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Switcher Profile: Apple's 'halo effect' claims former editor of Windows Magazine
Cult of Mac writer Mike Elgan recently detailed the years-long process that convinced him to switch to the Mac. His story is fairly typical of many switchers: Once a die-hard PC evangelist, his first Apple product was the iPod, which he appreciated for its ease of use. The iPhone eventually convinced him to ditch his BlackBerry, and the iPad was the be-all, end-all of tablet-based computing as far as he was concerned. Finally, using his son's iMac convinced Elgan to switch away from Windows completely. As I said, it's a fairly typical switcher story... up until you learn that Elgan used to be the editor of Windows Magazine during most of the 1990s. It's hard to be a much more die-hard Windows enthusiast than that without having Microsoft's logo on your business cards and paychecks. The things that kept Elgan away from the Mac platform are fairly standard: familiarity with Windows and reluctance to learn OS X, not wanting to be dependent on Apple for hardware repairs, and not wanting to self-identify with the "fringe" elements among Mac users. But eventually, actually using Apple's products on a regular basis convinced the former Windows enthusiast to switch. Outgoing PCMag editor Lance Ulanoff is on the mobile side of this roster, as he's switching from a Blackberry to the iPhone. The "halo effect" of iPod users becoming enamored of Apple's smaller gadgets and switching to the Mac shortly after has been well-documented over the past seven years or so, and with the introduction of the iPhone and iPad this effect has intensified. Apple's efforts to bring some of iOS's functions to the Mac via OS X Lion can be viewed in this light as a shrewd move to amplify this halo effect even farther. People who are already familiar with the iPad's touchscreen interface may take one look at a MacBook Air running full-screen apps or launching applications via Launchpad and think to themselves, "Hmmm, maybe switching to a Mac won't be so hard after all." Just don't spoil it for those potential switchers by telling them about the Finder.
Mac usage surges amongst University of Virginia freshmen since 2004
According to the University of Virginia's Information Technology and Communication (ITC), which services the IT needs for most of the campus, 43 percent of first-year students at its residence halls during 2009 were using a Mac. The figure represents a continuation of a five-year trend that's seeing increased Mac penetration on the campus amongst first year students. Prior to 2004, Mac usage amongst freshmen hovered between three and four percent (with the exception of 1997). 2004, however, served as a watershed year: share increased by four percentage points. A host of theories can help explain this jump. I'd probably point to the release of iTunes on Windows in 2003. While the iPod and the "halo effect" surrounding it had existed for three years, up until 2003 only Mac users were able to fully experience the benefits of hardware and software integration. Or, perhaps it was partly due to the fact that OS X-only Macs began making their way into the market during 2003. Other significant events that occurred throughout the years include the release of the iPod nano (2005), Intel-based Macs (2006), and the iPhone (2007). But perhaps as influential as anything else during this time frame is the "Get a Mac" campaign. The "I'm a Mac" and "I'm a PC" ads highlighted the benefits of a Mac and contrasted them with the downsides of owning a PC -- i.e., security issues, performance and lifestyle apps. Data for the University of Virginia ITC is collected by the group's student employees, known as Computing Advisors (CAs), a group of first-year students hired to advise and assist their peers with computing. The data is based on a census of first-year residence halls each fall conducted by the CAs, and can be found here. Hat tip to Glenn Fleishman.
Win Halo Effect from The Xbox Domain
Statistically, if you're hanging around a website called Xbox 360 Fanboy, you probably like Halo. As such, it's quite possible that you also like things about Halo. Now, if you find yourself a member of this second camp, there's also a pretty decent chance you would enjoy a book about Halo, but a free book about Halo? Forgettaboutit. Our friends over at The Xbox Domain are giving away 5 copies of Halo Effect which takes a long hard look at everything in the Halo universe, ranging from what makes it so damned popular to what it would take to construct a real ring world. Entering to win is phenomenally easy. In fact, it's so easy we're not even going to tell you how. If you want to find out, head over to The Xbox Domain and check it out.
