andrew carter

I read a couple articles today about “reverse switching” - going from OS X to Linux. Tim Bray has a length discussion on why he is going to switch and so does Mark Pilgrim. They are of course free to do what they wish but I’m not sure I understand their motivations.

Let’s take a look at a few of the points they raise:

• Apple applications are not open source. Both authors list the standard Apple apps (Mail, Safari, iCal, iChat, iPhoto). Both also list numerous open source apps they run instead (Adium, Camino, Firefox, Thunderbird, etc). Just because you are on OS X doesn’t mean you have to run the Apple apps. If these apps don’t meet their needs, there are alternatives.
• Format lock-in. This is a real concern but again it relates to your choice of applications. They both list some open source programs for managing things like media (VLC) and pictures (Gimp). You know what? These run perfectly fine on OS X. You don’t have to use Linux. You are absolutely free to use something that will meet your personal requirements for content creation. By the way, I think Apple does a remarkable job of making it easy to pull stuff out into other formats. The only place that I struggle with it is in the protected iTunes music.
• Mac OS X restricts my rights and usage. Explain how this is true? The operating system runs my software and I do what I want with it. Yes, it is true that I cannot customize the core OS to the degree that I can on Linux. But you know what? I am paying Apple for that exact reason. I see the “closed” Mac OS X as a better system to work within. In my humble opinion, the OS is supposed to run your stuff and stay out of the way. I have no problem with OS X doing that. Linux does it pretty darn good too. Windows isn’t very good at that.
• iPhoto/iTunes corrupted my library and I lost everything. I’m sorry but that is an absolutely pitiful reason. Files get corrupted (no matter what format). If you aren’t running regular backups, you are asking for trouble no matter what you run. I would agree with him if iTunes/iPhoto had a consistent history of corrupting the data. However, I am not aware of either application having that reputation. And again this is an application choice.

I think the core of both authors arguments is “why am I paying a premium to Apple?” That is a very fair question. In my case, I pay Apple for three reasons:

• The operating system experience. I define this as an OS that “just works” and let’s me run the software I want to run. I want to run open source Unix derived apps, commercial software, games, and media apps.
• Hardware quality. I define this as both reliability, integration with the operating system, and performance.
• Personal productivity. This is the most esoteric criteria. I am most comfortable with the OS X environment and I feel like I get more done when I work there.

If I didn’t perceive value, I would stop buying it. I did that with Windows. I didn’t see the value, I quit buying windows software. I tried Linux for the desktop and I could never achieve the three criteria I listed. I see value in this package, they don’t. I believe in open source and I also am fine with commercial closed source. They want a pure open source stack. I think the thing I dislike most about both articles is the tone that Apple is screwing up. I simply don’t get it.

Let me be clear, I would love it if Apple did open source all their apps. Do I think it will happen? Not any time soon and certainly not for huge apps like iPhoto. See John Gruber’s article for lots of good reasons. Let me also say that I love open source software and I like Linux a lot. Would I switch? What does that mean? I already use Linux for nearly everything I do on a server. It is usually the best tool for the job. I run OS X on the desktop and the laptop. I don’t want to switch those anytime soon. I run a healthy mix of commercial and open source stuff. I came back to Macintosh for that exact reason 5 years ago. I think it is just as true today as it was then. I don’t think the quality is declining on the OS X software that Apple ships. I’d only look to leave the platform if the core OS couldn’t support the apps I want to run.

It is fashionable to beat up on a winner. Apple has had a long “winning” streak. It’s natural for it to be questioned. It is probably even good for a few people with influence like Tim Bray and Mark Pilgrim to talk about switching to Linux or something else. Hopefully, it serves as motivation for the Apple guys to respond.