The Advisers Group

Which Operating System is right for your business?

There are three basic choices, Windows, Mac, or Linux. What you really need to focus on is compatibility.

In most cases, I recommend a Windows based PC  with Vista. The majority of PCs out there today are based on Windows and that ensures application compatibility. It is also easy to find an IT consultant or PC technician that can help with your issues. Windows PCs can be purchased new for under $700 and that includes most of the software needed to run your business.

I’m not trying to disparage you from going with a Mac or Linux PC, if you want to go with them great. They both have there place and can easily fit in a business environment.

The Mac has a lot of the same applications as the PC does but in my opinion they are still more suited to the graphics environment. If I were running a graphics house or a print shop, I would not hesitate from purchasing a Mac.

I am a Linux fan and do all of my web development on a Linux box. I have found that there are a lot of resources online to help with Linux support but there is not as much support locally unless you live near a college or university with an IT program.

When it comes to Network Operating Systems, you there are a lot of decisions to make.

You can stay with a peer to peer network that is built into all of the new operating systems or if you require more scalability you need to look into a client server model.

I use Windows Small Business Server 2003 (SBS2003) for my SOHO network. It has served me well for many years and it is easy to administer. It’s inexpensive for most small business and there is plenty of local and on-line support for it. SBS2008 is out now but for many business the difference in cost may keep them at SBS2003.

IBM has a new offering called Lotus Foundation server. Like SBS it is cost effective and easy to manage.

If you have an older PC that can function as a server, you have some technical ability, and you don’t want to spend any money on a Server OS I would suggest you look into Linux. Several builds and distributions are available to give you similar functionality to SBS and Lotus Foundations but at no cost. I used SME Server for many years prior to moving to SBS2003