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Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

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Re: Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

#501

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Can't really take this seriously when your first line is false.

Would you care to elaborate? Try as I might, I have never found any laptop that is even half as sturdily built as a macbook. Yes apple plays dirty tricks that prevent inexpensive repair, but TBH, no one else produces a product that physically lasts long enough to be worth repairing by the time the board level components gives out.

Butterfly keyboards. Lack of ports. That's just from memory.

I'm sure Apple denies any faulty hardware as they did with their keyboards.

Re: Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

#502

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not following why these are related. I use Linux for dev, I use windows for office and Photoshop. None of those require macOS.

That's nice, I hope you enjoy your setup.

Really makes you wonder how many people are just buying because of marketing and psychology tricks.

Re: Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

#503

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What makes MacOS good?

Unix based OS where sleep and hibernate work flawlessly, decent UI, with good commercial and open source software support? Also all the hardware works? I like Linux, but it’s no where near as polished as Mac OS. Wasn’t 20 years ago. Isn’t now. Hell, I’m thinking I should just reinstall windows and use WSL2.

That first paragraph isn't accurate.

Re: Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

#504

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Exactly you need to compromise significantly on speed and form factor. It's simply not practical for me to do that.

No, its practical... you just don't want to do anything more than what's easiest, because that's how humans have evolved. You could drive across country right now without a cell phone, just buy a Rand McNally road atlas. That's all you need. You won't... because it would require you to pay attention to signs and exits, instead of having Google Maps do all that for you.

I don't have a smartphone so I do in fact use maps.

Re: Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

#505
post #473

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Apple is superficially "premium" nowadays. It has been releasing faulty keyboards on it's macbooks for years. They knew. They didn't care. They just continued to release new ones every year with the same faulty keyboard. Not to mention staingate (which affected me personally). Those 2700$+ macbooks with ghosting screens. The stupid chip that does a weird sound when you stop your music. The list just goes on and on. A…

Apple has always been superficially premium It’s an Intel machine They’ve released versions with bad graphics cards, bad batteries. It takes time to re-design and ship. They replaced numerous “bad keyboard” models for people. Meanwhile, every plastic Lenovo or Dell needs a new hinge or battery cover every year, and screws fall out. I’d take physically legit with hard to source issues like ghosted screens since I’m on…

What Lenovo/Dell models were those? And how are you exactly calculating these percentages?

It looks like you speak from your own experience, and so do I.

Enterprise grade laptops from either Lenovo and Dell are known to be very sturdy and well made. Not sure if the materials will be as nice for your fingers as the macbook materials, but for sure they won't fall apart.

I have had thinkpads that would have survived falling from a third floor. I just don't see how a macbook is more reliable than a thinkpad or a precision.

Try throwing a macbook out your window.

Re: Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

#506

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No computers available in the years preceding the present were practical for you? I doubt that.

Not in a 13 inch form factor.

If you desire the latest and greatest no matter how proprietary, that's your prerogative. But to then pretend you want open hardware but have your hands tied is silly.

Re: Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

#508

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Would you care to elaborate? Try as I might, I have never found any laptop that is even half as sturdily built as a macbook. Yes apple plays dirty tricks that prevent inexpensive repair, but TBH, no one else produces a product that physically lasts long enough to be worth repairing by the time the board level components gives out.

Butterfly keyboards. Lack of ports. That's just from memory. I'm sure Apple denies any faulty hardware as they did with their keyboards.

Oh gotcha, I certainly agree that the keyboards were a problem, and it was not cool how Apple pretended it was a non-issue for so long. It definitely prevented me from purchasing one during the time they using those keyboards.

That said, I am using one of those Macbook Pros for work, and the overall build is still very impressive. I would expect this machine to last longer physically than any of the non-mac laptops I have ever used.

Re: Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

#509

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And that is revenue. Guess margins is the main question.

That’s pretty easy to ballpark. Everything Apple does targets a whole package 25-30% margin. If the services aren’t generating that margin, the hardware is making it up. Last I heard the iPhone is on that margin target, as are all or nearly all macs. So it’s pretty reasonable to assume the services are pretty close in line.

Services actually hover in the 60% gross margin, vs 30% for hardware. But they sell so much hardware that the overall profits are still 80% from that.

Source: https://sec.report/Document/0000320193-19-000119/

Re: Would you be willing to fund a Linux port to Apple Silicon?

#510
post #273

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You do know there is a version of Windows for ARM64 already, right? You do know that there's no software available for it, right? Without software, arm64 Windows is not a viable operating system for an arm64 laptop. ARM Windows is as relevant as MIPS Windows or Itanium Windows without the huge ecosystem of software you get on x86. And who goes bankrupt first to build this platform? Is it the laptops makers who lose m…

There is plenty of linux software that runs on arm64 though. Even if windows remains the dominant deaktop OS, there is certainly a niche for developers and other who would want to run linux on a high-performance arm64 laptop. And then there is chrome OS.

You can't design a desktop-class CPU for a market niche. Even board-level design doesn't scale that way - every good linux laptop on the market is actually a Windows laptop that's had linux installed on it and benefits from the economies of scale in the Windows market (as much as it saddens me to say this, typing this on a thinkpad running fedora 33).
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