Pricing Up a New Maxed Out MacBook Pro Max

I typically buy a new personal laptop computer every 5-6 years. I was a diehard Windows person until Windows Vista came along when I crossed over to the Mac world. I've been a Mac person ever since.

Because I keep my computers for a long time, when I buy I always load up on hardware. I typically go for the fastest processor, most memory and the largest storage drive.  Today I decided to price up a new loaded MackBook M3 Max and was blown away by the price - $7200!

Pondering, I decided to skip the $19 Apple Polishing Cloth. I can always pick one up later.

Granted, maxed out the configuration is for high end niche users and not users like me. My 14 inch M1 Pro is only two years old with 16 GB RAM and a 1 TB SSD so..... I'll just hang on to that for now.

Corporate Mac Attack

The May 12 issue of Business Week Magazine has an interesting cover story titled The Mac in the Gray Flannel Suit. The story discusses how Apple computers are moving into the corporate market and has some interesting stats - here's a few listed:

• Mac computer sales have risen 51% over last year. This is three time the PC industry rate.
• Combining Mac, iPod and iPhone, Apple sales have risen from $5.2 billion in 2002 to $24 billion in 2007.
• Apple stock shares have risen 2,300% over the past 5 years
• Apple has predicted a 33% second quarter revenue increase, even in the face of economic slowdown.
• The Yankee Group, after surveying 250 companies, found that 87% have at least one Apple computer in their office. This compares to 48% two years ago.
• The average price of a Mac is $1,526.
• The average price of a PC is $963.

Macs are hitting the corporate world for a number of reasons - here's the top 5 according to the Business Week story:

1. Consumer Clout - more business people are looking at a Mac as a PC alternative.
2. Snazzy Software - Mac's operating system, OS X, is (according to many) superior to Microsoft Windows in lots of ways. Many also believe OS X is less vulnerable to hackers and viruses.
3. Web Computing - many believe (including myself) that desktop applications installed on hard drives (like Microsoft Office) will eventually be replaced by applications that run on the web.
4. Vista Debacle - Only 10% of the corporate world has adopted Windows Vista. This has created an opportunity for Apple.
5. Recruitment - Mac popularity on campus is rising. 42% of students surveyed by the Student Monitor say they want a Mac. This is up from 8% in 2003.

From an academic perspective I find Number 5, the recruitment item, most interesting. Are our classrooms and labs ready? Eric Well, managing partner for the Student Monitor says "Many of today's technology decision makers will ultimately be replaced by Mac users."

Pick up the latest copy of Business Week Magazine and read the entire article. For all of us in the academic world..... if we haven't yet...... it's time to start looking at including Macs in our curriculum.

MacBook Air Hacked

The ninth annual CanSecWest 2008 Conference was held last week in Vancouver, British Columbia. CanSecWest focuses on applied digital security, bringing together ndustry luminaries in a relaxed environment that promotes collaboration and social networking.

A crowd favorite at the conference has been the hacking contest and last week the tradition continued. This year's target machines were Ubuntu, Vist and OSX based. Here's details on the contest from the CanSecWest website:

Three targets, all patched. All in typical client configurations with typical user configurations. You hack it, you get to keep it.

Each has a file on them and it contains the instructions and how to claim the prize.

Targets (typical road-warrior clients):

• VAIO VGN-TZ37CN running Ubuntu 7.10
• Fujitsu U810 running Vista Ultimate SP1
• MacBook Air running OSX 10.5.2

This year's contest will begin on March 26th, and go during the presentation hours and breaks of the conference until March 28th. The main purpose of this contest is to present new vulnerabilities in these systems so that the affected vendor(s) can address them. Participation is open to any registered attendee of CanSecWest 2008.

Once you extract your claim ticket file from a laptop (note that doing so will involve executing code on the box, simple directory traversal style bugs are inadequate), you get to keep it. You also get to participate in 3com / Tipping Point's Zero Day Initiative, with the top award for remote, pre-auth, vulnerabilities being increased this year. Fine print and details on the cash prizes are available from Tipping Point's DVLabs blog.

Quick Overview:

• Limit one laptop per contestant.
• You can't use the same vulnerability to claim more than one box, if it is a cross-platform issue.
• Thirty minute attack slots given to contestants at each box.
• Attack slots will be scheduled at the contest start by the methods selected by the judges.
• Attacks are done via crossover cable. (attacker controls default route)
• RF attacks are done offsite by special arrangement...
• No physical access to the machines.
• Major web browsers (IE, Safari, Konqueror, Firefox), widely used and deployed plugin frameworks (AIR, Silverlight), IM clients (MSN, Adium, Skype, Pigdin, AOL, Yahoo), Mail readers (Outlook, Mail.app, Thunderbird, kmail) are all in scope.

Here's the results according to Heiss Online:

Of three laptops to be hacked, the MacBook Air with Mac OS X 10.5.2 was the first to fall victim to crack attempts of participants in the PWN to OWN contest at CanSecWest. The laptops with Windows Vista SP1 and Ubuntu 7.10 remain uncompromised. According to information provided by organizers of the TippingPoint competition, Charlie Miller, Jake Honoroff and Mark Daniel of security service provider Independent Security Evaluator were able to take control of the device through a hole in the Safari web browser. The vulnerability has supposedly not yet been made public and is still under wraps until Apple is able to provide a patch. In addition to $10,000 prize money, the winners also get to keep the MacBook as a bonus.

Here's more on the contest from ChannelWeb:

The vulnerability has been purchased by the Zero Day Initiative, and has been made known to to Apple, which is now working on the issue, TippingPoint said. "Until Apple releases a patch for this issue, neither we nor the contestants will be giving out any additional information about the vulnerability."

Microsoft Loving Apple These Days?

I've written about my new Mac in the past and thought it was about time to write about it again. Prior to the release of the iPhone, Apple was running those ads with Justin Long, the hip young guy who used to be on the Ed show, and John Hodgman who (in the commercials) bears a rather strong resemblance to a tight cheap-suited/sportcoated, un-hemmed pants, bad hair day, chubby version of Bill Gates. I'm sure you've seen at least one of them - here's a collection of all 15 of them a user has put on YouTube.

Well done and yes they make me smile! Apple is really letting Microsoft have it huh? My first impression was yes but let's think about this a bit. Mike Q sent me an email last week saying that one out of every six notebook computers sold in the U.S. is now an Apple. I seriously doubt these are first time computer users and the majority of them are PC converts like Mike, myself and many of our academic and business/industry colleagues.

What's the first thing a PC convert asks when they decide to take a close look at the Apple machines? Does it run Windows?! The answer used to be no but today, with Intel processors and applications like Bootcamp, Parallels and VMWare, both the Apple and Windows operating systems can co-exist on the same machine. In the case of Parallels and VMWare, both operating systems can be used simultaneously.

Microsoft has to be loving this - the company doesn't sell hardware - they sell software. Let's take a look at what the average user will spend from a Microsoft product perspective starting with a new Mac user who is a Windows "convert" and still wants/needs Windows apps:

Parallels Desktop 3.0 for Mac (non-Microsoft product): $79.99
Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate: $209.79
Microsoft Office 2007 Professional for Windows: $499.95
Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac: $399.00

[note: all Microsoft prices from Microsoft website]

Adding up just the Microsoft applications gives $1108.74! What's really interesting is the fact that many (including myself) actually purchase two versions of Office that run on the same machine. Of course people can get away with upgrade pricing or get academic pricing (yes I did) if eligible. This drops the price a bit but you get the idea.

Now again, from a Microsoft product perspective, let's take a look at the purchase of a new Dell notebook - let's say a new Business Class Lattitude.

Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate: $209.79 (it's likely a lot less $ for Microsoft since Dell gets volume pricing from Microsoft)
Microsoft Office 2007 Professional for Windows: $499.95

[note: all Microsoft prices from Microsoft website]

Adding these numbers gives $709.74 - still a hefty sum but less.

Laugh at the ads if you wish - people at Microsoft have to be smiling. Of course the real threat to Microsoft is not Apple - it's the free webware apps like ThinkFree, Google Docs and Spreadsheets, Zoho, etc......

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Read Show Notes and listen to Mike Q and my latest Podcast titled Enterprise 2.0 linked here.
Podcasts also free on iTunes.
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