I don't find Apple designs hostile at all for Objective-C and Swift developers, ...

digitalronin · on Jan 5, 2018

I disagree with the last part of this sentence. I know a lot of developers, the vast majority of whom have preferred Apple laptops for years, and very few of whom develop in Objective-C and Swift. I agree with a lot of other commenters that Apple are becoming more and more complacent and arrogant about the developer part of their customer base, which I think is larger than perhaps they realise.

pjmlp · on Jan 5, 2018

Then they should have bought a laptop with a pure GNU/Linux or BSD variant, and help companies that target UNIX developers stay in business.

Pure UNIX server software was never the developers target market of neither NeXT or Apple.

UNIX compatibility was always just a means to port UNIX workstation software into their OSes, not as a means to write UNIX server software.

Just like Microsoft did in the past and is now doing it again.

Their developer target market are the ones using their sancioned languages and SDKs.

crispinb · on Jan 5, 2018

I don't see how choice of programming platform & language has much to do with the need for real keyboards, function keys, ports, etc. Nor is it true that most developers using macbooks are only or even primarily 'Objective-C and Swift developers').

It is true, however that those developers I know who have a choice (ie. because they don't have a huge professional investment in Apple's platforms) are seeking alternatives to macbooks for their next replacement machines.