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Technology Stocks : Apple Inc. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Marc Newman who wrote (24084)	4/16/1999 1:32:00 PM
From: Don Green	Respond to of 213177

The Lure Of Vaio Gets Lost In Windows fm: techweb.com By Randy Whitted, TechWeb contributor Apple has some pretty good "wows" -- the iMac, the new Bondi blue G3, the Powerbook G3 -- but that doesn't mean there's nothing else cool out there. Recently, I've been tempted by a Windows machine or two with cutting-edge specs and low prices. I always believe Apple is on the verge of delivering a drop-dead killer Mac that will finally silence PC bigots. Still, I am always on the lookout for PCs that are evolving to become more Mac-like. For a brief moment, I thought Sony's Vaio might be the one. Are PCs evolving to become more Mac-like? Will there be a time soon when Mac users need to look no further? What do you think? Back in the Mac clone days, Sony was making some strong hints at wanting a cloning arrangement with Apple. What a match that would have been! Two innovative companies that throw standards to the wind in efforts to create exciting products that capture the imagination as well as fill real needs. The deal never happened, but that didn't slow Sony. Its Vaio computer reflects the kind of innovation and style that is typically trademark Apple. Also, like Macs, Vaio is not very upgradeable or expandable. It is a bit expensive, and statistically speaking, it isn't the "latest and greatest" machine on the shelf. Still, Vaio sports a unique design and proprietary technologies. It is positioned as a digital-media homebase, storing still images, recording video, and editing audio, all with its own impressive software. Most include the ability to import video from your Sony camcorder, edit that video as it arrives, and record it to the built-in CD-RW drive -- unless you have a Sony MiniDisc recorder, in which case you can record directly to MiniDisc. So, if Sony's Vaio line bears many of the same ideals and implementations that draw me to the PowerMac, why not make the switch? As slick as these Sony systems are, they suffer by being tied to the clumsy Windows operating system. It's a genuine shame, especially considering what they could have done with the Mac OS running on their stuff. Suprisingly, though, the Sony Windows experience is the best I've seen -- you almost forget you¹re using Windows at times because Sony has included so many of its own software solutions to get around Windows clumsiness. Even the mouse tracks like a Mac. But the bottom line is it's still Windows and it really makes me bummed for Sony. With its implementation of FireWire, video-capture software, and complete consumer solutions, we're beginning to see the visions Sony had for great computers to go with its impressive cameras, audio equipment, and myriad other technologies. It's no wonder it pursued Apple for a clone license -- the two would have made a great team. A Vaio computer is tempting, but I think I'd get too depressed having my hands on what could have been the ultimate PC. Apple's "wows" still win, I tell myself grudgingly. Regardless of the hardware, I just don't see a reason to restrict myself with an obtrusive, presumptuous, clumsy OS. Sorry, Sony

To: Marc Newman who wrote (24084)	4/16/1999 1:40:00 PM
From: J R KARY	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 213177

Share buy-back is overdue ; insiders have been compensated , amend the plan Shareholders also buy computers and happy shareholders buy colorful computers .... Marc you sure have a point: >> "...never includes buying back stock and thus increasing shareholder value. " << I suspect with all the executives regularly supplementing their income without compunction a buy back would be rightly perceived as being abused . It seems the new option (conversion) plan did not have a time period hold so they are running to the well as fast as they can . &%$$#@&% It should be updated before any buy back is implemented . Jim K.