The Great Divide Between the Mac and PC Crowd

Updated: February 12, 2013

Have you ever noticed that the rift between the PC and Mac crowd is one of the most ongoing and heated disagreement in today’s electronic industry? As I read the comments on anything I post about a Mac or an Apple product I realize that there is a lot of despising going on especially toward the guys with a bite out of their logo and so I began to really thing and do some research on the matter in an effort to try and figure out just where this attitude has come from and why.

Let’s start with some basics like the different types of users, as this is the core of the war of the computer user groups. PC people are a group that like to really know what is in their system, be intimate with how it works and why and be able to change it as they please and damn be limitation. Mac users are a group of people who really in truth do not care what is inside their systems, just that it works and has low maintenance so they can keep going. Even though these may be basics the great divide between the user groups was established as these user groups and their choice of computer vendor would become totally different camps.

In the beginning both Mac and PC had small groups of people as only those with money or a real interest in this emerging technology scene even cared about what type of a computer as they both did essentially the same things. In this world that had just come from the Commodore 64, Apple II and Tandy Computers from Radio Shack as well as a few others anything new was better than tape and floppy disc based systems. In 1990 when I first started into the hardware habit the Amiga 3000 and the Macintosh classic were introduced and at this time junction both user groups were very similar and actually still care free about who used what or why, but this would change.

As the years went by many other Operating Systems would come and go, but Microsoft and Apple would prevail and even though Linux has remained an underground hero it’s following has a much smaller footprint in what sells a computer as it is never a bundled OS. Until very recently Apple always used their patented proprietary components many time in conjunction with Motorola who made their CPUs for many years and the only reason they ever changed was because Intel kicked their ass in the CPU wars and everybody but AMD got smacked down and put out to pasture. Intel has always been symbolic with PC’s and gaming, Apple has been always known to use IOS or some name like Lion or Leopard and used for working, music and education. Most schools had Apple computers all through the 80s and early 90s and only in the late 90s did we see the PC really emerge in the school system.

Now just from what I have wrote so far you can se the trend, Apple education, PC Fun and games. These directions only continued to solidify as the years have gone by and Apple has continued to focus on being better at work related applications including music and video editing and regardless of the hate that the PC crowd brings to the table Mac’s are not the only game in town for Multimedia businesses, they are the preferred choice and have been for years. PCs on the other hand have become this crazy world of Overclocking, modding, Gaming and watching and listening to music and video. The two may sound similar, but they have been on opposite sides of the track in many subtle ways and obvious ways for decades. This however is also what has began and now set forth the great divide as both user groups tend to frown on the other, but there are other reasons as well that this has happened so lets touch base on that.

Lets start off with commercial on TV, you know the ones portraying PC users as stupid slow and fat, while their Mac counterpart is young smooth and snazzy? As a PC user I was offended by these commercials and until the last 4 years when I built my home recording studio I had never even considered buying a Mac and considered their users to be the snobby group. America is a Social Media machine and those commercials clearly show Apple’s discontent and disrespect to PC users, which equated to PC users thinking Mac users share and embrace these same vales. Getting a better picture now? In recent years we have seen Steve Jobs on the sue trail of many companies as he tried to sue every company he could trying to protect Apple’s claim to whatever they felt was theirs making them very unpopular in some peoples eyes as power mad. Tim Cook obviously is not into this form of game play by his own words, but he will have a hard time changing the publics mind with recent lawsuits like claiming rights to how a storefront looks just seems like more of the same.

So now its 2013 and PC users think Mac users don’t know crap about what makes a computer tick and that Apple as a company is the big bad wolf who has plainly said screw the disguise our crowd is with us so lets just play our own game. Mac users think PC people are dumb and only care about their games, which most of them in truth don’t play anyways and thinks PCs are just a machine awaiting a virus like a street hooker in the red District. There is only 1 area that I see Mac users actually having reason to be snooty, why is that? Well they actually work together very well and help each other out in their own nerdy ways, where PC people tend to be more like islands tending to work alone and not helping each other unless it’s a mutual win-win. If us PC users actually started helping each other instead of the usual prideful things I read on YouTube and in many forums where all I see are flames being thrown at each other we could actually help save the PC world, its image and each other in the process if only we tried.

Recently though Apple has been very tricky little devils and they have created yet another battlefield that once again will have most PC folks against Apple folks in the new mobile wars that are happening all around the world. This time Samsung is for the PC crowd and the iPhone for the Mac crowd or the Android for the PC and the IOS for the Apple fans. So far there have been no insulting commercials, but I am not holding my breath LOL. The final thing that has really been a catalyst for the war between the Apple and PC crowd is that Apple now uses all Intel CPUs and their chipsets and their memory configurations video cards, well you know everything a PC is only running the Mac OS and this has also seen PC users having to wait to get technology as Apple throws a ton of money at Intel to give it to them first giving Apple fan boys the freeway to snub their nose in the air making the bold statement: Apple had it first, which equal a big ouch to PC enthusiasts.

Intel you have successfully in some ways thrown your loyal fans under the bus and this has only fueled the anger and animosity between the camps. After years and years of division has really now just come down to and OS in most cases a Hackintosh when built right runs just as good if not better than a real McCoy Mac as internally they are the same. The thing is as long as we the people keep perceiving each other in this light the division will only grow and unless a real social attitude adjustment happens I do not see any change in the road ahead. At this point though it is no longer about the hardware its about an attitude toward the world and its people and as long as Apple thinks they own the rights to anything innovative and keeps trying to sue people most who read or see it on TV will be disappointed and alienated even if the own an iPhone. Last, but not least lets talk about prices as any thing that has the Apple or Mac moniker cost twice as much as its similar PC product and this as well is a thorn in the side of any PC user who would want to try a Mac or iPhone, but could not even afford one due their inflated pricing. Years of controversy, social attitude and perception along with inflated pricing has caused a great divide between the Mac and PC crowd, can it ever be bridged? Maybe if Apple would only change its ways and PC folks have great big forgiving hearts. Thank you for reading my thoughts my friends and I always appreciate your comments on the article as your opinions count on Tech Of Tomorrow.