[Macworld]

Post your comments for How many MacBooks? here

[dreyfus]

I am using Apple hardware since 1983 and since 2004 I have been buying an average of 2-3 machines annually (counting only the private ones, not the company equipment). In all this time my only defects were a broken hinge on a Titanium Book (I think everybody had that defect) and a leaking liquid cooling on a Dual CPU 2,7GHz G5 PowerMac. Nothing else in 26 years, and I have been carrying my books between desert and rain forrest.
So, your interpretation that "Apple has a reputation for screwy hardware" does rather point at a severe problem in front of the computer. I heard Panasonic makes suitable books for convinced bumpkins.

[ARM]

Yep, I love my Clamshell. Not a single defect for 9 years, and I'm still using it now.

[RamaFan]

Sounds to me like you lug your computers around like they are sacks of potatoes. Treat them a little more carefully and you probably won't have as many problems.
I've had a Compaq laptop for six years that's got only the problem of a dead battery and my newer iMac is humming along nicely since I run Onyx and iAntivirus once a month.
I have plenty of friends that seem to think that a laptop should be tough enough to throw around just because they are portable and end up with many of the same problems you describe.

[Greenldr]

I had a MBP for 3-years, and now the new unibody MBP since the day they were released. My wife has had her white MB for 3 1/2 years. My wife and I have both had iPhones since the day they were available. I have 1 airport extreme going on 1-year of age, along with 2 airport expresses.
My brother had a G5 for 4 years, and now a Mac Pro for 1-year. My mother has had her Intel iMac for almost 3-years.
Not one person that I know has every had a single issue that required taking the computer to the Apple Genius. I have had to call Apple Care a total of 2-times in 4-years, but the initial steps you outlined here always has fixed the problem.
So, I really don't buy the point you are trying to make, although the steps you outlined are a good guide for anyone who does have an issue.

[Kees]

I currently have a G4 mini that's on 24/7 as a media server, a 20" intel iMac for 'work' stuff and my old 12" PowerBook for couch surfing.
None of them have ever developed a problem I couldn't solve with a restart.
What are you doing to these Macs of yours??

[spinoza2]

I can also vouch for having a house full of Apple products, including the 3-year old MacBook Pro I'm using to type this, and I can't recall ever having a true hardware or software failure with any of them. I say “true” because I''ve had issues, but they can always traced back to my lack of knowledge of the product, or that there was a there was a relatively easy fix. My MacBook Pro is on several hours a day, and like a classic Volvo it just goes and goes and goes.
The problem with this article is that it's so poorly conceived: in order to grab attention the author tries to generalize and at least imply this reflects a broader reality. If he had made clear that he was having some freakishly unusual problems with his Macs, perhaps with a little humor, then getting in the tips for troubleshooting would have been effective. Reliability and customer satisfaction statistics, along with legions of satisfied Mac owners who I suspect will also take issue with this article, will demonstrate a very different picture.
This author's particular problems can be traced not to defective Macs, but rather because it sounds like he's frying his computers with lots of weird software, hardware, and unusual configurations. And this, I know from experience with other Mac-owning acquaintances, is a very common problem.

[ChrisLJ]

I'm on my five year old iBook right now. Never had a problem on it or my three other Macs.
I would imagine his computers are rebelling at having to repeatedly, day after day, digest all of the idiotic drivel that Ihnatko pumps out.
Look at his article. have you ever seen such a waste of words. He can take a simple thought that could be expressed in ten words and stretch it out to ten thousand.
What's worse is listening to him. Try MacBreak Weekly sometime. He makes it absolutely painful. I would imagine he literally sucks all of the oxygen out of the room he occupies.

[skipaq]

Let's see:
One Mac Plus that's still running that had the power supply replaced once.
One IIVX that was still running when sold after 5 years.
One Performa 6400 that still ran when sold after 3 years.
One Power Mac G4 that still runs; my son is using it.
One Pismo PowerBook that still runs; but needs a new battery.
One iMac 20" 2.66ghz that I'm using right now. Running day and night for a year.
My wife's PowerBook (white) 6 months of flawless use.
Also, I've lost track of most of the iMac and eMac G3, G4, and G5's that I bought for business. Business closed couple years ago. Macs given to grandkids, friends etc. over the years. Haven't heard of any dead ones as yet.
I have had to replace a hard drive now and again. I have had to troubleshoot some software problems now and again. Mostly from kids and grandkids downloading any old thing and installing it. That isn't a bad record for 25+ years of using Macs. Oh! I almost forgot. I did get one virus on the Mac Plus about 23 years ago. ;(

[LFransson]

Screwy hardware? My mother's G4, from way back when 350 MHz was not terribly slow (is that almost ten years ago?), is still running fine with minimal attention to maintenance. My G5 has been cruising along for several years also. G4 iBook worked great while I had it. White MacBook worked great, current aluminum MacBook, no problems (except with external video, which we haven't yet proven is the Mac's problem). Perhaps Mr. Ihnatko is the defective one.

[pkay]

I agree with most people that Apple hardware is NOT "screwy". What a load of CR@P! (parsing that one is easy).
What I would say is that managing file synchronization (of my entire professional life's file cabinet of stuff) and preferences and OS updates and sysadmin tasks for a bunch of Macs is a challenge. It is doable, however, and that thanks to Mac OS X and unix, etc. But the last thing I worry about is hardware failure, especially of the completely dead type.
Nice try Andy. While you've provided a genuinely useful checklist for emergency resuscitation (resurrection?) I think that you are far out on the tail of the distribution of Mac users when it comes to tales of system reliability.

[albertw]

Well, one the one hand: sorry for your troubles. On the other: A good laugh at the troubles of others is cathartic. One a third hand (spits and makes the sign of the cross.*) I've been pretty lucky - so far. Story, story, story... Long ago in Peru - I tumbled over a small little cliff into a big river. I had my PowerBook 140 in my backpack. When I discovered I wasn't dead, I assumed my PB certainly would be. 3 weeks later, on a mere whim of wishing, I tried starting it... It still worked!

*Sorry Mom & Dad, but Jews just haven't been all that lucky. Just look at Job

[Lisamacnewton]

One 2001 G5 PPC &
One 233mhz Lime Clamshell, 1998 &
One iPhone 3G, 2008 &
One iPod Classic, 2008 &
One iPod Nano, 2004 &
One iPod Video, 2003 &
One iPod 4th Gen, 2003 &
One iPod 5th Gen, 2006 &
Leopard install (2007) on PPC hard drive=
One call in 11 years (iPod Classic lost some rasters). Can't say that about husband's/son's laptops.......but funny article, nonetheless! (:

[Lisamacnewton]

oh yeah, forgot to mention my Performa 6400, Performa 600 and Quadra 840......nope. No problems there either!