Final Cut X Debacle, and Apple's attitude to professionals

[sevros1981]

Just interested in anyone's opinion and experiences in the last few weeks of apple and final cut x?

Are there any video professionals out there who are using final cut x? Any of you wondering what apple might have done to your future?

Their sales are going through the roof for hardware, but I just wonder what they have done to their PR with professional creatives - who initially where there champions and biggest customers....

I'm guessing that they don't care.

[Mr Pointy]

You're screwed. It seems Apple don't care about 100,000 editors using FCP when they can sell 10m iPhones & iPads. The writing was on the wall when when they dumped the XServe with almost no notice. The fact that that they can terminate FCP & replace it with something that can't import EDLs with almost zero notice tells you all you need to know about what Apple think of professional users. They are only interested in millions of dorks editing YouTube dross in their bedrooms.

Start getting familiar with Adobe Premiere or Avid MediaComposer.

[sevros1981]

Ha!

Luckily I took the leap to Adobe at version CS4, but I still have a mac suite with FCP7 on it. Just amazed at their outright disregard for the people who brought them success in the first place - creatives!

Don't think I will ever be buying another Mac computer now. iPhone and iPad maybe...

[Bacardi]

I'm, generally, a big mac fan, but when they get it wrong and screw up, as they have with this, it really pisses me off. Don't think I'm alone and yep, it shows amazing disregard for all the creatives who have supported them through thick and thin. Also puzzling they have spent so long developing FC into an industry standard and bragging about the Coens cutting True Grit on it etc... and I would love to know what Jobs thinks of the very negative feedback that this has caused within this area of industry. I hope he's embarrassed by all the piss taking going on:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxKYuF9pENQ

Even Hitler understands...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dP1WQ7FP0g8

I would like to think they might rectify things, but not hopeful. Maybe it all comes down to the $$$ for them after all.

Anyway, I'm not going to go off and 'configure' and 'build' my own a PC and doesn't change my appreciation of the overall OS design, hardware design and smooth integration between their products. FCS7 hasn't all of a sudden stopped working, but experience has taught me you get left behind hanging on to old legacy software (which it has become overnight), So time to move on. I've have taken advantage of some generous FC cross grade bundles. My version of AE is old and I needed to upgrade PS anyway so now have the production suite along with AMC. But yes, after spending 7 years using FCP, paying for upgrades (last one being the same amount for FCX.... sorry, I mean iMovie Pro), it all leaves a very bad taste in the mouth!

Oh, and and it's not like Avid haven't made cockups like this in the past, some years ago, when they announced plans to ditch support for the mac platform, much to the same annoyance of lots of users. They didn't go through with it, so Apple aren't not alone in making brain dead decisions. I don't know why they could couldn't have kept developing the pro suite, make money, and also sell the cheap iMovie Pro and make even more money, keeping everyone happy, without creating any bad will.

Edited by Bacardi on Thursday 21st July 23:59

[RobDickinson]

Apple are no longer a computer company, they are a CE company.

Only 23% of their revenue comes from actual computer sales, the rest is ipads/pods/phones/ITMS etc.

Their core 'cool' market of designers etc has long ago been left behind by them

[sevros1981]

I'm kind of hoping that this drives a lot more people to Adobe products. They have been quietly plodding away with Premiere, making sensible updates for the last 5 years and with CS5.5 have a product of real quality that could steal a lot of business away. Using native Red files is a doddle, and the media encoder is a clever idea for 64 bit machines.

Goodbye trendy Apple, hello corporate sharky trendy Apple.