The Mac community's passion was also evident in the comments of survey respondents (we'll publish a selection of these next week). There is clearly a heightened concern over Apple's present, precarious position—nearly everyone acknowledged the need for some sort of swift corrective action. The NT option obviously touched a nerve and, we think, provoked some widespread soul-searching: while slightly more than half (56%) of the survey respondents voted "no," nearly a third (32%) felt the time had come for Apple to offer Windows-based solutions alongside the Mac (the rest were undecided). It's worth noting that we received responses from a number of current and former Apple employees, including some people who have been with the company almost from the beginning—all voiced support for Apple-branded NT machines. The once-unthinkable idea of Apple offering Windows products was proposed by several others last week as well, notably Macweek's Don Crabb. Still, respondents seemed more comfortable with Rhapsody as a cross-platform solution than with Windows.

The survey's other questions were far less controversial, and all the other proposed changes in Apple's business model received more than two-thirds majority support. Respondents agreed that Apple should further separate its hardware and software operations (69%), open up the current Mac OS licensing process (94%, a real no-brainer), and create a new, cross-platform business unit geared to content providers (77%).

There are some aspects to the survey response we find troubling, though, and one is the fact that little pieces of good news are sometimes seized on as evidence that Apple is successfully reversing course. Several respondents pointed to a story on maverick analyst Keith Bossey of Robert M. Cohen & Company, who rated Apple's stock a speculative buy and said 1998 would be "a year of rebirth" for the company, as evidence that Apple needn't do anything too drastic in order to weather the present crisis.

Good news is always welcome, but we believe we've been collectively deceiving ourselves for too long with stories like these. Bossey's quote is refreshing, a balm to long-suffering Mac loyalists. But it's an aberration and will be forgotten in the marketplace by next week, if indeed it was really noted in the first place. It does nothing to reverse the powerful forces arrayed against Apple.

We're also troubled by the massive show of support for Rhapsody, despite the departure of its chief architects (i.e., Amelio and Hancock). Our chief concern here is timing: even if Rhapsody ships on schedule and delivers everything it has promised, a year is a long time for Apple to wait. The issue here is not whether Rhapsody will be technically superior to NT—we're confident it will be—but whether it will succeed in the marketplace. Its cross-platform capabilities are promising, but we believe Apple needs to provide a Windows platform option now.

That said, we found the survey response quite heartening—it's hard not to be encouraged by so much passionate optimism. And there still are some bright spots for Apple. Like everyone else we know, we're looking forward to this week's release of OS 8. Macworld Boston is just around the corner. Most importantly—the brightest spot of all—the Macintosh community is articulate and fiercely loyal, and will never willingly switch.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the survey.

(Reviewed July 20, 1997)