Russell Beattie has an entertaining rant about how he might switch back to Windows after buying two Macs in a row. It’s fun – there’s a lot of things that Russ clearly got annoyed about all at once and got off his chest in tub-thumping fashion. And, as he says at the end, "I probably need to swap back to Windows for a bit to realize how good I
have it. Or better yet, move to Linux for a few days to make me really
appreciate a Desktop OS with popular support."
But, as you might imagine, some of the commentors make your head spin. One that I picked out was this one, from "George" (why do these people never leave a web address?):
Ok, be honest, how much did MS pay you for this FUD?
I know they are “strategically” paying for propaganda disguised as articles even in Slashdot!
Or then there’s "Stizz":
You are sooo obviously not a mac person It’s useless to argue otherwise
or even attempt to refute any of your claims. Go back to windows and
good riddance to ya.
Both of these guys – and you can look through the comments here whenever I write something that’s not "loyal" enough about the Mac for more examples – seem to believe the same thing: If you’re not totally committed to the Mac and to Apple, then you’re either in the pay of Microsoft or irrational. There’s a complete and utter failure to understand that not everyone thinks the same way as you, that some people prefer Windows for whatever reason – and that, surprisingly, not everything about Mac OS X is perfect.
It’s funny, because this kind of attitude is so much rarer in the Windows world than in the Mac one. Oh, I know that someone is going to complain in the comments that there are Windows zealots, and why don’t I have a go at them – but really, I can’t find them. There’s the occasional troll who likes teasing the Maccies – but beyond that? Nope, I really don’t come across Windows Zealots.
If you want evidence, take a look at the difference in the number and frequency of posts in comp.sys.ms-windows.advocacy compared to its Mac equivalent. Sure, there’s people out there who like Windows, and who promote it – particularly bits like Tablet PC and Media Center – but you simply don’t come across the same shrieking tone from them. No Windows user comes here claiming that I’m in the pay of Apple when I post something positive about the Mac.
I come back to this again and again, because I’m baffled by it. The Mac is great. A little Microsoft-bashing I can understand. But personal abuse towards someone because they prefer a different computer operating system?
So here’s a public appeal: if you’re the kind of person that posts the kind of comments that I’ve quoted above, tell me why you do it. I’m actually, seriously, interested in what’s making you that angry. And it’ll be good to get it out in the open.
