Admit It: You Really Want To be Controlled

[damian86]

[citation][nom]hellwig[/nom]The iPhone is not threatening democracy. The fact that iPhone users choose to allow Apple to exert such a control over their lives is a bad sign for the future of American democracy. Basically, if people are willing to let Apple decide which apps they can and can't use, including news, opinion, and politically-based apps, what are they willing to let others choose for them in other aspects of their life?Each and every Apple user is basically making this statement: "I don't see the harm in letting Apple decide what I can and can't run, or that they know exactly where I am at most times". Let's try re-wording this just a bit: "I don't see the harm in letting the government decide what I can and can't do, or that they know exactly where I am at most times". This has completely different implications, but would some of these Apple users (and other individuals) even be able to see the difference? Would you be so happy if a police officer followed you around 24/7. Following you on the highway as you make your way to work. Walking behind you down the hallway to your office, sitting in a chair in your office. Following you to the bathroom. Following you home, sitting in your dining room as you ate dinner, your living room as you watch TV, your bedroom as you sleep, monitoring your every move? Sounds kind of creepy, but also think about this, there's no way anyone is going to rob you, mug you, assault you if you have a cop trailing you 24/7. If you get into an accident on the freeway, that cop will be there immediately to offer first-aid, and will be able to radio directly to dispatch to get emergency crews to the scene. You'd never be safer, and all you have to do is allow some police officer un-limited access to your life, is it worth it? If not, at what point do you draw the line? Would you want the police officer to stay out of your bathroom while you shower? Are you aware of the amount of slip-and-fall accidents that happen every year in the bathroom? Maybe he shouldn't follow you to work, just hope a co-worker doesn't go postal. Now, take this back to the Apple approach. Is the reduced risk of downloading a virus worth the fact that you can't download Firefox or AmazonMP3 or some other competing app to your phone? Is the risk of losing your phone on the bus enough of a concern that Apple can track your daily movements, and sell that information to advertising partners who end up doing who knows what with that information? How much freedom are you willing to give up for some meaningless hand-holding assurance? Look at California and New York. Trans fat "might" be dangerous to your health, but rather than just require that products be clearly labeled if they contain trans fat, they actually BANNED trans fat from foods. Did you really need the government to shut-down Krispy Kreme, or could you have maybe weighed the cost and benefits of eating a glazed donut yourself? "Gee, one donut a week is probably not going to kill me!" FOOL! Thank god the government knows more than you do, even driving past the Krispy Kreme probably gave you a mild heart attack!There is a building trend in this country to lay down and die like a dog rather than stand up for yourself once in a while. It's like the old coach/drill instructor mantra: "When I say jump, you say 'how high?'". This isn't boot camp, if Apple or the government says jump, you say "Why the hell should I?". That's your right as a free citizen.Sure, you as an individual don't have to own an iPhone, but tens of millions of people do. How many of those people also vote, and elect politicians that will decide how WE should live our lives? Do you want someone who is willing to bend over and let Apple have their way with them making important decisions that affect YOUR life? It's easy to say that person is wasting their own money and not harming you in any way, but that same person probably voted to ban trans fat, and happy meal toys, and black cars and incandescent light bulbs. How long before they vote to ban the internet (too much scary stuff out there), ban smoking, drinking, pornography, gambling, any other vices you might enjoy. Maybe they'll ban religions that aren't theirs, maybe one of those is yours. If they have the mentality that there is always a big brother looking out for them, how much of their and your freedoms are they willing to sacrifice to feel safe and warm and snuggly in their trans-fat free Apple-dictated little world?[/citation]

This is how a person's time can be wasted with a simple article.

 

[gm0n3y]

I can't believe the author managed to write an entire article about one meaningless quote. What a waste of time.

 

[shadowmaster625]

I do believe that apple users want to be controlled. They do not want to have to think. But it begs the question...how do people with that sort of attitude actually earn enough of a living to be able to afford thoughtless gadgets? Answer that question and you will know how the US turns into a 3rd world country.

 

[scuba dave]

Good god some of you Anti Apple people are.. Ridiculous. It's a damn phone, in the same way that my pants are a pair of pants. My iPhone serves it's purpose, for me, in that it makes calls, internet connectivity on the go at a reasonable speed, music, videos, games, etc, all enclosed in a package that looks and performs admirably. It does what I want, and its user experience is simplistic enough that I can use more time out of my day towards other tasks, such as worrying about killing apps so that I can have enough battery life to make it through more than a day without recharging, let alone even 1 day! It has nothing to do with giving away control, or anything like that, and for even suggesting such a thing, your an idiot. Especially you Wolfgang. Stupid, stupid opinion article. There is not a single thing that I have ever desired out of my phone that it hasn't been able to do. Street Lights and traffic have more control over my life.

With this line of thinking, I suppose I can go to the grocery store and tell anyone who buys a frozen pizza, or a box of mac n cheese that they are gonna cause the downfall of society because they don't want to think about what is required to make their meals from scratch.. But have it, basically, told to them.

[citation][nom]shadowmaster625[/nom]I do believe that apple users want to be controlled. They do not want to have to think. But it begs the question...how do people with that sort of attitude actually earn enough of a living to be able to afford thoughtless gadgets? Answer that question and you will know how the US turns into a 3rd world country.[/citation]

Easy. They spend their time worrying about things that matter, instead of being stuck on the imagined personal crimes a fruit company, nor the theory that they are an evil entity. As such, they get crap done.. Instead of hating on an internet forum, and wasting the time of those around them with the wild statements about why people buy stuff, how stupid they are, how they are sheep, how over priced something is, and more, when they are clearly not the opinions of a professional, nor of one with the power of mind to understand a view of someone's that is 180 degrees of their own..

Simply put.. They control their lives in ways that matter, and leave crap like this article, and all this rediculous hate.. For the dogs.

 

[scuba dave]

[citation][nom]scuba dave[/nom]..all enclosed in a package that looks and performs admirably.. At a price point that I, personally, was willing to pay.[/citation]

[citation][nom]scuba dave[/nom]..time out of my day towards other tasks, instead of such tasks as: worrying about killing..[/citation]

[citation][nom]scuba dave[/nom]..and all this ridiculous hate..[/citation]

Fix'd. Also, edit would be a nice addition >.

 

[Apevia]

"If I were to compare Jobs with Apple and Gates with Microsoft I'd spot that Jobs is far more creative and much more legit with competitors. Let's not forget that Microsoft hardware is also overpriced and made in China." - K2N hater

Please learn the difference between hardware and software... Microsoft is a SOFTWARE company and does not make hardware, so therefore it cannot be made in China. Apple makes both hardware and software of their own design which is overly controlled and extremely anti their own roots (1984 anyone?). They tell you what they make is all you need and that it's the best choice because they're Apple and trendy. I mean seriously, iPad 2? Its the same damn thing.

 

[scuba dave]

[citation][nom]apevia[/nom]..K2N haterPlease learn the difference between hardware and software... Microsoft is a SOFTWARE company and does not make hardware, so therefore it cannot be made in China.[/citation]

http/www.microsoft.com/hardware/en-us?wt.mc_id=hwvan

Summary: Yes they do.

[citation][nom]apevia[/nom]They tell you what they make is all you need and that it's the best choice because they're Apple and trendy. I mean seriously, iPad 2? Its the same damn thing.[/citation]

Where did they make that claim? Source please.. And as for the iPad 2.. You mean.. kinda like how an '08 mustang and '09 mustang are basically the same thing? But lets be fair here.. The iPad 2 is actually better than the iPad (original). The 09 mustang isn't. A lot of companies re-release products annually. It's called business.

 

[twile]

Love the article. My biggest complaint is that this isn't anything new, and lots of people have been saying it for years.

Is it troll bait? Maybe! Maybe not. Either way, it's no more or less valid of a point, and you can't discredit it by saying it's troll bait. Author makes a very valid point.

Apple is a company that it's very alluring to buy into, especially for those who really don't care about the details of their technology. "Oh wow I can get a phone that lets me browse the internet and watch YouTube, that's too cool." Unfortunately, if you want to play in their park, you have to adhere to their rules. Many have good intentions, like approving all apps to make sure things which secretly steal people's information don't get out to the public. Others are questionable, like rejecting apps which don't do anything wrong, but are a bit awkward to use or have. And others are downright dirty, like requiring that iOS web browsers must use Webkit.

Seriously, what's the difference between requiring that iOS browsers must use webkit and OS X browsers must use webkit? Two things--OS X lets you install any software you want, and, Apple would argue, the mobile experience is a more casual, performance-bottlenecked, personal experience... can't have potentially slow, glitchy browsers making it a chore to use your phone. But what if someone made something that was hands-down faster than any Webkit browser, and every bit as stable? It'd still be blocked, because Apple doesn't like competing.

The reason I refuse to buy from them, as I'm sure is the case of others, is because I can't in any way support a company which has this sort of device lock-in and tight control. Others have pointed out that companies like Nintendo do the same thing; for that reason I also do not support them. Microsoft and Sony do in that they make consoles as well, and I don't care for that or support those branches of the business, but they do also make many other products which do play nice with devices from other companies, so I support them when I have to.

 

[virtualban]

@scuba dave
I got HTC Desire Z, 3 days with a single charge, and always, I mean Always, the screen eats more than 70% of the battery, even if it is set at absolute minimum brightness and usage of the phone is casual + music, and not "screen always on" type. There are a bunch of apps that run in the background, true. They don't kill the battery or the processing power as you imply. But they do allow me to multitask if I need to. Though, it's a damn phone. I go play on my big desktop and big screen, I go watch videos there too, and I especially browse the internet and type on the computer. But when waiting for the bus or emergency needing to remote desktop at work the phone is there. So, basically I do have the freedom to choose porn, multitask and flash, and you do not. Otherwise a phone is a phone, maybe with some storage for music to carry around.

 

[virtualban]

p.s. next iOS will multitask, but being the store controlled so carefully and tightly maybe the apps will not hang in the background after exit.

 

[virtualban]

p.s.s. did I forget about the ability to change the battery?

 

[shin0bi272]

"I swear -- by my life and my love for it -- that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine." - Ayn Rand