For the kind of people who fork over top dollar for a top-of-the-line computer, expandability and the ability to upgrade the machine are articles of faith.
So when owners of Apple's blue-and-white, G3 Macs discovered that a program Apple posted online to fix a bug in their computers also blocked their machines from operating with a fast new G4 processor, many were outraged.
The blue-and-white G3s were Apple's high-end systems before the PowerMac G4s were introduced last month, and Mac message boards on the Internet erupted with shock and anger. Some accused Apple of intentionally crippling their machines to force them to buy a pricey new G4 PowerMac.
Apple was far from encouraging. In the Tech Exchange forums on Apple's Web site, the company posted the following message: "Apple has no plans to provide for processor exchanges or upgrades for PowerMac G4 or Power Macintosh G3 computers, and Apple does not support after-market processor exchanges or upgrades for these systems."
Then the company muzzled its critics, deleting many of the complaining messages with the explanation that the issue was "off-topic" and not appropriate for discussion in the forum. Apple's position hasn't budged since.
"We don't engineer them to be upgradeable," said Apple spokeswoman Nathalie Welch.
Nevertheless, before Apple posted a "firmware" update for G3s in the spring (a change in the computer's basic, internal programming), the older Macs could accept G4 upgrades. Unlike the compact, one-piece iMacs, Apple's tower-enclosed machines offer expandability -- one of the main reasons for the higher price tag.
Welch attributed some of the dissatisfaction to "buyer's remorse" from folks who bought the G3 at the end of its product cycle.
Apple's reason for releasing the firmware update, said Welch, was to fix "a lot of stability issues." (Apple documentation states that the update "improves PCI performance." No mention is made of the disabling side effect.) She said the "upgrade problem was not a consideration."
Did Apple sabotage its customers' machines on purpose?
Some G3 owners believed Apple booby-trapped the firmware update to prevent vendors of G4 upgrade cards from spoiling the introduction of the new PowerMac G4 with products that could make older computers as fast or faster.
Welch wouldn't say whether Apple knew its software would prevent customers from upgrading or whether the company did it intentionally, saying the company has a no-comment policy on the issue.
