Boxed software – or sold via nicely packaged DVDs/CD-ROMs, it will completely disappear from Apple stores in the near future. Considering the success of AppStores, Apple is thinking of selling software only through its online stores. If you want to purchase iWork, iLife, Mac OS X, you will have to make the purchase from the online store and download the entire software from there. My opinion is that the idea is far from practical, especially for those with weak or non-existent internet connections who will have quite a lot of difficulties in procuring a program or a suite of programs of several GB.
When you purchase a Mac at an Apple Retail store an employee will help you setup your e-mail accounts, walk you through the Mac App Store, setup an iTunes account for you, and show you the basic pointers of owning a Mac. Some stores will even have dedicated Mac setup stations.
For Apple, the change would be good because it would free up a lot of space in its stores, space that could be used to sell accessories for iDevices or Macs. Recently, Apple has implemented a program in its own stores through which any person who buys a Mac can set it up for free. An e-mail address, setting the password for the account, setting up an iTunes account, everything can be done directly from the store by a company consultant. Apple will make this transition eventually and probably many of the customers will find themselves in the unfortunate position of waiting hours to download a program from Apple.
