(Sigh.) As tends to be the case with Tom Bux, this entry is rife with inaccuracies. Apple Computer warranties its computers for one year. One can buy extended warranties at reasonable prices. Apple will repair some out-of-warranty computers if the problems began while a warranty was in force. Customer service is free for that item for the first year.

As some of you know, I had my PowerBook G4 repaired the week of Christmas. The customer service person who was supposed to have renewed my warranty more than a year ago messed up the paperwork, charging the cost to an old credit card number, which bounced it back. Even so, after a couple of escalations, Apple repaired the computer free of charge, including a new logic board, interior chassis and screen (which I may not have needed). Apple also gave me an additional three months warranty coverage.

I don't understand why people don't research factual matters before posting entries about them. I'll be blogging that issue later today.

I'm talking about Tech Support. LEARN...TO....READ.

And to think, when my business paid for my .mac service I put you down to get the 20% referral discount.

I guess I shouldn't try being nice any more.

You said 90 days. It is a year, Bux.

Oh, BTW, this is what I'm referring to.
Apple Support

Also, in case you don't want to click the link here it is for you right brained types.

oops, here it is
For you right brained types.

And, Apple is not a charity. I just read this month's Mac World, print and forums, and I think there is far too much sniping about the iLife programs. Considering how much is included, the price is fair. Apple may have spoiled people in the past by giving software away.

I don't mind paying for iPhoto, but I have no need for iMovie, iDVD and have no desire for GarageBand. So why should I pay 50 bucks for all this crap I don't need. I think they could make more money by selling a la carte.
I would pay $15 or so for iPhoto.

Your position on customer service is still not accurate. If the computer is still under warranty, tech support will take your call. That is the real determinant. How else would they know when warrantied computers fail? Osmosis? Apple and other tech support offices may not want to take calls beyond a short period, but they do. If they didn't, they would be subject to legal action from the consumer protection departments of all the states. If a company warranties a product, it has a legal duty to honor that warranty, including providing an avenue for complaints without charging during the warrantied period. Afterward, they can charge.

Yes, they could sell each program ala carte. But, it is much easier to sell them together. The cost of packaging and selling each one separately would probably push their prices up, so that one would be paying $25 for one program. I suppose an alternative would be to allow people to upgrade electronically by clicking a button and paying as Apple does for Quicktime Pro. But, people like tangible stuff. They often want that software disc in a box. I doubt going to downloading product by product for free would work.

I am not opposed to criticizing Apple or anything else I am a participant in. I just think there should be good grounds for criticism.

They can sell iPhoto as a download.

They promote all this digital hub stuff and .mac among others, can't they use your .mac account or allow it as a free download?

iPhoto, along with the whole suite, is $49. That's not a lot of money. iPhoto alone is worth 49 bucks.

If you want to be cheap, just download some free ware app, or use the software that came with your camera.

Also, is your current version of iPhoto broken somehow? Is it not as usefull now that an update is available?

Well, at least we are having a conversation, now, Bux.

Tom, if the current version of iPhoto is working for you on your current Mac hardware, why do you need to upgrade?

And if the price for the upgrade is too much, why don't you buy third party applications which will do less for more?

After all, you could spend hundreds for Photoshop.

Yes, I kinda resent having to pay for the OS upgrades, but, if the company is be profitable, it has to charge for its products.

Your other choice is to go for free open source X11 apps, but then you have to spend time compiling and learning command line apps.

You could roll your own computer system from scratch, and then you would have much more to whine about.

The other suggestion I'm going to make to Bux is a follow-up to Jim's. Source Forge has a lot of Linux aps rewritten for the Mac. Some are shareware, but many are free. I use one of them, GIMP Print, to run my Epson all-in-one, which the manufacturer never produced a driver for. Perhaps Source Forge will meet some people's needs more cheaply than Apple can. I was going to link to SF, but the site is down for maintenance. People who are interested can Google or type the two words into their browser's address bar. I am sure the unavailability is temporary.

om, if the current version of iPhoto is working for you on your current Mac hardware, why do you need to upgrade?


As I said, I hate forced bundling. I would gladly pay $15 or $20 for iPhoto, but iTunes is free, and the other programs are worthless to me.

Apple does provide only 90 days of phone support, as is clearly stated in both the original review and at the link(s) Tom provided. Fortunately for me, I live three miles from an Apple Store, where that sort of support is always free. <grin>

As far as the iPhoto upgrade, sorry Tom, them's the breaks. The program you have now was free, and you clearly enjoy it. Be happy. Or, pay $49 for the newest version and get a bunch of other cool stuff thrown in for free. Or buy a competitor for more or less than $49, and enjoy it instead. Or become a student somewhere and get iLife '04 for the educational price of $29.

ULead Photo Explorer is popular, only $24.95, and has a free trial. There are other options listed on Download.com and probably at VersionTracker, too, though I didn't check that one for you.

Bottom line: You have iPhoto 2 for free. It works well enough, or you wouldn't be using it. If you can find a better program for less than $49, buy it!

How quickly we forget that they threatened to start charging for these program last year. We've all known it was coming, and we got another free year and another free update out of the deal. Yay!

And insurance companies always deny your first claim. If the computer is still under warranty, emphasize that and Apple will take your call. Trying to get rid of complaints is Business 101. Warranties for merchantability are Contracts are 101. Just press your case and the latter will win out. Businesses include all kind of non-supportable language on receipts and, more recently, on web sites. But, the practices are not legal in most states.

If you read the example I offered above, we are talking out about a computer that was out of warranty (though not the buyer's fault) for nearly a year. Not only did Apple take at least a dozen calls free, it damn near rebuilt my TiBook and gave me additional months on a warranty for free. And, no, I never said the magic word 'lawyer.' So, if you encounter a tech support person who tells you he won't take the call after 90 days (I never have) press on. Insurance companies? They get rid of most of their claims by discouraging people at the beginning of the process. Don't fall for it.

Mac Diva - being that I'm currently a licensed insurance agent in two states (including the one where you reside) and have owned my own agency for almost 10 years now, I know firsthand professionally for a fact that this statement is totally bogus:

Insurance companies? They get rid of most of their claims by discouraging people at the beginning of the process. Don't fall for it.

Get rid of "most" of their claims? Most. No way! Do you know what kind of uprising there would be if this were really true?

This blanket statement regarding insurance companies claim practices is factually, indisputably bogus.

If you think differently, then please provide some shred of proof that "most" of the claims actually submitted are discouraged. Please.

I know the millions of dollars in claims that our agency alone has paid out versus the very tiny number of "denied" claims doesn't even come close to passing the "some" test, much less the "most" test. And there are over 10,000 agents representing the same company as I, so do the math.

With all this said, warranty programs and insurance contracts should not be so haphazardly mixed up here.

A warranty program is different than an insurance policy on many levels. I'm sure you know better than this since you have indicated that you have some sort of legal background. I'm sure you have carefully studied both these types of legal contracts, so maybe it is wise to be more careful with the broad brushes of material that isn't backed up by factual data.

I will locate a source. It is my understanding that getting rid of complaints at the first stage is a way many businesses, including insurers, save themselves money.

It is possible that you were/are thinking about insurance claims that fall under deductible limits.

Self-insuring through carrying higher deductibles is actually a smart way to keep the overall premiums down and it is true that more (I'm still not sure that I would say "most" though) claims do fall under or near the deductible so policyholders will often say, no thanks, when presented with the rather obvious solution of filing a claim that isn't going to even cover the deductible.

People don't want to have claims on their record (for lack of a better word) that do not result in any money back to them or that would leave them at a noticeable disadvantage.

Regarding customer support, I've used Macs since 1986 (when a Mac Plus, 20MB hard drive and Imagewriter II cost me $5K) and have owned many Macs. The point is that they either work out of the box or they don't. I've never called customer support. Why call customer support? If the machine works, it works, and if it doesn't (for example a LaCie firewire drive) take it back and get a replacement.

This just sounds like whining for the sake of whining.

If you don't like the price of iLife, go buy something which will cost you more, or use free software which you have to configure yourself.

Here is a short list of articles about insurance company ploys to prevent or delay payment of claims:

http://www.ellenspoisonpen.com/a_news_tip.jsp?tipid=174

http://www.badfaithinsurance.org/reference/HDenenberg/2003-01-16_InsuranceCompanyMassDenialOfClaimsIsErodingPublicConfidence.htm

http://www.appealsolutions.com/tal/denied-claims-requires-attitude.htm


Patients Bills of Rights legislation in states and Congress also suggest the problem is real.



I am not satisfied with what I have been able to locate so far. I want insurance claim denial rates nationally, if they are available. I am finding stats by state and not necessarily the stats I want. I may need to ask a reference librarian for help. So, this may take a while. Maybe even until next week since our city is closed down due to the worst snow storm in a decade.

I do want to say again that people should not take the initial no for an answer when they have consumer complaints. In regard to receipts, particularly those that limit returns or exchanges to one week or 14 days, they are challengeable. Don't back down.