Ohio miners forced to attend Romney rally without pay...

[Hammerskjold]

Ok, say the price stays exactly the same for the almost the same model of Dell WTF9000. If the GFLOPS increased 10% between the models -- the government would call that a price decrease since I'm buying more computing power with the same dollars.

Please stop using 'the government would call that..' line. It's weak applesauce and you know it. Here's reality as I experienced it in all the years I've spent buying\upgrading my working rigs.

The price NEVER stayed the same for 'almost' the same model. In 6 months to a year later, the same model is now sold at a cheaper price. For the same price, you now get higher specs. By any meaningful metric, the price -IS- cheaper.

It's easy to see for yourself and does not require a Warren commission to investigate. If you keep insisting in hauling out bizarre examples that never happened in real life yet. Then don't act surprised when people give you the tinfoil hat stare.

I'm not disputing that. For all practical purpose, it doesn't matter for people if the power increases, as long as the machine is adequate for the task at hand. For your application, it probably matters -- for 90-99% of computer users it does not matter. There is little increased utility in word processing, spreadsheets, and other common applications than from those 10, or even 20 years ago.

I was anticipating this line, and here's my counter, based on my real life experience shopping for my rigs and gear.

When I was shopping for my first serious rig, I have to go to a more specialized store that builds graphics workstations. The average computer store at the time, do not even carry the specialized graphics card I needed. The big box stores? Ahahahaha, no. At best their top grade would be considered barely entry level for my needs.

The graphic card alone cost almost a quarter of the total price of my first rig, and it's not even a top of the line card. Jump to the next revolution, people started to use more easily available, and cheaper gaming cards.

My current rig, does not even use a true 'pro-rated' workstation card. It's using a higher mid-grade gaming card that happens to be compatible with my software. And it will most likely be the last rig I buy from a specialized store. Because nowadays a workstation grade rig can be easily purchased\built at pretty much any big box stores and regular comp parts store.

That line of 'for most users', is bunk to me. I'm glad, and my wallet is glad that I can now easily buy a workstation grade rig at more places than ever. Even if your mythical 'Joe six pack and Sally housecoat' do not use the incredible increase of computing power to type any faster, they are still getting more for their dollar. At a cheaper price to boot.

And -I-, the kind of power user that most salesfolk drools over the minute I walk in while my wallet starts to pucker, also benefit from that.

I do not want to go back to the 'good' old days where I can only get my rigs at specialized stores. I would've thought you of all people with the libertard love of free market and competition and all that jazz, would see this as a great thing. Instead of kvetching on how all you need is 1990's computers and why all this decadence of people gorging themselves on delicious tasting apples.

The inflation calculation people wouldn't care too much about rating the quality of the movie, but perhaps if the data density were higher -- HD versus normal. If a movie is offered on HD DVD for $50, but last year the same movie was sold on non-HD for $25 they would want to factor in the HD-ness as a technological improvement.

But no one is forcing anyone else to buy the HD version. I sometimes go on a bargain hunt for regular DVDs, and I've got basketfuls with the price ranging from 3-5 dollar a disc. Even then, some of my friends look at me like I'm the old granny who buys spoon collections. "Dude, -physical- media?" Then again I used to buy second hand LP records for fun.

In the world of computing for example, there are no ball peens offered for sale, only 10 ton hammers for $1000 in today's dollars. If computers were just like other tools, then I'd be able to buy a new Apple II equivalent for pennies. They are collectible now, so they actually sell on Ebay for $30 - $150 depending on condition.

First of all, there is no 'only 10 ton hammers for 1k'. Seriously, do you live in some sort of technological gulag state? You can go to sprawlmart and look at their netbook line for much less than 1k prices. A netbook is far from a 10 ton hammer in today's computing power, yet there it exists!

As for your lament of the Apple II collectible price of 30-150$, I'm guessing that even at collectible price it's still much cheaper compared to their -ORIGINAL- retail price. Unless it has a significant history on it, like it was -the- Apple II that Steve Jobs hand crafted prototype or the one Scotty picked up the mouse and said ,' computerrr....' like it was a microphone in ST4: Voyage home or something.

You still want to kvetch about how you want an Apple II grade for pennies? If you soooo insist on it, how about something like an emulated one? That's pretty much almost, if not practically free. Setting aside the legal aspect of it, by practical standards no one will be pursuing you for having a by now ancient Apple II emulated on your new computer.

Still not what you want? Still going to wail and sob about it's the physicality of it? About how the quality of construction back then was better and how a moon pie used to cost 10 cents? About how the keyboard and the old skool design is what you're really talking about?

Hey, I'm actually somewhat in agreement, -some- things were better constructed back then. Even if not all of them, there's a certain retro charm, I'm personally more fond of the PET computer look but let's look at your options.

There are custom builders who for a price (hey they have to eat too, and not just meager tasting apples to boot) will put a modern computer into the shell of your beloved Apple II. Still not what you want? You want as close to mint original Apple II, you already mentioned e-bay.

Again, what are you really kvetching about, there are so many increasingly affordable and available options out there today when it comes to anything with a chip in it, that if you want to continue this wailing and gnashing about an example that doesn't exist in real life, I don't know what to tell ya.

Maybe an abacus is what you really want?
I used to have one made of marble, brass, and fits into a pocket. It requires no electricity, and it's weather proof.

The bottom line is that when you and I go to the store, the store is selling today's merchandise which is a percentage higher in price than it was last year.

No, the bottom line is not all merchandise is the same. Some stuff is more expensive today than it was in the past. Some are not. There is no one size fits all model, other than maybe that meager looking T-shirt in the men's casual clothing department.

The government says that number is about 3% (the inflation rate) -- but in our experience we find it's more like 10% -- why? Part of the reason is that the government is trying to factor in the improvement of the product in our pricing. Jester thinks that is fine and I don't.

Please take the following in the best light possible, and in the most friendly of manner. Let this kvetching go. On the general subject shipping cost IMO is what drives most prices up or down for most things.

But what I'm really talking about, is you and I live in an incredible time and place in history. The fact that you are alive, are typing this, can afford to argue and debate on the innernets ,with you using a bizarre model, is still a privilege some people will envy greatly. Some would literally give everything they have to be where you and I are.

It's ok to just enjoy the apple, man. <----- (edited afterthought, in b4 'that's what she said')