Of course, iTunes, is NOT proprietary in any way, nor is the format of the information managed by it. Apple freely provides the necessary information for non-Apple programs/devices to do similar functions.

So, your iGadget is not locked to software? You can freely connect it to another gadget which contains NO Apple software and actually move things back and forth?

What about the mag-safe connector, the iPod connector, keyboard, etc? These are not proprietary? What about the standard USB?

Without software from Apple?

If Apple is not THE middle man, the please explain where you get the apps if it is not via Apple's store. Having only ONE store certainly places Apple in the middle.

CUPS was developed long before Apple bought it. Have you ever tried doing something in CUPS on OSX that is easily possible on CUPS in Linux? CUPS on OSX is some kind of franken-CUPS.

Before Apple bought CUPS there was a CUPS aware printer driver available for Windows. That was great, one printer driver for just about everything. Sigh, that hasn't been updated since the purchase and the old driver no longer works with CUPS. Not exactly an advancement.

All about you is it?

Screw the rest of the folks who might like to homeschool but can't because they actually have to work so that their kids can have a place to live.

Perhaps your rant applies in *your* world, but it certainly doesn't apply in mine. The company I work for has been using OpenOffice.org quite happily for years. It does everything we need to do. We've integrated it into a majority of our workflows. We've felt no loss from not having either Microsoft Office or even Windows. Yeah, we're a double conundrum. We're a long-term successful business who doesn't use Microsoft Office or Windows. And we're not even a remotely IT-related business, nor are most of our employees computer experts.

In short, I think you are completely full of it.

This was the SCA virus.

You've obviously never paid a software license that was based on # cpus, otherwise you might actually care very much.

The problem is, that many mac folks think that a mac is *the* solution to this problem for *everyone*. Thinking differently simply means you have some sort of mental issue.

I've always found it interesting that people present the artificial *restriction* of OSX to only Apple hardware is actually a benefit. Apple provides more choice! The makers of other hardware get dinged for a decision made by Apple. Amazing.

Unfortunately, many mac user in my experience as accurately described as smug assholes wrt to computers. I've been guilty of creating quite a few of them by recommending Macs to friends and relatives over the years when asked advice about purchasing a computer.

It is ironic and annoying to have someone ask my advice about computers, take that advice, be very happy, and then later proceed to tell me how terrible my choice of computer (Linux) is and how much happier I'd be with a Mac. I've never met a mac user who could be convinced that I actually *prefer* Linux to a mac. They simply think I just don't know any better or am being willfully ignorant. At the very least, they think I should buy a mac just for the hardware.

You've got to be kidding, really. Apple absolutely refuses to allow anyone to use OS/X on non-apple hardware and you spin it as a *benefit* of Apple hardware. The only reason you can run other OS's on Apple hardware is that other companies aren't like Apple. That's a real benefit.