The desktop is irrelevant. Linux is, most probably, the most popular OS at your home. You can't buy a modern TV, blu-ray player, DVR, wireless router, smartphone or e-book reader without buying a Linux machine.
Actually, Apple is the one taking the consumer market. 1 in every 5 retail computer sales is a Mac. Best Buy's CEO recently said that 50% of their laptop sales have been cannibalized by the iPad - a 6 month old product. Apple is the #1 technology company on the planet by market cap and recently attained the 3rd place in computers by market share. Their stock price has grown over 2000% in 10 years.
Apple is the one poised to take over in the consumer market ... although the consumer market will be less and less about computers in the future.
I'd rather have Microsoft's monopoly endure than have it replaced by Apple domination. Perhaps they make better software, but they're also much better at being evil.
Now is that any way to talk about your soon to be computer overlords? ;)
I don't agree that Apple is evil, just rigid. They are very strict about what they allow for the sake of a good user experience (and to avoid a black eye on their account).
And with them being the #1 tech company on the planet, there have to be a large number of people who really like their products. Actually, in recent surveys they were - The number 1 sought after phone OS of those ready to buy smartphones (at 38% just one point above android) - The number 1 in overall customer service (86) by a fair margin (9 points) - The number 1 in smart phone satisfaction (800 vs next in line 791).
"We do believe we have a moral responsibility to keep porn off the iPhone," (Steve Jobs, quoted on the Wikipedia page about the AppStore)
Even though you bought the thing (and it's not exactly cheap), you cannot put it to all the legal uses you'd like to.
There is someone else deciding for you that some things do not make for "a good user experience", and, as seen in the quote above, they enforce their own moral standards about it.
I find that evil.
Of course, that's just my opinion, but who knows which other things they may feel they have a "moral responsibility" to keep off their platforms ?
That's not what Jobs said. And besides, it doesn't change the problem : what counts as a "porn app" ? Is an app that allows you to download, among thousands of E-Books, the kama sutra, (one of the cases discussed on the wikipedia page) a "porn app" ?
