[Cialug] OT: mac-mini?

[Tony Bibbs]

David Champion wrote:
> Don't mean to sound all RMS here, but...

Too late ;)

> The new version of Linux and / or Firefox didn't cost me anything. That 
> alone might be enough to justify not buying a Mac. How much do those 
> incremental MacOSX updates cost?

Well, fact is I do have a windows box at home, have to for some of the 
GPS, hunting/fishing software I own.  And don't try suggesting to find 
OSS alternatives...they are all crap compared to the stuff I have. 
Those same packages run under mac but not Linux.  So given the choice 
between buying another windows box or using a mac I guess I'm thinking 
it's time to try the lesser of two evils.

> Microsoft doesn't even charge for those - once I purchased WinXP, I get 
> incremental updates (as in SP2, and security releases) for no additional 
> charge. Dang, now you've got me sounding like a MS fanboy...

I see Bryan already posted a good response to the upgrades/patches.

This has come up quite a few times but I'm not a believer in the Eutopia 
many OSS fans believe exists (like RMS) that all code should be open 
and, if possible, free.  From a business standpoint I can understand why 
some companies choose to open things and why others in similar 
situations may not.  They deserve the autonomy to decide just as the 
consumer deserves the autonomy to decide which makes the most sense for 
them.

In short, moderation is good.

--Tony