Nicholas Montgomery over at Appletell just doesn’t get it. In a blog post “10.5.2 makes strongest case for switchers to date,” he explains why this version of the Mac OS is so good that Windows users will have to switch. (Mac users have been making this case since, oh, OS8. Or earlier.)

“PC Mag has assumed that the main reason consumers haven’t switched to the Mac is the bugs in Leopard,” he starts. That’s not true. First of all, it was one PC Mag columnist expressing his opinion, it wasn’t the magazine itself having done testing or surveys.

More importantly, the column he mentioned just pointed out that there were some annoyances with Leopard, not that those bugs were the main reason Windows users haven’t switched. Ed Mendelson, the author of the PC Mag column, is smarter than that. Bugs in Leopard aren’t keeping Windows users from switching; we’ve been putting up with bugs and annoyances for years.

No, what Montgomery (and others) doesn’t get is that most Windows users don’t invest their hearts and souls in their computers. They view them as machines to do a task — write a letter, organize photos, browse the Web, play a game. Their lives aren’t attached to their equipment the way too many Mac users’ seem to be.

Windows users haven’t switched in large part because of price. Only Apple makes Macs. No competition means high prices. Econ 101.

Compare an HP Pavilion a6350z-series PC and a iMac. Both have 2.4GHz dual-core processors, 2 GB of RAM, 500-GB hard drives, 20-inch flat-panel monitors, and the basics (mouse, keyboard).

The HP sells for 749.99. The iMac sells for $1749. That’s an extra grand for the Mac — a 233 percent difference.

Granted, the Mac is better in many (if not most) ways. It comes with better software (Windows Movie Maker ain’t iMovie), a better operating system, and so on. But for most people those things are simply not worth paying 233 percent more for.

So Mac users can argue till they’re blue in the face that Macs are better. What they don’t seem to get is that it doesn’t matter. It’s not about quality, it’s about value. For most people, the added quality of a Mac isn’t worth an extra $1,000 or more.

I would rather drive a Porsche than a Toyota; I suspect a lot of other people would as well; Porsches provide a better driving experience is just about every way. But given the choice between a $20,000 Toyota and a $46,600 Porsche, I’d choose the Toyota.

That’s not to say that there’s anything wrong with the Porsche, just that I wouldn’t want to spend the extra money because I don’t think that the extras the Porsche provides are worth $26,600. (And because I don’t think my car defines me as a person.)

Other’s disagree; there are plenty of Porsches on the road. Some people buy them because they’re a status symbol; these people determine their self-worth through their cars. Other people buy them because the Porsche driving experience is worth the money to them.

But if Porsche owners went around bemoaning the fact that not everyone was spending the money on a Porsche, we’d think they were nuts. “Not everyone needs or wants a Porsche,” we’d say.

“But Porsches are better! They have better handling, better acceleration, they’re more comfortable, they have better resale value…”

All true. And all unimportant. Not everyone can spend the extra money, and not everyone thinks those extras are worth it.

Get it?

1. There is a vast, worldwide conspiracy to destroy Apple. It includes journalists, Microsoft, and the business community in general.

2. Any attack on Apple is, in addition, a personal attack on you.  Retaliation for these attacks must be swift, personal, and based on the concept that ‘the best defense is a good offense.’ 

3. Anything not entirely favorable said about the Mac, the iPod, the iPhone, or any Apple product is an attack on Apple and a personal attack on all Macintosh users. (See #2.)

4. Anything positive said about a competitor to the Mac, the iPod, the iPhone, or any Apple product is an attack on Apple and a personal attack on all Macintosh users; it must be met with an immediate counterattack that stresses the quality of the Mac compared to the PC regardless of what the original products were. (See #2 and #11.)

5. Leaving Apple or an Apple product out of any discussion to which it can be related (e.g., the graphical user interface, MP3 players) is an attack on Apple and a personal attack on all Macintosh users, no matter what the topic of the discussion. (See #2.)

6. Aside from the staff at Mac-related publications, e.g., MacWorld, the only journalists who know anything about computers are Walt Mossberg and David Pogue. (Note: “Knowing something about computers” is synonymous with loving and praising the Mac.)

7. Whenever in a discussion with the other kind of journalist, it is important to remind him/her that he/she can’t hold a candle to them.

8. The superiority of the iPod is clearly demonstrated by its popularity. The inferiority of Windows is clearly demonstrated by its popularity.

9. No one could possibly use Windows by choice; they must do so because they don’t know any better. It’s important to educate them about the Mac as frequently and as loudly as possible.

10. It’s important to bring up viruses, Trojans, and spyware whenever discussing Windows or the Mac. Ignoring the existence of anti-virus and anti-spyware software for the PC (and the fact that it updates itself automatically), is permissible.

11. Anything good about Windows was done by Apple first. If someone likes a particular Windows program or feature, it’s a good idea remind them of Apple’s precedence — and to point out how foolish they are for liking the Windows version. This does not apply to the two-button mouse.

12. Every discussion of any Apple product must always be brought back to how much better the Mac is than a Windows PC, regardless of the original subject.