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MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

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Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#162
post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The niche developer/macrumors posters It's not just developers and MacRumors posters. Joe Rogan - the comedian and MMA commentator - did a massive unprompted rant on how poor (and he didn't use the word 'poor') the Apple keyboard was on his recent podcast (3rd most popular podcast in the world http://www.itunescharts.net/us/charts/podcasts/ ). The keyboard affects anyone who types. It's not a niche group of obsessi…

I don't know why you're being downvoted. Rogan is a good proxy of Hollywood creatives, which in turn has an enormous impact on how often Macs show up as default movie props.

Isn’t a better “proxy” for how well the Mac is doing reported sales numbers?

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#163
post #47

It's not possible to buy it without the TouchBar any more :( I really wanted to like it, and the concept could perhaps eventually be good, but the current implementation is infuriatingly bad: • I need more than one tap to change the brightness, volume or skip to the next song. • The buttons are in different locations depending on context, so it's not possible to use it by muscle memory. • TouchBar automatically goes…

> I need more than one tap to change the brightness, volume or skip to the next song. > > The buttons are in different locations depending on context, so it's not possible to use it by muscle memory.

You can add Volume/Brighness Up/Down buttons to the "always-on" touchbar by going to View -> Customize Touch Bar on the finder.

You can also start sliding from the "open slider" button without releasing your finger, which is more granular and IMO much nicer than having to press many times to adjust volume. If they only removed that giant pop-up on the screen with the current brightness and volume it would be a big improvement.

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#164
post #97
post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're used to MacBooks, check out the Surface Laptop or Surface Book. - The hardware (particularly the keyboard and massive trackpad) is great - apt-get on WSL is better than homebrew will ever be (powershell too if you have the time to learn it) - Windows 10 has a dedicated team working on it (Apple has merged iOS and macOS teams since a few years ago, which may be because iOS makes a lot more money).

Sorry, but Windows 10 is godawful. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. If you want to sell the surface laptop to power users and developers, you're better off mentioning that you can install Ubuntu (as an actual host OS, not WSL bullshit with Microsoft's spyware still running in the background) just fine on certain models.

I've tried some simple ops stuff on my home computer (Windows), and it's horrible because the alt-tab behaviour is completely ridiculous / arbitrary. Old style was alt-tab goes to previous open window, new one goes ???

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#166
post #96
post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seriously, how do you exit vim insert mode without an ESC key?

I'm yet to see a serious VIM user who didn't remap ESC to caps lock yet. Regardless of keyboard configuration.

I can't do that because I've already mapped Caps Lock to Ctrl... Also being a heavy Tmux user, it seemed more useful at the time.

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#167

As a developer the new keyboards have ruined macbooks for me - I find my macbook pro quite comfortable to type on for longer periods when I am away from my desk. I feel like the new keyboards are not practical for real use and it doesn't sound like the new models will greatly improve that which is a shame because I would love an upgrade. I think those keyboards are great on the smaller more portable macbooks but I do…

(I assume that you meant uncomfortable instead of comfortable based on context.) Counterpoint: I'm also a developer, and I love the 2017 MBP keyboard. I'm of course disappointed to hear that they fail so regularly and that the repair process is so absurdly sledgehammery, but I think they feel amazing to type on and the recall replacement program satisfies my failure concerns.

Ditto, I work on one most of every day and the overall design is fine and works well for me. The occasional "double press" and having to blow out the keyboard with air, though, annoying. I hope the re-engineering on this new one resolves most of the issues.

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#168
post #89
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They didn't do that because it is not what most people want. Apple has to make changes that will sell more laptops to the masses to maximize shareholder value. The niche developer/macrumors posters will never be happy regardless of what Apple does. Better to focus on the 90% of customers who buy products and make up 10% of the complaints then to focus on the 10% of customers who make up 90% of the complaints.

The Macbook Pro has been the go-to software developer machine for years now, and that segment is seeing a massive exodus after the touch bar launch. I don't know how big a percentage that is of total sales, but it can't just be a trivial niche.

Is there a real, large exodus though? I don’t notice that, anecdotally, but others seem to (seemingly anecdotally too). Are there data about it? For the segment that are “professionals” or for work use, for example? At least broadly, 3Q saw Mac sales decline 7.5 percent YOY. But, the whole PC industry declined. So, I’m not sure what conclusions to draw — and in the absence of that it seems a bit hard to swing either way in claims.

Know any other data?

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#169

Doubling down on the Meme Bar. Yikes. Did they at least add some kind of haptic response for the new generation touch bar?

If they ever do decide to kill the touch bar, I'd expect it to occur along with a more significant rev where the whole design gets updated. This is more of an interim spec update -- not even announced at a keynote!

It's not that minor though, given they dropped LPDDR3 and switched to DDR4.

Oddly they still advertise 30 days standby.

Re: MacBook Pro with faster performance and new features for pros

#170
post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apparantly these have their new "3rd Generation" butterfly keyboard, whatever that means.

Presumably not the "costing us a bunch of money in Applecare repairs" version.

Yeah it almost feels like incentives are aligned, huh. I'm a big fan of the new keyboards, just not the being broken part.
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