Mac in the Enterprise: An Odyssey
Pages: 1, 2, 3
The Next Step
By late 2001 I was comfortable enough with the new system that I began to roll it out to the enterprise. We now have about 99 percent of our Macs upgraded to Mac OS X 10.1.5 and running with hardly a hitch. There is only one application (terminal emulation) that we still need to run under OS 9 (technically speaking, it runs in Classic mode under OS X), and it's coming under fire.
There is now at least one OS X commercial terminal emulation program with the advanced features we need to access our legacy system. I have tested the trial version and found it to be an elegant, functional program that indeed runs natively under OS X. Rumor has it that the next major release of OS X (v. 10.2, code-named Jaguar) will include a much more advanced Terminal program, which should have all of the features we need for terminal emulation, but also more advanced features for System and Network Administration.
Given the current state of the economy, all of these developments in the Mac world have come at a most opportune time. Any IS Manager must feel the pressure, whether from upper management or just from reading the news, to keep IT costs at an absolute minimum. Without the open source/open support that has evolved over the past year or two, we would not have been able to make the significant improvements in Systems and Network Administration that we have seen at Aqua-Flo.
As the level of sophistication grows, we will be able to keep closer tabs on performance and develop more effective ways to keep performance optimized. While it may require some additional man-hours to do the monitoring and optimizing of the growing list of server and network equipment, we have already proven that the gains in performance can outweigh the additional labor costs.
On the software front, the emergence of low-cost and open source development tools means that we can devote a larger fraction of our resources to obtaining the key personnel and advanced hardware that will be needed to support a full-fledged e-Commerce site. We will be able to produce a more functional, more scalable solution than would have been possible just a couple of years ago. At the same time, the technologies that are used in modern Web site development will be available to us for the development of new approaches to data access and information sharing. We will be able to provide management with direct access to critical data, bypassing cumbersome report-writing procedures. We will be able to provide employee access to corporate forms, policies and procedures, and open selected company information and applications to access by selected customers or vendors.
The Thrill is Back
From my perspective, the opportunity to apply the unique capabilities of the Mac platform to traditional Systems and Network Administration, as well as to be involved in ground breaking new Web technologies is extremely exciting. The Mac is emerging as the new platform of choice for more and more IS/IT managers, validating the decision that many users made years ago.
Marley Graham is IS Manager for Aqua-Flo Supply, a distributor of irrigation supplies in Southern California.
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Showing messages 1 through 6 of 6.
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There is still plenty of growing needed.
2002-11-19 10:32:58 rtmoose73 [Reply | View]
There is a soft underbelly in the Mac enterprise. With the advent of Mac OS X Server (and recent updates) there is real power in the Mac enterprise, but it is far from a complete solution.
Documentation is poor if not nonexistent. Network services are operational, but can be buggy and are not fully fleshed out. And there is a real lack of guidance and direction with "Best practices" in the application of these services.
Anyone who has configured an Open Directory server with auto mounted shares can tell you they (Apple) are not done yet. There is no redundancy in critical services. For example, you can not replicate an LDAP Open Directory server for load balancing and redundancy (without great leaps of self taught unix hacking).
I really enjoy Mac OS X. It is a dream to administer and use. The platform has come a long way and most no longer feel that we have "hide" our macs in the business community. The strategy that MS sells with there enterprise products is important because it is tested and sold with a direction. But Mac OS X is not yet a major threat to MS and the power of an NT domain or Active Directory. But it can be with the tested strategies for success and more mature software.
In the mean time websites like this are the greatest resource for admins and power users. But we must continue open and frank conversations about the good and the bad.
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Teleconferencing on OS X
2002-07-31 21:18:43 jinnyk [Reply | View]
While it wasn't specifically designed for teleconferencing, Apple's QuickTime Broadcaster in combination with other QuickTime app/server could serve as a good teleconferencing solution (sans collaboration tools of Netmeeting).
If anything, all of what Apple provides as part of QT technology takes a lot of work out of someone who'd be interested in developing a NetMeeting equivalent application.
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90%
2002-07-27 18:06:44 dahlenu [Reply | View]
I would say the reasons for not using Macs in the enterprise are 90% NOT technology related. It isn't about interoperability, file sharing, formats etc. It's a psychological block. I know many IT Managers that state "using Microsoft technology" as a *strategy*, which is of course laughable, but that's the way it is.
Macs are in for a chance though, mostly due to Microsoft's recent behaviour (new licensing etc). As always, monopolies will bring themselves down, by doing something really stupid.
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Interoperability
2002-07-24 20:42:46 azstefano [Reply | View]
I agree that OS-X's unix underpinnings are a huge asset to bringing the Mac back into the enterprise space. I work for an engineering company whose user base suffered an involuntary reverse migration in the name of "centralization of IT resources" The move cost way more than it saved, and resulted in vastly poorer service.
I kept my Mac and have had few problems in a Solaris/PC environment since protocols like Appletalk are no longer needed. And I use my iBook frequently with ported Unix apps in X.
But - one huge deficit in what is available for OS-X is the teleconferencing applications. My company frequently uses NetMeeting to replace business trips. I thought the T.120 underpinnings of NetMeeting were originally open-source. Netopia marketed NetMeeting for the Mac a while back, but one of their reps told me that Microsoft "stopped licensing the technology to them" before the last major rev.
This needs to be addressed for Macs to be able to coexist in the cross-platform business arena. And - I believe Apple *must* reclaim some of the business segment for it to be able to increase overall share significantly. Capability to make iMovies of the kids does not have sufficient traction to make a meaningful difference, Pixar notwithstanding.
APPLE APPLIANCE GROUP: Start a group in Apple to research entry points for Apple hardware as appliances on Enterprise networks. This can range from Fax Server (I would suggested they form strategic partnerships with Brooktrout and a company like Biscom for Enterprise or SMB fax server). They might also look for everything like VPN, DIAL-IN routers, etc. Apple can become the way SMB can run like an Enterprise at half of the price.
COLLABORATION GROUP: Move ical,ichat, Address Book, etc to a Groove Network model. While the desktops applications develop, work with IBM and MSFT to allow these tool to integrate with Domino, Websphere, Exchange, AD, etc. Collaboration is the next big thing
Intergrate REMOTE DESKTOP into a Collaboration suite. I would pay more for this !!!!