Microsoft to Respond to Apple's 'Get a Mac' Ads

[Scooterman1]

Remember now, Apple started targeting Microsoft.
The thing that I don't like is the potential here. I want Apple to survive.
I'm sure this reply will have some comments saying that Apple would never die.
But fact is, how many companies do you actually know of, that started to hurt Microsoft in the pocket book, has survived after Microsoft started to target them.
Their tactics have been VERY successful for them. And not for us.
Now that they are going to start 'Responding', well you know their track record when they have Responded to other companies. Look at how big Netscape alone was.

 

[scaredpoet]

They should do something really retro. How about they dress up a typical businesswoman in some wild, pastel colours with leg warmers and crazy glasses. Then this really cool Herbie Hancock like music could Rockit To You while the businesswoman gone wild raps, yeah that's it, RAPS about the virtues of Windows Vista. And then the "I'm a PC" guy could come into the office and look turned on.

You mean, this gem?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGO2hVA3P58

One can ONLY hope it's this good.

Oh, my favorite part of this clip is 4 minutes, 24 seconds in. "It's Printing. It's PRINTING! ZOMG IT'S PRINTIIIIINGG!!!!!!"

 

[ZiggyPastorius]

I love it, you seem to have convinced yourself !!!

Convinced myself of what, good sir?

 

[SodiumBenzoate]

Vista is fine if you're running it on a new computer. In 10 months with Vista, I haven't had any real issues. One minor compatibility problem, that's all.

 

[CanadianGuy]

Speedy

Microsoft responds just as fast with marketing issues as it does with security issues, glad to see there's some consistency in Redmond.

Course, they've just announced the marketing initiative so I wouldn't expect to see the response ads for several more years.

 

[elppa]

Except Leopard and Vista both have a built in Firewall and neither has built in anti-virus. And malicious code is written for both system.

Next idea…

I can just imagine the script being something like this:

Hello, I'm on Vista
and I'm on Leopard

Vista: Did you know that I come with built in virus protection and a firewall?
Leopard: Wow! Really?
V: Yeah! I bet you don't have any virus protection or firewalls built-in
L: Nope
V: Why not?
L: Because no one will make any
V: I'm sorry to hear that... Did you know that Windows has 90% market share?
L: Yup
etc.... etc... etc....

 

[tmelvin]

To be honest, I've used MS OS's since I Beta Tested for the Company starting with Windows 95. When Beta wasn't placed in the General Public's hands.
Because of my iPhone, I've started to take a close look at Macs.
I do not like MS prices for the OS major upgrades. I do like the PC and 3rd party Software prices.
I don't like Apples high prices for hardware which means I can't upgrade all 5 of my computers to Macs.
I DO like Apples major version upgrade prices.
So, Microsoft HIGH price OS, Low price PC's & Hardware.
Apple Low price OS, High price Macs and Hardware.

All in all, I have REALLY been thinking of trying an iMac.

But as in the post above, all I see on here is people bashing Microsoft while at the same time complaining about all of their Apple Software/Hardware problems.

So, now I question, is is just good advertising and Bad computers/OS with Apple also? It really makes me afraid to lay out all of that cash if that's the case.

Like any BB or Postings, most of the folks here are posting because they have issues. Most [but some] won't post a thread that says everything is wonderful, and I'm so happy. They're asking about a question they have, or problem they'd like to address. That said, I think the issues you have with a Mac/OS X are far less than that of a PC. I've been an IT guy since 1991, and believe me, Mac's are solid and reliable. I will admit that I like the feel and sturdiness of an HP Business Class laptop or Lenovo T series [not those Pavillions, and crap you buy at Best Buy]. But I'd still take my MB over any in a heartbeat. I've loaded a number of applications on my MB for network monitoring, troubleshooting, etc. and use it daily at both work/home with no slow downs at all. I can't say the same about an XP/Vista box. After a few months with either of those systems I mentioned, I'd get slow downs, etc. Usually about once a year I'd have to format and reload...that could be true for MB/OS X, but I haven't needed too yet...

 

[DMann]

Microsoft sucks at everything it does so much, including itself, that it does itself by sucking itself!"

I am entering this into Bartlett's Book of Quotations!

What Microsoft needs to do is rebuild Windows from scratch. I don't care if it takes 7 years to write this program. Hell the registry has been in use since Windows 3.1, albeit a very rarely used system back then.

Right on! Randall Stross's NYTimes article entitled: "Windows Could Use a Rush of Fresh Air"
says it all: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/29/t...15316800&en=3ee2a82dbd97932d&ei=5070&emc=eta1

 

[gifford]

Its pretty embarrassing to be honest that people are so obsessed.
Which is why Microsoft's stock price is still 60% higher, and their profits are still 4-5x higher.

Am I embarrassing you? Bothered. I have hated MSFT for 20 years, nobody is going to stop me relishing this moment of glory. mwahaaaaa

 

[jabbawok]

No it isn't. The only part that's really terrible is the Win32 (and .NET) API's.



That's because its not on the same scale, I assume you aren't managing 400 Macs.

I agree To a point, but I set up a network of about 30 or so macs a year ago, iMacs and Minis and an intel Xserve all running 10.4 on an open directory and I've needed to spend about an hour supporting them since where as the PCs keep me busy 5 days a week 8 til 4. I'm not completely anti PC/Wintel and I'm a big fan of Active Directory and Exchange server.

 

[ZiggyPastorius]

No it isn't. The only part that's really terrible is the Win32 (and .NET) API's.

Well, you'll have to forgive me, I'm speaking from a purely subjective, end-user experience standpoint here. I understand Windows works for a lot of problem, and is not constant bad-bad-bad-never-works. I own plenty of Windows PCs and only one Mac. I also don't judge people based on their Operating System and really could care less...I only say that because my experience with OS X has been far superior than with Windows, and my Windows experience has been terrible. (So terrible, I even gave my Inspiron that i paid for to my mom to get rid of it). I should have phrased better, but just know I wasn't speaking objectively at all, only in experience.

I am entering this into Bartlett's Book of Quotations!

Haha, well, thank you. Hopefully this is a good thing

 

[RiCEADDiCTBOY]

seriously, you kids need to get off your high horse. apple makes some great products and does make great software to compliment their OS. however, a company that charges premium over parts that would be identical in the innards of a dell notebook however, it has an illuminated apple logo that makes individuals think gleefully to themselves "ITS SUPERIOR" is utterly repugnant. i appreciate the osx because most of the software and programs are cloesly monitored by apple - therefore heavily restriciting any conflicting environement to take place. ideal for myself do media work and what not.

however, vista is not a bad product. i have vista on my gaming rig and it runs just fine. no issues. no crashes. in fact, i can't recall the last 8 years of using a windows computer where i had to deal with a virus. the end-user being stupid and going to a site they shouldn't be at are primarily to blame to begin with. and what about the exploit discovered in safari? whats to say that other exploits don't exist? reason why hackers don't have any real reason to exploit a mac is simply because of the fact it was/is/whatever a niche market. as apple gains more foothold on the pc market and into the households of the average joe...expect to see some exploits and viruses heading your way.

competition is good. if their wasn't any - you honestly believe apple would have the passion and desire to "innovate?"

yea, this is a mac fanboy site...so what else was there to expect. however, i enjoy apple products too - but the sheer amount of down with microsoft is lame. i say enjoy it. because it drives both companies to keep the consumers on their toes. microsoft isn't all big and bad...apple has and still does have their skeletons in the closet.

just remember, next time you go to starbucks and pull out that macbook and get that superority complex - that guy with the dell paid less than you...for the same components. only difference was, different os. works for him. works for me (hell, i even use both). so who's the chump? really neither...since it works. however, you have the lighter wallet for that illuminating apple logo.

 

[powermac_daddy]

Apple wanna be an other form of Microsoft

This is a statment.

 

[AlphaAnt]

Vista is still an improvement over XP, even if not a big one.

[Note: I work for a company of 100k+ people, and I'm involved in the evaluation process for moving to Vista for my company.]

I disagree. My company welcomed the switch to XP. The company heads are groaning over the switch to Vista.

Enterprises always adopt slowly,

There's slow adoption and not adopting at all. As long as XP still works on the hardware we buy (which might not be too long if MS starts forcing people to drop XP support) then we will install XP on hardware. That might mean we install XP until Windows 7 comes out and beyond.

high end PC's are generally more reliable than Macs and Windows integrates better than OS X from a business perspective, and for advanced users.

Again, I disagree. I've seen plenty of 'High-End PCs' go sour, at a much higher rate than the Macs in my company. If we want to buy a cheap computer (most of our computers) we buy a PC. If we want a good one, we buy a Mac. It's that simple. The only people who get anything more expensive than a Dell Latitude (~1300 dollars max) are execs and developers, and the developers use Macs exclusively. The executives care more about the bells and whistles than the actual computer, so that takes some work.

The iPhone hasn't won yet.

It's getting there. If they gain the ability to encrypt the hard drive (my company cares a lot about security) then they will immediately gain a large foothold on Blackberries as a mobile phone option. Immediately.

 

[Scooterman1]

Thanks tmelvin for the response. That helps as I've also worked support at a VERY large quasi-government company.

 

[Breegy]

Am I embarrassing you? Bothered. I have hated MSFT for 20 years, nobody is going to stop me relishing this moment of glory. mwahaaaaa

I wouldn't really consider it a moment of glory. It's amusing, but its Microsoft striking back. This may lead an amount of sales away from Apple. People (the ones who aren't so picky about computers like most of us) who have heard problems about Vista and were previously steered away might see one of these commercials and think Vista has fixed its problems and is better now, resulting in them settling with a PC.

 

[godslabrat]

Maybe I'm oversimplyfying, but I always thought that the reason so many people chose Windows was that they didn't realize other options did exist. Many people seem to think that Apple is some obscure company that was popular in the 80s and now makes iPods. To those people, the only effect these ads will have is to alert than that Apple is still alive, kicking, and making a product good enough that MS has to tell you NOT to buy it. That'll whet their curiosity, and in turn make a few more OSX users.

 

[queshy]

Good call on behalf of Microsoft. Vista gets more airtime from Apple than it does from Microsoft.

 

[VideoShooter]

The only companies which could realistically attack Apple on price is PC manufacturers who sell $300 computers (i.e. Dell, etc).

Exactly. Show the sexiest (laughable) cheap laptop PCs against cost of a macbook.

To Joe Blow american... Its an easy sell to anyone reasonable it's different.

 

[thomanjones]

They should do something really retro. How about they dress up a typical businesswoman in some wild, pastel colours with leg warmers and crazy glasses. Then this really cool Herbie Hancock like music could Rockit To You while the businesswoman gone wild raps, yeah that's it, RAPS about the virtues of Windows Vista. And then the "I'm a PC" guy could come into the office and look turned on.

I wish I was a millionaire, just so I could commission this ad to made, solely for my personal enjoyment.

 

[bobr1952]

I guess for the sake of the few shares of Microsoft I own I should at least wish them some success.

 

[bigmc6000]

Hello I'm a Vista, and I'm a Leopard.

I've got a hunch how that would end... Viva la feline and Hasta La well, you know...

I wonder tho - the American public generally isn't very receptive to the big guy going after the little guy. All it does is create sympathy for the little guy...

 

[BeyondtheTech]

My response?

Yes, it's a T-shirt I made at CafePress.

 

[mswarts]

How Microsoft Can Hurt Apple

Don't get to excited Mac fans. Microsoft could be very effective.

The Get a Mac ads are pointed toward Windows users with misconceptions about Macs. Examples: "They don't work with PCs" or "They are only good for people making movies and doing graphic design", etc.

Will Microsoft target Mac users? No way.

Microsoft's strategy should target the same audience (Windows users considering a switch) and cast doubt back on Macs. They could emphasize losing compatibility and thousands of Windows-only programs. The average user wouldn't realize those incompatible programs are usually terrible and irrelevant or that there are like-apps for the Mac.

All it takes is a little misinformation and Apple could feel a sting.

 

[ZiggyPastorius]

seriously, you kids need to get off your high horse. apple makes some great products and does make great software to compliment their OS. however, a company that charges premium over parts that would be identical in the innards of a dell notebook however, it has an illuminated apple logo that makes individuals think gleefully to themselves "ITS SUPERIOR" is utterly repugnant. i appreciate the osx because most of the software and programs are cloesly monitored by apple - therefore heavily restriciting any conflicting environement to take place. ideal for myself do media work and what not.

however, vista is not a bad product. i have vista on my gaming rig and it runs just fine. no issues. no crashes. in fact, i can't recall the last 8 years of using a windows computer where i had to deal with a virus. the end-user being stupid and going to a site they shouldn't be at are primarily to blame to begin with. and what about the exploit discovered in safari? whats to say that other exploits don't exist? reason why hackers don't have any real reason to exploit a mac is simply because of the fact it was/is/whatever a niche market. as apple gains more foothold on the pc market and into the households of the average joe...expect to see some exploits and viruses heading your way.

competition is good. if their wasn't any - you honestly believe apple would have the passion and desire to "innovate?"

yea, this is a mac fanboy site...so what else was there to expect. however, i enjoy apple products too - but the sheer amount of down with microsoft is lame. i say enjoy it. because it drives both companies to keep the consumers on their toes. microsoft isn't all big and bad...apple has and still does have their skeletons in the closet.

just remember, next time you go to starbucks and pull out that macbook and get that superority complex - that guy with the dell paid less than you...for the same components. only difference was, different os. works for him. works for me (hell, i even use both). so who's the chump? really neither...since it works. however, you have the lighter wallet for that illuminating apple logo.

I agree with some of this (not necessarily the more expensive part) and not the part about market-share. This argument has been shown to be wrong many times. An exploit is not a virus. There were viruses in the OS 9 days, with less marketshare than now (by far), and there aren't now. You'll see malware and exploitations, but not viruses.