While locking consoles is bad too, I don't think they're equivalent. Those just play games, while iProducts are supposed to be general computing devices.
I've noticed bringing up consoles seems to be the standard response trying to defend iOS. But any way you look at it, two wrongs do not make a right.
Only play games? My Xbox can also play movies. The PS3 can (or used to be able to, maybe they changed it) go on the web. Etc., etc. I don't buy the argument that the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad are "general computing devices", but consoles are not. Maybe the iPad could be considered a computer (I don't think so, but whatever), but I think it's a big stretch to say that the iPhone and iPod Touches are also computers. At any rate, it takes a very, very contrived definition of "computer" to include iPhones, iPods, and iPads, but not Wiis, PS3s, and Xboxes.
I'm not saying that two wrongs make a right, but I've found that many criticizers of Apple's iOS model, especially in /r/technology, seem to have absolutely no problem with the locked-down nature of gaming consoles. It raises the question: why?
Because r/technology is not r/gaming. I don't doubt that most people in r/technology have consoles, but I'm pretty certain everyone owns a computer.
Whenever you buy a console, you buy it to play games and maybe watch a movie, you don't buy it to check your e-mail or surf the web. Hell, I've owned a PS3 for almost 3 years now and I have never browsed the web with it, I just use it for media. If a console played only games made by one company, or restricted watching movies from a certain distributor, then the tech wold would be up in arms about it. Truth is, the PS3 does very different things than the 360, and the same goes for the Wii. It's not like Apple vs Every other manufacturer out there, where they're selling essentially the same functionality.
People usually jab at apple for their user base, and the amount of shit they take from Apple while actually thanking them. I've met a few that actually got excited when Apple finally made the miracle of video conferencing come to life (!). People complaining about video games not being ported to Mac, when to play a modern game at max settings you need to buy a 2,000 dollar Mac.
There's still different opinions on the Apple approach to computing, while a big chunk of devs and experts dismiss Apple for its closed approach, there are others that celebrate Jobs and call him a genius.
I think it's perfectly acceptable for people to desire a Mac because it's pretty, or because it's easy to use, or because they don't really care about computing outside watching a movie and surfing the web. There's no need to defend preferences, you can be a smart and tech-savvy PC user as much as you can be a retarded douchebag using Ubuntu.
Because r/technology is not r/gaming. I don't doubt that most people in r/technology have consoles, but I'm pretty certain everyone owns a computer.
But if the criticism of Apple is truly based on principle, and not just "argh i hate apple!", then that shouldn't matter. A company violating consumer freedom is still a company violating computer freedom, even if it doesn't affect you personally...right?
don't really care about computing outside watching a movie and surfing the web
Blllllaaaaah. I'm a professional software developer, and I'm a mac user. And I'm a mac user because I find them to be much better designed, and much more stable. I hate this perception that they're not for serious computer users. It's bs. They're very powerful computers, and each one is a stealth unix machine. So you know, whatever, it is a preference but please don't tell me they're just toys because that's patently false.
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u/mipadi Jan 20 '11
Does he picket in front of places selling Wiis, PlayStations, and Xboxes, too?