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by orangecat 5479 days ago
What most people probably don't realize is that Apple is a laptop company.

Quickly transitioning to a computing appliance company.

But, to catch up to OS X? I don't think so. Especially now since it's being influenced by iOS.

Linux has an opportunity to get the power users and geeks that Apple is seemingly abandoning with the iOS merger. In 4 or 5 years I don't expect Apple to be selling consumer-level hardware that has an accessible command line or filesystem or the ability to run unapproved apps. That would be unacceptable for me, so I'm hoping that desktop Linux will be a viable alternative. I try Ubuntu every few years, and it's not there yet.

2 comments

> In 4 or 5 years I don't expect Apple to be selling consumer-level hardware that has an accessible command line or filesystem or the ability to run unapproved apps.

As long as individuals continue to develop apps for iOS, I don't see that happening. Maybe they'll be behind an "Expert Mode" toggle.

That's exactly where I am now - an Ubuntu box for development and a Macbook Air and iPad for everything else. If I had the time to configure the Ubuntu box I could probably even leave the Air at home (although I would miss Acorn) - but at the moment too much is bust.

However, with iOS5 Apple have probably done themselves out of a further Mac sale from me - between the two of them, the iPad and Linux will cover my needs.