CompuServe Messages

>Interesting point, Andrew. But I think it should also be remembered that >they weren't provided a path with built-in backward compatibility ala the >Intel 08x series. I think their 68K emulation went well enough to ensure backward compatibility. And don't forget, Intel will put their people through some kind of change with P7. We have no idea how they plan on it. It will either cost $ for extra circuits to make 80×86 work, or they will emulate. But they will be forced to emulate a P6 where expectations will be much higher than today. > PPC devices are not gaining new marketshare, but rather selling into > the existing Mac market (and there's nothing wrong with that: at least > Macintosh owners do seem to buy newer models of the product). Apple's > overall market share continues to decline – and that is not a good > sign. New Mac adherents are not being made in the numbers required. I think this is a flawed argument. PPC is doing very well in places where Macs were previously not welcome. And "marketshare" means nothing when the market is growing as fast as it is. Sales mean everything. Each quarter their number of computers sold has increased very nicely. That represents attracted customers. There are enough buyers to support many companies. Apple knows they will never dominate, but that there is a very large "niche" for their style of computer. Just as many won't use an Apple for one reason or another, there are those who feel the other way. There are many companies in many industrys who would _LOVE_ to own 8-14% of a market, with increasing sales each quarter. You comment that you have a Pentium 90 which is much cheaper than an similar PowerMac. What brand? Are you talking Gateway 2000 or Compaq/IBM? I would bet that the Macs are not radicilly higher in price than the big name brand PCs. People love to compare the cheaper clones against the Mac, yet never mention that you can get a 66Mhz PowerMac (7100) for _hundreds_ less than a high end 486 from IBM. IBM charges so much for their name brand, yet I never hear people saying they are going to lose. There are "layers" to every market. Different brands offer features that different segments of the market look for. I will also assert that at the low end, I can get a PowerMac for at least $300 less than a similar Pentium. I can buy a 60Mhz PowerMac for $1,200 today (monitor sep), or complete system with bundled software for under $1,500. Put another way, they are selling as fast as Apple can make them. They must be doing something right. Either way, no matter what we think, the market will decide. The quarter ends this week. We should see the first numbers in two or three weeks.