Internetweek.com turns its attention to an interesting case study that speaks well for both the Mac and Linux in a recent article entitled Why Mid-Size Company Is Sticking By The Mac.
Antone Gonsalves writes about Pentagon Technologies Group Inc., a Livermore, Calif.-based company that services equipment used in semiconductor plants. In addition to an IT infrastructure that leverages Mac OS X system and Linux boxes almost exclusively, “… the majority of office and factory workers use Apple Macs,” said Gonsalves.
The one holdout is a Windows-based accounting system, according to the report. Pentagon uses custom applications running on Xserves. Some data processing happens Linux boxes, which the company’s CIO said aren’t a big switch from OS X because “MySQL would run on the OS X server in just the same way.” He added that deploying Windows in their IT environment would require skills they’re not familiar with.
Pentagon also uses GridTalk from GridNote Inc. to pass invoices and purchase orders to its customers. It uses XML-based documents with data stored in a FileMaker database. Customer-facing apps are based on Java, through Orion Application Server from Ironflare AB.
Despite some limitations involving software selection, Mac OS X has some advantages, Gonsalves noted — like less likely hacker intrusions. “… for a company the size of Pentagon, Apple, and now Linux, works. And [it’s] unlikely the company will change anytime soon.”
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