Macs Again [was: Re: Old Hardware]

[Kurt Granroth]

Randy Melder wrote:
> On 3/31/07, *Kurt Granroth* <plug-discuss at granroth.org
> <mailto:plug-discuss at granroth.org>> wrote:
> 
>     Randy Melder wrote:
>     > Seriously, OS X is the best desktop available.
> 
>     An openSUSE 10.2 system running the latest
>     KDE with Beryl is untouchable.  Sure, OS X has whizzy effects... but
>     they look like baby steps compared to what Beryl can do.  
> 
> 
> You haven't played with xserve....
> http://www.apple.com/server/macosx/leopard/

$400!!  Plus, that only addresses the network services side.  OS X
Server is no more whizzy than the normal OS X.  Leopard is going to
bring them both up a lot closer to Beryl... but again, if you've used
Beryl, you'd see that there is little comparison between the two.  Beryl
is leagues ahead.

>     Say you want to set up your system with apache, mysql, php, squid,
>     postfix, clamv, spamassasin, etc.  Could you do it in OS X?  Absolutely!
>     But it'll be a minor to major PITA, too.  Just compiling Courier IMAP
>     took more than a few patches to the code, if I remember correctly.  
> 
> 
> http://www.apple.com/server/macosx/mailservices.html

Yep.. at $400!!  openSUSE is free.

>     Add on a little Codeweaver action and you are covered for those few
>     Windows apps that you still need.  Really need a hard-core Windows app?
>     VMWare Server is free.
> 
> Parallels is $79.

VMWare Server is FREE.  On OS X, both virtualization packages (Parallels
and Fusion) cost some money.  And even then, it will just bring it to
the level of Linux, not surpassing it.

Mind you, this is all mildly in the devil's advocate arena.  I adore OS
X and think is a phenomenal consumer desktop (by far the best for "Joe
User")... it's just arguable that it's the best in *all* cases.  For my
hybrid geek and consumer needs, my Linux desktop is topping my list.

Lynn gave some good examples in another post where Linux (and PCs in
general) can be more hassle than it's worth.  My new kick-ass
super-quiet Linux system is a dream now... but when I first got it, it
kept locking up on me.  Why?  Because the built-in Marvell PCI-E gigabit
port on the motherboard only has an alpha driver in Linux.  I had to go
buy a separate card to have reliable networking on that box.  Not a huge
deal (once I figured it out) but it would be UNHEARD OF on a Mac.  The
Mac will Just Work(tm).  And that's only one tiny example.

Another tiny example... suspend a Mac laptop and resume it.  It takes a
couple to a few seconds in each case and will do so reliably every time.
 My Thinkpad T43 running openSUSE 10.2 takes a good 15 to 20 seconds to
suspend to RAM... and it has maybe a 40-50% chance of ever waking up
again.  The majority of the time, it just hangs in some weird start
between sleep and wake.  My co-worker has the exact same laptop model
with the same Linux kernel and everything and his works fine all the
time.  On the Mac, it would always Just Work(tm).

But seriously, after you've installed Beryl and you've made the
full-screen app with the current focus more transparent so you could see
what was written in the window behind it OR selected an app using the
ring window picker OR saw at a glance what your desktop looks like in
the form of a 3D cube... well, all other desktops look firmly mired in
the 90s, and that includes OS X!

Kurt