The
"production computer" is your working home base. It needs to function
well and be able to run the various software tools you acquire to perform image
editing, page authoring, and server interaction. Of course it is also most likely
that it will run all other forms of applications you need in your daily life,
personal and/or professional. Wed designing is not everything!
I am writing
for the novice and intermediate audience so I will not consider a "pure"
UNIX/Linux machine as a personal computer. It would simply be too technical despite
the potential power of the various UNIX options. However, the Macintosh OS-X is
based upon UNIX with a Macintosh interface and will be discussed.
For most
computer users with skills not derived through the professional media industry,
say as an art director for an ad agency, a Windows PC is what you were probably
given on your desk at work and most likely what you first purchased for home use.
They have typically been cheaper than the Macintosh a marketing factor that eroded
the Apple market share until the return of Steve Jobs to the company for leadership
resulting in the release of the first iMac about 4 years ago.
I will say
it right now, I am from the Macintosh camp. I have worked with Windows (affectionately
and not so affectionately, "Windoze") since the release of version 3.1
but continue to opt for the Mac's interface, file structure, and overall workability.
I will try to be fair but my bias is now out in the open. One thing of great importance
when considering the operating system of the computer you use most often –
"easy to use" should not mean less capable. In fact, easy to use should
mean "work more effectively!"
In terms of usability, Microsoft
has mimicked enough of the Mac OS over the years to have a reasonably easy to
operate user interface in the current Windows 2000 and newer versions of their
operating system. However, what lies behind Windows is most often a dreaded mystery
to typical PC users. When it installs programs, where does it put things? And
if something goes wrong, which it will with every computer, how do I cope with
it myself? Can the average user of a PC possible know which cryptically named
"DLL" is needed for this or that program to operate? No way! And why
the hell would I want my desktop to work like a website?
Fortunately the
major professional software producers, Adobe, Macromedia, etc. have produced versions
of their leading applications that run on both Macs and PCs and allow users to
share files without undue stress. In the world of web and electronic media design,
this has been a major improvement for all, regardless of which platform the prefer.
What
Windows does still do better (or more accurately put "with more options")
than the Mac is database interaction. The common Microsoft database "Access"
is not available for the Mac. Ironically, if it were, most Mac users would want
nothing to do with such a cumbersome program when compared to Filemaker (also
available on the PC). But Microsoft has put a lot of its resources behind web
database publishing and a novice user can figure out how to link up to an Access
database that resides on a Microsoft web server (more about that later) as well
as find ODBC connection solutions to most well known databases. On the Mac side,
OS-X is working to change that domination. Because it is based upon UNIX, there
is now a version of MySQL available for the Mac which is a very powerful and established
open-source database (free) that is used by large and small organizations, NASA
to name one.
I have tried to be fair to Windows from a professional perspective
but now, why buy a Mac instead? The Mac interface remains more elegant. While
a Windoze user might have a hard time getting used to not clicking on every conceivable
place on the screen and resize their windows from every edge and corner, a patient
user will find themselves less stressed out and more productive. Spending hours
making grotesque color schemes for the interface is not "working" with
the computer, getting things done is! The Mac's interface has many options to
improve and customize the working environment but making the window color lime
green with purple scroll bars is not encouraged. The fundamental concept that
Apple originally promoted is that the user should feel comfortable with the interface
regardless of the program(s) being run. Most Mac users are competent in the use
of more applications than the average Windows user despite the improvements to
the Windows interface.
The greatest line of baloney that one hears from
salespeople trying to make a quick buck on a PC is "there's much more software
available for the PC". True ... but most of the stuff available for the PC
is junk. The most imporatant professional applications that have proven themselves
over years of refinement are available on both platforms. If you want every game
that is released, stick with a PC. You won't be working anyway. Mac users have
traditionally been more demanding of the software they buy. Poorly ported programs
from the PC simply do not sell to Mac users (the well know CAD program AutoCAD
for example was a bomb on the Mac) while the majority of professional applications,
Photoshop, Freehand, Quark Express, and Excel (yes especially Excel) were developed
for the Mac and ported or rewritten for the PC.
All this aside – personal
preference, historical diatribe, and passion for a cause, now why buy a Mac? One,
the G4 processor that runs the current line of Mac computers is faster and more
capable than it's competitors. Two, the Windows platform is dominated by Microsoft's
release of shoddy programming that puts the users of their operating system and
software, especially Internet tools like Outlook and FrontPage, at serious risk
to viruses and hackers. Three, if you need a few special programs that only run
on Windows, Virtual PC from Connectix works great. This program installs and runs
a real copy of Windows in a window on the Mac. Just try running the Mac OS on
a PC ... can't be done.
Regarding Mac OS-X, this newest release of the Macintosh
OS is completely different. It sports a new look that while a bit hard to get
used to at first for an old Mac user, it very attractive and easy to look at.
What is most important about OS-X is that it is the powerful but incredably complicated
UNIX wearing an elegant and productive interface. Not only are all of the standard
applications that have always been available for the Mac been upgraded to run
on OS-X but new software previously based on standard UNIX is appearing regularly.
In short, the software and functional options for the so-called "power user"
and the average user is on the rise with OS-X. And, the consumer level programs
that Apple provides (iTunes, iMovie, iDVD, and iPhoto) are well written and very
useful.
Last, it is most important to stress that good web design should
by nature work well accross all platforms and on all browsers which is not at
all an easy issue. Though the Mac is the primary production computer for NightShade
Media, most of my clients are PC based and it is certainly understood that 90%
of the web audience ia also using a PC. There are significant diferences between
the way web pages display type and color on the Mac and on the PC, not to mention
among the different browsers. Unfortunately many PC developers never test their
designs on the Mac! Yet it is imperative that Mac designers do a good job testing
their work on the PC. Does that mean you need a PC too ... definitely not, just
a copy of Virtual PC and you can test virtually every possible PC setup there
is, even better than a PC user. Build on Mac for use on PC!
Next, let's
look at the various web server platforms and technologies. Then I will compare
how your chosen personal computer can interact with the webserver to make producing
for the Internet understandable and more productive.
