Written 20 May 1998 in response to the Chicago Tribune’s James Coates’ article, “With Windows 98, Microsoft Finally Catches Up With Mac.” There is another, perhaps more informative article on the MacKiDo web site as well.

I just read your article entitled, “With Windows 98, Microsoft Finally Catches Up With Mac.” I use all makes and models of computers, and some of my duties include system administration. I am an Engineer. I’m writing to you from a PC running Windows NT 4.0. I realize that the posted column represents your opinion, but there are some points that I would like to address.

In the fourth paragraph of your article, you state, “...a Pentium running Windows 98 becomes the Mac as it was supposed to be...” but you don’t explain who it is that has decided where the Macintosh is supposed to be, nor what the criteria are for having achieved this intangible destination. It obviously isn’t Steve Jobs’ vision, as you imply. The computer industry is in a state of constant change, and no one can see very far into the future. This makes anyone’s visions in 1984 totally irrelevant due to the countless breakthroughs and changes over the past 14 years. Perhaps you meant to state that Windows 98 has achieved the vision of the Macintosh as it existed in 1984, not as it is in 1998? I hasten to point out that many industry experts have called Steve Jobs “one of the few visionaries in our industry.” If this is true, then it stands to reason that the vision for the Macintosh is a changing, progressing work; otherwise Steve Jobs wouldn’t want any part in the Apple of 1998--his work would have been finished in 1984.

Another place in your column you state, “Windows 95... was close enough to utterly destroy Macintosh as a competitor.” This wholly unqualified sentence sounds even more extreme than the Macintosh users whom you call “fanatical.” Here you cleverly imply that tha Macintosh has been destroyed by not explaining what you mean by “destroyed as a competitor.” Obviously Apple is still alive and well; it still ranks higher in the Fortune 500 than Microsoft and maintains a decided majority in key industries. So, what exactly do you mean to say?

A little further on you throw some statistics into your article. Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli summed it up best when he stated that there were three kinds of lies: lies, damn lies, and statistics. The thing that bothers me the most about computers is how utterly emotionally involved we all become. Very few people would argue that any Ford product could successfully compete in markets where Mercedes-Benz or Ferrari dominate; yet Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz together don’t hold even a fraction of the market share that Ford enjoys. And both Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz don’t show any signs of retiring any time soon. The point I wish to make is this: percentage market share isn’t nearly as important as you might think. Individuals have always wanted choice and personalization of their material objects. So what if PCs are a larger market than the Macintosh or Unix? What happened to peaceful coexistance? Why do you have this vision of all or nothing? Some personal vendetta against the Macintosh?

Finally, I find it disgusting that you or anyone would laud Mr. Gates for brazen theft (accused or otherwise) and heavy-handed tactics. The absence of ethics is arguably part of what is ripping apart this country’s society.

Perhaps you should take a closer look at what Apple has brewing. Macintosh developers and users are excited about the items being released in the near future. Of course, most of the mainstream press is incapable of grasping the significance of what they’re doing. Are you?

Regards,

Matt Warner


Back to the Warner Technology Consulting Home Page


PGP Encryption Available for secured messages. Public key is available at MIT’s site or here.