toggle

AAPL Stock: 509.46 ( + 6.86 )

MacNN News

IT departments "can�t afford to spend time" with Macs

updated 09:20 pm EST, Wed March 23, 2005

IT departments & Macs

IT specialist Chad Dickerson says "I love Macs and I use one myself, but I ." Dickerson often tells coworkers who ask if they can use a Mac at his company �If you promise not to ask for support or help of any kind, sure.� This attitude comes from the difficulty of integrating Macs into PC-Dominated environments. "Virtual PC is hardly proof that you can run Windows applications on a Mac. On my 1.25GHz PowerBook with 1GB of RAM, I feel like I�m being punished every time I launch it." And, if enterprise end-users use Virtual PC for anything mission-critical, "IT has to figure out a way to manage another Windows machine, virtual or not, viruses and all." Dickerson points out that with new Mac switchers, "IT could potentially face a whole crop of end-users who are not the kind of self-supporting Mac enthusiasts to which we�ve all grown accustomed."

by MacNN Staff

(39)

TAGS :

industry

Share the Article

Facebook Twitter Delious Slash Dot Digg

toggle

Comments

OptimusG4
Mac Elite

Joined: Feb 2003

0

03/23, 09:42pm | report spam | close Reply |
Whatever

I smell bullsh*t.

sluxx
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2002

0

03/23, 09:45pm | report spam | close Reply |
My Conspiracy Theory

Goal: Total, absolute world domination of Wintel OS

Problem: Mac users, and Virtual PC that allows them to work almost seamlessly in a Windows enviornment

Solution: Buy up Virtual PC, and slowly make it worse and worse so no sane person would want to run it. Announce the demise of Virtual PC because "it's not cost effective" to keep developing Virtual PC, kill the project. Now even the most ardent Mac office will need to get a couple of PCs so they can work with other PC-centric offices.

What's a Mac user to do? Maybe projects such as Darwine? What other alternative emulators do we have?

technohedz
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jul 2000

0

03/23, 09:50pm | report spam | close Reply |
lol

thanks, I was looking for a laugh. Guess news is getting scarce. VPC isn't needed so that kinda goes out the window. The only point is the excellent subscription based rip-off junk. So, you're IT write the backup software, OS X can already do it. Retrospect works on both platforms. About the only thing that might confuse an IT guy is VPN for macs, but that's not that big of a deal. So your groupware (is this subscription based again) might not work. Big deal, do you think 1/8 of the employees know how to use it? Email is email. Calendars...iCal anyone...too bad IT only guys are a shrinking breed when macs enter the equation.

Here's a simple tip: Set up your system so that it is compatible with multiple platforms. Use those MSCEIGACEMRIPEMOFF credentials to do some 'forward looking' and you can probably figure this out easily.

That article was a joke. Why is it here? Oh...yeah..to laugh about
thanks :)

Titanium Man
Forum Regular

Joined: Mar 2001

0

03/23, 09:57pm | report spam | close Reply |
Evangelize?

"I�m not going to spend my time evangelizing Macs to people who probably should be using PCs. I�m too busy."

Why the heck does he need to evangelize? Wasn't he talking about people who ASKED to use Macs in the first place?

SteveTech
Dedicated MacNNer

Joined: Sep 1999

0

03/23, 09:59pm | report spam | close Reply |
Call a Mac Consultant

Good, keep supporting PC's and call in a Mac Consultant when you need help with the Macs. I deal with companies like this all the time. The IT departments don't want to touch Macs.

resuna
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jan 2005

0

03/23, 09:59pm | report spam | close Reply |
The real reason...

"No time to support Macs, I've got 150 PCs I have to roll out this security patch on by the end of the day!"

jpellino
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Oct 1999

0

03/23, 09:59pm | report spam | close Reply |
translation...

..."I can't afford to take time away from supporting Windows, which takes 105% of my time."

Lotus Notes?

The support load for a floor full of Macs is literally a quarter of the support load for a floor full of Wintels. How do I know this? I've done it. Separate and mixed environments.

aer
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Mar 2004

0

03/23, 10:25pm | report spam | close Reply |
complete dogpile

i work as an i.t. admin in a split 50/50 mac and pc shop. i find this article full of shite. has this dork ever heard of windows terminal services for pc-only apps? obviously not. i will agree that virtual pc is a log, but there are other solutions out there. i completely disagree that somehow maintaining macs is cumbersome compared to PC's. if you learn netboot/netrestore, it kills norton ghost dead as far as imaging goes. no spyware. no viruses. simplicity. binding to active directory. binding to e-directory. compatibility with linux and unix apps. i could go on and on. this article is very dumb. i have an xserve that has been running for 180 days without a reboot. i have a windows 2000 server that needs a reboot and a power cycle every 30 days. when i first set up the w2k server up the first time it got netsky'd within the first 20 minutes of being on the network and began randomly rebooting, requiring a safe mode boot. i had to actually burn the windows updates to friggin CD before i could hook up the network connection. go figure. this never ever ever happens to my macs.

charleskdavis
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Mar 2005

0

03/23, 10:36pm | report spam | close Reply |
re: Macs in Corporate IT

In regards to Mr. Dickerson�s article.

I have spent 14 years integrating Macs and PC�s. Not only can it be done, it is easier to do now than ever. But I agree, there is still times that you must run native Windows applications, a great solution, for both Macs and Windows PC�s is either Citrix or Microsoft Terminal Services. Both Citrix and Microsoft�s Remote Desktop Connection application run native Windows applications within a native Mac OS X application. Organizations get the benefit of a centralized management system for their corporate applications, easy upgrades and support, and an operating system that is not near as prone to virus, security, and spyware issues that the average Windows desktop does.

Unfortunately the majority of IT departments are either understaffed, staffed by under educated IT personnel, or are simply in the business to keep their jobs. A large site running either a Citrix or Terminal Services environment can save substantial costs from a support standpoint.

Knowing how to properly support your environment really comes down to knowing how to problem solve, and actually spend time thinking about a problem, a fantastic reliable solutions is almost always available. Open a book, do some research, ask questions, or get a better, more informed, IT staff. He states �Of course, you can spend a lot of time coming up with creative work-arounds for this kind of pain, but I�m writing this as someone who is responsible for making day-to-day IT operations work with resource and time constraints.� These solutions are far more effective for organizations in the long run, that is if you�re looking out for what�s best for your organization, and not what�s best to keep your job.

Sincerely,

Charles K. Davis

Nostromo
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Oct 2001

0

03/23, 10:53pm | report spam | close Reply |
OMFG!

What a TOTAL IDIOT!

Translation: "I'm spending so much time on S***** Windows problems/security patches/viruses/spyware, that I have no time for the computers that take 1/5 of the time to support."

Of course, the corporate morons in corporate IT that this was written for will suck this up like ice cream, and use it as ammo when anyone wants to use a Mac in their company -- "See, this IT professional says so..."

l008com
Addicted to MacNN

Joined: Jan 2000

0

03/23, 10:56pm | report spam | close Reply |
Job Security

Its very simple. Switch over to macs, and you'll have to lay off half your IT staff. So the IT staff doesn't want to see macs anywhere near the office. End of story.

VValdo
Dedicated MacNNer

Joined: May 2001

0

03/23, 11:20pm | report spam | close Reply |
Busy guy..

"I�m not going to spend my time evangelizing Macs to people who probably should be using PCs. I�m too busy."

But not too busy to write an article about how busy he is. I hope he does an equally fascinating followup story on his company's bathroom key policy.

W

ElBerserko
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Mar 2002

0

03/23, 11:30pm | report spam | close Reply |
It's all about politics

I don't think the issue is difficulty of integration between the two platforms, but rather the resentment towards employees who try to go behind the backs of the corporation and use their own equipment, whether it be a Mac or anything else.

I work in a Windows only IT department and we were told not to support users who want to use their Mac laptops on the network because it "we cant afford to spend time supporting them". They could easily connect to the network and use many resources such as terminal server and email with no problem, yet we are not allowed hook them up.

The Boss (not necessarily the IT Dept.) doesn't want employees using something that they don't know about (they simply think it can't work), or using something that an employee bought on his own. In my case, integration problems and support time is just a coverup for the politics behind the situation.

rwfisher
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jan 2000

0

03/23, 11:33pm | report spam | close Reply |
IT justification....

From what I've observed of IT departments, they thrive on the Wintel platform because it keeps them busy. If they can demonstrate that they are performing at 150% of capacity, the IT managers can justify hiring additional personnel, which requires an increase in their budget.

IT professionals don't WANT a trouble-free network or computer system; that would put them out of a job.

phillymjs
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jun 2000

0

03/23, 11:39pm | report spam | close Reply |
Bull!

I'm a Mac consultant, and several of my clients are Mac-based design departments in Windows-centric organizations.

The Mac users are almost always an independent unit. All they need from the internal IT department are hot wall jacks, IP addresses, and the name of the Exchange server.

I'm brought in on an as-needed basis at most of them. One client has me coming in one full day per week, and I mostly just hang out and flirt with the cute girls in the department-- usually the list of computer problems waiting for me there don't fill up a Post-It. Occasionally they'll call me to solve a problem if they can't wait until my on-site day, but that's pretty rare.

This guy's beef is simply that supporting Macs actually requires thought and a little time. In a corporate environment, nobody troubleshoots Windows problems anymore because tracking down the source is damn near impossible most of the time-- if something can't be fixed in 5-10 minutes, it's easier to just nuke the machine and reimage it across the network.

SoGood
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Dec 2001

0

03/23, 11:46pm | report spam | close Reply |
Ce la vie!

Bad luck IT. This is the changing face of IT field. Live of die accordingly... Mac rules.

LouZer
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Nov 2000

0

03/24, 12:15am | report spam | close Reply |
Independent mac users

For
"IT could potentially face a whole crop of end-users who are not the kind of self-supporting Mac enthusiasts to which we�ve all grown accustomed."

and

The Mac users are almost always an independent unit.

Hey, dudes. Guess what. The reason Apple users tended to be self-sufficient has/had less to do with Macs 'just working' or 'the OS is easier to work with' or 'mac users are smarter'. Its pretty much all related to the fact that they HAD to be independent, because they never had an IT department to turn to. Now, with PC users who are used to calling up IT with the simplest of questions "How do I log on?" starting to use Macs, they're not used to figuring out their own answers. And the IT people, well, its just too hard to figure out how to use the network preference pane (after the hour it takes to map the words "control panel" to "system preferences"). So the IT people had it easy, now they might actually have to work for a living.

And I don't blame this guy. Trying to deal with viruses and spyware on one platform is hard enough. Then adding in the Mac and its almost like he has to know twice as much info on how to clean that stuff up.

Of course, with the IT departments, PC users aren't used to doing anything with their computers because the IT departments lock them down so they can't do anything but surf the web, while they never figured out (or cared) how to do that with Macs, so Mac users are actually able to do what they want without having to call IT to get a new piece of software installed.

macsNeverSayDie
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jan 2003

0

03/24, 01:17am | report spam | close Reply |
they need job security.

make the system look it needs heavy maintainance and know how (windows), and our job looks very essential.

ElDiabloConQueso
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Feb 2002

0

03/24, 01:23am | report spam | close Reply |
re: Independent mac users

Why do you think that the people sitting behind the Macintosh computers wouldn't know how to operate a Macintosh? Do most of the people sitting behind PCs know how to operate Windows sufficiently?

I should hope so... and it's not like the presence of a few Macs around the office is going to force some PC user to switch to a Macintosh. He/She can safely stay in Windows-land, and the Mac users will stay in Mac land.

If I used Windows PCs in my business, I certainly wouldn't hire someone to operate that computer that had little experience with Windows. Likewise, I wouldn't hire someone who had never worked with OS 9/OS X to operate the Macs. You seem to think that PCs will vanish and all of a sudden, employees will be sitting in front of a very foreign operating system, bumbling about, not knowing what to do. Yeah, that's likely.

just a poster
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jun 2004

0

03/24, 01:46am | report spam | close Reply |
I think Dickerson's

concerns are valid.

Microsoft is an abusive monopolist that starves alternative platforms via two methods: proprietization and theft of IT resources that occurs as a result of this proprietization, security problems, and the inherent complexity of supporting any and all software combinations in an environment where the overwhelming majority of users/customers have a very limited understanding of computers.

Hopefully, the EU antitrust watchdogs will keep the pressure on and at least force Microsoft to open up its protocols so that interoperability becomes easier. As long as the protocols are transparent, Apple will devote engineers to make Macs even more interoperable with Windows and, of course, the Linux/OSS community will do their magic on their side as well.

Unfortunately, the state of IT is such that there are very few qualified people in general: even fewer qualified folks who can juggle Windows, MacOS, Linux.

Nonetheless, the web is a powerful force and as web services grow in popularity, more and more applications will be driven through the browser and less dependant the OS. This should ease the burden on IT folks, provided that they do not continue to test solely for Internet Explorer, which is horrific, non-compliant, defective, insecure, proprietary garbage.

It is critical that these next-generation web services be standards compliant and platform agnostic. Only then can diversity be restored to the technology industry. Choice is good.

AlenShapiro
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Apr 2000

0

03/24, 02:01am | report spam | close Reply |
I have no sympathy

No sympathy for the mindset that says there's not enough time to manage solutions (e.g. Macs) not in the main-stream IT schedule. It's about time that IT realized that its job is to support users and not the other way around. If there is a need or requirement in the mind of the users for a specific platform, it is the job of IT to support it. Not the job of the users to use the platform IT has geared itself to support. The fact that Macs are easier to use and less of a support burden is a nice bonus but actually irrelevant.

chaddickerson
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Mar 2005

0

03/24, 02:41am | report spam | close Reply |
slight misunderstanding

Funny things happen when your editors write the subheadlines -- that "I can't afford to spend time supporting them" re: Macs doesn't quite reflect the content of the article as I had hoped. We do support Macs at InfoWorld (about 20% overall) and recently upgraded our entire Mac environment to G5s running Panther (w/ Remote Desktop, Retrospect, etc.), and our small IT support staff are all Mac users and fans. The particular case in question involved a new salesperson (all of our other salespeople use PCs gladly) who "liked" Macs, but would have been the lone Mac user in a sea of salespeople. He didn't seem particularly interested in rolling with some of the punches (little things like problems with some graphs in PowerPoint when moving from Mac to PC). The Mac might be better in some cases, but I think it would be foolish to create an obvious support problem with a user who didn't much care either way. I also didn't want to support a random machine someone brought from home (I don't do that with PCs, either).

In any case, I'm writing a followup that will make my point a little clearer. Macs are alive and well at InfoWorld. I just don't think it's a wise use of time to pull our PC-literate sales people away from selling to evangelize the Mac platform -- they could care less (we spend almost zero time patching Windows machines because it's all automated via software called BigFix)

henryblackman
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Feb 2003

0

03/24, 03:21am | report spam | close Reply |
Increasing Support Here

I work in the IT department as University College Chester (in the UK), and we are, for the very first time, officially supporting Macs from September 2005.

Obviously, I'm a big Mac user, and I seem to have had a sphere of influence over the IT techs in the department, they all love them, and are starting to buy them for themselves. Our IT Director, used to dislike Macs, but since Mac OS X, and the amazing similarity of Linux to Mac OS X (were talking Gnome and KDE here), he's much happier with them.

While we're HE, things might be different, we are realising that Macs are an important tool, and frankly a whole lot less hassle than PCs. It's so simple with integrate with Novell's eDirectory now, it's not worth even trying not to.

resuna
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jan 2005

0

03/24, 03:27am | report spam | close Reply |
Also applies to UNIX

We get the same complaints from our corporate IT about our UNIX-centric island in the sea of Windows boxes, but our UNIX-centric environment was giving people a better *Windows* experience than the Windows-centric environment... when they borged us people complained (and are still complaining) about the Windows client-server applications being less reliable and capable and efficient than our standards-based (SMTP/IMAP/HTTP/...) versions. Plus they liked the way our servers didn't act as virus reservoirs.

MCCFR
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2004

0

03/24, 05:29am | report spam | close Reply |
As an alternative�

And if you're running Small Business Server or just don't want to load your "real" servers down with TS or Citrix, try running WinConnect Server XP from ThinSoft. Works perfectly adequately on an XP Pro desktop with 256MB of RAM (obviously more needed for any serious load), allows up to 21 RDP sessions (more RAM obviously), and starts at $300 for a 3-user license.

zubro
Mac Enthusiast

Joined: Sep 2002

0

03/24, 05:42am | report spam | close Reply |
no more, please! ;o)

"IT specialist Chad Dickerson"
I will not bash him again, I think the job is done.
I do not know who has given him the title of "Specialist"...
I believe that Real journalism is giving a fact, then if possible debate about it. and let the reader make up his opinion. (well, that s the way I like it to be: informative)
Mister Dickerson is just giving his plain point of view, there is nothing journalistic in his article and even less in his behaviour (see arogant pose on his picture! ;) )
That gives quite some discredit to infoworld.com, that s all it does.

zubro
Mac Enthusiast

Joined: Sep 2002

0

03/24, 05:46am | report spam | close Reply |
no more, please! part2

Sorry, I did not see that the section of the website was called "opinion".
Damn! that destroyed my comment! ;o)

PS: too bad we can t edit our comments as we can do in the forums...

eldarkus
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Feb 2004

0

03/24, 08:15am | report spam | close Reply |
duh..

This guy ever hear of Citrix?

and should I point out that this guy is looking to MS to solve a problem caused by.. MS!

BlueDjinn01
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2001

0

03/24, 08:34am | report spam | close Reply |
Greetings Mr. Dickerson

Thanks for your clarification, and I appreciate that you intend to write a follow-up, because it is *very* much needed in order to correct the implications of your original column.

You stated that the new guy specifically asked for a Mac, and your response was �If you promise not to ask for support or help of any kind, sure.� It's one thing to "not evangelize" on the company dime (which I agree with), but in this case you specifically shot down someone who *wanted* a Mac.

Wouldn't it have made a LOT more sense--both as an IT guy, a good company man, *and* a Mac user--to *explain* to the guy the reasons why, *in his particular case* it might not be the best solution to use a Mac, instead of a flip "don't bug me, I'm busy?" I don't mean an in-depth tutorial, just a quick 1-minute overview would have done the trick. Sure, he might still have gone for the PC option, but at least he wouldn't have the c*** scared out of him.

Conversely, if you *did* go into it in more depth, you should have explained this in your column; as it stands, anyone reading the article walks away with the completely wrong perception that Macs = PITA to support = Bad Idea in enterprise...which is not only completely the opposite of the truth, but is the very misperception that Mac users have been battling all along. You've just done Microsoft's work for them, regardless of the true state of things at InfoWorld.

testudo
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2001

0

03/24, 08:38am | report spam | close Reply |
Re: independent mac users

Why do you think that the people sitting behind the Macintosh computers wouldn't know how to operate a Macintosh? Do most of the people sitting behind PCs know how to operate Windows sufficiently?

Its not about 'operating' a Mac. Its about troubleshooting, configuring, etc. Throw anyone in front of a computer who's used a Mac or a PC and they'll figure out how to do what sooner or later (although PC users would be more hard-pressed early on in the Mac, as there's no "Start" button, therefore they're completely clueless as to where to find the applications, but that's another story). The point the IT and other posters made about 'independent' mac users is that Mac users tend to get themselves done by themselves (setting up networks, troubleshooting, etc), so the IT people didn't have to deal with them.

But the reason for this was the user HAD to be independent, but being mac users, they were used to it and didn't care. The more Window switchers that start coming into the fold, the more "How do I get myself hooked up to the network?" questions they're going to have.

ecrelin
Junior Member

Joined: Oct 2000

0

03/24, 09:41am | report spam | close Reply |
opinion or not

Chad, you'll get my email, but to have positioned Mac use as analogous to a drug problem doesn't sound like a positive portrayal of its existence. So you are saying that 20% of the machines in the company aren't backup up? And the Citrix and terminal services issue simply invalidates your argument about Powerpoint and other "inconveniences" inside or outside oft he office. Take a couple of your precious hours and write a little handbook on what works and what doesn't (or refer them to Tom or PJ, little jab there). You really gave InforWorld a black eye on this one and I try to promote your magazine at every turn. tsk tsk, think before you type.

lilbunnyfoofoo
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Oct 2004

0

03/24, 11:29am | report spam | close Reply |
IT

man do I hate IT departments.

mytdave
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2000

0

03/24, 11:29am | report spam | close Reply |
Multi-platform benefits

Read the article. Typical pathetic IT response.

He doesnt have time cause it's all spent solving PC problems. I have the same issue in my dept. I support Windoze and Linux. Swaping some Windoze boxes for Macs here would make life much easier.

Most IT depts. are still clueless. Some companies however are beginning to understand the benefits of diversity. It works for technology just like it does for people.

All platforms have their respective strength. For Windoze it's the sheer size of the market, and availability of apps. For Linux it's the open source community support, free software, source code (indefinite sustainability), stability, and reliability. For Mac it's the ease of use, security, stability, and the unique quality of many Mac apps.

Companies who learn to use each platform's strengths will have an advantage. The old concept that single platform deployment saves money is a bunch of bunk. All it does is shift costs from one budget to another, and removes competitive advantage. If you went Windoze only, your expenses actually went up! Suckers!

You need to have a plan and make some rules for each platform.

For instance, our backup systems for Linux and Windoze differ. We don't try to force the same system to work on both.

M$ Office doesn't run on our Linux systems. Who cares? We deal with that.

Multiple remote connections (w/GUI) to Windoze is a joke, with Linux it's a breeze, and it works - reliably. We deal with that.

If you set up the infrastructure and get more Macs, you'll find that over time, you'll be LESS busy with your IT demands, allowing you the time to research and implement new, more productive technologies.

crevatis
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Feb 2005

0

03/24, 11:46am | report spam | close Reply |
not enough time?

And here I am reading silly macnn articles all day long cause I have nothing to keep me busy in my job of supporting ~700 macs.

Dr.Funkenstein
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jan 2005

0

03/24, 04:57pm | report spam | close Reply |
Excellent article

I think that was an excellent article...
for me to p*** ON!

nmirkis
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Sep 1999

0

03/24, 08:01pm | report spam | close Reply |
Hmmm

Sounds to me like a guy who is stuck in the mud and is wasting a lot of time blaming the mud. Clearly if he didn't have so many Windows boxes to fumigate there would be lots of time to do lots of other things.

Xiaopangzi
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Oct 2003

0

03/24, 08:27pm | report spam | close Reply |
Real meaning is...

��Can�t afford to spend time�with Macs� really means, �I can�t afford to lose my job when management discovers that most support and maintenance becomes unnecessary after people switch over to Macintosh en masse, and I want to stem that tide before it gets out of hand.� The guy probably uses his Mac on a hobby basis and is still not fully familiar with it or aware of its networking capabilities.

kentuckyfried
Senior User

Joined: Jan 2002

0

03/24, 08:29pm | report spam | close Reply |
It's not just time...

The fact of the matter is that there's alot of companies using these hole-in-the-wall apps that are written for PC only. Nobody wants to take the time to have to boot up an emulator to run these POS softwares.

I think Apple should develop their own solution solving this emulation issue, something that's built-in to the Mac OS so that the user doesn't even have to think...that person can just double click on the document associated with that "PC-only" app and just go. At least, if Apple's interested in the business market, that's what it should do.

slur
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Oct 1999

0

03/24, 11:46pm | report spam | close Reply |
Built-In Windows Emu

I second that idea. Open-source windows emulation software like WINE, Bochs, and PearPC are all good potential sources for a built-in windows emulation layer. They all need more time to mature, and perhaps Apple is keeping an eye on their progress. They are all under the GPL I believe, which while it doesn't prevent Apple from using them isn't quite as flexible as the BSD license.

Of these three, I think WINE would be the best option. It could simply run as the handler for .exe files. Hooks into the explorer.dll could be handled to a large extent by WebKit. I sure hope Apple has someone researching these possibilities.

Show More Comments

Login Here

toggle

Network Headlines

02/14	Cook hints at Apple TV set during Goldman...
02/14	Apple CEO: Kindle Fire will sell, but...
02/14	Cook talks labor, pre-paid iPhones...
02/14	Apple 'aggressively' pursuing new production...
02/14	Apple attempting to disrupt Siri hacks...

Show All

02/14	Apple CEO: Kindle Fire will sell, but...
02/14	Time Capsule stock sees delays, sell...
02/14	Readability iOS app delayed, Android...
02/14	Fresh rumors surface of Apple testing...
02/13	Apple takes top spot from Google in...

Show All

02/14	Apple attempting to disrupt Siri hacks...
02/14	Readability iOS app delayed, Android...
02/13	Apple launches 2012 back-to-school...
02/13	Sony Music caught inflating price for...
02/09	Apple explores environment-sensitive...

Show All

02/14	Refurb. 16GB iPhone 4, now only $259...
02/13	Refurb. Flip UltraHD Pocket Digital...
02/10	$380 off refurbished 2.8GHz Mac Pro...
02/09	iHome Dual Alarm Clock for Apple iPod...
02/08	Save 69% on SanDisk Cruzer 32GB USB...

Show All

toggle

IT departments "can�t afford to spend time" with Macs

updated 09:20 pm EST, Wed March 23, 2005

IT departments & Macs

Related Articles

Recent Articles

Whatever

My Conspiracy Theory

lol

Evangelize?

Call a Mac Consultant

The real reason...

translation...

complete dogpile

re: Macs in Corporate IT

OMFG!

Job Security

Busy guy..

It's all about politics

IT justification....

Bull!

Ce la vie!

Independent mac users

they need job security.

re: Independent mac users

I think Dickerson's

I have no sympathy

slight misunderstanding

Increasing Support Here

Also applies to UNIX

As an alternative�

no more, please! ;o)

no more, please! part2

duh..

Greetings Mr. Dickerson

Re: independent mac users

opinion or not

IT

Multi-platform benefits

not enough time?

Excellent article

Hmmm

Real meaning is...

It's not just time...

Built-In Windows Emu

Login Here

Register for our weekly email newsletter:

Connect tools:

Subscribe

to our RSS

Follow us

on Twitter

10 Most Read

10 Most Discussed

MacNN Marketplace