Computer World recognizes AAPL's "rebirth"
Likes the G 3 and Server OS X . If you like AAPL stock like IBM 4 years ago as a "hold" , this article is worth a read and a re-read :
Dan Gillmor 01/18/99: " If Apple Computer once again merits enterprise attention, and it may, look no further than the latest Power Macintosh G3 machines and a new server operating system to understand why.
Current Mac users will crave the power of the new models. But IT folks who deal with Macintoshes will love the G3s for their design.
The new G3s have four handles. A door folds down like a drawbridge. The motherboard, memory and slots are on the door, which lays flat on the desk. Remaining inside the case are the power supply, disk drives and other peripherals.
Those computers will be a dream to configure and repair.
Yes, Apple has removed the ubiquitous SCSI connector, now a $50 add-on
for the many customers who will rationally decline to toss out all
manner of devices they're using today.
But consider the possibilities for the Universal Serial Bus and
FireWire, which are now standard issue on the G3s, along with 100M
bit/sec. Ethernet.
FireWire is the most exciting. That's the popular name for the IEEE 1394 standard, a 400M bit/sec. I/O port that can daisy-chain up to 63 peripheral devices -- including other computers. Stay tuned on that.
The G3s are going to be no-brainer upgrades for people who use
Macintoshes today, notably among the so-called creative crowd -- the
people who do marketing/communications, art, Web site design and so on.
Apple had to hold on to its installed base in enterprises before it
could look for new users, and the G3s are just what the spin doctors
ordered.
With Mac OS X, Apple moves into Super Bowl nomenclature for its
operating systems. Maybe that's fair. The upcoming Mach-based operating system, the first edition of which will be a server operating system next month, jumps way ahead of Mac OS 8.5, the current Macintosh system.
The regular client Mac OS X is due at year's end.
Steve Jobs wowed the Macworld Expo audience two weeks ago by using Mac
OS X to serve 50 iMac computers, the all-in-one gumdrop models that have sold so well to consumers. All of the iMacs booted from the Power Mac G3 server running Mac OS X. That will be attractive in some settings, such as schools. (Or, ahem, can you say network computer?)
Mac OS X Server will include a specially configured version of the
ubiquitous Apache Web server and Apple's own WebObjects application
server. It will come with unlimited client licenses for less than
$1,000, though I suspect many customers will opt for the specially
configured G3 server box for less than $5,000. If Apple adds its
customary ease of use, that will be a terrific bundle.
Is Apple going to displace Wintel in the enterprise? Of course not. But choice is always better than no choice. Creativity is alive and well at Infinite Loop in Cupertino, Calif. -- and that's good news for
everybody.
computerworld.com
And when Server OS X shows its INTC and SPARC capabilities for Mac clients you will know why you held AAPL stock .
Jim K. |
