Is Apple Biting the Hand that Feeds It?

Many loyal Apple users have kept their systems updated, especially with newer optical drives, by patching specific files within the OS X framework. A report I read today at XCLR8Yourmac.com seems to indicate that Apple may be trying to restrict users from performing these kinds of upgrades by making the file that controls them un-patchable in Panther, their newest operating system. If that’s true, then the difference between Apple and the much maligned Microsoft is truly only their size. Their tactics are the same, with the only difference being that Apple is trying to force people to buy only their hardware and Microsoft tries to force people to buy only their software.

If this is true, then Apple is biting the hand that feeds it. Computer technology, especially in removable storage media, changes fast; and there is no way anyone in their right mind can buy a new machine to provide CD or DVD support every time they change. This is an issue for the home consumer but more so for video professionals. DVD formats are changing quickly, and Apple does not provide support for new technologies as fast as its Windows’ counterpart, if it does at all. Is anyone burning DVD+R using Apple products? No.

Every company lives or dies by the profit it makes. Before that, though, every company lives or dies by the relationships it has with its customers. It’s perfectly understandable to “not support” something like this, but it is another thing entirely to actively block it. Ultimately, attempts like this to control user behavior, whether in the software or hardware arena, will backfire; and Apple has more to lose than anyone when it does.