Poll for College COMM class

[balofagus]

As the final assignment for my College Communications Course I have to write a research report on the topic of my choice. I am looking for some data for my report and as such am asking the members of MacRumors -- as well as a few other online forums -- to participate in a simple poll.

The question is simple:
“Do Macintosh Users belong to an exclusive subsection of society?”

The available answers are:
Yes - And Mac Users are the only computer users to whom this would apply
Yes - And Mac Users are not the only computer users to whom this would apply
No - Using a Mac is simply a personal choice

***

I would also ask that if you do happen to find this poll on other web forums that you please refrain from voting more than once. Discussion is invited and encouraged! Thanks again.

 

[echeck]

I voted No (obviously as I'm the only vote so far ).

To me using a Mac is simply a personal choice. There are a lot of people that give Mac users a bad name and act all elitist, but ultimately it's just a different (and in my opinion better) way to achieve similar goals.

 

[pianoman]

Voter No. 2: No.

I've always believed people should use whatever works best for them. There's nothing special about Mac users compared to those who use PCs running any iteration of another operating system.

 

[iSaint]

I'm the only one that thinks we're snobs. C'mon people!

 

[ejb190]

As a society we are already divided by so many criteria (age, race, income, location, sex, education, etc.). I, personally, don't see the value in making another division by such an imagiary construct as computer choice. "Mac user" is as important to me as "Indianapolis Colts Fan". Your second option to the poll leads me to ponder this question: If Mac users are the only subsection of to be exclusive, then how can we justify lumping all others (PC, Linux, BASIC, FORTRAN, etc. and even non-users) into a single group. Most everyone I know who uses Linux picked it up in college or is employed in the computer field. This leads me to think that Linux might be a more exclusive group then Mac users.

Or maybe I am just thinking about this too much...

 

[redmeister]

wording on this threw me off.... exclusive subsection. more about perception than anything

 

[ucfgrad93]

I voted No (obviously as I'm the only vote so far ).

To me using a Mac is simply a personal choice. There are a lot of people that give Mac users a bad name and act all elitist, but ultimately it's just a different (and in my opinion better) way to achieve similar goals.

Well said. Computers are tools to get a job done. You use whatever will get the job done.

 

[Tilpots]

You are what you eat, not what you compute on. I voted no.

And proper rhetoric could easily sway any results you compile to the argument of your choice, if you're actually learning anything in this class.

 

[montanachad]

I voted "no". By no means am I an elitist Mac user.

 

[CalBoy]

I'm one of the few that voted "Yes - And Mac Users are the only computer users to whom this would apply," although I must admit that I was tempted by the other "Yes" option as well.

Since I'm one of the few that did vote for that option, I should explain my dissent:

I was a bit fast and loose with the terms "exclusive subsection of society," namely by inferring that this meant American society, and that "exclusive" meant rare, not difficult to enter.

Since Macs are often targeted at a specific niche of the computer world, I thought that was the most obvious reason why we might consider Mac users to be a subset of society. It's no secret that those in the academic, cultural, artistic, and surprisingly, political fields have been amongst the most ardent Mac users. Whatever these separate groups demand from their Macs, they seem to consistently prefer them over PCs by overwhelming margins and that cannot be counted too lightly.

Another factor that I used to consider this question was whether or not new Mac users were likely to buck this trend. Quite frankly, I think not. Mac sales are booming, yes, but they are booming in very specific ways. College students form the largest new magnet group for Mac users, and I think this clearly underlines some of the basic needs and preferences of the previously established groups (especially the academics).

Mac sales are also growing amongst those who were already more likely to be in the upper levels of the PC market. It's much harder to convince a Dell customer to spend more on a Mac than it is to convince a Sony customer to spend the same amount on a Mac.

I think there's also a case to be made for inertia. We have to remember that Windows still drives the vast, vast majority of computers that operate in this world. To convince someone to abandon something they have invested a significant amount of time learning is not easy to do. It takes, dare I say it, a liberal-minded person to try something new, and be prepared to accept the consequences.

I think all of these factors reinforce the previous notions we have of Mac users, and so I think we should think of Apple's modern expansion not as a changing of demographics, but rather as a successful grab at a larger portion of each of those respective demographics. If we look at the continuing price schemes of the notebook lines, I think we can see that Apple is no way displeased with who is buying their computers.

Ok, I'm done (and if you read through all that, kudos ).