for want of an incentive:

http://windowsxp.onmac.net/The%20Contest.html

[Alex in Los Angeles]

Why doesn't your friend evangelize for better Human Interface implementations within Apple? Is it a lost cause with NeXT/Steve Jobs running the show, or is their room for successful leadership along these lines?

I've heard argue that Apple is hiring a lot of new software engineers and it will take a few years for them to produce software up to snuff. Is their a culture of good Human Interface design that these new engineers have not assimilated into yet, or is there nothing for them to emulate?