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Intel Macs won't help Apple in business

updated 11:25 am EST, Mon January 16, 2006

No Macs for business

Apple's transition Intel chips may help the company in the consumer market, but it is unlikely to . For the most part, government contracts require that companies use Windows, and many companies find that there is insufficient software compatibility and availability with Macs, according to InformationWeek. Even though debuting the Intel-based Macs six months ahead of schedule will help Apple keep sales up as customers will not have to wait for the upgrades, Apple is focusing more on a "living-room"-styled computer, according to the report.

Businesses switching from Windows-based PCs to Intel Macs must consider cost. Companies choosing the new Macs would need to factor in the higher cost of the machines as well as training and transition of applications and the need for Mac-compatible Oracle and SAP applications.

While Apple currently holds only 2-3 percent of the worldwide PC market, the company sold 1.25 million Macs sold last year, 200,000 more than 2004--though much of Apple's growth has come from iPod sales. With the upgrades to its consumer content-creation suite iLife, Apple has shown that as far as software is concerned, the home-based computer user is their priority.

Some businesses do, however, choose Macs for a variety of reasons. "It's not necessarily a pro-Mac thing, but it's an anti-Microsoft and -Windows thing," explains Interstate Screw VP Eric Seiden, whose company uses five Macs and two Windows computers. "Windows is prone to viruses and security flaws. My whole goal is I want the computer to work for me, and I don't want to spend my whole life fixing the damn things."

by MacNN Staff

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automorrow
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Oct 2000

0

01/16, 11:48am | report spam | close Reply |
Your Tax Dollars at Work!

Isn't that great.. to know that your tax dollars keeps Microsoft in business, and the future of our so-called great country is dependent on Windows! I would like to know the ball park figure that the "oficiall" USA spends at MicroSoft .. including the "unproductivity" assesment due to buggy software.

Jesda
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Joined: Dec 2005

0

01/16, 11:52am | report spam | close Reply |
Sure

But you cant be productive to begin with unless you have the software to do it.

jscotta
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Joined: Jun 2002

0

01/16, 12:04pm | report spam | close Reply |
Productivity and Costs

You are correct, in that you have to have the right software to be productive to begin with. That said, the Macintosh platform has a huge amount of software - many people fail to factor in the open source applications. And, yes, you have to factor in those applications because the "businesses" in this article are large enterprises urning Oracle and and SAP. So having IT staff around to download and configure open source alternatives is available.

The next thing to consider is what software will be available to run Windows inside a window on a Mac. This is not a new thing. Today's OS X Mac is not much more than a NeXT machine. Steve Jobs and company have experience moving from non-Intel products to Intel ones. Software to run Windows concurrently with another operating system (a virtual PC), was one of the first things to be released for that combination. So expect to see it on the Mac soon. In fact, I'll bet that people have been working on just that since the Intel transition was announced.

itguy05
Forum Regular

Joined: Apr 2005

0

01/16, 12:07pm | report spam | close Reply |
SAP and Oracle - Check

They both run on Macs. IIRC Apple uses SAP internally and I doubt that they are running it on Windows, AIX, or AS/400....

jimothy
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01/16, 12:12pm | report spam | close Reply |
I disagree

I predict that the Intel Macs will help Apple in business, particularly once Virtual PC (or some competive product) is available. Sure, there are some businesses and organizations that won't but a computer if it doesn't come slapped with a Dell logo and holographic sticker from Microsoft, but there are plenty of companies that aren't such sticklers.

Many businesses and individuals would love to move to the Mac, for reasons cited in the article (security, etc.), but need to run a handful of Windows-only programs from time-to-time. At my work, my primary machine is a Mac, and I work with plenty of people would love to make the Mac their primary machine, but a few applications hold them back.

So, smart business will look at it and say, "We could get a Windows-only laptop, or, for not much more, we could get a MacBook which will run Mac OS X and Windows." As more and more companies do this, more and more developers will port their software to Mac OS X (or, better yet, other developers will create compatible alternatives, since so much Windows software simply sucks). Which makes it easier for even more companies to migrate. Before you know it, the Mac market has grown enough that even those Windows die-hards will give it a second look.

Of course, we're not there yet (still need Virtual PC to even let us step down that direction), but with the right moves, marketing, and a healthy dose of luck, it could happen.

eldarkus
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01/16, 12:18pm | report spam | close Reply |
The article is Moot

Apple didnt switch to Intel to make inroads into corporations, like this article implies. it did it cause they were unhappy with IBM.

Just because they switched processors, that means businesses were more likely to go to Mac? I would buy a mac, but it has an IBM processor... was that the line of thinking? hmmm....

Feathers
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Joined: Oct 1999

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01/16, 12:25pm | report spam | close Reply |
Rubbish!

Government contracts cannot insist on the use of a particular operating system, that would be illegal, but contractual requirements MAY necessitate the use of software not available on the Mac platform, which isn't the same thing by a long shot! Disinformation is so...informative! It is also well known that there is a significant installed base of Mac OS platform machines in, of all places, the Pentagon! Also, to suggest that Government contracts dictate the decisions of the wider business community (the majority of whom do not necessarily have any Government contracts) is a non sequitur!

cbr600f4
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Joined: Sep 2000

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01/16, 12:30pm | report spam | close Reply |
Numbers are wrong

Did anyone else notice this story claims Apple sold 1.25 million Macs last YEAR. This seems a bit off to me, in fact I think they may mean last quarter. This website just is not what it used to be. Check the facts before publishing MacNN.

bhuot
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01/16, 12:48pm | report spam | close Reply |
re: rubbish

That is not true that Macs can be bought for government jobs even if they *require* Macs to be used for their work to run software that is *only available* for Macs. In this case it was a US Forest Service funded research project. The problem is they have contracts with the likes of IBM and HP and cannot buy from whoever they feel does the job best even when the software they need is not available for Windows. Remember Microsoft has so much power that they successfully pressured the NSA into stopping their development work on Security Enhanced Linux.

tron12
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Joined: Jan 2006

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01/16, 12:51pm | report spam | close Reply |
Sales are way off

I noticed that as well. They sold 1.25 million in the last quarter alone. These people who write these articles should really get their act together and stop kissing Microcrap's butt. Apple sold over 5 million Mac's last year alone and almost 2 million of those who bought them were people switching from windoze to MAC.

ZinkDifferent
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Joined: Jan 2005

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01/16, 01:09pm | report spam | close Reply |
Well, there you have it..

...I suspect we will see a whole bunch more articles about how the intel Macs won't save Apple, how it won't help them stay afloat, how they will be Jobs' biggest flop, how they won't help with Enterprise deployments..... etc...

Well, what that really means, is that we are now having a virtual seal of approval that any and all of these things will be happening, and that Apple will gain inroads in all of these markets.

Finally figured out how these 'analysts' work.

ClevelandAdv
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Joined: Jul 2004

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01/16, 02:12pm | report spam | close Reply |
Business buying Macs

I see a greater share of small businesses or individual departments moving to Macs as well as a big shift in the education market (once dominated by Apple). Someone will have a solution to running Windows on Mactels very soon, and this will have a impact on Apple's bottom line. Any analyst who cannot see this is not getting the big picture

ValkRaider
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Joined: Aug 2001

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01/16, 02:56pm | report spam | close Reply |
Apple is dying.

Apple is dead.

Or at least that is what they have been saying for years...

All I know is what I experience is the opposite of this article.

Our company is 100% government contract work, and the move to intel and the prospect of being able to use Windows when needed has sold one MacBook, and has a couple more people looking at switching - who never had before.

So I submit to you, dear reader, Apple is dying.... ;)

samslaves
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Joined: Oct 2000

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01/16, 05:28pm | report spam | close Reply |
SAP and Oracle - Check

No. As a SAP Consultant I can say that SAP products run only on Windows and some Unixes but OS X.

kw99
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Joined: Nov 2001

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01/16, 05:35pm | report spam | close Reply |
So what???

The author seems to be implying that one of the key reasons for Apple going Intel was to sell more to corporate customers. If that were so, Apple would be giving customers the option of getting the Mac with Windows or Mac OS X. But that is obviously not the case, so nothing has really changed.

Business customers who previously rejected Apple will still reject Apple for the same reasons. Business customers who previously considered the Mac option will still consider Apple, for the same reasons.

The only real difference is the extra publicity from articles like this one. I think some corporate decision-makers who otherwise would not have looked at Apple (at all) as a choice will see all the press coverage and say, "What...? Apple is using Intel now." Then they may investigate further, talk to an Apple rep, and choose Apple, not because they use Intel chips, but for all the right reasons.

JulesLt
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01/16, 06:08pm | report spam | close Reply |
Browsers and Java

I've spent my entire working life in 'big IT' and aside from Word and Excel, almost every 'big' app has run on Unix servers. The Windows desktops were used mostly to run terminal emulators, and more recently browsers. There is almost nothing I use in my job that I now couldn't also do on a Mac.

Big IT is also very keen on Java, because it means they can move from AIX to Sun servers and back. Apple are moving into that space (I was surprised to see Apple as a sponsor at the UK Oracle User Group this year - and again, Oracle are developing Java based development tools for use on Linux, Mac, etc).

In the server market, their RAID servers are actually price competitive.

However, where they won't win is on the corporate desktop - we use essentially disposable Dell's - cheap, nasty, but who cares when they go wrong at that price? And that's the main driver that's keeping Windows where it is. I know call centres that use them as pretty much dumb clients (the end users just get a browser) - because it's cheaper than a browser terminal.

whelkboy
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01/16, 06:08pm | report spam | close Reply |
Small businesses ahoy!

I've just been to a business networking meeting and came across a chap who puts Macs into companies. They're not big firms but are those that wants Macs for the same reasons why they switch their PC for a Mac at home. There's a stack of apps out there to support the small business.

In me own business' case, we write a great piece of software for the PC and get a fair few e-mails from Mac users asking if there's a Mac version. Unfortunately, it could never be ported in the traditional sense but what with the recent Intel shift and hopefully WINE, we should get our software running on Macs. If the fit is good, we've just opened up a niche product to a wider corporate market.

gmandell
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01/17, 10:34am | report spam | close Reply |
Look at the market...

It was reported in July 21, 2005 (MacWorld) that Jupiter Research found that in businesses with 250 employees or more, 17% of the employees were running Mac OS X on their desktop computer at work. In businesses that had 10,000 or more employees, 21 percent of employees used Mac OS X on their desktop at work.

unwillyn
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Joined: Sep 2002

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01/17, 11:07am | report spam | close Reply |
The way things really are

Okay, I've only been writing business software and installing Macs in corporate environments since 1984, but I think I have a fair understanding of the problem.

The issue isn't the users or even the boardroom. The problem is the dyed in the wool Windoz techs who maintain the corporate systems. These guys don't want to learn another OS, no matter how good it is !!!

Remember, they make their living fixing the endless stream of MS garbage that pulls down the productivity of corporate America. The more it breaks, the more they get paid, and the more secure their jobs are.

Adding Macs to their job requirements just means another thing added to their daily work load that they have to know about. And, since people don't like more work landing on their desk, they scream real loud when presented with the idea of another OS being part of their duties. Call it the "IT corporate culture", or whatever you want, but in the end, when the IT staff says "No Macs", it's usually the end of the subject.

In those cases where Macs are allowed (multi media, graphics art dept, etc.) They usually hire someone with two years Mac experience, pay him/her a paltry wage to maintain them, and often don't even allow the Macs on the corporate network. That person usually doesn't get invited to IT staff meetings, and is in a dead end job by design !!

On the other hand, you'd be amazed at the places Macs are used in the military and the government !!! Different culture, different mindset, different goals.

I wish it wasn't that way, but it really is, and I see nothing on the horizon that's going change it. Short of an entire global MS meltdown..... One can always hope :-)

testudo
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Joined: Aug 2001

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01/17, 11:47am | report spam | close Reply |
Yeah, sure

OK, so people and businesses are going to rush out and buy macs, which are more expensive then the PCs they generally buy, so they can run Windows apps on them using VPC or some other mechanism. Exactly which businesses are doing this? Why would a company say "Hey, we use mostly windows apps, but rather then get a windows PC, we'll get a Mac, then run all of our apps in a big window that runs Windows XP, but on top of OS X". And how does that save them from viruses and the like? Oh, it doesn't. And hopefully (for them) the integration between the OS and VPC is good enough to avoid the irritations that VPC always seemed to bring to me.

Oh, and gov't contracts can certainly push an OS down your throat. The Navy has moved most of its systems under NMCI, their basic IT dept. In order for our software to work under their machines, they need to run under their stupid requirements, which is Windows XP. (Of course, in the stupidity that is these people, they've got all these restrictions on their users on what they can and can't do, yet they didn't lock up the "Program Files" folder, so users can update/delete files in there to their hearts content).

testudo
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Joined: Aug 2001

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01/17, 12:00pm | report spam | close Reply |
BTW

From stuff I was reading on macintouch, it seems like external drives formatted for PPC macs can only be read from intel macs, and vice versa. Not sure if its true, but if it is, kind of a huge "WTF?"

mytdave
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Joined: Aug 2000

0

08/14, 02:27pm | report spam | close Reply |
who wrote this article?

Who are the supposed experts here at InfoWeek? What are they smoking? Let's dissect:

1. Government contracts do not require the use of Windows. Where did they get that nonsense? 2. Macs are not more expensive. Can that BS finally die? 3. Oracle and SAP are not a problem. Did they bother to check the fact that OS X is Oracle certified? Server is even certified to actually run Oracle, not just connect to it. 4. Apple has had tons of financial growth from iPods. True. So what? And that's bad, how? 5. Apple's priorities may or may not be home based computers. It's hard to tell what their priorities are. If that blanket statement were true, then why put so much work into a new Mac Pro, and Xserve? 6. Businesses do not choose Macs because of an "anti-Microsoft" thing. Some people in business may feel that way, but I guarantee you the bean counters don't care. Business will choose Macs if a business case can be made for their use. It's that simple. Reliability, TCO, superior security are good business cases. If those continue to be true, more businesses will take notice.

Now that Apple has Intel based machines, my company is actually planning to buy several. They'll likely be running Linux, but the point is, the Intel transition probably WILL help Apple in business, contrary to the opinion of that silly article.

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Intel Macs won't help Apple in business

updated 11:25 am EST, Mon January 16, 2006

No Macs for business

Your Tax Dollars at Work!

Sure

Productivity and Costs

SAP and Oracle - Check

I disagree

The article is Moot

Rubbish!

Numbers are wrong

re: rubbish

Sales are way off

Well, there you have it..

Business buying Macs

Apple is dying.

SAP and Oracle - Check

So what???

Browsers and Java

Small businesses ahoy!

Look at the market...

The way things really are

Yeah, sure

BTW

who wrote this article?

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Intel Macs won't help Apple in business

updated 11:25 am EST, Mon January 16, 2006

No Macs for business

Related Articles

Recent Articles

Your Tax Dollars at Work!

Sure

Productivity and Costs

SAP and Oracle - Check

I disagree

The article is Moot

Rubbish!

Numbers are wrong

re: rubbish

Sales are way off

Well, there you have it..

Business buying Macs

Apple is dying.

SAP and Oracle - Check

So what???

Browsers and Java

Small businesses ahoy!

Look at the market...

The way things really are

Yeah, sure

BTW

who wrote this article?

Login Here

Register for our weekly email newsletter:

Connect tools:

Subscribe

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on Twitter

10 Most Read

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