“Do you do Mac’s?”

Written on December 4, 2008  |  by RP Mickler  |  Leave a Comment Leave a Comment  |  Bookmark and Share


So I was asked this question again today by a graphic designer at my chamber meeting. Yeah, I can do Macs, but not particularly well; that’s one of the reasons why I wanted to pick up a Mac Pro for my next machine and either dual-boot with Windows or load Windows into an emulation software.

Yet “Noo!” screams my buddies and friends who’re big Linux enthusiasts. “We’re trying to do a public service here. Don’t buy a Mac.”
Then I explain that new clients are asking for Mac skillsets and several of my own clients are running Apple solutions. “Listen,” I explain. “Ultimately it’s about supply and demand for me. I have to be able to answer the questions for my clients. I understand Linux, I understand Windows, I know PC’s… now it’s about time that I understand Mac’s. It’s just what’s expected of me.”
Well, today, I kind of reached two points of clarity on this issue and I’ve made a decision. The first point of clarity was yet another prospect asking me about Macs. The second point of clarity had to do with finally getting Vista to work correctly on my professional workstation.
You see, I’ve reinstalled Vista Ultimate x86 six times on my workstation, each time doing a clean install and wiping the existing partition. Every time I installed, I would go to update with Service Pack 1 and the entire system would get lost in a power-cycling loop. Updates would install and then the system would reboot; after the reboot, the updates were not installed property, so it’d uninstall them, and reboot. Then, updates would install and the system would reboot. Etc. Not particularly useful. I’d restore from backup and just keep working until I could try again.
Finally, I received a Vista Ultimate SP1 distro from one of my universities so I attempted it again. This time, after applying 39 updates, the system went into an “updates not applied” cycle but came out of it. So, essentially, for the last week, I’ve been applying updates one by one, creating a new restore point with every update, and, sequencing the updates by release date until, finally, half-an-hour ago, I have a full Vista Ultimate SP1 system. Only 15 months and countless wasted hours later, I have a functional Windows system.
Wow. Thanks Mr. Ballmer.
Now, I bet that doesn’t happen on a Mac (grin). And I’m a tech guy, a MCSE at that. When I consider the problems that I’ve had with the product, I refuse to believe that this is the right direction for the marketplace of savvy consumers who can make informed choices, and who’re not married to the Windows platform for applications any longer.  It took me this much effort to get it to work – I can’t imagine the plight of the average consumer; oh yeah, I guess they just order the “downgrade to XP” when purchasing their new PC.
I guess I’ve come to the conclusion that, competitively, I’d best “do Macs” and do it quickly. After all, just who knows how much Windows 7 will disappoint Microsoft’s user base?
R

Brian McLerran says:

Commented posted on: December 6, 2008

I recently bought a new Toshiba laptop with Vista and was told that the only way to get XP was to order from Dell, as a large portion of Dell’s customer base are businesses and institutions and they don’t want to even attempt Vista while there is any uncertainty over the product. Not as tech savvy as you, I was quite nervous about getting Vista as I am not sure of myself when problems arise, so I, like these businesses and institutions, am quite comfortable with XP.
My desktop is home made and has XP, but thought I might like to try Linux, though I was told that the operator would really need to be a techy to use it effectively. Is that right?
A good point made about supply and demand. Though Macs still make up a small part of the market, they are gaining share. Purist sometimes need to take a reality check.
Thanks for a great read,
Brian McLerran

Russell Mickler, MCSE | CISSP says:

Commented posted on: December 7, 2008

Hi Brian!

Dell does offer a Vista “downgrade” pack at $99 on _some_ of their desktop and laptop models. With the purchase of the machine with Vista Business on it, you can have it shipped with XP Professional already installed. You can then upgrade to Vista Business when you’re ready. I’m not sure if Dell is the only OEM authorized to make such a deal.

Linux still requires some technical knowledge. However, Linux software developers are attempting to make the Linux experience as intuitive as the Windows experience for new users. A version of Linux you might find useful is Ubuntu (www.ubuntu.org). It’s easy to install, comes with very simple instructions, is generally automated, and applications are easy to download and configure. Further, if you want to use a computer just to access web-based content, this isn’t a bad choice.

A warning though: like any new o/s, a Ubuntu installation will wipe the contents of your hard drive and Windows applications (like Microsoft Office) will not run on it. If you want to try Ubuntu, try it on an older machine you no longer use, or, a machine you were considering to pass down to the kids. Nothing will frustrate your teenager more when they encounter the basic ability to browse the Internet but they can’t install the chat and music downloading applications their friends are using on their Windows stations (grin).

Best wishes –
R
http://www.micklerandassociates.com

Mr Bob says:

Commented posted on: December 16, 2008

I just set up Ubuntu on a second hard drive so I could have a dual boot machine. I like it, and my son installed a program that allows him to run some Windows games on it.
Hope all is well with you.

I was a student of yours in 06.

I have been avoiding using vista so far, and it hasn’t been easy since I am also a MS pro, though not a full fledged MCSE yet. Server 2003 sounds like much less trouble. your scaring me.

Russell Mickler, MCSE | CISSP says:

Commented posted on: December 18, 2008

Hi Mr. Bob! Thanks for continuing to read the blog, I appreciate that! Excellent story on Ubuntu – I think it’s a pretty good product for the price (grin)…!

You know, for most of my small to mid-range installations, moving to Windows Server 2008 is simply an overkill for their needs. Windows Server 2003 and WS SBS 2003 makes practical sense for their hardware and processing requirements. This will change, of course, and I’m fairly excited about the changes being made to Remote Desktop Services in Server 2008 (formerly Terminal Services). Vista though… well, I guess I’m waiting to see what they do with Windows 7 to convince the enterprise to upgrade. Right now they’re really hyping out the touch-screen capability – pointless, really, to my small-to-midrange customer base. How about a product that plays well with legacy applications and hardware (grin)?

Best wishes –
R
http://www.micklerandassociates.com