I have a couple of pedantic niggles with “Uncle Mark’s 2007 Gift Guide and Almanac”— 2 megapixels isn’t high-enough resolution for casual shooting—four megapixels is; the Playstation 2 has more than two good games—but I’m tits over tea kettle with the general format. Rather than wasting time discussing the merits of a variety of products, Mark Hurst selects a single product from major categories and crowns it the product to purchase. If that weren’t enough, the back end of the PDF pamphlet has a smorgasbord of general purpose life tips. It’s precious. (And it doesn’t hurt that it’s laid out pleasingly, as well.)
Even if you don’t take Mark’s product suggestions, it’s a pleasant read—especially for free. (Strangely, the PDF format gives it a lot more perceived tangibility than a web page would; Perhaps we should steal this format for a series of Dethroner-brand guides.)
Uncle Mark’s 2007 Gift Guide (PDF) [UncleMark.org]
Great read. It has some really interresting points.
But the guys says there are only 2 reasons to NOT get a Mac. Nether your school or workplace will not support Macs or if you a Mac hater. Well, there is one reason, GAMES, mac games are limited and outdated.
For the record I have a AMD desktop, a Intel HP laptop AND an eMac.
I think he’s pretty good, on a few of them. His anti-MS bias permeates the entire guide, and frankly, it’s a little hard to stomach, as he really has little reason for hating them beyond “Apple is easier.”
However, it’s an amusing read. I think he’s really writing all this towards someone who wants to buy a tech present, but has no idea what they’re doing, not as much already tech-savvy people.
It is nice to see someone putting the time and effort into making a guide like this though, and his almanac is a very nice touch.
Unbiased my ass. I mean, I don’t disagree with any of his points I guess, but the guide starts off by saying that it is unbiased and then goes immediately into “Buy this! This exact one. It is better than everything else!” That is not exactly unbiased. Comparing several options with different features that matter to different users might have been more helpful. “Macs are better, no questions asked!”. Maybe you don’t find an OS where every goddamn thing is animated to be more intuitive. “Buy a Nintendo! It’s more fun!” Maybe you don’t want to wave a wireless dildo around at the same 4 games you have been playing on other Nintendos since the 80’s. As I said, I don’t think he gives any bad advice, on the contrary I think he gives good advice, but in no way is it unbiased. That being said, I did enjoy reading the thing.
While it is relatively well-written, and very nicely laid out, I can’t say that I agree with any of his choices. It’s a hugely anti-MS piece, which is his prerogative, but I can’t say that recommending Macs to the average user is a good idea. They’re going to be in for a shock when they start running into compatibility issues if they had a PC before, or if they have to use one for work, which most people do. His recommendations are about on par with what I see in the local paper…tech recommendations given by someone who kind-of knows tech written for people who know next to nothing, and way over-simplified. Most technical people I know, myself included, would have recommended (with the exception of the blender maybe) way different -nearly opposite- items for the same target audience. Just my two cents.
I find it odd though, many bloggers and online writers use and endorse Macs, but nearly any other developer or IT person or anyone else who considers themselves in a tech-related position (or just personally interested in computers) wouldn’t be caught DEAD using an Apple product. I know I wouldn’t unless I absolutely HAD to. You still can’t do as much on them as with a PC, despite how far they’ve come.
joflow,
The last two tech companies I’ve worked at have been extremely Mac-centric. I know several programmers and sysadmins who use them exclusively. I myself have been in IT for over a decade and have used all manner of PCs, Suns, SGIs, and Apples for workstation tasks. When it came time to spend my own money on a computer earlier this month, I got a Macbook Pro.
Beware of generalizing and submitting your own experience as a ‘fact’.
matt,
Finding an exception does not mean that the rule doesn’t hold.
Beware of not heeding your own advice.
I don’t know of any IT pros who don’t either own or lust after Macs.
Then again, I don’t consider people who work on Windows to be “IT Pros”.
I love my mac. However, I’m not an ‘IT Pro’ just a dirty perl hacker/unix admin.
Ryan,
“Then again, I don’t consider people who work on Windows to be “IT Pros””
Ouch man!
As someone who is responsible for the network of company of 3000 people I should hope I know a thing or two.
As for the lust thing, for me Windows is a fact of life, but I maintain that as soon as Apple makes a laptop with two mouse buttons I will buy it.
“Beware of not heeding your own advice.”
Where’s my “eye roll at internet noob” emoticon?
sgMikeG, I once said the same thing about two button mice and Apple laptops. Then I got one and realized that the way Apple does it is easier to deal with than the way Dell and friends do it. I’ll never willingly go back to two button laptops.
Also, this conversation has been done far better (and more often) on Slashdot. While I suspect that a couple of you are just trolling, if any of you are interested in learning about why actual power user/administrator types love Macs you might check the archives there.
Matt, I was only making fun of the comment that YOU had made. So who’s the noob?
And as far as the 2-button thing goes, I’ve gotta agree with sgMikeG. I’ve used Macs before, and I constantly found myself wishing for that right click for more function. I really prefer to use a mouse that has 5 or more buttons on it, the more options the better.
And the /. crew really prefers linux, if anything. I realize that the current mac os is built off of linux, but it shares very little with the high level of usability that every other linux distro provides. I never claimed that Windows was the answer to everything, but the Apple-centric/MS-bashing viewpoint that the writer of this guide ascribes to ignores the majority of computer users needs and experiences, be they casual users or system administrators. Macs only make up 5% of computers sold in the US. If they were REALLY that great, and REALLY that much easier to use, then no amount of Microsoft brainwashing could keep the percentage that low. Mac and PC users all love the ipod, so it’s not that Apple doesn’t have the money or know how to market properly when they have a good product. They’ve knocked almost everyone else out of the game in the DAP arena, because the product is good. If their computers were all that great, they’d be cleaning up in that market as well.
“This is an unsual moment in the video game industry, with all three manufacturers offering new and improved systems that debut for the 2006 holidays: the Wii, the Playstation 3, and the Xbox 360.”
If memory serves, the 360 debuted during the 2005 holidays.