Even Macworld is noticing Apple's lies

Err...9 movies added :-)

Funny, Paul. You only use "lie" when it's Apple. Microsoft truly LIED to users about "Vista Capable" machines that, in fact, knowingly were not. They did this to sell people junk boxes last christmas to keep the money rolling in before the launch of Vista. That's an outright lie, but I haven't seen you call it out as such. If you have, please show me the link. Plus, this Vista Capable lie lead people to spends hundreds on a computer they would soon learn could barely run Vista at all, and certainly not with all the "Wow" MS focused on in it's marketing. There's no moron equivalence between these lies and the fact that the movie studios have not yet delivered the movies that they promised Apple to iTunes. none.

"Which makes me wonder: Why exaggerate?" I dunno - I wonder why Steve Ballmer said that the Zune had significant market share, based on a skewed highly favorable comparison (the share in one quarter of hard drive players in the U.S. alone). Or why Ballmer, while saying the iPhone would never get significant market share, misleadlingly implied that windows mobile had "60% or 70% or 80%" share (it doesn't even remotely) . Or why Gates recently claimed that XX million people were using Vista (when a lot of those installed OEM copies were downgrounded to XP, especially by enterprise users). It's not just MS or Apple. Every company distorts the facts with marketing. Why doesn't Paul ask why Budweiser ads imply that if a chubby guy drinks Bud on a beach he will be surrounded by hot chicks? Look, I have no problem with Ballmer and Gates or any other company making marketing points. That's business. Paul of course doesn't ever say Ballmer or Gates are lying. Because he doesn't have a shred of objectivity when it comes to Apple and MS.

That's called marketing, simply. When GM or Ford releases a new truck, the TVs are flooded with ads that mention it's the toughest and more powerful truck ever. We are inundated with these marketing gimmick all day long, and still you seem to only bother when they come from Apple. Only Apple has rightfully some of the best hardware engineering in the world, which makes the gimmick a bit more relevant.

Paul, You haven't responded to the point brought up earlier in the comments that it may, in fact, be beyond Apple's control. It is far easier for you to type "Apple are lying" than to actually bother to check to see if the studios have delivered on their promises. I notice that when Apple released Michael Collins day and date with the DVD you didn't do an article saying "Apple are lying... They said there would be a 30 day window between the DVD and it hitting iTunes.

"This is about Apple, not Microsoft. We can and will dump all over Microsoft when that's deserved. This is a different topic. (Though I appreciate your employ of a classic debating strategy: Changing the topic.)" No - it's not changing the topic. The counterargument people are making is that marketing is marketing. Every company stretches the truth and exaggerates in its marketing points. You're simply trying to dodge this argument - and thus fail to respond to it. "The thing with Apple is, they get a pass. " Macworld didn't give them a pass on the number of movies now available in iTunes, did they? Paul, you ought to look in the mirror on this issue - why are YOU giving MS a "pass" on the fact that MS caved to Intel and said a certain class of machines were Vista capable when they really weren't (with any kind of good experience)?

Warning, topic change! It still will disagree with all of you about 'Vista capable' and the many flavors of Vista. There are many levels of computer hardware and you really need at least levels....entry level, home user and business level. You can even argue that there needs to be a high end and low end business level. You need these levels for an affordable price structure. Also,Vista Capable machines should have been researched more by the purchaser. I was well established that multiple versions would be available, so it is up to the consumer to investigate if the cheap POS they bought could handle any of the versions, without upgrades. Just like the people who bought an iPhone and wanted a removable battery. Research before you buy. Here's an exampl. I bought a car that was 'iPod capable', however, I needed to purchase a $1200 upgrade to make it work with an iPod. It is common marketing terminology that the consumer is responsible for investigating, IMO. It's not 'buyer beware' it's buyer investigate it a little, and the Vista capable logo did not need much investigation. Otherwise, the consumer could have waited until more information was available. I still cannot believe that someone buying a $300 computer will spend money on the Vista upgrade, let alone the Ultimate version. Do any of you? BTW, I just posted this on my Mac Pro Tower.

Paul, My criticism of you remains that of tone. You absolutely call MS out all the time. But you don't use the same kind of language. You don't say that Microsoft "lied". You'll point out the lie, but not call it a lie. You're a writer. You know (or should) the power of language and connotation. My take away from your tone is that you treat Apple like it's a person and Microsoft like an organization. I don't think that's fair or warranted. I don't think it makes sense for you to be "shocked" to discover that Steve Jobs is a salesman... Again, I think this gets back to the personal ties you have with Microsoft employees which cause you to pull your punches in the harshness of your language. Tone matters and it's your tone that bothers me. Your actual opinions and information I find interesting and informative.

"Their record on undelivered or under-delivered features makes Apple look like a saint." Since when did two wrongs make a right? Paul's reaching here. Obviously. :-) But his point is still valid--Apple misses a *lot* of dates, and for the most part, they get a pass from a mac-friendly press. "Lying" is a bit strong, but whatever. It ups Paul's hit counts, I'm sure.

"Let's see, apple fanboys just cannot stand any criticism on Apple. When Paul criticize MS, they remain silence; and when Paul criticize Apple, they change topic. Classic." Windows fan pulls out the old artie macstrawman argument - AGAIN. Jeez, can you guys come up with ANYTHING better than this. Apple fans criticize apple all the time - they don't have any problem with that (where warranted). Sorry. And Paul can criticize apple all he wants - as long as there is a basis for it. Right now he in fact does not have any basis for arguing that apple "lied" about the 1,000 movies by the end of February. As someone pointed out, Paul would have to know that Apple in fact knew they would never meet the goal. At best they got it wrong here, which may deserve criticism - I dunno, this pretty unimportant - but it's not a lie based on what we know.

Wow, I'm actually partially agreeing with lotsa twice in a week. I also agree that the term lying is not really accurate. Must be that leap year... "Macworld didn't give them a pass on the number of movies now available in iTunes, did they? " No, they didn't, but Paul already addressed that. This is one drop in the bucket. For every negative point, there are tons more glowing points that the Apple centric press makes. For MacWorld to complain, it must be somewhat of a big issue, right? Or at least noteworthy, because of the originator of the article? "How many times has Microsoft told people something was coming and had that turn out to be utterly false? " A ton of times, and they are duly noted by the press, the blogosphere, /. and the commenter's on Pauls articles. Apples misgivings get a mere blip.

"you treat Apple like it's a person" It pretty much is. Can anyone name even one other person at Apple corporate? Outside of the occasional lackey on stage, it's all Steve. He's a "spotlight" stealing megalomaniac.

Delmont - "Good grief, I believe you two can't read any article no matter the topic without seeing a hidden Apple slam. " And I guess you know what articles I read and how I react to them? Geez, can you make a more baseless argument about someone you don't know? Hey, you've got a great argument technique - avoid the substance and just insult someone. really great arguing, there.

"Answer - no. See my post above explaining why if you want" Ok, so your post above said "it's not changing the topic. The counterargument people are making is that marketing is marketing." So I guess this is the reason? Great, marketing is marketing, and using "lie" as a method of marketing is also a option, isn't it? So what's the problem? And if you really want an example besides Apple, you can use other companies, such as Google, IBM etc. The point is why do apple fans constantly mention MS (but not other companies) to "prove" their theory. Can't apple fans think of any other examples? This is best they can do? Maybe they really hate MS. Maybe that's why.

I'm not sure I would call this lying, more of another example of not making a target it stated in public. Which IS growing kind of tiresome. What happened to the mantra of shipping when its ready at Apple?

heran - "Should Paul include all the companies in the world when writing a blog about this iTunes movie rental thing?" Really, this is your argument? This is more strawman rubbish, from people that have nothing real to argue apparently. I, and others here, have been quite clear on our argument. Paul attacks apple's marketing claims as "LIES" and then lets MS off, never calling them a liar. He just treats any questionable marketing claim from MS completely different from one from MS - not what you would expect from someone who claims to be the paragon of objectivity in the tech blogger world. What we are pointing to goes far beyond one post - it's based on his conduct and writing at this site over the course of many posts. If you want to debate this - i.e, claim that Paul is not doing what we're arguing - FINE. Go ahead, tell us we are unfairly describing what Paul does. And provide support for y our argument, please.

"The thing with Apple is, they get a pass. Journalists actually cheer at their product announcements, which is sort of disgusting." And so they should get a pass. As for cheering, Apple is exciting. Microsoft is not. Do you want people to live dull, uneventful lives with mundane, mediocre products all their lives? Is so, you've chosen wisely when you chose Microsoft.

Delmont: "Hidden Apple slam" Um... what part of the "lying" slam is hidden, exactly? As for why I pulled out the MS examples, it's simple. I'm not disputing the fact that Apple messed up on their projection about the movies. I just see no evidence to support the allegation that Apple knew they'd miss their projected content availability. And that's because there is no evidence to support it. Now, if they are currently claiming to have more content available then they actually do... that's a lie. So... show me the money. Where are they currently claiming something that's demonstrably false? Dipsht Admin: Could you name anyone at GE? How about Viacom (my employer)? Companies are smart not to advertise their best talent, lest they invite competitors to try and snap them up. Even so, if you were an actual mac user, you'd know that Apple has lots of people interacting with users of their products very publicly, from Joe Schor for Aperture to Michael Wong in the pro video team. Steve is very flattering to his developers in every keynote, even though he may be a complete jerk to them behind closed doors (just like Gates has been know to be). i think that kind of behavior is horrible and I don't endorse or condone being abusive, but Steve ain't the only scary boss in corporate america. Steve is simply smart enough to know that you don't put up some monotone code monkey to give a presentation. Give me a break, people. Apple's got it's problems, but their messaging and presentation are the best in the business. As for Heran and the rest. I brought up MS simply to illustrate how Paul uses very different language when criticizing Apple then when he does MS. This is "The Supersite for Windows" after all so it's not like MS can ever be that irrelevant. Regardless, when it comes to Apple, he quickly jumps to language like "lying" that is built on ill-intent that he couldn't possible know to be true. Paul is dead set in the belief that Apple and Steve Jobs "lies" more than any other tech firm. He's said so explicitly to me in email on numerous occasions. I believe that this idea is demonstrably false and is part of Paul's subjective biases that taint his writing. He's not a bad guy or a bad reviewer of Apple products. But he's got a distorted perception of Apple that's been colored in part by his closeness to MS employees and by the constant bashing he's received from ignorant, pro-apple platform zealots. #1. Paul needs to get a grip on the "Mac freaks". He runs a "Supersite for Windows" and frequently criticizes Apple. OF COURSE mac partisans are going to jump all over it. He's inviting it and shouldn't be surprised or offended. Journalists have been getting nutty letters to the editor since the beginning of time. #2. Paul needs to drop the "I'm objective and no-one else is" posture. His tone is clearly more harsh and black-and-white when he criticizes Apple. He's clearly more willing to assign ill-intend on the part of Apple and more willing to chalk up Microsoft's missteps to organizational dysfunction... even though MS has a long and public history of choices built on the ill-intent of top executives (hence my Vista-capable example).

"is that is this a Microsoft fanboy's website. There is no way around it." Well it does say SuperSite for Windows. What were you expecting? And an often asked question, why are people like you here then? Speaking for myself, I don't feel the need to either read or comment over at Apple centric blogs such as TUAW, daringfireball, etc. It would be a waste of my time and would serve no real purpose. "As for cheering, Apple is exciting." If they are real journalists that are are intent on being unbiased, they certainly should not be cheering, no matter how "exciting" the product may be. It would be hard for me to trust your opinion of something if you were cheering for a product by the competition. The RDF is real, and that kind of behavior wouldn't be appropriate at publications covering other types of products.

"Well it does say SuperSite for Windows. What were you expecting? And an often asked question, why are people like you here then?" Because it's not very palatable to see such posts by a rampant Windows fanboy. Blind fanboy-ism, like that of this blog, is not a pretty thing. One wonders how such a skewed view can be held to Microsoft. Hence one can't pass by without commenting. Even if one comments with a constant shake of the head, as one read's the blog posts. "If they are real journalists that are are intent on being unbiased, they certainly should not be cheering, no matter how "exciting" the product may be." People, even journalists, have feelings. You can't blame them for getting excited about what Apple is doing. After all, they are only human. Apple is cool, innovative, revolutionary and... well, simply better. You don't see that happening with Microsoft? Well, guess why not? Because they are dull. The new IBM: Big Boring Business. The beast may have been wounded by the DOJ and EU, but such an animal does not change its spots. It's the same animal within.

"...simply to illustrate how Paul uses very different language when criticizing Apple then when he does MS. " You know what, I heard that in India, women being fat are regarded beautiful. Of course, in many countries, being thin is beautiful. So what's the problem here, why the exact same woman could received quite different judgements? If you think about it, if everyone else is thin (like in India), what's the point of being thin; and if everyone else is fat, who wants to go fat as well? If the most world praise Apple and bash MS insanely (even Apple itself does it constantly), don't you think a little balance might be needed somewhere?

"Hence one can't pass by without commenting." Umm, yes you can. I do it. I always see articles or posts at pro-Apple publications, and while I shake my head in disagreement, I don't feel the need to post at every blog in the world that dare spread wrong information. I like to keep my commenting to a small amount of sites. I simply don't have the time. What this does show is exactly what Paul was talking about with Apple fanatics. Here is a post that Paul made about what a pro-Apple site has said negatively about a product, and the barrage of comments start. "Apple is cool, innovative, revolutionary and... well, simply better," "Blind fanboy-ism" The pot and kettle have been getting pretty cozy lately.

Apple has a problem with delivering goods just like Microsoft does. Except most times, Microsoft is pretty open about when they don't deliver. Apple cannot claim so, because often times they give us the silent treatment or some spin. In my eyes, its pretty clear why I stay a Microsoft customer. I'd rather be told its not happening or its being delayed than not hear a word. Its the same reason I'm pissed off at Lucas Arts. Its just bad business.

"Apple is MUCH better at delivering on their demonstrated features than Microsoft." That's a weak argument. The difference is that MS makes its list of features known before the product is delivered, while Apple tells you near nothing. So of course Apple is going to have a much higher percentage of hits. If they were planning a feature that eventually didn't make it, how would we know that they didn't? If a tree falls in the forest, and no one is around, does it make a sound? I agree with you about Enderle. While I don't have any grudge against him, I don't trust his analysis on anything, and I simply ignore his name when it comes up. At the end of the day, Paul is Paul. If you don't like what he is saying, I see no reason to continue to harp on him and just move on. I could have easily fired up a sh!t storm of comments at the idrankthekoolaid site that has a pingback here. But I realized it simply wasn't worth it, and I'll just ignore him. I suggest that some of you should do the same. "... needs to drop the sanctimony about his own objectivity and embrace the reality of the website he runs and the biases, or shall we say, opinions, he holds." We could put so many names in place of Paul in that sentence and they would fit perfectly. Mossberg comes to mind.

Its this simple. Both "market" their products. Both have bugs and both miss dates. None of this is curing or not curing cancer. That said, Paul clearly uses language that stands out when talking about Apple. This language is never used when talking about Microsoft even though this is much greater opportunity to do so. I imagine Paul sitting there in his home office red as a beat, shaking all over, screaming out "LLLLLIIIIIIAAAAAARS!!!!!!" and the spittle hits hits his screen, kids jump up scared in the other room, when typing up stuff about Apple. On the other hand, I can imagine him murmuring "dam can they ever get anything right" under his breath when spinning praise about the latest Zune. I think its obviously clear from the comments here that I am not off base here.