I have a confession to make. I LOVE using a Mac. But sometimes, I really HATE Mac users.
There seems to be an unfortunate potential side effect experienced by people who are or become Mac users: they turn into a bunch of smug, self-important assholes. Not ALL Mac users are this way, but there are enough of them – and they are so extremely, annoyingly vocal – that they’ve become a stereotype that is applied to everyone carrying a laptop that happens to have a glowing apple on its exterior.
I’m not talking about the occasional ribbing. You know, when someone asks “why does [insert random feature] work on your computer but not on mine?” you answer “because I have a Mac.” In small measure, that might be okay, and somewhat tolerable. I even do it myself occasionally. Though, if ever you find yourself in a situation where the roles are reversed, be prepared to NEVER hear the end of it.
But no, I’m talking about the uber-fanboys who obsess over silly things, like, insulting people over how they pronounce the name of the Mac Operating System. Or worse, the fanboys who are SO smug and self-superior that they feel they need to pontificate about pronunciation in a crappily-produced YouTube video, all the while thinking they’re The Shit just because they finally figured out how to use iMovie.
By the way, did you know that Macs could talk? Most people don’t, and most people don’t care. But this guy does. Maybe because no one but his computer will talk to him?
Anyway, here’s an example of the smug faboyishness that I’m talking about. I must warn you though: DON’T watch this video unless you enjoy headaches.
You wanna know what my pet peeve is? People who make YouTube videos but can’t hold the stupid camera still if their lives depended on it. The constant back-and-forth-and-around-and-WTF movement gave me a headache 15 seconds into this minute-and-a-half of Aspberger’s syndrome gone unchecked.
But it does prove a point. I think the main barrier to people accepting and adopting Macs as an easy to use, elegant computer system isn’t price, or software availability, or problems transitioning. It’s the fact that there are douches like this using them, and pontificating about how much better they are to other people merely because they know when an X is a “ten” and not really an X. Gee Einstein, you’re really conquering the world’s problems with that little bit of insight! Hats off to ya!
I really don’t care HOW people pronounce “OS X,” and frankly, neither should anyone. What’s important is that people remain willing to try using it, and that people consider it as a POSSIBLE alternative to the unfortunate crap most people put up with when they’re in front of a keyboard. And frankly, people who cop an attitude about piddly thinkgs like correct pronunciation are the same types who perpetuate the stereotype of Mac users being smug, smarmy, self-important, and elitist. If we nitpick on how people new to the platform pronounce the name, how can we expect them to want to associate themselves with the likes of “us?”
