Fortune columnist: Macs still wrong for business

Mon Jun 2, 2008 11:57AM EDT

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Read the comments to, oh, just about any blog post I've written about Windows and its flaws in the last 2 1/2 years, and you'll find some genius who's come up with the original, witty retort of "Get a Mac!" ("Get Linux!" is, of course, close behind.)

One columnist is now putting his neck out on the chopping block by offering the advice that, at least for businesses, Macs aren't always the right choice.

Fortune Small Business writer Jonathan Blum posits that, even though the Mac has made great strides toward the business world in recent years, it's still not wholly ready for it.

Among his complaints: Naturally, figuring out how to do simple tasks on a Mac can be baffling for a veteran PC user. He calls out the most recent iMac's lack of a visible power button (it's inexplicably on the back) as a case in point. If Joe Business can't figure out how to turn the computer on, what hope does he have for getting on the network?

Other complaints are a bit more serious. There aren't enough USB ports. Standby business software like GoToMyPC didn't work. Just as many driver issues getting hardware to work as with Vista. And of course the lack of a two-button mouse, unless you bring your own.

The bigger concern for businesses can be a few specific interoperability problems, says Blum. Trouble with syncing a BlackBerry to a Mac can be a deal killer for many business users.

Blum's complaints are serious, but are they valid? I think they are. It's one thing to recommend your grandma get a Mac instead of a Vista PC, because chances are the only problems she'll encounter is in getting her photo printer set up properly and wondering where Minesweeper can be found. But for businesses with multiple computers and a lot of critical hardware and software, switching to a Mac isn't as easy as the commercials make it out to be. (In two decades of using both platforms, I've never gotten used to the Mac's system of having the menu bar on top of the screen rather than inside the window where I'm working.)

Bottom line: Definitely consider a Mac no matter what kind of user you are, but carefully weigh the costs associated with an enormous switch like this. If you can, find a colleague who's already made the move and get some candid commentary on how well it's worked out. You might be surprised that the path to the Mac isn't quite as seamless as the commercials make it out to be.

LINK: Why Macs still aren't right for most businesses 

Comments on Fortune columnist: Macs still wrong for business

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  • 6 Posted by sawminn_aung on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:06PM EDT Report Abuse

    I just happened to drop by to Yahoo! tech for the first time today. And you know what? This first article I read here makes a big ? about the credibility of Yahoo! tech. I first thought I would refute the author's judgement. Then I realize why I should be wasting time arguing on such groundless remarks. Oh, I almost forgot. Ya, there is one, and only one, statement I quite agree. Ask around people who are already using or who have recently switched to a Mac.

  • 7 Posted by sally_1512 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:01PM EDT Report Abuse

    Interesting they think that way since I work in a relatively new company (we've been i business 2 years). The developer team is primarily on Ubuntu. I use Mac with a virtual ubuntu and only one of our developers uses a part time pc desktop. Generally for the rest of the company the default laptop given is a mac book unless the user specifically asks for a windows (always XP *wink*) laptop.

  • 8 Posted by deerparkerpark on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:40PM EDT Report Abuse

    I work in a communications office with two other people. Our office has 3 XP machines and 3 Macs. When we got the Macs each of us started using them and left our PCs behind. After, I'd say, a month, we all went back to using out XP machines. Blackberry's synced ok must of the time, all that sort of stuff was fine...but after month we realized our preference still resided on XP. For our "business" needs, the macs seemed just as productive as PCs, we were just not as productive on them ourselves. The benefits of using a Mac did not outweigh the initial loss in productivity.

  • 9 Posted by andygipsom on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:54PM EDT Report Abuse

    I think that most of these complaints, especially the switching cost are valid. However, if, "Joe Business," can't deal with the issue of the power button being located in a different place I am not sure how well he may perform at many other simple and common tasks that may arrise during the course of the day.

  • 10 Posted by icguy77 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:22PM EDT Report Abuse

    Why Mac? One good reason: NO VIRUS (last time I checked). Why PC? "Well, everybody owns one, so why don't we?"

  • 11 Posted by dkthebigmunky on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:45PM EDT Report Abuse

    icguy77 and andygipsom put together a great point. If the problem with "Business Joe" and finding the power button persists past a one time three second explanation perhaps he should consider another line of work. If for some god forsaken reason that a business desires to run Vista, hasn't Cnet and other major review sites dubbed Macs as better equipped to run Vista? (And Im not simply referring to the mac commercials.) Of course buggy operating systmes are only compounded by PC's inability to stay immune from viruses. So if "Business Joe" can't open Internet Explorer or find the power button on his Mac, he will certainly be slowed by having to do a days work on his Blackberry (which hopefully he can locate the power button on). Right click? Come on. How hard is it to perform the tasks by using apple command keys?

  • 12 Posted by renman53 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:36PM EDT Report Abuse

    It's ironic that the only people who are acting like fanboys are the PCers with their knee-jerk defensiveness. Y'all are too funny.

  • 13 Posted by solopassenger on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:32PM EDT Report Abuse

    If everybody else is doing it then it must be right..right? Wrong! I've had PC's and just recently switched to Mac. By far and away Mac's are more intuitive and all the software you get is wonderful. Why anybody would choose a PC over a Mac is out of my realm.

  • 14 Posted by joshimmerman on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:41PM EDT Report Abuse

    While Mac may not have as large of a market share, it is steadily rising every year as 5 years ago they only had a 5% market share, while today they have a 15% market share. Mac is the future!!!

  • 15 Posted by shadowman_26 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:15PM EDT Report Abuse

    Macs can stuff it. I will never pay $1500 for a paperweight, cuz thats all it is!

  • 16 Posted by alanrhodes10 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:49PM EDT Report Abuse

    It's because of people like this writer that I use a Mac.

  • 17 Posted by alan_r_cam on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:49PM EDT Report Abuse

    Get BeOS. Get OS/2. Get PC-DOS. (soory, I had to say it)

  • 18 Posted by pau_chan88artist on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:03PM EDT Report Abuse

    I switched to a Mac late November '07, and it has been the best decision I've ever made. It is so much easier to use, and if you can't find the power button, either you can fix that by reading the user guide (which labels everything), or you don't have the intellect to be using a computer at all! And for businesses, I can say that back in the pre-Tiger era it was possible to lock a Mac's screen from the network admin's computer. I am an eyewitness. Why would Apple drop features? And if you can prevent the usage of a computer, then you must be able to perform all those other tasks with the network. ~from~Pau~chan

  • 19 Posted by lynlet81 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:01PM EDT Report Abuse

    Can't believe you don't know that the menu bar can be moved to the bottom of the screen or to either side. Not to mention freedom from viruses for a major benefit. And their support is fabulous.

  • 20 Posted by sjpelusi on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:25PM EDT Report Abuse

    yeah, i agree... but the biggest problem you had was: " Mac's system of having the menu bar on top of the screen rather than inside the window where I'm working." ????? Come on now thats not that difficult. Somethings are way harder to get used to.

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