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May The Best OS Win (9/21/00)
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When the public beta of Mac OS X shipped just a day before Microsoft's latest consumer operating system, Windows Me, we knew we were looking at a ready-made cage match in the battle for public opinion. It's not exactly a fair fight, to be sure; for one thing, Mac OS X is only in beta, whereas Windows Me is a finished product-- or, at least, it's finished by Microsoft's standards. On the other hand, though, Windows Me is barely an update, whereas Mac OS X is a completely new operating system that's been anxiously awaited by legions of Mac fans. So maybe it all balances out.
Or maybe not. We won't list all the various reviews and articles on these two operating systems that have been published in the past week, but we've definitely noticed an overall trend in the reporting: Mac OS X is garnering some seriously good ink, while the media response to Windows Me has been lackluster at best, and fuming at worst. For a couple of (admittedly drastic) examples, first consider what BusinessWeek had to say about our beloved public beta: "Apple's OS X Looks Like a 10... With OS X, Apple is actually leaping ahead of Linux and Windows... OS X is really cool." Now consider what ZDNet had to say about Microsoft's offering: "Windows Me isn't Microsoft's shining hour... I can save you reading the rest of this column by offering a single word of advice: Don't... This is a cynical attempt to get your money."
Of course, if the Mac OS X public beta is selling like hotcakes (the Apple Store reportedly expects sales of a hundred thousand copies in the first week), then Windows Me is selling like hotcakes with Pokémon on them. The Register reports that Microsoft has sold 250,000 copies in its first four days on the market. Those numbers don't mean much when compared to one another, given that the products are selling to two completely different markets, but hey, we still found them interesting.
As for our own thoughts on the public beta, while we've finally gotten a couple of hours to sit down and give it a spin, we can't say much here other than "thumbs up." We hope to broadcast a completely separate special report this weekend, so hang in there.
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SceneLink (2564)
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And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 9/21/00 episode: September 21, 2000: Chiat-Day claims that its anti-rumor crusade isn't just limited to Apple. Meanwhile, Steve's been getting hands-on when it comes to fielding customer complaints, and while Mac OS X is basking in the light of critical acclaim, Windows Me isn't faring quite so well-- at least, not in the press...
Other scenes from that episode: 2562: "We Do This For Everyone!" (9/21/00) When you think about it, there's something terribly satisfying about all this rumor and speculation that's been kicked up by the claim that Apple's ad agency, Chiat-Day, has been engaging in some questionable practices to-- you guessed it-- prevent rumor and speculation... 2563: Gee, Steve Never Calls US (9/21/00) Micromanagement isn't always a bad thing. Sure, we imagine it can be a little nervewracking at times to be an Apple engineer or designer, what with Steve hovering over one's shoulder and issuing edicts like "move that button one pixel to the left" or "that shade of blue still isn't lickable enough-- make it shinier" or "only a bozo would think that-- clean out your desk."...
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