I'm not a PC...

Barry Parr | September 19, 2008, 05:36 PM

...nor am I a Mac.

Microsoft's new "I'm a PC" ads are very postmodern, as they deal with the subtext of Apple's advertising (PC users are nerds*) but not the explicit message (Macs are easier to use, Macs are easier to set up, Macs are easier to interface, Macs are less likely to get a virus, Macs come with a lot of great software that you know you want, Macs are less likely to need a reboot, it's easier to move your stuff to a Mac than to a new PC, Vista is making life difficult for millions of Windows customers...).

The audience seems to be wavering PC users with self-esteem issues**. But why isn't Microsoft pitching the benefits of Vista vs. Mac?

I keep wondering if the real audience for these ads isn't internal.

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Footnotes

* This is demonstrably false. The real nerds are all using Macs and Linux.

** Guys like Milhouse Van Houten, who said, "I'm not a nerd. Nerds are smart."