Apple is not your friend

Capitalism is founded on the idea that the consumer is a means to an end. Apple, Google, Facebook, etc, can do as they please insofar as they keep creating value to their shareholders.

Which is another way of saying "if you don't like my garden, get the hell out of it!".

Re: Apple is not your friend

#5

Post by _Understated_ » Thu, Oct 10, 2019, 8:10 AM UTC

I've fallen for these mega-corp's marketing bullshit many times over the years: It's easy done!

It's also easy to forget that they only care about appeasing shareholders and the way to do that is to make money.

At any cost!

I am currently working on a (personal) .NET Core project so I'm using Windows 10 but when it's up and running I am going to spend some serious time looking into Linux instead and developing my .NET core stuff there. I'm also waiting for the Librem 5 now: All other phones are thinly-veiled spyware as far as I am concerned.

*takes off rose-tinted glasses!

Edit: changed focus from Apple to mega-corps instead

Re: Apple is not your friend

#6

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Oct 10, 2019, 8:11 AM UTC

ohduran wrote: post #4

Capitalism is founded on the idea that the consumer is a means to an end. Apple, Google, Facebook, etc, can do as they please insofar as they keep creating value to their shareholders. Which is another way of saying "if you don't like my garden, get the hell out of it!".

[deleted]

Re: Apple is not your friend

#7

Post by microtonal » Thu, Oct 10, 2019, 8:12 AM UTC

akmarinov wrote: post #2

No company is your friend, they just want your money.

There are a lot of mom and pop shops, which just do what is their passion and they want their customers to be happy. Money is just a means to support themselves. E.g. I frequented a lot of local record shops and it was clear that their owners did not want to get rich. They would talk to you for 15-30 minutes about bands and new releases, even if you just bought one record with a No profit-driven company is your friend. When it's about profit, money becomes the end.

Re: Apple is not your friend

#8

Post by _Understated_ » Thu, Oct 10, 2019, 8:17 AM UTC

akmarinov wrote: post #2

No company is your friend, they just want your money.

I see where you are coming from but there's a scale-aspect to this.

These entities aren't traditional companies, like your local newsagent or plumber or whatever. They've reached a level that they can influence governments and can control entire populations (to a degree).

They have immense power and can effectively wield it as they please to further their own ends.

They are related to small local companies only as they have to file a tax return... that's about it!

Re: Apple is not your friend

#9

Post by rekabis » Thu, Oct 10, 2019, 8:18 AM UTC

However, out of that list of four, Apple is the one that I have seen being “least evil” with me and my data.

Google dropped their “don’t be evil” motto for a very damn good reason, and the safety of their own app marketplace is a fucking joke.

Facebook is even worse than Google, in that it has never stopped trying to appear innocent of wrongdoing while paddling like mad under the surface.

Microsoft… has gone all Spyware with _all_ of their products as of late, although at least their business-class stuff is moderately neutered.

Apple may Hoover up some data, but it does at least employ actual security and privacy in many places. They make stands where it makes sense to take stands, and they bend in the wind where the hurricane would snap a stiffer branch. Finally, their walled garden - although not perfect - is far safer than any other one out there. They make missteps just like any other entity run by humans, but a fair number of their actions do point in the correct direction.

If given no alternative choice that is evil-free, I will chose the least evil option as my vote. Apple it is, at least for all my personal devices.

Re: Apple is not your friend

#10

Post by gremlinsinc » Thu, Oct 10, 2019, 8:21 AM UTC

_Understated_ wrote: post #5

I've fallen for these mega-corp's marketing bullshit many times over the years: It's easy done! It's also easy to forget that they only care about appeasing shareholders and the way to do that is to make money. At any cost! I am currently working on a (personal) .NET Core project so I'm using Windows 10 but when it's up and running I am going to spend some serious time looking into Linux instead and developing my .NE…

I'm not really a .net person, I'm mostly php w/ some nodejs/golang/elixir but I tried .net and tooling and things at least work now on arch linux where I don't think they would've 5-10 years ago.

Apple's imho one of the worst players, they have the most closed ecosystem imaginable it should be illegal to require a developer to buy your hardware just to develop apps on your platform. I'll never support or use an apple unless mandated by a client and they'll need to supply the hardware.

Google's bad too but at least I can side-load apps and install custom rom's easily enough.