[microtonal]

I always wonder to what extend this happens on Hacker News. I am sure that a lot of up/downvoting is done based on product loyalty. But many people here are employed by one of the companies involved in the 'ecosystem wars'.

After all, if all the parties in a war are pushing you to ‘join their side’ then they are trying very hard to make you forget that there is another side: your side, non-participation in the war, the ability to opt-out and to refuse to become an unpaid foot-soldier for any one party.

I think this is very difficult. E.g. we are all using technology and most of the tech that we can buy or get for 'free' are stakeholders in a war. I try to make my technology choices on technical merits, but often the perceived merits are influenced by what is said on the internet, simply because we can't try before we buy.

Also, I noticed the social pressure set up by such wars. E.g. I used to use MacBooks and iPhones, basically because the iPhone was so far ahead that it wan't even funny. Later, I switched from iPhone to Android, mostly because of the price/spec ratio. I noticed an immediate effect in some of my social circles: Apple users spoke as if I betrayed Apple, Android users shrugged with a comment like 'oh, I thought you were an Apple fanboy'. It's really surprising that it doesn't occur to people that you can switch due to technical or budget reasons.

[bad_user]

When it comes to Android vs iOS I think technical or budget reasons are less important than philosophies. Apple got very paternalistic towards their users and this has always manifested in what they allow you to do with their devices. iOS has always had limitations, being defective by design. And so Apple's customers ultimately end up choosing something else, or end up believing that Apple's actions are for their own good. And Android is in many ways iOS's opposite.

What really bothers me is that people feel the need to defend their choice, their investment and so they end up believing things and adopting an apologetic attitude just for the sake of thinking about their favorite company as being the good guys. And this is much more than the effects of marketing.

[jacquesm]

> What really bothers me is that people feel the need to defend their choice, their investment and so they end up believing things and adopting an apologetic attitude just for the sake of thinking about their favorite company as being the good guys.

That's because branding contains all kinds of self-identification hooks.

[jacquesm]

> simply because we can't try before we buy.

In many countries this is not true and a 'right to return' within a certain period of time is proscribed by law unless the item is custom made for you or in auctions.

[microtonal]

That's a good point. But it is very short and often restricted to online/phone/doorstep purchases. E.g. in the EU it's fourteen days:

http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/shopping/shopping-abroa...

Which is short for a product which will take some time to evaluate (e.g. another phone/computer with a different OS).