Your tag is ridiculously long, so to comprehend it and to respond to it, I write to you a blog post.
Original tag (condensed)...
BenSee: I doubt snow leopard will be released anytime before September. I mean, Leopard is new enough already on it's own, and only stupid people like Microsoft go about releasing Vista then 7 at their pathetic bid at centering around a design aesthetic. So I predict Snow Leopard to be for next year. And, I also doubt they will integrate 720p support for HD. Too lazy, I say. I mean, look at the ipods. So many releases later then do you see the apparent technological gap. It doesn't make sense for apple to integrate HD support, unless apple TV somehow comes into the fray. D: 苹果！Oh, and bart beat me again, in position. D:
My response:
1. On Snow Leopard.
Ben, obviously, you didn't read the Snow Leopard official page (http://www.apple.com/macosx/snowleopard/), and the Mac rumour blogs (Macrumours, AppleInsider, etc.). Indicators all point to a release of Snow Leopard this year, before the September iPod refresh.
What are the indicators?
a) At WWDC 2008 (June 2008), Apple said Snow Leopard was expected to ship in "about a year". Give or take, this should mean March 2009 - September 2009.
b) In the past, before the whole Intel transition, Apple released a new version of OS X every 11 months. Yes. 11. That's less than a year. (Citation:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_OS_X) So, thinking Apple will hold back another year before releasing a new version is quite ridiculous. Furthermore, Leopard was released in October 2007. That means as of June 2009, it's been on the market for 20 months. That's uber long in the books of Apple.
c) On May 11, 2009, Apple freezed the APIs on Snow Leopard. Meaning? The code for developers' APIs (stuff for making apps) have been fixed. That's an important step before Snow Leopard can be considered close to finish. All that's left now is to convert the remaining bits of code to 64-bit Intel code, and iron out the kinks. Aside from that, I'm sure Snow Leopard will be out before Windows 7.
2. On Windows 7.
Ben, you'll learn why businesses do certain things that look stupid from a consumer's point of view in Economics.
In layman terms, Microsoft is a publicly held company, and unless they earn revenue, they may collapse.
NYSE only likes profit growth, not profit (although in these tough economic situations, that has changed a bit). For profit, you need revenue to keep flowing in.
Microsoft's way of making revenue is by EOL-ing (End-of-life-ing) their older software and selling a new version. You could say the new versions are actually just the old version with a with extra pieces of copper stuck onto it.
And the marketing techniques? By looking at Vista as a case study, you'll realise the marketing methods vary (this isn't really Economics. Just the Psychology in Economics.).
•new "bells and whistles" (Aero, in short) = the "adding salt to the wound of running old software" method
•"improve security" = the fear tactic. Aren't you scared your Windows XP has holes for viruses to get in? Vista hasn't got those problems, you know?
•"improved aesthetics" = we spent more money recruiting designers, so Vista is a premium product compared to XP, so pony up the green backs if you want one. It's worth every penny.
3. On iPods.
I should have clarified. By 720p support, I meant output to the TV. It's insane having a 3.5" 720p display (mind you, on the current iPhone's screen size, 720p at that size = 360ppi. Current pixel density = 163ppi). The Zune HD doesn't have a 720p screen, but has the ability to output to a TV at 720p.
Now, Ben has a point - what about Apple TV? Well, let's be honest. Which nut is buying an Apple TV? If you want to watch iTunes stuff on your TV, you'd either hook up your existing Mac (or if you choose to buy, a Mac Mini) to your TV, and Front Row IS Apple TV. If the Mac is expensive, iPhones and iPods with Video can output to your TV with the right cable, but nobody does it because the quality is crap. Now, imagine your iPod/iPhone playing video on your TV. Now, imagine PPT presentations being fed to your projector, from your iPod touch.
4. On technological gap.
Again, Economics. The technology may be there, but will adding a certain feature, say, HD output, increase the cost of production? Yes. But in IT, the cost of everything falls over time. When the price is right, Apple has the option to add in to their iPods. That's why the iPods' prices rarely change, even as they improve.
5. On Ben vs Bart
Congrats, Bart. Not that he reads this blog, anyway. Does he? And Ben, jia you...
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