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I have to wonder what Jobs would do with this situation.
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I think there would be a standing ovation if one or more heads rolled.
Talk to queen of hearts from the wonderland . "Off with their heads"
 
They definitely lost their way. I wouldn't be surprised to find out Rose Gold was Ive's idea. As I said in another post, Apple's motto now is give them bling and they will come.

To be fair, Tim Cook said Rose Gold was specifically created for the Chinese market. And the sales results bear that out--Rose Gold sells in far, far higher numbers in China than anywhere else.

http://www.patentlyapple.com/patent...signed-with-the-chinese-consumer-in-mind.html

In our culture it's seen as sort of tasteless bling. But it wasn't made for us--it was made to capture a bigger slice of the 1 billion Chinese consumers.
 
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To be fair, Tim Cook said Rose Gold was specifically created for the Chinese market. And the sales results bear that out--Rose Gold sells in far, far higher numbers in China than anywhere else.

http://www.patentlyapple.com/patent...signed-with-the-chinese-consumer-in-mind.html

In our culture it's seen as sort of tasteless bling. But it wasn't made for us--it was made to capture a bigger slice of the 1 billion Chinese consumers.
fashionable consumers. What is it with them and rose gold?
 
Too risky.

macpro7,1 will be much like the tick of the tick tock cycle. Very few technical changes, radical form factor change. Don't expect the latest AMD silicon. Remember this is Apple, you will buy what they offer and you will like it.

Well, if they tweaked the form factor at least Fury is back in the running.

That's not great but better than Polaris at this point without the form factor constraints.
 
I have to wonder what Jobs would do with this situation.

Often folks invoke "Steve" when they want to play "if I had Steve's power this is what I would do" .... rather than what Steve would really do.

As if Jobs didn't help create and green light this. .... How many boxes with slots tossed up the return? Tossed Floppy drives and didn't look back despite lots of moaning and groaning. Optical drives and didn't look back despite moaning and groaning. Dropped XServe and didn't look back despite "mac is doomed without a server business" ... didn't look back.

Last big Mac intro orchestrated new improved future of Mac .... MBA. Trucks versus cars.

It isn't clear that Jobs didn't kill off the Mac Pro (hence long gap between 2013 version and forced to withdraw product from EU markets in early 2013. ). Apple easily could have do a 2012-2013 Mac Pro and then transitioned with better components in 2014.

Only hard to believe thing is that he would have let it go 3 years stale. Either pivot on the design, kill it , or move it forward. Hiding down the rabbit for 3 years.... that doesn't match the track record.
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From out of nowhere…
.....

Why? Word in Apple HQ is sales of the new form factor are disaster. Worse failure than Power Mac G4 Cube because studios and major buyers complained loudly and then switched to Windows workstations, hit Apple where they feel it.​


About zero empirical evidence to back this up.

#1 Initial Mac Pro sales were so scarce initially that it took 4 months go catch up to the backlog. The Cube never was in a state that long.

#2. Hit Apple where it hurts ........ they are billions poorer now in 2016 than there were in 2013. Not! Hit the balance sheet where? Mac sales were up until very recently. Whether Mac Pro sells well or not it has about zero impact on Apple's overall financials. So hurt where?

#3 Very substantial fractions of the "studio major buyers" bought Windows boxes before. Is Apple's subset smaller now. Probably. Was it relatively limited in the beginning... yes.

#4 Do sales over last 6-8 months suck? Probably. competitors release 2 more generations of product while you hide in the bottom of a rabbit hole..... probably are getting beat up. There are may better plans to minimize sales they could come up with to do a worse job. 3 years 2010->2013 a whole lot of mostly nothing. 2013 -> 2016 a whole lot of even more nothing. Who is going to wait for "end of the rainbow" machines on some rip van winkle release schedule?

The "don't tell anyone what you are going to do" works much better when actually doing things on a regular basis. "Less talking, more doing". "Less talking, less doing" ... is a slam dunk for your competitors salesforce.

Is the Rip Van Winkle schedule working for Apple's laptops ? Nope. The mini? Nope.

macOS Sierra RAID is not without purpose,

RAID never went away. The GUI did. The software was still there. ( frozen in time since 2009, but still there. )
If Apple brings back GUI to 2009 code what does that say?

Maybe going to have 2009 code run with new APFS volumes ? Or actually going to do something with the RAID code?


Even bigger complaint than loss of vast internal storage?

APFS is optimized for latency not bandwidth. Fusion is a "maybe we aren't sure" feature. Optimized for SSD (which isn't vast amounts of internal storage). So.... aligned to big new commitment to lots of spinners? Not really.


I have seen. Not conventional tower but maybe just as good. Or maybe not. Far superior to Tube Trash Can. Don’t expect anything like cMP tower.

Seen in a dream?

 
This concept? Would have loved a Mac Pro like this.

pro-configurations.jpeg
those things may look stout in 2D..
wobbly af irl.
just saying.
 
From out of nowhere…


The nMP is going down the tubes. Cancelled. EOL. In the trash can.

Why? Word in Apple HQ is sales of the new form factor are disaster. Worse failure than Power Mac G4 Cube because studios and major buyers complained loudly and then switched to Windows workstations, hit Apple where they feel it.

But Mac Pro is not over. Factory now retooled for 7,1.

macOS Sierra RAID is not without purpose, but no current Macs have a use for RAID. But macpro7,1 will.

Even bigger complaint than loss of vast internal storage? Loss of PCIe slots. Typical studio invested tens of thousands in PCIe hardware now useless with tubular Mac Pro. Easier to switch to Windows than invest in TB. macpro7,1 changes the game.

I have seen. Not conventional tower but maybe just as good. Or maybe not. Far superior to Tube Trash Can. Don’t expect anything like cMP tower.​

Do you also write for The Onion?
 
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If they don't make a cheese grader type desktop make it stackable / dockable.

I mean one component stacks on top of the next and each has a dock port on it's bottom and top to snap the next piece in. Like the rumors we had. Don't daisy chain connections between via TB2, have it built in.
that's already how it is though.. i mean, apple even advertises it as such..


http://www.apple.com/mac-pro/
"In creating a pro computer for the future, we wanted to provide an enormous amount of expansion — without being limited to the space inside the enclosure. Designed with built-in Thunderbolt 2, USB 3, Gigabit Ethernet, and HDMI 1.4 ports, Mac Pro sets a new standard in flexible, high-performance expansion. It’s our most expandable Mac yet. And it has everything you need to build a workstation completely customized to what you need and how you work."

I'm not really seeing the benefit of having/needing particular component/enclosures that only work and stack with this particular computer.. it's much more limiting of a set up i think.


...
also, that aside.
it's simply not in the apple design language to have a bunch of pieces click clacking together like that.

or- whether or not it's a good idea, apple is about the last company you should expect to build it.. probably seek other manufacturers if it's truly something you think you'd want in a computer.
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I have a theory that one reason why we are at +900 days is because the nMP turned out to be a sales and PR bomb like the OP suggested.

i have a theory that pretty much everybody who is going to buy a nmp already has one.. so they have to wait 3-4 years in between models so they can sell a new one to those same people again..
the interim models would just be internet arguing fodder but probably a loss of money to apple.
 
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...
My Magic Eighth Ball predicts a single CPU machine based partially on the current motherboard with the GPU moved to PCI connectors from the current proprietary type. They'll most likely throw in a new case that can be rack mounted,

Rack mounted is an Apple priority? It wasn't for the 2006-2012 versions. it is a retreat back to the XServe. ... probably not coming any time soon. Even back when they had a more conventional tower it wasn't a priority.


That buys Apple some time to design a completely new machine with dual CPU and PCI slots for release in the next year or two.

Yeah and I'm waiting on Halle Berry to call me back for that lunch date ...... probably not going to happen.

Intel just announced 72 cores in a single socket.

http://top500.org/news/intel-takes-on-nvidia-with-knights-landing-launch/


http://www.nextplatform.com/2016/06/20/intel-knights-landing-yields-big-bang-buck-jump/

Not that Apple is going to use it (doubt macOS scales that high well anyway), but "dual sockets" as a necessity to get to high core counts ..... that isn't the future growth target for the desktop over next 2-3 years.
 
i have a theory that pretty much everybody who is going to buy a nmp already has one.. so they have to wait 3-4 years in between models so they can sell a new one to those same people again..

I doubt your theory, but if it's true, then Apple has really lost touch with how the industry works and fully deserves their workstation to fail.
 
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Rack mounted is an Apple priority? It wasn't for the 2006-2012 versions. it is a retreat back to the XServe. ... probably not coming any time soon. Even back when they had a more conventional tower it wasn't a priority.

Let me clarify that. More or less rack mountable and I didn't say it was a priority for Apple in a new design. But I'm pretty sure it's been a major complaint from a lot of people. The ability to mount a self contained machine into something like a rack or anvil case is a priority for many industries. It was also pretty common to see the 5,1 stacked in the machine room of a facility. Kind of hard to do with a tube shaped computer that has a dozen gadgets hanging off the back via Thunderbolt and USB3 cables...

So, you're right, not rack mountable like the X Serve was, but more rack mountable than the tube simply by being box shaped in some form.


Yeah and I'm waiting on Halle Berry to call me back for that lunch date ...... probably not going to happen.

I just got off the phone with Halle. Better cancel that reservation.


Intel just announced 72 cores in a single socket.

http://top500.org/news/intel-takes-on-nvidia-with-knights-landing-launch/


http://www.nextplatform.com/2016/06/20/intel-knights-landing-yields-big-bang-buck-jump/

Not that Apple is going to use it (doubt macOS scales that high well anyway), but "dual sockets" as a necessity to get to high core counts ..... that isn't the future growth target for the desktop over next 2-3 years.

It's cheaper to get a high core count running at a high frequency in a dual proc system, than with a single CPU box. The nMP is a prime example of why a single CPU machine is a bad idea.

I agree that the trend is to offloaded more and more work to the GPU, but it's no magic cure all. There are many tasks for which you still need a lot of CPU horsepower. How about we just ask both?
 
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i have a theory that pretty much everybody who is going to buy a nmp already has one.. so they have to wait 3-4 years in between models so they can sell a new one to those same people again..

I'm not entirely sure that's what happened, which is why I halfway believe this story (but it's also the internet where anyone can post. OP could be MacVidCards for all I know. :p )

Certain things I've heard were in the works have not come to pass, and a three year lag seems way too long. Either Apple pulled back from plans, or Apple is doing a course change.

Adding to my suspicions is that a lot of the new parts from AMD and Intel don't really fit well into the nMP's profile. I don't know if Apple would go back to a full tower. But three years would clear the deck enough they could do some significant strategy tweaks without it looking like the totally screwed up with the nMP by shifting strategies so close to it's release.

Or Apple doesn't really care and we'll get a warmed over nMP in the fall. Who knows?
 
I knew that one last thing moment should have been Tim Phil and Craig to be waterboarded. It would have been the highlight.

That aside...my theory is that either They had too much mushroom or....(yeah remember magic Mickey Mouse 2 where they plug the lightening connector on the groin area?)

Or
They really meant keeping nMP for 10 years.
 
...The nMP is going down the tubes. Cancelled. EOL. In the trash can.

Why? Word in Apple HQ is sales of the new form factor are disaster...​

Well this makes total sense, and is therefore exactly what Apple won't do. Prepare for trashcan 2.0.

I think that it's unlikely that many folks will leave Windows to go back to Apple. Once you've bought into a different eco-system, a minor Apple OSX update isn't going to bring you back.

Unless Apple introduces a new, expandable Mac Pro with PCIe slots and NVMe drives and internal storage, and announces an organizational update that creates a "Mac Pro Czar" tasked with undoing the damage from the last six years of utter neglect.

Tim's "laser focus" is on rose gold iToys. Plain and simple. (And introducing a laptop with only one port signals that the focus is on turning Macs into iToys.

It's nice to see a lack of white knights in this thread. Although I haven't cared to look through the forums in a long time so maybe the climate has changed.

Unless Apple hits a home run with the next MacPro it's hard to see people staying much less coming back. What kind of signal would Trashcan 2.0 send to users? We don't care about users? Prepare to upgrade a graphics card every 3years with 5k? Don't depend on a 12-18month refresh cycle anymore (incase that's not obvious by now)? Maybe in another 5yrs we'll have a new screen to go with your new mac pro?

The key word that gave value to Apple's brand as you mentioned was ecosystem. But as you point out, in the myopic focus on quarterly profits and igadgets there's no bigger picture. iCloud sucks, Siri sucks, Maps suck, yearly unfinished OS/iOS releases suck, iTunes sucks, notifications you can't get rid of suck, even the iPhone itself sucks with it's 16gb hamstrung entry level storage and pimple-cam design. Similarly other aspects like tech support are definitely not what they used to be. I could go on but people are either onboard or delusional.

Apple's brand used to represent a premium polished product, these days it's looking more like a thin layer of chipped paint.
 
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Often folks invoke "Steve" when they want to play "if I had Steve's power this is what I would do" .... rather than what Steve would really do...
You know D60, you come in here with your facts, and your references to actual things and events that actually took place, and your informed opinions based on, like, real knowledge and stuff, and you just expect people to buy it. It makes me laugh. You're agenda, well, it's pretty obvious... a bias toward, like, reasoning and rational thought, and I think I can speak for everyone here when I say that we don't really care... I mean, really, why should actual reality trump my reality? I mean, go ahead, take the blue pill, and we'll take the red pill, err... wait, I think it's the other way around, but all I know is we like to stay out of the rabbit holes.

You on the other hand, you, like, show up in all these threads where we just want a place to not have to worry about reality, you know? And you should know, we will not break - we know in our heart of hearts that even though Apple sells, like, 20 million Macs every year, the company is run by a bunch of idiots who obviously have no idea what they're doing. It's too bad they have no experience in doing anything that involves professional people using computers... just a bunch of dunder heads lucky enough to be able to press a button and out pops the latest iToy. Just think of how much they're being held back... if only we could somehow swap Apple's management team for, let's say HP's... then Apple might really start kicking some ass again. Well, we can dream...
 
Growing increasingly frustrated with Apple. Over 900 days since a pro workstation has seen any improvement is unforgivable. I Don't blame anyone for going to Windows workstations. To my utter surprise I find myself nearly going that way as well. If only we didn't have to live with the Windows 10 (which is decent, tho terribly data snooping) way of doing things. I want MacOS on much more recent hardware, free from Apple's insane sluggishness to update and ever increasing lockdowns of control over everything, from upgradeability to software intrusion. "You have updates available"...and no you can't shut me up... and yes you must click on me to dismiss. Well, I run workstation applications and I don't want your broken update yet!
That, in all the Macs I oversee, and in iPhones and iPads. With no option to say "shut up and let me manage it." Right in the middle of presentations, message pops up for phone or iPad update. Unbelievable, they've become Windows xp completely in that way.
Apple's response? Yay we've got a new and faster WatchOS!

Not VR capable. Will sell you a new (3 years dated) Mac Pro for the same price as release day. Will intrude right the middle of your software with update pop-ups (those are specially awesome on Pages and Numbers.) Oh, by the way, your CPU is fine, but if you want a new GPU you'll have to wait 3 years.... ..... and.... buy a new computer... except we haven't finished working on it yet.... soo...

Anyone else feeling like our preferred platform has lost its way?

I very nearly went back to PC for good very recently and the only reason I didn't is because I couldn't sell my nMP without loosing a ton of cash through eBay fees - it's difficult to sell a £4k computer anywhere else. the amount I would end up with was around the amount it would cost me to upgrade the PC I have to an X99 setup. So I decided to keep it - lightroom runs on Mac and PC, as does PhotoMechanic. I keep most of my office data in Dropbox, so there's no need to have desktop and laptop on the same platform. I will need a laptop for my mobile VM lab later in the year however, and I can't see me getting anything than a Dell Precision 5510 at this point in time. Apple simply don't make anything that meets my requirements as I need more than 16GB RAM.
 
Too risky.

macpro7,1 will be much like the tick of the tick tock cycle. Very few technical changes, radical form factor change. Don't expect the latest AMD silicon. Remember this is Apple, you will buy what they offer and you will like it.

OK No One whatever you say, tick of the tick tock cycle eh!
Oh and I know its Apple and I won't necesarrily buy what they offer and I won't necessarily like it, just like the Trash Can attempt. If it ain't right this time, bye bye mac pro, hello pro pc.
 
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Back, from the Hell, AMD stopped all Fury GPU production, was reported today, NO AMD Fury on upcoming Macs
Link? Tried searching but didn't find anything.
Information came from retail line.

AMD does not accept orders for Fury series based on all Fiji ASIC.

The problem is this: they still offer Pro Duo, and S9300X2. So maybe that information was only about orders for Fury series chips, the retail ones?

And they still can produce S9300X2, and Pro Duo. If thats the case - then there is still room to offer this GPU in Mac Pro.
So it's game over?
Maybe Apple will bring a platform that will attract much more developers than before? Maybe they will attract much more people than before?

Current platform was stagnating for years. Not only past 3-4 years. It was much longer period of time. Only way for growth is with attracting more people to their platforms. Developers also. There is at least few "sparks" that show thats what Apple want to go.
 
that's already how it is though.. i mean, apple even advertises it as such..


http://www.apple.com/mac-pro/
"In creating a pro computer for the future, we wanted to provide an enormous amount of expansion — without being limited to the space inside the enclosure. Designed with built-in Thunderbolt 2, USB 3, Gigabit Ethernet, and HDMI 1.4 ports, Mac Pro sets a new standard in flexible, high-performance expansion. It’s our most expandable Mac yet. And it has everything you need to build a workstation completely customized to what you need and how you work."

I'm not really seeing the benefit of having/needing particular component/enclosures that only work and stack with this particular computer.. it's much more limiting of a set up i think.


...
also, that aside.
it's simply not in the apple design language to have a bunch of pieces click clacking together like that.

or- whether or not it's a good idea, apple is about the last company you should expect to build it.. probably seek other manufacturers if it's truly something you think you'd want in a computer.
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i have a theory that pretty much everybody who is going to buy a nmp already has one.. so they have to wait 3-4 years in between models so they can sell a new one to those same people again..

Bad theory. I wanted a new Mac Pro - but due to the offering Apple chose, I bought a 2nd hand 12-core 2009 Mac Pro instead of the new one. Had the new one been more suited to my needs (audio workstation), they would have gotten my money. And obviously I am not alone with the opinion that the nMP was a bad offering for many pro uses.
 
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