Yeah, but now that Apple is x86, we’re all “using the same screws” so to speak. Everything is a PC now.
Or you might say we’re all getting screwed. 
I’ve always assumed that there’s a fear issue there - PC people don’t know how to drive a Mac - the buttons are different, things don’t look quite right. Ditto for Linux. We fear what we don’t understand.
Real geeks can drive multiple OSs - just like real drivers can drive stick and automatic.
Thanks for this. I moved to a Mac a year or so ago because I was completely frustrated with XP. Now I’m unhappy with both. So I’ve bought a new Mac to run OSX and Vista side-by-side so I can piss myself off for reals and virtually, all at once. Now if I only knew why.
Well said sir. They do, indeed, all suck.
However, I think for a lot of people, a computer is closer to a car than a screwdriver. Sure, any kind of car can get you from point A to point B. But different cars appeal to people in different ways - some based on speed, some on looks, some on efficiency. It’s somewhere between utility and fashion, between tool and couture. Steve Jobs recognizes that, and caters to the market that cares about BOTH the fashion and the function.
Ultimately, all cars suck in part because they’re all built on the combustion engine. And all computers in part suck because they’re built on the legacy of 30 years of convention and backward compatibility. One of the beauties of the TiVo and iPod were that they weren’t chained by convention, and were able to reconceptualize their market.
rife with compromises, pitfalls, and disappointments. That’s the first secret of using computers: they all suck.
Ahh, but you donno all computers do you? I’ve heard about this game… called BLAZEMONGER… and it ROX!
Mr. Atwood, thanks for pointing out the Charles Petzold article (nice!)… it’s exactly what I needed 
http://www.charlespetzold.com/blog/2006/12/250913.html
About Mr. Petzold’s ordeal…After all, If I were the only person who couldn’t install Driver (x) to get functionality (y)
Wait a second, if “Computers aren’t couture, they’re screwdrivers”, then why did you write a blog just a couple of weeks ago bemoaning the lack of style in PC cases?
Computers may be just tools (screwdrivers in the discussion above), but our (software developer) jobs require more tools - I seem to spend most of my time trying to find the right wrench to pound in the required screw
Chevies versus Fords
Snowboards versus Skiis
Because, even screwdrivers can stand to have some style. Just check out the OXO line of products!
Actually, my computers have never sucked. But hey, I’m that lucky one in a million.
And, although I’m a dedicated Win/PC user (and developer), I can’t say that Macs suck. But Mac zealots? They can get the dust mites out of a deep pile shag in under 0.1 seconds without even trying.
Thank you for saying all that. I’ve been trying to tell people this for years, but could never put it into nice words. When people ask me “Are Macs better (than PCs)?” they’re really asking “Will Macs infuriate me less than what I’m currently using?” To which I have no answer.
And what always annoys me are people who rant and rave about how their computer never works. Oh, it works. It’s performing binary math as we speak. The real issue is, are you expecting it to work like your toaster? If you don’t put effort into USING your computer, it won’t give you anything in return, regardless of platform.
I’ll argue the merits of any platform based on how well it fits into my personal workflow, and mental model of how a computer should be. Of course, I’m the guy who thinks the command line is fun, because it’s like having a conversation with the machine. Beyond that, the argument is stupid, and they’re all PCs anyway…
I think people often have such a strong opinion because they will, at some point, waste a lot of their time at work/school/a friend’s house because they are forced to used the other type of screwdriver, which is a poorly made with cheap metal and a stupid rubber grip.
Regardless of what platform you prefer, that’s how it feels when you’re stuck with someone else’s tools (especially when they’ve been poorly maintained). That annoyance is why people love to flaunt their own personal set so much, I think.
Jeff – one of your best, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. I’m totally with you: I’m tired of the whole “this is better than this” arguement in computers.
To the various people who mentioned style and the analogy to cars…yep, there’s something there. Some people do allow their car to define them, just like their computer. But at the core, we’re not talking about physical style but some other kind of style (searching for the word). What makes the great “computers” great was not their physical style. My old Palm Pilot (nailed by Jeff as one of the greats…completely agree) was hardly “stylish”. Nor is the Tivo or the Wii particularly stylish. What sets them apart is their ability to do a number of things, albeit a limited number, very, very well. Nothing has every been as easy to use as the original Palm, the Wii: totally get that. Tivo, brilliant idea made very simple.
My thought on the whole matter is what makes computers suck (and they all do…IMHO) is their very general purpose nature. The Palm guys didn’t try to be everything, they did a limited set of functions very well. The PC (regardless of OS) is a very general purpose beast. It has to do a lot of different things for a lot of different user types. My dad used to call this “the dreaded Jack of all Trades: good at everything, master of nothing”. That’s what plagues the whole thing I think. And they’re going to suck forever, as far as I can see. Oh well…maybe they suck less today, or I’ve been beaten down a little.
Great post Jeff.
But Jeff, your #1 reason not to like the iPod was couture:
http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000730.html
An iPod isn’t a far cry from Brooker’s cell phone example.
Isn’t the line between couture and screwdriver going to blur as we lose the distinction between PCs and consumer electronics?
I drink Schlitz and use a beige box, but I can understand the fashion flavor of devices, especially when you carry them around 24x7, use them in public, and touch them with your hands a lot.
If we all had call to carry screwdrivers everywhere, they would come in designer models, too.
(BTW, I like the colored comments addition.)
Wow, I never realized I was of above-average intelligence just because I’ve used computers for years and have learned a lot!
You have heard “Every OS Sucks” by three dead trolls in a baggie (http://deadtroll.com) right?
(gah…their website seems to be down…the mp3 used to be a free download, though…)
Of course, they too miss the point, romanticising AppleDOS and C64…(but what good is artistry if you can’t visciously overgeneralize to make a point?)
the problem isn’t that people are passionate. if the people making the screwdriver are passionate about creating it, then those who use it would probably also be passionate – and that is fine.
rather, the problem is arguing over subjective things – there is no point in trying to convince everyone to obtain your point of view.
Not choosing some stuff just because someone else chose it to express their (lack) of personality might be good reason to have one’s head examined too.
“Rational consumer” is a myth. We all tell stories to ourselves only they differ from person to person. Check out Seth Godin’s “All Marketers Are Liars”.
Too keep flame going. “If you are serious about software you should build your own hardware” - that’s the point for Apple Inc.
I would agree that it is a bit of a non-argument. It comes down to people pressing their personal prefrence on others. It’s also people afraid of change, clinging too much to what they know.
I think it’s interesting the shift in the debate. Apple seem to be one step ahead, first they had more features, now Vista has the features they’re consentrating on software and how great iLife is because you can get it with your computer. About half of Apples official top 15 reasons to get a Mac are all about the fact it includes this program and that.
It’s not what the OS can do, it’s what the people do with it.
I totally meant to link to this earlier, but here’s the Certificate of Non-Conformity presented to PC users at RailsConf.
http://www.jonsthoughtsoneverything.com/2006/06/25/certificate-of-non-conformity/
Out of 550-650 participants, there were ~40 PCs. Photoset here: