The PC and Apple’s Straw Man
Posted by Ryan
September 19, 2008
A straw man argument is an informal fallacy based on misrepresentation of an opponent’s position. To “set up a straw man,” one describes a position that superficially resembles an opponent’s actual view, yet is easier to refute, then attributes that position to the opponent.
- Straw man argument, Wikipedia
In case that description didn’t make you think of Apple’s “I’m a Mac” ads, read it again. It should now.
In case you haven’t been paying attention, Microsoft has launched a new ad campaign to reclaim Windows’ supposed battered image. The response seems largely in response to Apple’s “I’m a Mac” ads.
The first two ads were really weird, but I have a wacky sense of humor so I quite enjoyed them. The New Family is hilarious. As funny as I might think they are, I still don’t know why on earth they made them. They’re very random and weird.
Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld: Shoe Circus
Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld: New Family
The newest ads, released yesterday, are much better. They make owning a PC look cool again. Not that I needed any more reasons. I’ve been happy running Windows for years. Barraged as I may be by Mac lovers, I really don’t see myself switching. I won’t say I won’t switch, because it’s always possible. It’s just that right now I don’t have any compelling reason to switch. They’re both good operating systems.
I’m a PC 1
I’m a PC 2
I’m a PC 3
Anyway, these ads are cool. I hope this will help people see through Apple’s straw man argument. They aren’t educating people about the truths of the PC. They are creating a misrepresentation of their competition, and then tearing it down. I guess it’s pretty common in advertising, but I’ve never liked it. I believe a company should and can tell people why they’re better than the competition without tearing anyone down.
Tearing someone else down to build yourself up is really just another way to express jealousy. I know all those Mac users out there are extremely jealous of my sweet Dell. Yes, it runs Windows. And I like it.
September 19th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
Your sweet Dell has nothing on my lappy. Just sayin’.
September 20th, 2008 at 11:29 am
John Gruber has a great rebuttal:
http://daringfireball.net/2008/09/digging_deeper
He makes a great point, the Get a Mac ads are directly targeting microsoft, they are targeting the entire PC experience, whether it’s offered by Dell, HP or any other major manufacturer. If Linux was to be the big os (and Hell froze over), they wouldn’t have to change the “I’m a PC character”.
Microsoft ads just reinforce the generic.
September 22nd, 2008 at 9:38 am
@justin well, yeah. my comment about jealousy was a joke anyway. :)
@adam Perhaps. Or perhaps no one thinks about it nearly as much as he does. I’ve decided (as witnessed by my post today about speculation) that I don’t care anymore. The best way to figure out how the ads work is to wait.
September 22nd, 2008 at 12:27 pm
“Binkley so wisely said when invited to compare Coke and Pepsi, ‘They both just taste like malted battery acid.’”
September 22nd, 2008 at 8:50 pm
haha! I have never liked Coke or Pepsi. That’s a good description of the taste!