wendy smith - To go Windows or not to go Windows, that is the question

"To go Windows or not to go Windows, that is the question"

You've put aside the Wall Street Journal's report that Apple's marketshare has dropped from 5 to 3 1/2 %, you've ignored PC Novice's May issue figures showing that Macintosh (Mac) sales have declined 21% in North America, whereas Windows sales are on the rise, you've thrown out MacWorld's report that Apple's layoffs have pared a 17,400 workforce at the end of 1995 to 9,300 worldwide (55% of the cuts are from the U.S. workforce), but when the cover page of Wired's June issue paints an Apple logo with the crown of thorns above the words, "pray", now you're worried. Even if Apple decides to adapt one or two of Wired's 101 last ditch suggestions for salvation, where does this leave you, a small business owner, who has invested in Mac operating system and computers from day one? Can you, should you, wait until mid-1998, to run Apple's updated operating system (Rhapsody) even if Apple keeps its promises, which is questionable based on it's track record? Do you have the patience of Job? Are there still valid reasons for staying with Mac over Windows? Are the reasons that Mac owners originally chose it over Windows still valid today? Or is now the time to jump ship and change to Windows?

"They had the best operating system and most intuitive interface out there", said Eric Ehrhardt, a systems integrator from Western N.Y. Computing Systems, when he chose Mac in the late 80's. Would he still choose the Mac today? Despite Apple's lack of development of their platform, and the arrival of Windows 95, Ehrhardt still believes the Mac operating system is superior. "True, Windows 95 is very intuitive and much closer to the Mac interface, but it still has problems integrating 3rd party options, despite "plug n' play" which is supposed to address this," he explained. Comparing the two platforms used to be like comparing apples to oranges, but now that the learning curve is virtually synonymous between a Mac 7.5 operating system and Windows 95, the deciding factor of one operating system over the other is not user interface. For Ehrhardt, who has no more allegiance to one system than the other for his clients, the choice "depends first on the client's application (what they are using it for) and second, on what software is available to do what they need to do".
Consequently, one of the deciding factors is output. Whether files have been created in Windows or Mac, what matters is what your printer uses. The fonts are not the same across the two platforms, even if they have the same name, so minor shifting in spacing occurs, which usually involves a horrendous reproofing task. Therefore, it becomes imperative to make your files compatible with your printer. For small business owners in the graphics industry, where the commercial printers are still using Macintosh, it makes sense to stay Mac, especially in terms of the cost to switch.

According to one systems administrator, whether Macintosh stays in the graphics industry is dependent on three things: Adobe (which makes most of the fonts), the printing industry, and the development of Java Script. Adobe is putting a lot of effort into Acrobat, which would solve the font/file problem. If it becomes the standard of the printing industry in the future, printers could then accept both Mac and Windows files. The other threat to the Mac is Java Script, which lets applications run on top of the operating system so everything is cross compatible. So, if the printing industry drops Macintosh because of these technology changes (Acrobat, Java) or because as Apple's market share diminishes, less software is made for Apple, then small business owners in the graphics industry will need to follow suit. But the big companies will leave Macintosh before small business owners, and it will happen first with the printers.

For Terry Palis, president of Corporate Communications, output, networking and file sharing were the decisive factors when he first chose an IBM compatible computer ten years ago. His company creates slides to output on film. At the time, Apple didn't address outputting to hi- res film recorders, so an IBM compatible computer was the obvious choice. Although Macintosh eventually caught up, Palis knew that in order to trade files with clients in the business community, he needed to stay Windows. He agrees that the Mac operating system does have an advantage, but it's downside (less software, fewer new versions, less peripherals) far outweighs this, especially if you consider that the business world is predominately Windows. Software developers will continue to produce for Windows because their market potential is greater. Palis's perspective illustrates the fact that DOS/Windows has grown from manufacturing and business, whereas the Mac is graphics/ease of use oriented, appealing more to creative types who want to deal with the artistic, not the inner workings of a computer. These separate worlds have separate platforms which are only now coming together.
Across the board, for small business owners I've queried, there are five factors that have determined their choice of operating system; the amount of software available to do what they need done, the cost of switching, output (to film, to a printer) and if they deal with a service bureau, networking/the type of files they exchange with clients, and lastly, what they're using the computer for. Since Photoshop is essentially the same on Windows or Mac (except for speed, due to differences in "disc cashing"), it is no longer true that graphics "are better" on one or the other, nor is purchase cost as much an issue, since Macintosh prices have dropped since their earlier, pricier days.

As for the future, most feel Mac will survive, but not as we've known it. It depends on how technological inventions and Apple's management team play things out in the next few years. As a Mac owner myself, despite feeling it is a better operating system, there's simply more software available for Windows. But, since I really can't spend the time or money on a new computer, I'm taking Wired's lead... and praying.