It looks like his issue is not the cost, but rather the requirement that he be connected to the internet with his Mac.

"My Mac Pro is completely secure. I have no internet connection. I have no wireless card. It is invulnerable. According to Apple's new policy, I am now a non-entity. It is literally impossible for me to download the new XCode 4.0 legally. I can't buy it at work and then transfer it to my Mac at home because of Apple's DRM. I called the Ann Arbor Apple store and asked if it will be available for purchase on DVD; the answer was an emphatic no."

-jk

And he's wrong. If he pays $99 he can download it outside the Mac App Store and simply copy it to his machine however he sees fit.

No offense taken. I don't categorize myself an extreme evangelical anyway. Other than the fact that I try to live out the commands in the Bible which has led to a somewhat extreme lifestyle change. I was actually just trying to be funny by showing up as the token Christian and saying "you're going to hell". Hopefully it was taken as the joke that it was.

What I don't understand is why companies like Microsoft don't get caught by the same accounting rules. How can they give away IE, free version of VS.NET etc

Also, how do Apple get to give away Safari and iTunes on the Windows, why are they different to giving away XCode ?

Yeah, and it did make me smile a bit . Just wanted to make sure to clarify the situation, since religion is often a touchy subject with some and my initial remark was a bit off the cuff. Living in the town where New Life Church and Focus on the Family are based helped to give me a bad taste. I actually attended service a few times back when New Life was just a small gathering in a strip mall, a far cry from where they are now.


It all depends on how it's on the books. I've never looked into how Microsoft classifies things on their financials, but Apple has been pretty weird in some cases. I think they may see themselves as a bigger target, so they really want to make sure everything is clean, to the point of probably going overboard at times. And I'm not certain about Safari and iTunes on Windows, Digging into the financial reports can quickly become mind numbing.

I started looking deeper into the SOX mess after John Dvorak kept mentioning it on a podcast. While he's sometimes full of hot air, his dislike of SOX and the impact on tech seems to be well founded. It has kept a few companies from starting the IPO process, due to the overhead needed just to make sure all the financials are in order. For smaller companies, it can easily add a noticeable percentage to their general operating costs.

Not as touchy as cell phone OS preference

Now there's an oxymoron for you. I mean, OS preference is a religion for many people.

tanstaafl.