G3/Mac OS X Settlement

[leftbanke7]

An eMac is $800 new. Even cheaper ones are available used that are able to boot into Mac OS 9. So no, you don't even have to shell out half the amount you specified.

http://www.macmaps.com/usedrefurbished.html

This is where I make my case for the "headless iMac".

I think that the eMac and iMac are really unattractive not to mention they have no expandability whatsoever so in another 6 years, I'll have another painfully out of date computer (I can at least slap a processor upgrade and some PCI slot goodies into my Beige G3). If I am going to spend any amount of money on something, I had better like looking at it on a daily basis. Plus as a film major, I need something a little bit more beefy than an eMac/iMac and why should I have to settle with an old refurbished G4 (as it will be out of date in 3 years and won't run OSX 10.whatever is out at that time)?

There is NO reason Apple can not make a QUALITY, expandable, cost friendly machine. Does their consumer line have to come with a monitor? I'm not asking for them to hack the prices of their current line but is it so impossible for them to slap a 1.6 Ghz G5 onto a motherboard with perhaps a 500 Mhz bus, 256 Mb of RAM, 2 PCI Slots and a 32 MB Video Card (just a random suggestion)? Throw it into an old beige case for all I care. But channeling people into either an eMac/iMac or their Pro line is not only very limiting but very frustrating to Mac lovers on a tight budget.

This is why the PC market is so big. They have something for everybody.

 

[gopher]

This is where I make my case for the "headless iMac".

I think that the eMac and iMac are really unattractive not to mention they have no expandability whatsoever so in another 6 years, I'll have another painfully out of date computer (I can at least slap a processor upgrade and some PCI slot goodies into my Beige G3). If I am going to spend any amount of money on something, I had better like looking at it on a daily basis. Plus as a film major, I need something a little bit more beefy than an eMac/iMac and why should I have to settle with an old refurbished G4 (as it will be out of date in 3 years and won't run OSX 10.whatever is out at that time)?

There is NO reason Apple can not make a QUALITY, expandable, cost friendly machine. Does their consumer line have to come with a monitor? I'm not asking for them to hack the prices of their current line but is it so impossible for them to slap a 1.6 Ghz G5 onto a motherboard with perhaps a 500 Mhz bus, 256 Mb of RAM, 2 PCI Slots and a 32 MB Video Card (just a random suggestion)? Throw it into an old beige case for all I care. But channeling people into either an eMac/iMac or their Pro line is not only very limiting but very frustrating to Mac lovers on a tight budget.

This is why the PC market is so big. They have something for everybody.

Many have made the case for a headless Mac. Even so, Apple recognizes that the integration which makes their product so successful would be lost in a headless Mac. The difference with Apple is they make such a tightly close knit system, that their quality is able to stand out above the rest. Make it headless, and quality will go down. And the PC market doesn't have everything. It doesn't have the ease of use of a Mac. Macs that are 10 years old are still in use. Does that make them obsolete? No, because they are able to still be productive. How many PCs like that can you say are still productive?

 

[blue&whiteman]

I agree with leftbanke7 about the emac/imac. I myself only really like powermacs. its nice to be able to change your video card or add a new ata bus card or a second video card or another HD or 2. all things you could only ever do on a powermac. there is an elegance with a nice powermac old or new and the beige is one of the best ever made. you can now get 1GHz G4 upgrades for it. he just bought my old video card to throw in it also

a powermac says "I am a real mac... hear me roar!@#

 

[leftbanke7]

The difference with Apple is they make such a tightly close knit system, that their quality is able to stand out above the rest. Make it headless, and quality will go down.

How? Apple will make quality products regardless. Steve Jobs is just that way. So lopping a top off of an iMac won't change the stringent quality levels we have come to expect and love from Apple. It'll just give us one more product to choose from. I think the fear some Apple users have about a cost friendly product being a huge pile of crap is based solely on the PC world, nothing that Apple has actually done. I have more faith in Apple than that. I understand that they use top quality parts but do they only have to sell products with the biggest and fastest of the top quality parts? They release a cost friendly expandable product and you'd be surprised how many PC users would make the switch. PC users know that Apple is a quality product, they just are used to having more than 2 options to choose from and not having to pay an arm and a leg for it.

 

[leftbanke7]

he just bought my old video card to throw in it also

Looking forward to getting it. I have some ROM emulators I'd like to be able to play in real time!!!

 

[blue&whiteman]

Looking forward to getting it. I have some ROM emulators I'd like to be able to play in real time!!!

best idea I can give you for game performance on it is quake 3. the rage 128 would do 1024x768 in 32bit and get about 45 FPS under os9. you seem to need a very fast mac to play even lower end games under osx. tiger woods golf is about all my 32mb radeon 7000 in a faster 66mhz pci slot can handle under osx.

 

[simX]

MacCentral reported back in January that the settlement was approved. I had received a letter by snail mail alerting me to this fact, and said that I would receive another letter if the settlement was approved -- I haven't received any such letter yet, though.

It says I have 120 days (4 months) from the day the settlement is approved to file a claim. That would mean that if it was approved on Jan 26 (the day of the MacCentral article), I have until May 26th to file a claim.

Anybody know how to do so? The link originally posted in this article is broken, and there's now only a folder in which is web stats for the page.

 

[Thomas Ferlauto]

MacCentral reported back in January that the settlement was approved. I had received a letter by snail mail alerting me to this fact, and said that I would receive another letter if the settlement was approved -- I haven't received any such letter yet, though.

It says I have 120 days (4 months) from the day the settlement is approved to file a claim. That would mean that if it was approved on Jan 26 (the day of the MacCentral article), I have until May 26th to file a claim.

Anybody know how to do so? The link originally posted in this article is broken, and there's now only a folder in which is web stats for the page.

The Court granted final approval for the settlement in January and signed a judgment to that effect. However, for legal reasons, the judgment does not become final for 60 days. That means the settlement/judgment will not be "final" until March 26, 2004. At that point in time, Apple will send out claims notices to everyone on their list of potential class members. If you received the first notice by mail, you are on the list and should receive a claims notice next month. If you did not receive the first mailed notice, you are not on the list and need to contact the claims administrator. My firm is not responsible for the administration of the settlement. Apple is responsible for the administration of the settlement. Apple has hired ROSENTHAL & COMPANY, LLC to administer the settlement. Their information is as follows:

ROSENTHAL & COMPANY, LLC
P.O. Box 6177
Novato, CA 94948-6177
Phone: 415-382-6565 or 800-211-5201
Fax: 415-382-6565
www.rosenthalco.com

Their Case Manager is a woman by the name of Tammie Schmidt. The claims notices have not yet gone out and should not go out until April. So, it should not be too late to get on the list to get a claims notice. Contact them to get on the list to receive a claims notice. Good luck.

 

[G2Jim]

Thank you Thomas. Great info. I wasn't ever notified, but qualify for the settlement. I'll write Rosenthal & Co.

 

[TimDaddy]

According to Ralph Nader, Americans filed more lawsuits per capita in 1840 than they are filing today. I don't know where that stat came from. Also, according to Nader, lawsuits filed by corporations are at an all-time high.

If you make a claim about your product, it should be true. I don't recall McDonald's ever saying that eating three meals a day at McDonald's will not make you fat, so I'm on their side about that. But, if Apple said the OS would run on a machine, it should run or your money back.

 

[gopher]

According to Ralph Nader, Americans filed more lawsuits per capita in 1840 than they are filing today. I don't know where that stat came from. Also, according to Nader, lawsuits filed by corporations are at an all-time high.

If you make a claim about your product, it should be true. I don't recall McDonald's ever saying that eating three meals a day at McDonald's will not make you fat, so I'm on their side about that. But, if Apple said the OS would run on a machine, it should run or your money back.

Define run? It does run on those machines. It may not run the way you personally like with all the bells and whistles of the newer computers, like it won't give those older machines USB 2, or Firewire, or AGP, or Quartz Extreme. There are features breaking at every cutoff point. The question I have for those complaining, have you considered just making use of your machine as is until you can afford a newer refurbished or used model?

Those who attempt to upgrade machines without regard for the actual capabilities of the machine will always be disappointed. You can't make a jet engine run on a chariot, without eventually crashing it. Yes it might move it forward a bit, and could be said to run it. But by the time it goes full steam, you'll be blown to bits. So the question is do you want to hold back the jet engines of today because they can't be put on chariots? Enough people claim Apples aren't fast enough. Apple has to push forward whether you like it or not. It doesn't mean you can't run a chariot just fine as is with a nice pair of horses. Why even in New York City there are horse drawn carriages in Central Park.

 

[Detlev]

That would mean that if it was approved on Jan 26 (the day of the MacCentral article), I have until May 26th to file a claim.

I just received the CLAIM FORM today. At the bottom it says, “Must Be Postmarked No Later Than July 31, 2004”

I don't think I'll be submitting anything but what was it I was missing? The Original Bondi Blue iMac died shortly after OS X came out. The Blueberry iMac didn't have dvd and has a funky monitor, and the iMac SE isn't listed as a covered product. I've got 3 or 4 copies of OS X around here. I've used the product and they seem fine.

 

[ronhynes22@yaho]

Not sent claim form

Did you do anything to receive the claim form for the Mac OS X settlement? I'm concerned that although a long-time Mac user, I've moved several times recently and the form may never find me.

I just received the CLAIM FORM today. At the bottom it says, “Must Be Postmarked No Later Than July 31, 2004”

I don't think I'll be submitting anything but what was it I was missing? The Original Bondi Blue iMac died shortly after OS X came out. The Blueberry iMac didn't have dvd and has a funky monitor, and the iMac SE isn't listed as a covered product. I've got 3 or 4 copies of OS X around here. I've used the product and they seem fine.