Update on Antioch School District's Mac vs. Windows Platform Debate

- 2003.04.03

The follow-up to last week's Need Macs for Your Classroom? Write a Grant isn't finished yet, so we're providing an update on the platform debates in the Antioch School District covered in Defending the Mac in Three Minutes or Less and other articles. This article was written on March 22. dk

Jeff Adkins is a science teacher who isn't afraid to state his preferences in computing platforms. In his classroom he has everything from a beige All-in-One to a a G4 XServe, and they all work together nicely. He calls himself the "poster child for technology integration" in the classroom. He was the 2006 Outstanding Educator of the Year for the California Computer Using Educators (CUE) organization. He also maintains a site for astronomy teachers at www.AstronomyTeacher.com.

Recent Mac Lab Reports

• Microsoft Word 2004 vs. iWork Pages 1.0 for writing a book, 01.10. Microsoft Word is great for technical writing, powerful yet slow, while Pages lets you concentrate on just writing, making it great for novels.
• iWeb a great tool for quickly creating an attractive website, 09.11. Apple's iWeb software isn't just easy to use, it also integrates nicely with .mac and other programs in the iLife bundle.
• Use your Bluetooth phone to control your Mac? Maybe, 02.27. Salling Clicker software turns many Bluetooth phones into remote controls for Bluetooth-equipped Macs.
• Two more markets the iPhone could conquer, 02.01. How Apple could redefine the ebook and calculator markets with a pair of free apps for the iPhone.
• More in the Mac Lab Report index.

Links for the Day

• Mac of the Day: 17" iMac G4/800 MHz, July 2002 - The iMac 'grows up' with a 17" 1440 x 900 display.
• Group of the Day: MichiMac is our list for Mac users in Michigan.
  
• December 3 in LEM history: 01: The future of low-end Macs - Internet charges and Low End Mac - 02: A smooth switch with Move2Mac - 04: Upgrading from Mac OS 9 to 10.3 - PC malware: The best reasons to use a Mac - No sympathy for bashing Macs in schools - 'Book fragility - 07: Switching to Mac tripled my productivity - Leopard on a G3 iMac (with a G4 upgrade)

Recent Content on Low End Mac

• OS X More Efficient than Linux, Snow Leopard and PowerPC Macs, and Eudora Woes, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 12.03. A user reports both Panther and Leopard run more smoothly and use memory more efficiently than Linux. Also thoughts on PowerPC abandonment in Snow Leopard and replacing Eudora in Leopard.
• The Leopard Experience at 867 MHz, Simon Royal, Mac Spectrum, 12.02. Mac OS X 10.5 requires an 867 MHz G4 with 512 MB of memory, but is performance really acceptable on a minimum spec system?
• A Used 17" PowerBook as a Budget Notebook Alternative, Charles W. Moore, 'Book Value, 12.02. Sure, you can buy a refurbished 13.3" MacBook for under $900, but you could also have an expansive, feature laden 17" PowerBook in the same price range.
• The Very Best Macs: Sometimes Apple Just Nails It, Andrew J Fishkin, Best Tools for the Job, 12.01. Apple has produced lots of good Macs, a few dogs, and some 'best of breed' models that stand apart from the pack.
• Apple Could Buy Dell, and Linux Is No Threat to Mac OS X, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 12.01. Apple has the cash to buy Dell outright, and the idea has some merit. Also, why Linux still isn't ready to displace the Mac OS.
• More links in our archive.

Recent Deals

• Best PowerBook G3 Deals, 12.03. Used 14" WallStreet G3/266 MHz, $90; Lombard G3/400 MHz, $150; Pismo G3/400 MHz, $300; 500 MHz, $350.
• Best 17" PowerBook G4 Deals, 12.03. Used 1.5 GHz, $685; 1.67 GHz, $699.
• Best Intel iMac Deals, 12.03. Used 17" 1.83 GHz, $550; 20" 2.0, $650; refurb 20" 2.4, $999; 2.66, $1,299; 24" 2.8, $1,549; 3.06, $1,899; rebates and free shipping on new.
• Best Mac OS X 10.4 'Tiger' Deals, 12.02. DVD upgrade from 10.3, $75; full version, $129; family pack, $200; 10-user Server, $350; unlimited users, $400.
• Best iMac G5 Deals, 12.02. Used 17" 1.6 GHz Combo, $400; 1.8 SuperDrive, $450; 1.9 iSight, $599; 20" 1.8 GHz, $500; 2.0, $600; 2.1 iSight, $700. Shipping additional.
• Best 17" MacBook Pro Deals, 12.02. Used 2.16 GHz Core Duo, $1,330; 2.33 Core 2, $1,499; close-out, 2.4, $1,800 after rebate; new 2.5, $2,000 a/r; new hi-res, $2,499 a/r; refurb 2.6, $2,399.
• Best iPod nano Deals, 12.01. Refurb 3G/4 GB, $79; new, $105; refurb 8 GB, $99; new, $115; 3G/8 GB, $134; 16 GB, $174. Prices include ground shipping.
• Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 12.01. Used 1.5 GHz SuperDrive, $481/C$599 plus shipping.
• Best Mac Pro Deals, 12.01. Used 3.0 GHz 4-core, $2,102; new 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,949 after rebate; 2.8 4-core, $2,099 a/r; 8-core, $2,515 a/r; 3.0 $3,320 a/r; 3.2, $4,099 a/r.
• More deals in our archive.

Mac Lab Report copyright © 2000-08 by Jeff Adkins. Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2008 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
  LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
  Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
  Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
  PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
  Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.