Based on open standards from its UNIX foundation up, the Mac easily integrates with your institution’s network. And it’s the only system designed to make multiplatform environments practical. In fact, it’s a multiplatform environment all by itself.

 

The Mac comes ready for your infrastructure

You can rest assured that the Mac integrates with existing IP-based networks and can access existing network services provided by Mac, Windows, and Linux servers. Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server are POSIX-compliant UNIX operating systems that leverage BSD sockets and a proven TCP/IP stack. And Mac OS X can integrate with popular directory services through plug-in architectures — it even comes with one for Microsoft’s Active Directory.

Built-in Bonjour networking technology (based on the open source Zeroconf protocol) lets the Mac and any other Bonjour-enabled clients, printers, and devices discover one another automatically. Mac OS X also comes with drivers for most peripherals — whether they use USB, FireWire, Ethernet, or Bluetooth — so it works with your existing equipment right from the start.

 

Mac or PC? You don’t really have to choose.

Mac users can easily open files created on a PC and vice versa, but that’s just for starters. A new Mac is basically two computers in one. It not only runs all the applications that are made for the Mac, it also runs Windows XP, Vista, and Windows applications (each sold separately) at native speeds.

Built into Mac OS X, Boot Camp lets users restart the Mac using either Mac OS X or Windows. You can also install free BootPicker software, which lets students simply choose an operating system when they log in — something that’s very handy for labs.

You can even let users run Mac OS X and Windows side by side using third-party software, like VMware Fusion or Parallels Desktop (sold separately) for Mac. However you do it, you’re delivering all the features of a Mac, along with the ability to run the PC applications that faculty or students might need.

 

On the network, on the move.

The Mac can be configured to automatically join your wired and wireless networks, so students and educators are connected as soon as they start up. Automatic networking also means students with MacBook computers can move from one network location to another without reconfiguring their systems. It’s easy to specify network settings in Location Manager. And once a location is set up, all a student has to do is select it, and the system switches to the right preferences.