Do you take you Mac to your job (which is Window-centric world)?

[YS2003]

I often take my iBook and Fujitsu along with me in addition to my work Dell notebook PC. My company's IT has a tight control on what model of PC employees can purchase (only Dell and a few model options only).

I use my Mac (iBook on the road, PBs at home) for presentation, proposal, and marketing materials and export them to my Dell PC.

In the recent big company meeting (2 days in the different venues), I used Keynote 3 to do my presentation, while the rest of the presenters are using corporate standard PowerPoint (I also use Office 2004, by the way) on Windows PCs. I think my presentation went smoothly and was done to the key points (I watch the grand master of presenter Steve Jobs when he does his key notes presentations at the major Apple events).

Interestingly, several presenters' PCs stalled at the beginning. Also, my colleague PC locked up (something about the network thing; for some reasons, he was not even able to boot up without getting into network) and I had to use my Mac to run a PowerPoint presentation (that was a joint presentation by my office and myself) For my own turn, I hook up my Mac with VGA interface and get going in no time without missing a tempo. After that, one of my colleagues was talking about the current Mac commercials.

VP and Director were present in the meeting; so, there is always a hope that the company might bend its rule on "Windose exclusivity" policy.

 

[ejb190]

I used to use my Powerbooks for presentations when I was an ag extension agent. The only options for PC's were shared systems which were, in my opinion, too darned big. By the time you grabbed your Save-A-Talk Kit® (A toolbox with an extension cord, markers, pens, business cards, pliers, tape, and a famous three to two prong adaptor!), your briefcase, your props (sometimes considerable amount), and your LCD projector, the last thing you wanted was a brick of a computer. My 12" PB did the trick nicely.

I have been waiting for my new computer since I started working for the State in April. In the meantime I have been using my trusty Powerbook to get me through. The only thing I am missing is a newer version of FileMaker Pro, and that's because I am not going to go out and buy it right now.

On a side note, the state's IT department called me yesterday to come down and hook up my computer in my office (which is in my home). The irony of this is:
1) I don't have a state computer (and he didn't have it either)
2) After reading and signing the state's computer policy (absolutely no personal use of state equipment or services) I am instituting the opposite - no work use of personal equipment and considering the fiber optic in my house is mine, there is nothing to hook the computer into.
3) I work in the field a lot and was three hours from home at the time he wanted me to be there.

Sheesh.

 

[kerryliu]

Great! you've done a good job. Jobs will very happy after looked your story.
Actually in my studying enviroment my ibook is also the lonely. But it has attracted many people and the good performance has made my friends enviable.

 

[mactastic]

Not so much these days, but at my last job I did bring it quite a bit. Problem is, the program I run most at work is AutoCad, and that requires VPC on my TiBook, so I was always having to admit that my computer couldn't handle that job in any capacity other than as an emergency backup to my regular computer.

However, there were a few times that involved presenting things on an external monitor that really showed my machine off. On one occasion my boss's computer couldn't get the projector to show up no matter what he did, so I whipped out my TiBook, woke it up, connected it, told it to recognize the monitor and proceeded with the show. Once my boss gave up with his machine it took me less than one minute to be up and ready to present.

On another occasion I helped a consultant who's computer was having the same problem, so I had him drop the file on my flash drive, transferred it to my machine, and presto! saved his ass.

Now if only I had a new MacBook so that I could run Windows (and by extension, AutoCad) natively...

 

[yg17]

At my summer internship, absolutely not. IT had very strict rules about what computers can be in the building and connect to the network, I guess they worry about people bringing in viruses

At my college job, working at the helpdesk, yes. Because, we have to support Macs as well, but we don't actually have one, and I'm able to work a lot better when I can follow along when giving someone instructions. So if someone calls in with a Mac problem, I use my PowerBook to help them.