[cowtools]

It's a false dichotomy. You could say the same about either company. Those are the inevitable consequences of proprietary software and vendor lock-in

(my original comment was some rhetorical question, I edited it to be more direct and less passive-agressive)

[eitland]

Microsoft.

They had some promising years but I always sensed a struggle in the wheelhouse.

Now they are back to forcing Edge on people, ads on login screen and in the Start menu are their new inventions and their store is almost as broken as ever and most importantly hard earned trust flew out the window in the process.

[cowtools]

Apple forces safari on users in iOS, has icloud ads and integrations built into the OS, and sells devices with locked down bootloaders/filesystems that don't let you sideload your own programs.

Who is the bigger threat here? The real threat to user freedom is the tribalism of picking the "lesser evil" when there are workable non-evil solutions like linux.

[eitland]

It doesn't force Safari. Chrome is absolutely allowed to create a browser and track users and monetize them on iOS. They just have to use the same rendering engine.

I'm not Apples greatest fan (see my latest comment), but there is a major difference between iCloud or OneDrive being pre-installed, both which is OK with me, and Candy Crush showing up in the start menu on my work laptop or some stupid game altering my login screen, again on my work laptop.

And yes, I too am a Linux user.

Why choose between various dumb and evil options if nice is available? (I know, some people get as mad at font problems and alignment on Linux as I get on microlagging on Windows and boneheaded CMD-TAB on Mac, but each to their own.)

[chongli]

No, you can't. There are no dark patterns, ads, or spam in macOS. The worst you could say is that it has "terrible UX." I would then respond: compared to what?

In my view, the only desktop-grade OS I prefer over the modern Mac is MacOS 9. It was much easier to use and understand from top to bottom. On the other hand, it lacked a lot of features I've come to take for granted (pre-emptive multitasking, multithreading, protected memory, support for modern hardware, gestures, etc).

I do really miss the spatial Finder though.

[heavyset_go]

There are plenty of dark patterns in macOS. For example, macOS will trick users into thinking that the apps they want to use are either broken or malicious if developers didn't pay Apple $100 a year and Notarize apps. macOS has increasingly become a platform to sell iCloud subscriptions, as well.

[seabriez]

No "dark" patterns he says. Even after all the revelations, iFads just keep mindlessly worship Crapple. When in reality:

https://www.scss.tcd.ie/doug.leith/apple_google.pdf

"iOS sends the MAC addresses of nearby devices, e.g. other handsets and the home gateway, to Apple together with their GPS location. Users have no opt out from this and currently there are few, if any, realistic options for preventing this data sharing."

Power corrupts and when one company wields too much of it, shit will hit the fan.

[api]

I think the argument here is that Apple is better in this area than Microsoft or Google, not that Apple is great.

Better than Microsoft or Google on privacy is not a high bar.

[seabriez]

I just gave you as a matter of fact statement where Apple sends private information to their servers, and your response is going to be that "Apple is better." Wow, you are an Apple sycophant. As George Carlin said: "Imagine a person of average intelligence, and then know that there are even dumber people than that." Why would someone be so compelled to defend a corporation, even when it's clearly doing so many things wrong. Slave Labor.. Check, Monopolistic Practices .. Check, Shady Deals ... Check.

[seabriez]

Please purchase iCloud Subscription to backup this comment.

[api]

Yes Apple does push iCloud a bit but it seems fairly simple to opt out and after you do it stops bugging you, or at least that has been my experience.

[malfist]

I'm not even sure which company they're accusing of having those faults.