Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!seismo!sundc!pitstop!sun!thetone!swilson
From: swilson%thetone@Sun.COM (Scott Wilson)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Apple Gets Greedier (LONG and angry)
Keywords: Apple, Mac, Prices, Rip-off
Message-ID: <68293@sun.uucp>
Date: 14 Sep 88 18:54:56 GMT
References: <1018@lakesys.UUCP> <68072@sun.uucp> <247@rna.UUCP>
Sender: news@sun.uucp
Reply-To: swilson@sun.UUCP (Scott Wilson)
Distribution: na
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mountain View
Lines: 31

In article <247@rna.UUCP> marc@rna.UUCP (Marc Johnson) writes:
>It's this kind of thinking that must have allowed Apple to justify the price
>increases.  The issue is far more complicated than Scott paints it.  Why does
>he think people are so upset about this?  Because we can't just "jump ship!"

All I was trying to say is that in our economic system Apple can choose to
set its price and buyers can choose to buy or not.  There is nothing
illegal or immoral about what Apple did.  Now, whether it is smart, polite,
alienating to customers, etc., is another matter entirely.  Of course
people are upset, I would be too if I thought the prices were unjustified
and had a continuing need to buy from Apple.

Regardless of how complicated the decision is, it all comes down to the
only choice the consumer has: to buy or not to buy.  As I said this
decision is just a matter of what you gain in return for what you pay.
If what you gain is avoiding the enormous cost of replacing all your Macs
or switching development platforms then it is worth it to pay the price.

As for all the things I should know as a Sun person, I am aware of those
issues.  And for that reason I support Sun's philosophy regarding open
systems and standards.  In the future when many different vendors (hopefully)
have standard interfaces for graphics, etc., "jumping ship" will be
much, much, easier.  You will no longer be at the mercy of a single
vendor which is what seems to really make people mad.

--
Scott Wilson		arpa: swilson@sun.com
Sun Microsystems	uucp: ...!sun!swilson
Mt. View, CA

"It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine."	-R.E.M.