First off I'd like to offer some of my background in using databases to help illistrate my point. I used FileMaker for a number of years, but as our databases required more and more perfromance we had to move on. First off we used 4D which has many of ease of development pros of FileMaker, but still isn't as high perfromance as offerings like MySQL... which is what we use now.
I love the power and simplicity of MySQL in many areas, but when it comes to wiping out a user friendly entry form (esp when related tables, data entry checking, and etc) FileMaker is a far quicker enviroment to work with.
Yes you can do everything for an entry/edit form in PHP or Lasso, you can't make the entry forms nearly as quickly if there is any level of customization involved.
I think this illistrates a whole in open source offerings... it would be great if there was a easy to use, and quick to emplement database front end for the likes of MySQL
"Support for competing MP3 portables. I think I read somewhere that iTunes may support another mp3 player besides the iPod, but that really isn't enough. Once again, I think it'd be beneficial the popularity of the program if they supported other players. Have they released an SDK for their community to toy with? The Foobar and Nullsoft teams did this, and they got great results"
It is a common misconception that iTunes doesn't work with other mp3 players. It works with most mp3 players, more work with it than don't! It's really simple too, just plug in your brand x mp3 player and is shows up in the left column with your library, play lists, CDs, iPod, and etc. To import new songs simply drag them to the player, to see what is in the player simply click on it, iTunes even displays a bar indicating how may free megs are available. You can reformat the mp3 player and etc... did I mention this doesn't require downloading drivers or monkeying with preferences, just plug it in and it shows up. Now if you want to be safe look for the apple logo (usually the smiley face "finder" version) on the box or visit the retailers website... before you buy.
All this being said the iTMS is not compatible with mp3 players because they sell AAC files... AAC != mp3. So the long and short of it is that the music you purchase online must be converted to mp3 format to be used on a mp3 player, but any other mp3 that "somehow" made it into your library (not that YOU would have illegally downloaded songs from Napseter or anything) will work just fine... your wma, aac, wav and etc files won't work on a pure mp3 player, because er it's an mp3 player... silly wabit trix are for kids.
I kinda wish iTunes wouldn't work with my 3 year old Rio, because then I could more easily justify buying an iPod.
RadioShack still recycles batteries at all (in theory) locations. The thing to remember is that they don't recycle all types of batteries, only rechargable like MiNH, NiCd, Li-ion and even lead acid... sorry, no alkalines.
costing $120 each time Apple upgrades the OS... extra $100+ every N months.
I think your math problem is missing a key variable... X time configuring/trouble shooting/etc.
I can't stress enough how easy the Mac OS is to use on a daily basis. Unless your trying to hack the kernel or something funky like that, the OS X is, point blank, very stable and easy to use.
I've seen several people instal Redhat, Slackware and etc on to PCs and they spent hours... if not quiting for the night and resuming the next evening... while I've never had an OS X install require anything more than clicking next, next, next. Oh, and when I bought my new digital camera (first of that model to come to RadioShack) I just pluged it in to my Mac and iPhoto automaticly poped up and asked if I wanted to import the pictures... not additional anything... it just worked (ouch did I use the "it just works line", I know it's over stated, but trust me there's a reason why... because even the most seasoned Mac user gets suprised from time to time by how smoothly thing work)
So back to math... I would do it something like this... lets assume you have to spend $120 every year to upgrade your OS. Then let's estimate you save 3 hours during the upgrade process over the "free" OS. Then lets say every year you upgrade 3 pieces of hardware, and save an hour each using a Mac over the "free" OS. Then lets say you also install 6 pieces of software (from games to utitlties) and this saves you 1 hr per item over the "free" OS. Well that is a 12 hour time difference (not to mention ease of doing day to day tasks).
That 12 hours can be divided into $120 dollars for a grand total of $10 and hour. If you make more than $10 an hour at your current job... you're selling yourself short - if you are telling yourself your saving money on the OS by not using a Mac, you are fooling yourself.
We all know MS is eager to discredit open source software when ever and where ever it can... humm, didn't MS just sign an expensive deal with SCO prevously posted here on/. Kinda makes me wonder if MS is really helping fund the court case presented by SCO, without directly saying as much.
I think the real problem here is the fact that, what your told by the marketing hype of a networks speed, dosen't match up with what you get in real world use. This is true with dial-up modems, cable modems, DSL, and suprise, suprise Wi-Fi.
What would be really nice is if networking hardware and ISPs were required to post realistic averages of performance along with the max speed of there products.
But then again, I guess it's all relative, or is there a pratical way of gaging realistic performance?
One of the great things about fire wire is that it's angled on one site, and flat on the other. since this design is part of the plug shape... even cheap cables can be connected by touch. Plus it's hot swapable and all that good stuff... so if USB gets a 9, should Fire Wire get a 9.5... 10? oh, yeah Fire Wire is fast too
I've been purchasing Macs for our small company for years. Here are a few tips for getting the most bang for your buck...
First off I'd like to say that you'll probably be happiest with a tower. Anyone who likes to tinker with hardware should get a G4 tower. iMacs are great little boxes, but they don't leave much room to play around.
Processor speed increases happen slower in the Mac world than PC, so your not as prone to be left behind if you go with a slower processor. While the higher end models end up costing close to twice the lowest end (like 200mhz is worth it?)... that math for buying a higher end model never paned out for me (unless you have a lot of $$ to burn).
I usually go to the Apple site to see what the current line up has to offer. Then I call around the catalog resellers (free memory is good) to see what they have available. Quite often they have a model just below the low end (considered hot a few months ago) for a substaintial discount. Or the same things listed on the Apple site, but at better prices... it's rare I can't find a better deal with a catalog reseller. Here are a few companies to look up:
ClubMac MacWarehouse MacMall Other World Computing (OWC) CRW
PS these guys usually don't have they're best deals listed on their websites.
I've been using Timbuktu on OS X for some time now. It works great. I don't see any driving reason to change -- is there some benefit to the Apple version I'm not seeing?
If Apple holds half the market for school computers wouldn't it only make sense to put Apple in a key role? Say, on the committy, with as much voting power as MS... I bet that would help ensure the money got spent in a fair way. I'd bet Apple would be willing offer their computers and software at a greatly discounnted rate if MS was floating the bill.
OR... does Microsoft simply want to put Connetix virtual PC on the Apple computers the schools do have... you know "upgrading" them to act as a PC, because we all know OS X is UNIX based & bad for the childeren.
Is it just me? Does it seem like every time Microsoft makes an attempt to satisfy complaints... it only makes things bend more in their favor?
I've used co-located servers for about 4 years now. One of the things I've found to be valuable is to use a service that specializes in the type of software/CGI/OS/hardware your using. An attentive and knowledgable staff can be a life saver... especially when you can't establish remote access to your server (this will happen sooner or later). If your website is being created by a third party... find out if they provide hosting services. When your developer is in control of your server then it can make updating and fixing problems on your server much easier. For example, with each new version of a CGI there are minute scripting incompatabilities, and who knows better than the developer what type of tag was used where?
Any CGI scripter worth their salt can make a web based system like this. The eCommerce sites I've made work like that... the order is sent to the retailer and another copy to the customer..... it works rather well!
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First off I'd like to offer some of my background in using databases to help illistrate my point. I used FileMaker for a number of years, but as our databases required more and more perfromance we had to move on. First off we used 4D which has many of ease of development pros of FileMaker, but still isn't as high perfromance as offerings like MySQL... which is what we use now.
I love the power and simplicity of MySQL in many areas, but when it comes to wiping out a user friendly entry form (esp when related tables, data entry checking, and etc) FileMaker is a far quicker enviroment to work with.
Yes you can do everything for an entry/edit form in PHP or Lasso, you can't make the entry forms nearly as quickly if there is any level of customization involved.
I think this illistrates a whole in open source offerings... it would be great if there was a easy to use, and quick to emplement database front end for the likes of MySQL
and they say the gov is intrusive in America!
"Support for competing MP3 portables. I think I read somewhere that iTunes may support another mp3 player besides the iPod, but that really isn't enough. Once again, I think it'd be beneficial the popularity of the program if they supported other players. Have they released an SDK for their community to toy with? The Foobar and Nullsoft teams did this, and they got great results"
It is a common misconception that iTunes doesn't work with other mp3 players. It works with most mp3 players, more work with it than don't! It's really simple too, just plug in your brand x mp3 player and is shows up in the left column with your library, play lists, CDs, iPod, and etc. To import new songs simply drag them to the player, to see what is in the player simply click on it, iTunes even displays a bar indicating how may free megs are available. You can reformat the mp3 player and etc... did I mention this doesn't require downloading drivers or monkeying with preferences, just plug it in and it shows up. Now if you want to be safe look for the apple logo (usually the smiley face "finder" version) on the box or visit the retailers website... before you buy.
All this being said the iTMS is not compatible with mp3 players because they sell AAC files... AAC != mp3. So the long and short of it is that the music you purchase online must be converted to mp3 format to be used on a mp3 player, but any other mp3 that "somehow" made it into your library (not that YOU would have illegally downloaded songs from Napseter or anything) will work just fine... your wma, aac, wav and etc files won't work on a pure mp3 player, because er it's an mp3 player... silly wabit trix are for kids.
I kinda wish iTunes wouldn't work with my 3 year old Rio, because then I could more easily justify buying an iPod.
RadioShack still recycles batteries at all (in theory) locations. The thing to remember is that they don't recycle all types of batteries, only rechargable like MiNH, NiCd, Li-ion and even lead acid... sorry, no alkalines.
costing $120 each time Apple upgrades the OS... extra $100+ every N months.
I think your math problem is missing a key variable... X time configuring/trouble shooting/etc.
I can't stress enough how easy the Mac OS is to use on a daily basis. Unless your trying to hack the kernel or something funky like that, the OS X is, point blank, very stable and easy to use.
I've seen several people instal Redhat, Slackware and etc on to PCs and they spent hours... if not quiting for the night and resuming the next evening... while I've never had an OS X install require anything more than clicking next, next, next. Oh, and when I bought my new digital camera (first of that model to come to RadioShack) I just pluged it in to my Mac and iPhoto automaticly poped up and asked if I wanted to import the pictures... not additional anything... it just worked (ouch did I use the "it just works line", I know it's over stated, but trust me there's a reason why... because even the most seasoned Mac user gets suprised from time to time by how smoothly thing work)
So back to math... I would do it something like this... lets assume you have to spend $120 every year to upgrade your OS. Then let's estimate you save 3 hours during the upgrade process over the "free" OS. Then lets say every year you upgrade 3 pieces of hardware, and save an hour each using a Mac over the "free" OS. Then lets say you also install 6 pieces of software (from games to utitlties) and this saves you 1 hr per item over the "free" OS. Well that is a 12 hour time difference (not to mention ease of doing day to day tasks).
That 12 hours can be divided into $120 dollars for a grand total of $10 and hour. If you make more than $10 an hour at your current job... you're selling yourself short - if you are telling yourself your saving money on the OS by not using a Mac, you are fooling yourself.
or so it seems to me...
" I know *many* more Linux users than Mac users"
That's funny because I know very few Linux users and lots and lots of Mac users... so, I'm thinking it's that whole birds of a feather thing.
or maybe that's what happens when you spend too much time in coffee shops
We all know MS is eager to discredit open source software when ever and where ever it can... humm, didn't MS just sign an expensive deal with SCO prevously posted here on /. Kinda makes me wonder if MS is really helping fund the court case presented by SCO, without directly saying as much.
I think the real problem here is the fact that, what your told by the marketing hype of a networks speed, dosen't match up with what you get in real world use. This is true with dial-up modems, cable modems, DSL, and suprise, suprise Wi-Fi.
What would be really nice is if networking hardware and ISPs were required to post realistic averages of performance along with the max speed of there products.
But then again, I guess it's all relative, or is there a pratical way of gaging realistic performance?
Since when did Cash = No Thank you?
What's really funny is when someone really has the last name of Cash (think Jonny) and the clerk gets defensive... then the customer right back.
One of the great things about fire wire is that it's angled on one site, and flat on the other. since this design is part of the plug shape... even cheap cables can be connected by touch. Plus it's hot swapable and all that good stuff... so if USB gets a 9, should Fire Wire get a 9.5... 10? oh, yeah Fire Wire is fast too
Welcome aboard!
I've been purchasing Macs for our small company for years. Here are a few tips for getting the most bang for your buck...
First off I'd like to say that you'll probably be happiest with a tower. Anyone who likes to tinker with hardware should get a G4 tower. iMacs are great little boxes, but they don't leave much room to play around.
Processor speed increases happen slower in the Mac world than PC, so your not as prone to be left behind if you go with a slower processor. While the higher end models end up costing close to twice the lowest end (like 200mhz is worth it?)... that math for buying a higher end model never paned out for me (unless you have a lot of $$ to burn).
I usually go to the Apple site to see what the current line up has to offer. Then I call around the catalog resellers (free memory is good) to see what they have available. Quite often they have a model just below the low end (considered hot a few months ago) for a substaintial discount. Or the same things listed on the Apple site, but at better prices... it's rare I can't find a better deal with a catalog reseller. Here are a few companies to look up:
ClubMac
MacWarehouse
MacMall
Other World Computing (OWC)
CRW
PS these guys usually don't have they're best deals listed on their websites.
Good Luck
I've been using Timbuktu on OS X for some time now. It works great. I don't see any driving reason to change -- is there some benefit to the Apple version I'm not seeing?
sounds like you'd just be waving the heat bye bye
If Apple holds half the market for school computers wouldn't it only make sense to put Apple in a key role? Say, on the committy, with as much voting power as MS... I bet that would help ensure the money got spent in a fair way. I'd bet Apple would be willing offer their computers and software at a greatly discounnted rate if MS was floating the bill.
OR... does Microsoft simply want to put Connetix virtual PC on the Apple computers the schools do have... you know "upgrading" them to act as a PC, because we all know OS X is UNIX based & bad for the childeren.
Is it just me? Does it seem like every time Microsoft makes an attempt to satisfy complaints... it only makes things bend more in their favor?
I've used co-located servers for about 4 years now. One of the things I've found to be valuable is to use a service that specializes in the type of software/CGI/OS/hardware your using. An attentive and knowledgable staff can be a life saver... especially when you can't establish remote access to your server (this will happen sooner or later). If your website is being created by a third party... find out if they provide hosting services. When your developer is in control of your server then it can make updating and fixing problems on your server much easier. For example, with each new version of a CGI there are minute scripting incompatabilities, and who knows better than the developer what type of tag was used where?
Any CGI scripter worth their salt can make a web based system like this. The eCommerce sites I've made work like that... the order is sent to the retailer and another copy to the customer..... it works rather well!