The Cult of Mac Book Review
The Cult of Mac
Book Review
 By
Dale Farris, Vice PresidentGolden Triangle PC Club November 2004 General Overview There is no product on the planet that enjoys the devotion of a Macintosh computer. Apple's machines have legions of loyal, sometimes demented fans. The Cult of Mac surveys the devoted following that has grown up around Macintosh computers. Like fans of a football team or a rock group, Macintosh fanatics have their own subculture, with clearly defined obsessions, rites, and passages. Famously dedicated to their computers, many Mac fans eat, sleep, and breathe the Macintosh. Fans who get Mac tattoos and haircuts, people who attend Apple Store openings like they are Grateful Dead shows, counterculture icons who love the Mac, people who turn old Macs into aquariums (or bongs), Ellen Fein look-alike contests, erotic fiction featuring Steve Jobs; it's all here. Technology reporter Leander Kahney exposes all sides of Mac fanaticism, from the innocuous to the insane. Musician Barry Adamson told the Guardian newspaper, "Apple is like a strange drug that you just can't get enough of. They shouldn't call it a Mac. They should call it crack." Mac loyalty is so well know, it's a cliché. Mac users are routinely referred to as Apple's faithful, Mac zealots, members of the "cult of Mac," Appleholics, Macheads, Maccies, Macolytes, and Mac addicts. The biannual Macworld conference is often compared to a religious revival meeting, where Steve Jobs is worshipped like a rock star or a charismatic cult leader. Special Features This unique book is devoted to the interests of the 25 million people around the world, who, according to Apple, use Macintosh computers. However, according to author Leander Kahney, who personally owns more than one Mac, people don't just use Macs - they become fans. They develop a passion for the machine, which can sometimes turn into an obsession. The Mac community is arguably the largest sub-culture in computing, and Mac enthusiasts - as a group - are probably more loyal, more dedicated, than users of any other computer platform, perhaps even Linux. This notoriety is the focus of this marvelous book that is filled with over 500 dramatic, full-color photographs and is destined to be a very popular Christmas coffee-table book for all Mac fans. The striking photographs help readers better understand the fascinating world of Mac owners, and the story is always interesting. Readers will meet fans who get Apple tattoos, devotees who build aquariums out of old Macs, people who volunteer at computer stores to sell Macs, and even entire families who travel hours to Apple Store openings. They are all here, in living color, and they all love their Macs. Table of Contents The seventeen (17) chapters are organized in five parts, and include the following titles. Part 1: MACINTOSH MADNESS Ch 1: Techno Fetishism Ch 2: Macs and the Counterculture Ch 3: Worshipping the Two Steves Ch 4: Mac Tattoos and Haircuts Ch 5: Macspotting Ch 6: Mac Evangelism Ch 7: The Mac Web Part 2: GATHERINGS OF THE CLAN Ch 8: Tales of Macworld Ch 9: Macs in Japan PART 3: INCESSANT TINKERERS Ch 10: Macquariums Ch 11: Fantasy Macs Ch 12: Hardware Mods Ch 13: Paper Macs PART 4: HOARDERS AND RECYCLERS Ch 14: Mac Collectors and Collectibles Ch 15: Antique Macs PART 5: NEW FRONTIERS Ch 16: iPod Ch 17: What Makes Mac Fans So Loyal? Target Readers This is a fascinating, over-sized, full color book that is a must for any Mac fan, but it will also be fascinating reading for anyone interested in the intersection of technology and popular culture, or discovering the unique people who live their lives by Apple's "Think Different" motto. Book Contents 280 pages; cloth; acknowledgements; tons of 4-color photographs and screen shots; index Author Leander Kahney About the Author Leander Kahney is a journalist who covers Apple and the Mac community for Wired News, where he writes the wildly popular "Cult of Mac" column. Before joining Wired News, he was a senior writer at the legendary Mac magazine, MacWeek. He has written for numerous publications, including Wired Magazine, Scientific American, Business 2.0, and the London Guardian. He owns six computers, all of them Macs. ISBN November 2004 - First Edition 1-886411-83-2 List Price $39.95 $55.95 CAN About No Starch Press Since 1994, No Starch Press has published unique books on computing, including such best-sellers as the "Steal This Computer Book" series, "Hacking the Xbox," and "Absolute OpenBSD." Named one of the Top 101 Independent Publishers in 2003, No Starch Press focuses on Open Source, security, hacking, web development, programming, gaming, and alternative operating systems. The No Starch Press titles have personality, their authors are passionate, and their goal is to make computing accessible to everyone. Beginning January 1st, 2004 the No Starch Press US distributor is O'Reilly Media (www.oreilly.com.) O'Reilly represents No Starch Press books to all major wholesalers (Ingram, Baker & Taylor, Bookazine, Koen, etc.), national chains and independents, online booksellers, and academic and technical bookstores, as well as directly to consumers through direct marketing and trade shows. No Starch Press 555 De Haro St., Suite 250 San Francisco, CA 94107 800-420-7240 415-863-9900 FAX 415-863-9950 www.nostarch.com About O'Reilly Media O'Reilly Media is the premier information source for leading-edge computer technologies. The company's books, conferences, and web sites bring to light the knowledge of technology innovators. O'Reilly books, known for the animals on their covers, occupy a treasured place on the shelves of the developers building the next generation of software. O'Reilly conferences and summits bring alpha geeks and forward-thinking business leaders together to shape the revolutionary ideas that spark new industries. From the Internet to XML, open source, .NET, Java, and web services, O'Reilly puts technologies on the map. O'Reilly Media creates products that they
want to use. Whatever form it takes--book, conference, online product--they
want anything produced with the O'Reilly name to be useful, interesting, and
truthful. And O'Reilly Media believes that there are plenty of intelligent,
discriminating people in the world who value those qualities as deeply as
they do. |