Apple offers Mac mini 'test drive'

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But that's precisely my point

You wrote:
>In life, some things can be ordinary when people don't think
>they're missing much.

I know...I was one of those people. I held that attitude because I was immersed in a culture that trivialized the Mac for reasons that have nothing to do with the actual features and benefits that the platform provides. I now hold a different attitude precisely because I was able to experience those features and benefits by stepping out of the culture that doesn't even acknowledge their existence.

I understand the "people don't think they're missing much" attitude because I owned it -- although, perhaps it would be more precisely correct to say that I didn't know there was anything to miss. There is, whether I knew it or not.

You also wrote:
>The only criteria are ease of use and price.

Well, yeah... but the point is that "ease of use" in the Windows world is defined in a way that is bereft of anything that is non-Windows. I do not believe that Windows is easier to use than OS X. But even if I did, that does not mean that my perception is generalizable to all users. The term "ease of use" is not an absolute that can only be defined in terms of the Windows paradigm...or any other paradigm, for that matter.

As for price, again, that's my point. One can make a buying decision based on the selling price alone, but since perceived value is subjective, there is nothing more absolute about that parameter than there is about "ease of use". We're still talking about perceptions, and I still say that Apple failed to address my perceptions -- ones that would very likely have precluded my purchase of a Mac had I not been otherwise compelled to use it. It was USING the Mac that changed my perceptions.

I don't know whether my experience is generalizable to others. Perhaps it's not. But if it is, then putting a Mac in people's hands at low cost or low risk would have a greater positive impact on its market share than all of Apple's clever little ads. The ads certainy didn't work on me.

Ah, well...I suppose it's academic now, as Apple has inexplicably terminated the Mac Mini offer.

Posted by: slingzenarrowzuvowtrayjissforchin   Posted on: 09/03/05 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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