SOLD: OS X 10.3, iBook VGA Adapter

[JohnC]

Yeah this is a bit off topic, but what the hell...

Complete ad w/ pics:
http://episteme.arstechnica.com/eve/ubb....1002655631

Executive summary:
OS X 10.3 - SOLD
iBook VGA adapter - $10 + shipping

-John

[white_2kgt]

so how you liking that apple, still have to keep it in the fridge

-c

[JohnC]

so how you liking that apple, still have to keep it in the fridge

-c

Nope. Got a replacement machine from Apple last month, after the old iBook died for the fourth time. Now I've got a brand spanking new iBook G4, courtesy of Steve Jobs

[BLINGMW]

wow. I hadn't heard about your stellar luck with that iBook! hock:

[white_2kgt]

wow. I hadn't heard about your stellar luck with that iBook! hock:

what you didn't know that when he first got it the only way he could use it is if he kept it in the fridge for 1/2 hr at a time and ssh into it from his main computer :lol:

-c

[JohnC]

wow. I hadn't heard about your stellar luck with that iBook! hock:

what you didn't know that when he first got it the only way he could use it is if he kept it in the fridge for 1/2 hr at a time and ssh into it from his main computer :lol:

-c

Yeah, that poor thing was a piece of junk... The new one seems better, but I'm still kinda debating whether or not to sell it and just build a nice desktop machine.

[Mike]

bahahahaha you had to ssh in to the freezer! bahahahahha

[BLINGMW]

geee... glad I didn't try to buy yours! :evil: For what it's worth, the G4 iBook we've got has been flawless so far, give this one a shot!

[JohnC]

Since I've told just about everyone else this story, I might as well post it here. This is copied from a post I made at ArsTechnica...

I had the logic board in my iBook 800/12.1" (Nov. '02) replaced 3 times. After the 4th failure occured a couple of weeks ago, I called Apple Support and requested a replacement machine. They refused, and were fairly rude about it.

So, in a moment of desperation, I sent an email to <!-- e --><a href="mailtojobs@apple.com">sjobs@apple.com</a><!-- e -->. I did not demand a replacement machine. I simply said that I was extremely displeased with the quality of my iBook and I would no longer be purchasing or advocating Apple products. I wished Mr. Jobs the best of luck in Apple's future endeavors.

Two days later, I received a call from Apple's Corporate Executive Relations team. The woman I spoke with apologized profusely for my troubles with the iBook. She explained the logic board replacement program to me in great detail, and then, without any prompting from me, asked if a new iBook G4 (as a replacement) would cause me to reconsider leaving the platform. Hell yes. So, I'm typing this post on a brand new 1Ghz, 12.1" iBook G4.

Needless to say, despite the trouble with the machine, and the heartburn of dealing with Apple Support - in the end I'm left feeling fairly impressed with Apple. In the end, they did the right thing, and kept a customer.

[Feersty]

that iBook G4 is probably lots of money.

[Mike]

that iBook G4 is probably lots of money.

thanks captain obvious!

john, that rocks real hard. steve actually took an outside e-mail and forwarded it accordingly. damn. i still can't bring myself to try apple products though, the premium n them is ridonculous, and i'm not a fan of their "we are the only people who can manufacture apple systems."

[JohnC]

john, that rocks real hard. steve actually took an outside e-mail and forwarded it accordingly. damn. i still can't bring myself to try apple products though, the premium n them is ridonculous.

I actually had a pretty hard time 2 years ago, trying to find a machine that was as compact, well-integrated, feature-rich, and inexpensive as the iBook. I was also itching to try OS X, from a user perspective, and also as a development platform. Of course, I ended up running Debian on my iBook for almost the entire time I had it :roll:

I'm not sure if the same value is there in the current model iBook G4, especially considering the low-end laptops that Dell is putting out - but my current iBook G4 cost me absolutely nothing (although I did spend a couple hundred bucks to max the RAM out to 1.25GB). Of course, when you say "premium", you're probably talking about the higher-end systems, no?

and i'm not a fan of their "we are the only people who can manufacture apple systems."

True that. Apple tried licensing hardware back in the mid '90s, and it didn't work out so well (why, I'm not entirely sure). Their current strategy of selling a complete package of hardware, software, and accessories seems to be working fairly well - however it does get expensive for the end user.

Despite my recent experience with customer service, I won't be buying any more Apple products for a long time, not because I don't like them, but because I can't afford them :?

[Feersty]

Yeah, it is just hard to deal with another system, when you have used the same thing for so many years.

[JohnC]

Yeah, it is just hard to deal with another system, when you have used the same thing for so many years.

Not sure what you're saying here... If you mean I bought the iBook in the first place because I was comfortable only on Mac OS, I'd disagree. It was actually my first Apple purchase, coming after using Windows (98 through 2k), Linux, HP-UX, and Solaris at JMU.

Of course, I'm not really sure what you were talking about....

[BLINGMW]

ohoh!

:?:

is that how it goes? :lol:

[Evan]

Needless to say, despite the trouble with the machine, and the heartburn of dealing with Apple Support - in the end I'm left feeling fairly impressed with Apple. In the end, they did the right thing, and kept a customer.

Not trying to be inflammatory, Im just genuinely curious, but why would you be impressed with the situation? You were given junk equipment 3 times, recieved rude customer service (from a company that bills itself as a "premium" brand)
and the only way you did get a satisfactory resolution is doing something that 99.9999% of normal people in your situation would not do (or know to do)
Apple would have been completely happy with your expensive laptop taking up freezer space next to your hungry man dinners.

[Feersty]

For me I have always have and always will use Windows, and that is just the way it is.

[JohnC]

Needless to say, despite the trouble with the machine, and the heartburn of dealing with Apple Support - in the end I'm left feeling fairly impressed with Apple. In the end, they did the right thing, and kept a customer.

Not trying to be inflammatory, Im just genuinely curious, but why would you be impressed with the situation? You were given junk equipment 3 times, recieved rude customer service (from a company that bills itself as a "premium" brand)
and the only way you did get a satisfactory resolution is doing something that 99.9999% of normal people in your situation would not do (or know to do)
Apple would have been completely happy with your expensive laptop taking up freezer space next to your hungry man dinners.

Excellent point - and surprisingly you're the only person to bring it up, here or over at Ars. It definitely shouldn't have had to go that far up the chain - but it did, and I *did* end up with the right resolution to the problem.

I've been told to eat a dick by so many "faceless" companies that even this small "win" felt pretty good. Apple definitely didn't *have* to give me a new machine. They could've kept replacing the logic board under warranty until that coverage ran out, until I lost my voice or got bored from being on hold. But, the outcome of this situation at least lets me know that even though a $5.50/hour tech support wienie doesn't give a crap about John's iBook experience, the man who leads the company and ultimately determines its business direction, ethics, and reputation seems to care enough to take a few seconds out of his day to fix something that went wrong. I'm ok with that, maybe even a little impressed

[Feersty]

I like the ending to that story, way to take intiative.

[Mike]

For me I have always have and always will use Windows, and that is just the way it is.

Some fish like to venture out of their pond and see what is out there; some fish are content with the pond they are born in.

I'm a swimmer